How Do You Do It?

[Trek420]

I've been sponsored by complete strangers, don't leave home without your pledge forms and I know people who make business cards with their pledge site on it. You never know when you will meet people who care deeply about the cause you are riding for (one tip is wear the t-shirt a lot )

Bikegoddess on the board here would chat up the bus riders on the way to work, got them all...and the driver...to sponsor her on AIDS ride 4.

There are tips here...

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showt...ndraising+tips

I'm gonna shake down kids for milk money

[Toni]

This may sound a little goofy but I got dressed in my riding clothes, from helmet to clipless shoes, and made a sign for the cause I was riding for (Tour de Pink-to sponsor mammograms for underserved women in Houston) and stood out in front of a college and asked people to fill my helmet (I used an extra one with a bowl in it) for mammograms.......after 6 hours I collected $275.00 ($40.00 in change!!) I was handing out a flyer with my personal page for the site and several people later did log on and donate. Complete strangers. Now, I know I looked a tad bit ridiculous, I am close to 50 years old, but it was worth it.

Good luck!!

[AllezGirl]

I raised $4,000 for the Breast Cancer 3-Day. I'm not big of the face-to-face approach, so I wrote a letter (using the form letters that they had in their data base), printed the letters and pledge forms on colored paper so they wouldn't get easily lost in the mail pile and included a self addressed stamped envelope. Then I sent the letters to everyone on my christmas card list.

The biggest thing you have to remember is that you are not asking for money. You are asking them to donate to a cause that you beleive in. If they say no, they aren't saying no to you. It's not personal. When you can get past that hurdle, it's easier to ask anyone and everyone.

[GLC1968]

I did something similar to Allezgirl. I wrote a letter using the examples from our local chapter as a guide. I made it personal by adding some quick snippets about some of the people I've met with MS in our fundraising efforts.

I then sent it to everyone on our wedding guest list! Then I called my mom and asked her for some names...and I sent a slightly different letter to her friends (ones where I added my maiden name so that they'd know who I was).

I raised over $2300 and the vast bulk of that was from these letters.

I'm in the process of putting together the thank you letter with a story about the ride, photos and a reminder that we plan to do the same ride next year as well.

Next year, we will expand this to a door-to-door effort in our neighborhood. Oh, and asking local businesses is also good.

[pooks]

These are great ideas -- and I need some, since I made my minimum for the Livestrong ride but my husband hasn't. He doesn't have a blog and just can't bring himself to ask people outright. He's gotten some donations from his sigline link, though.

If he doesn't pick up enough, I'm going to offer my services on a screenwriting bulletin board, to do notes/critique on scripts if people will donate to my husband's ride. I haven't decided how much to ask them to donate, but in this situation I may ask them to donate a minimum of 50 dollars, because that's a very reasonable charge.

So, bartering or auctioning off services might be another way.