Fundraising and branding are at the heart of marathons and races, and everyone needs swag: volunteers, participants and spectators, as well as the organizers and sponsors. This March, the calendar for marathons and 5K walks/runs is filling up and sponsors are stepping up with promo to support and encourage their preferred causes. Make sure you’re ready to pitch the best promos for marathons and races throughout the year.

Target: Nonprofits

According to RunRepeat.com, 95% of races are affiliated with a nonprofit. Make sure you ask all your nonprofit clients if they have an upcoming race, including annual reoccurring ones (because they mean reoccurring sales!). Don’t forget to also ask regular clients if they volunteer for any nonprofits and if they can refer you. This type of referral improves your client’s opinion of you and puts you in a positive light to start with the new potential client. Healthcare clients will be especially good at this, considering many of them know local or even national awareness groups connected to their specialty.

Opportunities

Start planning for any race at least 4-6 months in advance and find out what promos you need. Some examples include:

• Pre-Event: Use promos to recruit volunteers and participants.
• Spectators: Sell promos to fundraise or give free items to the first 100 spectators to drive attendance.
• Volunteers vs. Participants: Dress in different swag to identify the difference.
• Post-Event: Mail thank-you gifts to volunteers and participants.
• Sponsors: Incorporate branded merch into packages to make them more appealing to sponsors.
• Winners: Give special rewards for top participants.

Promo Products for Race Day

From start to finish, there’s no shortage of products you can sell for race day. Help your clients realize all the many places they and their sponsors can add their logos.

Signage: Banners, Pop-up Tents, Table Covers – In addition to a registration table, there needs to be signage throughout the race, directing participants where to go. It’s also a great idea to have stands where participants can get drinks and snacks, as well as signs advertising the race sponsors.

Pens – For races that don’t have digital registration, make sure to have branded pens available for participants to sign in.

Lanyards & Name Tags – Make sure volunteers can be found and identified quickly. Participants may also need name tags or identification numbers.

T-shirts – T-shirts are a must for every race! To help cover the cost, your clients can ask participants to pay for their T-shirt, or you can suggest clients make sure the cost is built into the participant race price. T-shirts can also be sold to spectators and used to fundraise. End-users will often wear these for years to come. Don’t forget to mention that it’s a good idea for volunteers to have different T-shirts to wear at the event so they’re easily identifiable. Also, suggest clients spend a little extra on participant T-shirts so you can get features like moisture-wicking and antimicrobial properties that will help when runners are breaking a sweat.

Hats, Gloves, Scarves, Bandanas, Other Accessories – In cooler climates, don’t overlook the opportunity to hand out logoed wearables, especially for participants and volunteers.

Ponchos – Is the race rain or shine? It isn’t a bad idea to have ponchos on hand. And if they don’t get used, they can be given to the participants for a later date.

Low-Cost Promos: Buttons, Keychains, Wristbands – All of these items are affordable giveaways that also have mass appeal. They can be given away for free without having a significant impact on the budget for the event but can have big impact on awareness.

Water Bottles – Great for any race, but specifically bike races, water bottles will come in handy immediately and can be saved and reused.

Bottled Water – Remind clients that all hydration stations should have logoed bottles of water. At races, there can be some concern around germs and sweat, making single-use water bottles the perfect fit.

Drawstring Bags – Easy to transport and convenient, bags can be used during and after the event.

Lip Balm – Lip balm is the perfect item to give to volunteers and participants before the race. They can use it throughout the day and beyond.

Sunglasses – Sunglasses are fantastic promos for volunteers, participants and spectators. They can also be held on to and used long term.

Cheering Accessories: Rally Towels, Pom-Poms, Noisemakers, Horns, Inflatables – Get the crowd everything they need to cheer on participants and amp up the excitement.

Pet Accessories: Bandanas, Water Bowls, Balls – Are there pooches in the crowd? Make sure they get logoed merch too. Giving away pet accessories is the ideal way to include furry spectators too!

Awards, Trophies, Medals – Reward the race winners with awards, trophies, medals and coins. These will be treasured keepsakes.

 

T-Shirt Features To Look For

Since the winner of the race is always the T-shirt, let’s talk about what features you should pitch to clients when selling T-shirts.

First, let’s take into consideration some important features in T-shirts for the race spectators.

• Going the unisex route is smart because you can stick with one style, which makes it simple to order and distribute because it’s a good fit for everyone.
• Always keep in mind that you want to have a variety of sizes so that everybody can get and wear a shirt! Don’t be afraid to ask your supplier for their recommendation on the quantity breakdown of sizes.
• Consider pitching styles that are preshrunk because you’ll increase the likelihood of a recipient wearing it. There is nothing more frustrating than getting a free tee you can’t wait to wear, washing it, and realizing it shrank and doesn’t look great anymore.

These next few features are most important for race participants.

• The first feature that’s important is moisture wicking, which means the fabric moves the moisture to the surface of the shirt and dries quickly.
• Another great feature is UPF, which stands for ultraviolet protection factor aka sun protection. UPF 15 provides good protection and means 93.3% of UVA and UVB rays are blocked. UPF 50-50+ is the best rating and it means 98% of rays are blocked.
• Lastly, some fabrics are treated with an antimicrobial chemical that can help prohibit the growth of microorganisms, which may help prevent mold, mildew, and even control odor.

Share the best promos you’ve sold for races in your area on our members-only Facebook page.