charity

For Greater Brand Awareness, Help a Charity

/ Mark A Nutting / Leave a comment

One of the first steps of building your business is to get known and one of the traditional ways of doing that is placing ads in newspapers, magazines, on the radio and even tv. While this does work in creating greater brand awareness, it can be costly and doesn’t go much deeper than awareness. Potential clients/members don’t really get a sense of what you and your business are all about.

Untitled design (59)

Another way to get known is to get out into your community and work with local charities. There are opportunities all around, from homeless shelters to educational organizations, that can give people a sense of who you are and what you are all about.

Start by looking for not-for-profit organizations that align with your beliefs. Next, look to see how you can support them. Of course, most will certainly take financial donations, but, for many new businesses, finances might be tight. These charities will often also need:

  • Volunteers to help on a daily basis (people in the community get to know you and like that you are helping out with this charity)
  • Volunteers to help with specific charitable events (like the previous, people will get to know you and, if you have less time, these events don’t require a daily commitment)
  • Donations for various raffles, auctions, etc. (this is a perfect way to showcase what you offer. i.e. donate a starter package of personal training sessions that is “valued at $X” or a week of unlimited group fitness “valued at $X”)
  • Locations to hold a charitable event (here’s a chance to get people into your space that you might not get there otherwise)
  • Local businesses to hold their own charitable event with the not-for-profit as the beneficiary (here’s a combo value, get people into your space, showcase what you do, and show support for the not-for-profit. i.e. hold a bootcamp where all of the proceeds go to the charity)

Now, some will say that if you are doing this for your benefit, it’s not really charitable. Of course the same can be said for charging for personal training. If you are personal training to help people, why are you charging? The answer? We do what we believe is good. Our “why” is to help. At the same time, we also know that we must make a living which includes charging for personal training and gaining a little social currency for ourselves and our business. This does not diminish the good that you do. It is a win/win for everyone.

So get out there and lend a hand. As the saying goes, you can “do well, by doing good”.

 

Doing Well by Doing Good

/ Mark A Nutting / Leave a comment

Marketing your business can come in all kinds of shapes and styles, but one of my favorites is to join forces with non-profit organizations or events. You can do this by either sponsoring or volunteering. Both can be very effective ways of getting your business’ name out there.

Sponsoring an organization or event can be done by donating money toward that charity. However, if you are just getting started and need to keep your expenses as low as possible, you can donate your services.. Many non-profits will put together raffles or auctions and seek prizes or items from local businesses. This is a great way to highlight what you offer and the value of it. i.e. (One month of unlimited group fitness, valued at $115) These can usually be donated with just the cost of your time.

nBDbqdAVTqmb%SxnVh%ohA_thumb_2db3

In less than 36 hours, this beard will be gone!!! If you’re not coming to the event at Pearly Baker’s Alehouse (6-9pm), then go to this link to make a donation. 100% of all proceeds and donations go directly to Cancer Support Community Greater Lehigh Valley https://www.gofundme.com/beards-for-breasts

Volunteering, or working for an organization or event, may be an even better way for people to get to know you, face-to-face, and get a sense of who you are and what you stand for. The newer standard of marketing is about building relationships and to work with others on something meaningful is a great way to get them to know, like, and trust you.

Currently, I am the president of our local business association (non-profit), my wife (and business partner) and I volunteer to work various festivals in town, sponsor our local farmers’ market, donate services to several charities, and I have been growing a beard for the last 6 months just to be able to shave it off for a local charity event. Of these, only sponsoring the farmers’ market actually costs anything more than time and all help to create awareness of our business.

Sponsoring and volunteering should be a serious part of your marketing plan. Not only do these marketing avenues help your business do well, but you are also doing good in your community.

 

The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, Why Did It Go Viral?

/ Mark A Nutting / Leave a comment

Have you been challenged to the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge yet and did you complete it? The media is swamped with videos of groups and individuals dumping ice water over themselves. Why did this event catch on like it did? Over 3 million donors gave during this challenge and, according to the ALS Association, they have collected over 100.9 million dollars in donations compared with 2.8 million at this time last year. Amazing response to say the least. Why??? Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is not the leading cause of death in the United States. It’s not even in the top ten. Why this cause? What prompted people to do this?

Here are some of the reasons that I believe it has been such a success.

1) This movement struck a chord with the public that allowed them to be part of something important. It created/is creating a greater awareness of this particular disease and with that awareness comes understanding for those afflicted with ALS and an increased likelihood of money being donated to help find a cure.

2) The act of dumping a bucket full of icy water is silly. This allows people to have fun with it and get creative.

3) It has a direct challenge to specific people. It’s a little like when you learn CPR. You never just call out, “Someone call 911!” Everyone assumes that someone else will act and nobody does. You need to say, “You! (pointing your finger at a particular person) Call 911!” They now know that they have been chosen to act. This is not a call out to the masses. It’s a call to “You. (state their name)”

4) Social media allows ideas to spread like a, oh, I don’t know… a virus, maybe! You do the challenge and call out your friends. Your friends do the challenge and call out their friends. Your friends’ friends do the challenge, etc.

The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge has all of the elements to make it the successful campaign that it is.

Why am I writing about this in a fitness business blog? We, as fitness professionals, are in the business of helping people become more healthy. It is within our scope of interest to champion a health issue, align ourselves with a charity. How can we use the elements of the ALS Challenge to bring light to the charity of our choice? One thing that I’ve done in the past is run Zombie Boot Camps on Halloween to benefit the local food pantry. Now I need to think of how I can go bigger with it (and I have an idea…).

Are you doing something to benefit some cause? Let us know about it in the comments below.

By the way, if you would like to donate to the ALS Association, click here.

icebucket_thankyou_F