From start to finish line: How to host a charity walk

Big races like the Boston Marathon bring in millions of dollars for charity every year. While hosting a run or walk fundraiser at that scale may be unrealistic for smaller organizations, its success underscores a huge, low-cost, high-reward opportunity for nonprofits. All you need to get going is a fundraising goal, a location, and a group of enthusiastic runners. 

In this article, we’ll break down everything you need to know about planning a charity run into ten simple steps and share examples from successful 5k fundraisers and other charity walks and runs by real changemakers.

How to organize a 5k fundraiser or charity run in 10 steps 

This brief overview will make organizing your charity run—or walkathon, bikeathon, or half-marathon—a cinch. Ready, set, go!

Step 1. Start planning early ⏰

Whether it’s your first charity run or your tenth, you need to give yourself adequate time to plan and course-correct if needed. You’ll likely be recruiting and coordinating volunteers, vendors, and charity partners, as well as handling marketing and securing permits. 

Aim to start planning at least six months out. If you’re asking local businesses to provide free snacks and drinks, for example, it could take several months to hear back, hammer out a deal, and receive the supplies.

Another reason to start as early as possible? You’ll give your participants time to train! It can take at least seven weeks for someone to prepare for a 5k, whether they’re a newbie or a regular runner. The more notice you give, the bigger your pool of participants will be.

2. Select the format 🌎

Both in-person and virtual charity runs are great options for nonprofits that want to bring their communities together and raise funds at the same time. 

In-person charity runs can create camaraderie, energize the competition, and allow everyone to physically come together to raise funds. Virtual runs, however, can be just as exciting and successful and are practical for nonprofits whose supporters are spread far and wide. Alternatively, many nonprofits organize virtual walk fundraisers with an in-person element to create a successful hybrid charity walk. 

To select which option is best for your cause, consider the following:

• Audience: Assess whether you’re looking to target your local community or a broader, possibly global, pool of supporters. ‍
• Accessibility needs: Some participants, especially those in remote areas or with mobility challenges, might prefer a virtual run for convenience.
• ‍Available resources: For some nonprofits, an in-person run is ideal, given their access to a safe course, scenic routes, or necessary equipment. For others who might not have the resources, a virtual charity run could be more feasible.

Another consideration is whether your event will be a walk for charity or a running race, like a 5k race fundraiser. While fundraising walks are more accessible, events like a 5k charity run can stoke some major competition—and dollars for your cause. Better yet, create opportunities for both kinds of activities to happen concurrently. 

3. Map out your course 🌄

Your choice of location, distance, and terrain (flat, hilly, roadside, etc.) will impact who shows up on race day. So, think carefully about the demographic you’re targeting.

For instance, if your participants will mostly be local elementary school students and their parents, you might opt for a charity 5k run/walk that starts and ends in a convenient, central area, like the school or a nearby park.

Here’s a handy list of some of the most common race lengths to help you plan:

• 5k: 3.1 miles
• 10k: 6.2 miles
• Half-marathon: 13.1 miles
• Marathon: 26.2 miles

If you host a virtual run for charity—like this amazing school fundraiser that raised almost $80K—there’s a lot more flexibility in terms of where and how far participants choose to run. You can simply set a date and challenge your supporters to run their best time or distance in support of your cause.

4. Choose an interesting theme 👯

A theme isn’t required for your charity run, but it’s worth your while for a few reasons. First, it’s a great hook to attract people who aren’t familiar with your cause. Walk a Mile in Her Shoes gets consistent publicity every year because men and women walk in high heels to confront gender stereotypes and combat sexualized violence.

Second, a unique theme can help you stand out from the many other annual marathon events that pop up in the fall and spring. And third, a theme unites your participants and creates camaraderie!

More to explore

Need some theme inspiration for your next charity walk? Check out these fundraising run ideas →

5. Determine the resources you’ll need 🚰

Now that you have an idea of the what, when, and where of your run, you can dig into the finer details. For instance, for in-person events, you’ll want to consider whether you need:

• Staff members or volunteers 
• Permits and licensing 
• Materials like check-in tables, race bibs, physical awards, etc.

For a virtual run, you’ll want to consider what kind of online platform you’ll use and whether it has:

• Easy team and individual sign-up options
• Live streaming capabilities
• Marketing and communications tools
• Interactive elements like leaderboards 

6. Secure sponsors 💰

Securing sponsors is one of the best ways to increase your margins for your event. Sponsors can cover admin expenses related to the event, or even pay for marketing costs.

To secure sponsors, you’ll need to:

• Find the right supporters: Reach out to local restaurants, retail stores, gyms, and corporate companies. For virtual events, consider global or national brands that align with your nonprofit's mission and might want to participate.
• Create sponsorship packages: Include benefits such as logo placement on event materials, banners, and race-day signage. You might even offer sponsors mentions in press releases, social media, and event programs.
• Send proposals: When writing your sponsorship proposal, make sure it’s personalized and enticing—include data and testimonials from previous events to demonstrate the value of sponsorship and how the funds will benefit the cause and the community.

7. Build a fundraising event page 📱

Next, you’ll want to create a fundraising event page where participants sign up and register, find race details, and raise funds.

When designing your page, make sure it’s:

• User-friendly: Create a layout that is easy to navigate and use.
• On-brand: Incorporate your organization's logo, colors, and fonts to maintain brand consistency.
• Detailed: Don’t forget to include essential details like date, time, location, and agenda.
• Actionable: Use prominent donation buttons and include detailed information on the impact of the event. 
• Visual: Use high-quality images and videos related to the event or cause (think photos from past events, beneficiary stories, etc.)

8. Spread the word about your charity run 📣

A great marketing strategy combines online channels (email, social media posts, and web) with offline channels (flyers, print ads, phone calls, and direct mail), tailored to your audience.

Evaluate which channels they engage with most and focus your efforts there. To recruit charity runners, you can start with:

• Local gyms and running clubs
• Social media fitness groups
• Health and wellness stores

What about your campaign wording and imagery? Promote your event with materials that speak to your target audience. They might be locals just trying to get their steps in, avid athletes aiming to set records, or long-time champions of your cause.

9. Decide how you’ll raise money 💸

When it comes to raising money with a charity run, there are three popular tactics:

• Sell tickets to your event or charge a registration fee for individuals and teams.
• Set a fundraising goal for each participant and encourage them to use peer-to-peer fundraising (raising funds from their social network) to reach it.
• Require participants to raise a minimum amount of money to qualify for the run.

A helpful way to determine your approach is to work backward from your fundraising goal. Let’s say you want to raise $15,000 and you estimate you’ll have 125 runners: 

$15,000 ÷ 125 runners = $120 per runner

A $120 entry fee to run for charity would likely raise some eyebrows. However, a $120 goal for each runner is much easier to digest because they can ask their friends, family, co-workers, and employers to pitch in.

If you go the peer fundraising route, equip your fundraisers for success! Choose a user-friendly peer-to-peer fundraising platform and provide tips on how to ask their network for donations.

10. Create a follow-up strategy 🙏

After weeks or months of planning, you don’t want to lose support at the finish line! Plan how you’ll stay engaged with donors and participants after race day. Here’s what your post-event follow-up messaging should include:

• A personalized thank-you note: Include their name and other details, like the size of their gift and what it helped your team accomplish.
• Request for feedback: Ask participants to give five minutes to share their thoughts on the run and suggestions for future events through an online survey.
• Last reminder to give: Celebrate your successes and encourage supporters to keep the momentum by making another gift or signing up for recurring donations. You know the value of recurring gifts, but your donors may not! Explain the benefits and offer program perks to increase sign-ups.

With planning done, you’re ready to kick off your charity run!

Ideas to boost donations (and fun) at your charity run 

As a fundraiser, your challenge is to create an experience that’s worth getting out the running shoes for. These ideas not only help you raise funds and keep engagement levels high throughout your event, but they’re just plain fun.

• Set exciting challenges 🏆 There’s nothing like friendly competition to motivate your participants. Secure donated prizes and award them for categories like “Most Money Raised” and “Most Team Spirit,” like this Fun Run. For self-paced, virtual events, you could do “Longest Distance.”
• Sell official charity run gear 🎽 You’d be surprised how many of your supporters would sweat to success in your official marathon T-shirt. You can also offer sweatbands or water bottles.
• Throw an after party 🎉 The hard work is over for now, so celebrate! Play music, offer inexpensive games and activities (think yoga, kids face painting, or cornhole) and sell snacks to refuel.
• Secure a gift match 💞 Donation matches let you work smarter, not harder, toward your fundraising goal. A matching gift challenge can light a fire under your supporters and inspire them to keep reaching out for your cause. Our donation matching guide shows you how to get started.‍
• Get social 📸 Bring in more funds by challenging participants to post the best photos or videos related to the event. Winners get a prize!‍
• Stoke the competition 🔥 Display real-time leaderboards—whether your event is in-person or virtual—to get participants excited to win.‍
• Accept donations 💸  For in-person events, collect donations via Venmo or Apple Pay. For virtual runs, allow participants to make an online donation at any point with donation buttons and custom widgets. And of course, let donors pay how they want to—via credit card, PayPal, or even Google Pay.‍
• Add a raffle or auction 🎟️ Whether your event is virtual, hybrid, or in-person, including a raffle or auction with fun prizes is sure to encourage additional donations.

It’s a marathon, not a sprint 👟

Charity runs and walks for a cause are some of the most well-attended, lucrative fundraising events, but like all good things, they take time to plan. 

There’s a lot to do, but we can help. Our free fundraising platform lets you manage charity events, create unlimited fundraising pages, collect donations, and interact with your followers, all without breaking a sweat (or the bank)!  Create your free Givebutter account today to get started.