Too Many Walks and Runs Cramp Charity Fundraising
A glut of "me too" warm weather events lead to oversaturation and complaints.
The Detroit News has finally liberated an abridged version of the Wall Street Journal article "Walkathon Overload" that ran last weekend (subscription required for WSJ version). The article claims that outdoor charitable fundraising events have doubled over the last decade, perhaps citing this data from USA Track & Field:
Track events raised more than $575 million per year for charity in 2004. A yearly study conducted by USA Track & Field established that in 2004 running and walking events raised $575 million for charity, an increase of 2% over 2003 and 10% over 2002. Much of the growth of cause-related running events has been fueled by female participation in running-related fundraising programs. The amounts raised by women are believed to be the largest of any women’s sport.
Cities are starting to charge more and put more restrictions on events, both because of the congestion they cause and because cities are strapped for cash, a trend we already noted in San Francisco. At a few points, the article acknowledges that the some restrictions are not limited to walkathons and marathons, but the nature of these events raises traffic problems that events in a single location do not share.
Churches are impacted as many events occur on Sunday morning. Businesses are impacted by street closures and spectators blocking access to stores. Drivers unaware of events are baffled by street closures and detours.
The problem becomes acute at this time of the year because so many organizations want to schedule events for the prime weekends in late spring and early summer. It is striking that the causes seem to overlap as well: the article cites head-to-head competition of events relating to breast cancer and lupus. Nike and Revlon are both sponsoring runs for women.
So the article's conclusion that the problem stems from a glut of charities seems too simplistic. The truth is that there are too many charities addressing a handful of popular causes (e.g. breast cancer) that appeal to a particular segment (e.g. women). Rather than seeking to innovate in fundraising, too many charities opt for "me-too" events.
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