Washington/Alaska

Checklist for Fundraising 102

• Personalize your fundraising website
• Update your status on Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. and include your fundraising webpage address
• Using your donor network from Fundraising 101, send out your first fundraising e-mail
• Ask donors in your e-mail to let you know if their company matches - it's a great way to double the size of the donation!
• Explore the fundraising materials and resources available on the Fundraising Toolkit tab in eTools
• When you've reached a milestone in your training or fundraising, update your status again and send out another note to everyone in your donor network
• Update your status again and again!  You'd be surprised how many people respond to status updates by donating
• About 10 days before your final fundraising deadline, send another note to your donor network - for many participants, this final push message increases the fundraising total, often by as much as 30%!
• Post to your fundraising page and your social network sites from your event weekend - share your success and inspire still more people in your network to give by using a finish line photo or inspiring event weekend story

Where is my fundraising page?  How do I sign in?

Within a day or two of registering for Team In Training, you'll receive an email containing your eTools username and password.  This message contains links to the personal fundraising page where your donors will go to give and the eTools account where you will sign in and customize your page.   If you?re not seeing the email, it may have been caught in your spam filter.  Just go to http://etools.teamintraining.org.signin , click the Forgot Password link, and enter the email you provided on your TNT registration form.  You can also ask your team manager to resend you the link at any time. 

Customize Your Fundraising Webpage

Go to the Personalize Pages tab at the top right of the screen to edit your text and add photos. Have fun! Each week after you train with your team, update your text and add new photos to show off how far you've come.

The Page Settings tab lets you control the way your fundraising thermometer, top donors and contributor comments show up, or change your page title, personalize your page URL, or even redirect your page URL to land on a personal blog or website.

Click the My Account tab at the top left of the screen to change your password, username or personal account information.

Tip! Create a team fundraising page!
You can request a joint webpage to fundraise with your TNT friends. When someone donates to the joint page, the donation gets split evenly among everyone on the team. Contact your team manager if you want to set up a team webpage.

Sending Your First Email Blast

Here are some helpful tips for a successful email blast:

• Send individual messages rather than mass e-mails to increase response.
• Consider using a mail merge to personalize the message.
• Keep the email short and simple and include your link.
• Make sure you still include the who, what, where, when, why, and a call to action (ask for the donation!).
• Include your personal story and reasons for joining the Team.
• Include a date by which you want your donors to give (Bold or underline this to make sure it stands out).
• Use a catchy subject line such as: "Training for a cure", "Saving lives, 1 mile at a time", "I'm running or walking a marathon!", "I'm hiking for a cure".
• Ask your donors to forward on your email to those who may also want to support your cause.

Tip! Time your mailing.
Send emails as early in the day and early in the week as possible. Get your email ready to go over the weekend or the night before, and then hit "send" when you wake up. Many people are more inclined to pay attention to emails in the morning and on Monday and Tuesday.

Time your emails and letters to arrive around payday. People are more generous when they have fresh money in the bank!

Update Your Status: Sample Posts for Facebook and Twitter

• Vicky - is wondering who will be the first to donate to help me beat blood cancers! My Fundraising Page
• Leah - How long does it take to run 13.1 miles? I?m going to find out: http://mywebsitehere
• Travis - Save the date?May 30th, 6 to 9 p.m. at Tonic! Start your Saturday night strong with your favorite TNT coaches and mentors as we take over the bar! We'll be pouring drinks and raising funds for our favorite cause. See you there...and Go Team!
• Janet - says "don't just stand for something - ride/run/walk/hike/tri for it!" Join me.
• Erika - went from surgery, to Hawaii, to 55 miles on her bike. Support me all the way to a century! http://mywebsitehere
• Jen - I want to screen "The Room" as a fundraiser for my event: http://mywebsitehere. Does anyone have ideas for venues?
• Barb - is hiking higher than Mt. Everest this summer to beat blood cancers. Please support me in helping cure leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma. Donate at http://mywebsitehere.

Tip! Let your friends and family donate to you on Facebook!
Post your fundraising webpage address into your daily status update in Facebook!

Tip! Use YouTube to ask for donations and say thank you on video!
Go to YouTube.com and type in "team in training" to see examples of the creative videos TNT participants from around the country have put together.

Managing Your Donations in eTools

When someone donates to you, their donation amount, name and contact details will all appear on your eTools account. Just log on to eTools at http://etools.teamintraining.org.signin and click on the Donations tab.

• If they donate online through your page, their donation will show up on your page immediately.
• If they donate to you by mail or in person, submit the donation with a Participant Donor Form. When Paycor processes it, they'll add it to your webpage.

Click the Donations tab to get a detailed list of all your donations. From here you can edit donor privacy, look up donor contact information, or export your donor list to a spreadsheet program.

Tip! Easy way to get to eTools!!
If you don?t want to remember another web address, you can just go to www.teamintraining.org and click on Sign In to access your eTools account. 

What Fundraising Documents Can You Find on Your eFundraising Page?

Not only is your fundraising page a place where your friends and family can easily see your progress and securely donate, but it has many important resources in the Fundraising Toolbox. To get here, log-in and click on the Fundraising Toolbox tab. Then scroll down for fundraising ideas and documents available for download...

• Getting Started Guide
• Logos
• Fact Sheets about LLS, TNT and Mission Information
• Sample Fundraising Letters
• IRS Determination Letter
• Matching Gifts policies & Corporate Sponsorship Info
• Rock Star Fundraising "how to" sheets
• Third Party Fundraising Agreement for events
• Important Dates & Deadlines
• Donation Processing Instructions

Troubleshooting, Questions and Support

We built this system for YOU, so if you've encountered a bug or you'd just like a little support in customizing your webpage and making full use of the resources available on eTools, please let us know!  You can reach our dedicated support services staff at  supportservices@lls.org or call 888-LLS-7177.