Races, Marathons, 5 k's
Branding your Marathon, 5k, 10k & Half Marathon
Getting custom t shirts, awards medals, trophies, and merchandise for your next race is a big deal. It provides you an opportunity to brand your race event with 100's to even 1000's of runners, walkers, and those that support your event. It also shows a level of gratitude for your support.
Questions to Ask Yourself:
There are many things to consider when making a custom t shirt and having prizes for your marathon, 5k, 10k, or half marathon. Read below to help navigate some of the most common things you should consider.
What is the purpose of your race?
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Are you raising money for a non profit organization?
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Are you raising awareness for a particular cause?
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Cancer​
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Disease
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Birth Defect
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Faith Based Mission
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Human Trafficking
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Non Profit Organization or Association
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How may will participate?
The more runner you have, the cheaper it will be per shirt and item for your runners. You also want to take into consideration any supporting staff you will have, like volunteers. They too will feel appreciated by a simple gift of a t shirt or item.
What is your messaging or theme?
It's important to have a consistent message or theme for your race event.
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What's your color and logo?
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What tag line will send a clear message to the participants?
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What promotional products or items will go with the event or cause? Need ideas?
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Do you want a statement finish line?
Awards, Medals, & Recognition
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What will the top finishers receive for their age group and gender?
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Will all the runners get a medal for finishing?
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Do you want participant names displayed somewhere for everyone to see?
Fundraising ideas to help pay for your marathon, 5k, 10k, half marathon
Finding ways to help cover the costs of your race can be a challenge. After all, it can be expensive if you are providing every participant shirts, awards, promotional merchandise, food, water, and more!
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Here are some ways you can help get costs covered. It's important to remember to build the cost of any advertising you may give your sponsors into the sponsorship level. You shouldn't come out of pocket or erode margin for sponsors.
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Find Sponsors:
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Ask businesses to help cover the cost of t shirts by putting their logo on the back of the race shirt. To calculate how much a sponsor should be, take the total cost of the t shirts and divide it by the number of sponsors you want to have. Then round that number up to the nearest $25, $50, or $100.
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Ask a business to cover the cost of the promotional item by co-branding the event with their company name. Pass on the direct cost of that merchandise to the sponsor or round it up to make a little bit of money.
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Ask someone to sponsor the awards in exchange by co branding the company name as a "presented by"
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Will a business sponsor the event for a lump sum of money in exchange for having banners placed throughout the race course? Could multiple businesses be interested in having banners displayed throughout?
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Have a food or water sponsor that will give you a lump sum of money to cover those costs in exchange for them to have viability to the participants. Perhaps a sign or banner at each of the stations.
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Sell booth or tent space
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Small and local businesses will pay between $100 - $250 to prop up their tent and have a 10' x 10' space where people congrats before and after the race event. This gives them the opportunity to build their brand and sell their products or service to participants. It's a great way for them to generate more leads and earn some money.
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Partner up with local businesses by canvassing the ones where the event will be. Also reach out to associations or the chamber of commerce to see if you can email the information to their members.
