Campaign Happy Hour, Nickies, March 3rd

What: Happy Hour to celebrate the I Think I Can Campaign, or to celebrate the joy of a good drink

Where: Nickies, 466 Haight Street (check out their great reviews)

When: Thursday, March 3, 6-9 PM (Come by anytime)

Why: Free appetizers, some free prizes to give away, fun crowd, good booze, learn more about what the 2011 Campaign participants are doing

Who should come:

• Those who participate in, donate to, or appreciate the I Think I Can Campaign
• Those who would like to learn more about the Campaign
• Those who like to meet other ATC peeps
• Those who like beer meeting their lips
• Those who have friends they would like to introduce to At The Crossroads or the Campaign

Please RSVP to Alison at ithinkican@atthecrossroads.org, and let her know if you are bringing people

Update email example

Yev decided to change her Campaign up a bit, and wanted to update her community.

Hi Friends,

Here's my mid-way update on the I Think I Can Fundraiser. It's been 15 days since I sent a text to anyone! And it's actually been quite manageable, except for a few moments here and there that I really really really just needed to text. :P Ok... I didn't NEED to. And I didn't. But I wanted to real bad. :(

Actually, since the ITIC Campaign is continuing through March into April, I've decided to add an additional condition my campaign: Initially, I'd intended to go right back to texting in March, but now I've decided to change the rules. From March 1 - March 31 only those who donate/have donated will get texts from me. :P

So... if you want to hear from me (via text, at least) in March, just click HERE or go here: http://atthecrossroads.org/campaign/yevgenyachityan and donate!

And listen, I know we're all broke these days, so believe me I understand if even $25 seems like a lot. But honestly, no amount is too small for me to appreciate your support, send you a thank you card, text you in March, or even give you a big smile and hug when I see you. If you wanna throw me $5, I'll love you just the same as if you give me $100. It adds up and it's all going to the same place.

Ok... pandering complete. Thanks for reading my email, guys. I love ya. :)

Yevgenya
xoxo

In-depth update email

Karin wrote a great in-depth update email to let her family and friends know how she's been doing.

Dear Friends and Family-

My Karin Reads, Writes and (Tries to) Publish for At The Crossroads Campaign keeps chugging along. Thanks to John U. for his recent contribution! To see what I've been up to, and to donate, check out my campaign page. That makes $225 raised thus far for ATC. More about I Think I Can (including how to start your own campaign) here.

Last Saturday, February 6th, I had the opportunity to read as part of the Mission Arts Performance Project. For those not familiar, this is grassroots arts event that takes place the first Saturday of every other month in the Mission District of San Francisco. MAPP nights are a little bit magical. Close to a dozen venues have music, art, performance and poetry happening. You can pass by a garage and discover it has been transformed in to a studio; a backyard might become the site of a collaboration between a poet and musician; well established artists perform next to second- time performers. At Casa Sanchez, I took the stage, along with my poet-friend Nicole, and by all accounts it was a success. This was despite, or perhaps due to the fact that we were the only two poets in a line up of clowns.

Yes, you read that correctly. Clowns. There is an element of surprise with MAPP, and for Nicole and I it was being featured with students from a local circus school. I was grateful that no one was in clown face (I find that very creepy), and they were all extremely talented. I read after an experimental band. Nothing makes poetry seem more accessible to the average person than experimental music. They were inspired and generous. And I rocked the mic (as much as I will ever rock a mic) after their performance.

Then came Circus Finelli, and they were amazing. You may have seen them around San Francisco- they are an all woman clown troop. Then Andrea the balloon artist performed ( I still had not figured out the clown theme...finally the MC pointed it out). Then Nicole performed her poetry and sang an original song that was wonderously beautiful. It was a perfect night to read on the back patio of Casa Sanchez- the stars were out and it was surprisingly warm.

I have also sent writing out to an editor for consideration. Next up- another reading or submissions for more publications. I have one friend who keeps urging me to read for Mortified....maybe if I reach my $500 goal I will expose myself to that kind of humiliation.

Thanks for your support for my campaign and ATC. Until the next update,

Karin

P.S. Photos from Casa Sanchez are on the ATC webpage:
http://atthecrossroads.org/campaign/karincotterman2

An example of a short update email

Check out Christine's fabulous short update email to her community!

Hi everyone!

First, I want to say a huge THANK YOU to my first four campaign donors--Damali, Anjali, Lincoln and Anonymous! You guys are the best. Click here to see my Campaign page and donate: http://atthecrossroads.org/campaign/christinesolari2. Do you know that I went to ballet class last Saturday on four hours of sleep? Do you know that when that alarm went off on Saturday morning, all I could think was, "Christine, you don't get to sleep through class when people are putting their money on you attending." Thank you for the motivation!


I've already raised $140, which equals 28 food boxes for ATC clients, and also means I'm off to try a new dance class! I'm taking it easy on myself this weekend by checking out the beginning contemporary class at ODC. While there is a chance I will fall over in a laugh attack midway through, I actually think it will be a solid workout and a good compliment to ballet. Meanwhile, you can go to my campaign page to read my update from last week and consider making a donation to support both my campaign and ATC's youth: http://atthecrossroads.org/campaign/christinesolari2


Thank you!

Love,
Christine

How to use Facebook to promote your Campaign

1. Create a Closed Group for your Campaign

• Create your group
• Add the friends you want to join
• Post a full update to the blog of your Campaign page and link to the
• Post you’ve written on your Facebook Group Wall
• You can also thank donors and link to your Campaign page on the Group Wall
• Your group members will receive alerts and/or messages when something is posted on the Group Wall

2. Post Status Updates about your Campaign

• This is a good option if you don’t have enough time to create a group or write lengthy updates
• It can be done on a daily basis and won’t annoy anyone
• Make sure to attach the link to your Campaign page with your status update
• You can post just the link without any update
• You can explain what your Campaign is, updates on your progress, links to funny videos, etc.

3. Send messages to your friends about your participants

• Send personalized messages to Facebook friends that you don’t have email addresses for
• Limit how often you send these types of messages
• Keep them short and sweet
• Make them personal and individualized

4. Thank donors with status updates

• Acknowledge donors by thanking them
• Tag them in your status updates (use the @ symbol then their name)
• Include your Campaign URL
• In thanking them, you’ll be letting everyone else know about your Campaign

How to use Twitter to promote your Campaign

• Get your friends to follow you and start posting about your Campaign
• Follow other Campaign participants and see what they’re Tweeting about
• Re-tweet our posts... we’re @ATCSF
• Update as frequently as you’d like, there’s a lot to talk about:
• What you’ve done for your Campaign. If your goal is to work out, let people know you’ve gone to the gym, share cool exercise tips, post videos, etc.
• How it’s going (good days and bad days, encouragement you need, funny campaign-related stories)
• If you’re having a great time doing your Campaign or think it would be helpful to have people join you for moral support, give them the link to sign up
• If any of your followers donate to your Campaign, give them a Twitter shout out! Example: Thanks @penuginasana for your donation to my ITIC Campaign! Your contribution will directly improve the lives of homeless youth in SF!

Update Section of Campaign Page

Use the “update” section of your Campaign page as your own blog! Keep your community in the know by posting what you have been doing and the progress you are making with your Campaign goal.

To make the most of this section, it’s great to include pictures and videos. If you need any help posting pictures or videos, be sure to send us an email and we will help. Your friends and family will be able to post comments on your updates and videos, which will keep you motivated throughout your Campaign!

Let your personality shine through in these updates. They can be funny, serious, honest, it’s up to you. Your community will appreciate your transparency.

• You can also link to this section through your Facebook or Twitter updates in order to keep those nice and short.

• If you've been updating your community via email, linking to these updates is the perfect way to keep your emails short and sweet. Just say something like "I'm really making progress with my Campaign, click here to read what I did this week..."

Check out Bonnie Puckett's Campaign Page for a great example of how to use the 'update' section.

10 Tips to Creating a Fantastic ITIC Page

1. Have a good profile picture, ideally with your beautiful face in it! Or, just a fun picture. But make sure to put something up there.

2. State your goal as clearly as possible.

3. Speak from the heart, both about the importance of your goal and about why you support ATC; that is what people respond to.

4. Be sure to have enough information on your page so people will want to donate, but not too much that they don’t have time to get through it.

5. If your Campaign involves spending money (for example, if your goal is to join a gym) make sure to clearly state on the page (and in your emails) people that all the donations go directly towards ATC, and you will be using your own money in pursuing your goal.

6. Have fun with the updates section; it’s basically a blog about your Campaign.

7. Post pictures and links to videos in your updates, it makes it exciting for your supporters to read.

8. Whoever you are, let your personality shine through.

9. Pick an attainable, but ambitious fundraising goal based on your community of supporters. Don’t sell your community short!

10. Don’t bunch your donation button amounts too close together; having the highest button be 20 to 25 times the amount of the lowest button usually works well.

Here are some examples of well done Campaign Pages to check out for inspiration:
Mark Dwight, Mary Gregory, Adam Miller, Jon Sege

In-depth Initial Email

Check out the fabulous in-depth initial email that Anna wrote:

Dearest friends and family,

I've recently joined the I Think I Can campaign to help the homeless youth of San Francisco. Basically, it's the same idea as a walkathon, where someone's friends and family sponsor them to walk X amount of miles and all the money goes to support a cause. But for this campaign, the participants get to choose their own goals! For example, someone could choose to teach themselves how to use watercolors and make three paintings a week. Well, guess what? That particular "someone" is me! And that makes YOU the friends and family that sponsors me to make paintings so that we ALL can help the homeless youth of San Francisco. Essentially, it's a triple whammy.

*** You can see, and I hope donate to my campaign, by going to http://atthecrossroads.org/campaign/annagreenberg ***

I'll be updating that page with pictures of my paintings, amount raised, etc.

This campaign is run by a fantastic organization here called At The Cross Roads. I just went to the launch party last week, where I got to learn all about the organization, meet volunteers, and hear wonderful stories about the positive changes in the lives of the people ATC works with. It was utterly inspiring. They offer very innovative and unconditional support to those that would otherwise get left behind, and the results speak for themselves. You can learn more by visiting http://atthecrossroads.org/campaign/about.php.

I know most of you give to at least one cause. But I assure you, this is a very worthy one. Remember that every little bit counts: that even $5 will keep a few people's feet warm and dry during these winter rains!

Also, this campaign is just about the easiest thing in the world to sign up for, so if any of you are around San Francisco and feel like helping out the community while at the same time pushing yourself to achieve that New Year's resolution, I highly recommend signing up. (It's fun to peruse the campaigns section....you can find everything from "go on a date with Sarah Silverman" to "compose a song about each person who donates").

Ok, I think that's enough from me! Thank you so much for taking the time to read this. Let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Lots of love to everyone,

Anna G

Initial Email-Short and Sweet

Mary Salome did a terrific job sending out an initial email that was short and to the point, check it out below:

Hi everybody,

Sorry for the mass email, but I wanted to tell a bunch of people at once about my goal for 2010: to laugh more. Yeah, 2009 was tough, so I'm going to make an effort to pay attention to laughter, and I'm going to do it in the service of an organization called At The Crossroads. I chose this goal because it's about all I could handle right now. Take a minute to check out my webpage and sponsor my Campaign: http://atthecrossroads.org/campaign/marysalome

At The Crossroads is a San Francisco-based organization whose members walk the streets of the City, reaching out to homeless youth and young adults where they live. They aim to work with young people who others have given up on, who would not get help otherwise. The goal is to help them build outstanding lives.

They have a really creative approach to fundraising to support their work; kind of like an "athon" but you get to choose the goal you're working toward. Here's my little appeal, and a link to the campaign page. I hope you'll consider giving if/what you can.

Lots of love,

Mary

http://atthecrossroads.org/campaign/marysalome

Fun, Playful Initial Email

Here's an example of another initial email, but this one from Camille and Ray is a bit more playful!

Dear Friends and Family,

You know those fundraising campaigns where you run a marathon or do a triathlon and ask friends to sponsor you? Well, we aren't dong anything like that. Camille's 5 months pregnant and she's using that as an excuse to stay off the treadmill for awhile. What we are doing is asking you to bet on our baby. At the Crossroads, a magnificent nonprofit organization that serves San Francisco's at-risk youth, is having a different kind of fundraiser. It's called the "I Think I Can Campaign," and the idea is that participants set their own personal goal and try to raise money around that. Please take a moment to check out our website and sponsor our Campaign:

http://atthecrossroads.org/campaign/camilleandray2010

Our biggest goal these days is growing a healthy happy baby. Our baby will be born into a community of love and support, and this will help him/her achieve her/his full potential. Not every youth meets such lucky circumstances. As we bring a new life into this world, we want to make sure the youths served by ATC also have the chance to lead excellent lives. This little game seemed a fun way to help support ATC's important mission.

All you need to do: 1) Make a donation to ATC; 2) In your comment guess the date of arrival, sex, weight, length, hairstyle, and even the name of our coming little one. The donor whose prediction most closely resembles our baby on it's birth day will win a fabulous gift from a grateful mom and dad.

There you'll find more details about At the Crossroads and this campaign. (And you'll see a cute picture of Ray and Camille and the bump behind which dwells our fast-growing little one.) You can donate right on the website (or by check if you prefer). A $20 donation would help purchase 31 pairs of socks so on wet rainy nights youth can keep their feet warm. A $50 donation would buy 10 food boxes to support ATC clients. Visit our site and see the wonderful things even the smallest donation can help provide.

We're very excited about this, not only because we'll be helping homeless youth, but because we want to collect as many good baby names as possible.

Thanks for your support!

Love,

Camille and Ray

Setting a Fundraising Goal

Setting a fundraising goal is a tricky task, but don't fret, we are here to help! Below are some of the most important things to think about when setting this goal:

• Be sure to pick an attainable, but ambitious fundraising goal. The average campaign raises about $1,000 from 17 donors. Base your goal on your community of supporters and what you think they are capable of giving. Be sure not to sell your community short!
  

• Once you have created a fundraising goal, it's time to choose your donation buttons. In the past, participants have found setting the highest button to 20 to 25 times the amount of the lowest button has helped their fundraising goals. Make the middle button the amount that you think people are most likely to give.

• Please be sure that if your campaign goal will cost money (marathons that have registration fees, taking daily yoga classes, etc.) that you have a disclaimer on your site saying something like: "100% of your donation will go to At The Crossroads; it will not pay for anything associated with my campaign. I'll be paying for that myself."
  

If you need further help with setting a fundraising goal, send us an email!