0 2009 March of Dimes Foundation
Welcome to March for Babies 2010! We re so glad you ve decided to join us as we walk to give every baby a healthy start. March for Babies is the number one corporate fundraising event and a great opportunity for your company to show you care about the babies and families in your community. As a team captain, you re responsible for your company s success and making sure everyone on the team has a rewarding experience. It s a big job, but we re here to help! Table of contents Your Support Helps Babies 2 Your Role as Team Captain 3 Step-by-Step to a Great Campaign 4 Online Fundraising 6 Materials 8 Sample E-mail Messages 10 Sample Voice Messages 12 Sample CEO Letters 13 1 2009 March of Dimes Foundation
Your Support Helps Babies The March of Dimes is one of the best-known charities in the country. With chapters nationwide and our signature event, March for Babies, we work to improve babies health. How does the money we raise help? The March of Dimes spends 76 percent of the money raised in March for Babies on research and programs that promote the health of babies. By walking and raising money, your company helps us: Support all-important research offering preventions and solutions for babies born too soon or with birth defects Fund programs in your community that give moms-to-be the best chance of having a healthy baby Provide comfort and information to families with a baby in intensive care Advocate for newborn screening, and health insurance for all pregnant women and children Visit marchofsdimes.com to learn more. 2 1/20/10
Your Role as Team Captain Job description A great team needs a great captain. Serving as a team captain and rallying your company around the cause of healthy babies is an important job and a great leadership experience. As a team captain your job is to manage the campaign. You are responsible for recruiting and motivating your team. Let your determination and enthusiasm show and challenge your team to do their part. Actively track the team s fundraising progress and communicate clearly and often. Let your team know exactly what you need them to do to reach the goal. You may have been asked by your CEO or your company s executive champion to lead the team. If you ve initiated getting involved in March for Babies, it s important you secure senior management support first. On your team CEO: Corporate executives play a vital role in the campaign. They can elevate the level of importance within the organization, allow access to resources and set the tone. Ask for their help, but make sure it s the most strategic use of their time. Executive Champion: This is a senior-level executive who serves as your liaison to the CEO and who understands the mechanics of the company and can help clear the way to a successful campaign. Co-captains: Depending on the size of your company, you may need to recruit and manage co-captains. Rule of thumb: one captain for every 50-100 employees. The tools The step-by-step information in this guide will help you execute a great March for Babies campaign. At marchforbabies.org, you can find more tools to make your job easier. And don t hesitate to contact your March of Dimes chapter for ideas, direction or support. 3 1/20/10
Step-by-Step to a Great Campaign Start early, finish strong. This 5-step program takes you from securing support to recruiting walkers, to raising money and, finally, to thanking your team! Step 1: Get Organized 3 months out Meet with your March of Dimes representative to develop your campaign plan. Get the green light from your CEO and senior management. Recruit your co-captains 2,000 employees should have 20 or so captains. Secure sponsorship and ask your vendors for support. Secure internal incentives, like a parking spot or extra vacation day. If your team is not registered yet, sign up your team at marchforbabies.org. Set a walker goal aim for at least 20 percent of the number of employees. Set a dollar goal $200 per walker is a good guideline. Step 2: Kick Off Your Campaign 2 months out Recruit a team ambassador to inspire your team this could be a coworker s child who was born prematurely. Organize a company kickoff and ask your CEO to speak. Put up posters in high-traffic areas to keep March for Babies top of mind. Use voicemail, e-mail, memos and bulletin boards to encourage sign-ups. 4 1/20/10
Step 3: Fundraising 6-2 weeks out Ask your CEO to sign a company-wide e-mail or memo to encourage fundraising. Encourage each walker to hit a goal of $200 or more. Tell team members to ask all donors if their company offers matching gifts. Promote friendly competition between departments. Use the goal poster to track your progress. Use the spotlight posters to highlight your top fundraisers every week. Work with your chapter to hold one or more collection days at your company. Step 4: The Home Stretch 2-1 week to go Send last-minute reminders by e-mail, voicemail, memos or flyers. Ask your chapter when bank days are held and schedule an appointment. Arrange for company signs and banners to promote the team at the event. Ask your March of Dimes representative about possible March for Babies day activities, like a company picnic or team tent. Ask your chapter what to do with last-minute cash and check donations. Send out a reminder with the date, time and location and include directions. Assign a photographer and remind him to take a group shot at the event. Step 5: Thank You After your walk Share photos of March for Babies day. Send thank-yous to your team members. Praise the team in your newsletter, or send a press release to your local paper. 5 1/20/10
Online Fundraising Signing up, managing your team and monitoring your team s progress it s easy online. At marchforbabies.org you ll find everything you need to help your team succeed. Sign up your team Go to marchforbabies.org. If you have an account from last year, log on with the same username and password. Forgot either one? Enter your e-mail address, and we ll send you your information. New this year? Click start a team and follow the prompts. Team captain dashboard Online administrators can use the dashboard to manage their team. Double-check with your March of Dimes representative if you have this role. A team captain is not always the online administrator. 6 1/20/10
Personalize your team page Add a picture of the team or your team ambassador and include a message. Tell the story of your ambassador or another reason why your team is participating. Making a personal connection to the mission increases participation. Spread the word Create an easy-to-remember URL for your team page by clicking on edit page on your dashboard. Click edit address and enter your company or team name under team vanity URL. Copy the link and include on your flyers, posters and in e-mails to make it easy for people to sign up or make their donation. Communicate, communicate, communicate From your team dashboard, it s easy to import and manage e-mail lists and send e-mails to the team. Send invites to your kickoff, announcements for collection days, updates on the team s progress and instructions for the big event. Help the team raise money Having your team members register and raise money online makes your job easier. It also improves results. Here are some things you can do from your dashboard to help your team succeed. Set a goal and post it. Teams raise more money when a goal is promoted. Ask vendors and associates to donate to the team online. Ask people who can t or don t want to walk to support the team with a donation. You have access to real-time progress reports. Share how many people have joined, how much has been raised, who the top fundraisers are, etc. OFT help For help, contact the Help Desk at ofthelp@marchofdimes.com or call (888) 274-3711. 7 1/20/10
Materials Included in this guide and available at marchforbabies.org are materials to help you execute a successful campaign. From sample messages to posters, banners and badges use them to spread the word and motivate your team members. Team goal poster Download from marchforbabies.org. Put this poster up where everyone can see it. Use a marker to fill in your team goal and track your progress. Be sure to update often. 8 1/20/10
Spotlight poster Download from marchforbabies.org. Print out, fill in and put up. Highlight your top fundraisers or people who did something special for the team. This is a great thank-you and motivator to others to step up their game. Hang the spotlight poster next to your team goal poster or tape it to the door or cubicle of the team member you re highlighting. 9 1/20/10
Sample E-mail Messages Send out these e-mail messages to introduce yourself as team captain and encourage registration and fundraising. Ask your March of Dimes representative for state statistics. E-mail to recruit walkers Our company is participating in March for Babies to help give every baby a healthy start. Every year, more than half a million babies are born too soon, (number) of them right here in (state). Together, we can do something about this. We have a lofty goal: $(amount). But I know we can pull this off. We need (number) walkers on the team. Can we count you in? Signing up and raising money for the March of Dimes is easy online. Visit http://www.marchforbabies.org/team/(name) and click join this team to get started. Our event takes place on (date) at (location). I know we ll have a great time. But first, there s work to be done. Let s show everyone how much (company) cares about babies! I m your team captain, so please contact me with any questions. E-mail to encourage fundraising Thank you for joining the team. I know you will make (company) and the babies in our community proud. Too many of them start life in newborn intensive care after they were born too soon, or very sick. We can change that. Have you set up your fundraising page yet? This is fundraising made easy! You can import your mailing list and send out e-mails asking for support. And you can download fun widgets and badges to use in your e-mail signature or on your Facebook page. We have (number) weeks to go to March for Babies, and there s a lot of work to be done. We already raised $(amount) towards our $(amount) goal. If you have any questions, I m here. 10 1/20/10
E-mail to announce bank day How is your fundraising going? Remember, those dollars mean a lot to the families of babies born too soon, or sick. And they will help give new babies a chance to get a healthy start. If you ve received any cash or check donations, mark your calendar! We re having a collection day on (date) between (time) and (time). Just stop by (location). I ve just checked, and as a team, we re now up to $(amount)! Our top fundraiser is (name), who raised $(amount) so far. Congratulations! If you have questions, or need anything else, send me an e-mail or give me a call. E-mail with event details We re just a week away from March for Babies. Don t forget to mark your calendar: (date), (location). We re meeting at (time) for a group photo and to start the walk together. I ve attached the directions to the event. And, yes, that s my cell phone number at the top just in case you need to get a hold of me. I also wanted to give you an update. Right now, we re still $(amount) short of our goal of $(amount). So, send out those last-minute e-mails! Remember, every dollar you raise helps the March of Dimes give hope to the families of sick babies. Thank-you e-mail You raised money, you walked, and you showed just how much (company) cares about babies. We had a great time at March for Babies day and now have some great pictures to show for it. I ve attached my favorite team shot. I m happy to say we reached our goal! Together, we ve raised $(amount) to help the March of Dimes do a ton of good. I m proud of each and every one of you. Thank you so much! Let s do this again, only bigger, in 2011! 11 1/20/10
Sample Voice Messages Ask your CEO to record these voice messages to encourage registration and fundraising. You can personalize the messages to include information specific to your company. 5 weeks to go This is (name). Did you know our company is walking in March for Babies on (date)? We ve got a great cause to rally behind: helping babies in our community. Our goal is to raise $(amount) to help the March of Dimes fight premature birth. To do that we need (number) walkers on the team. Can I count you in? 4 weeks to go This is an urgent reminder from (name). (Company) is getting ready to walk in March for Babies on (date), but we need (number) more people on the team. With four weeks to go, there is still plenty of time to raise money and make a difference to our babies. Let s help give every baby born in (state) a healthy start! 3 weeks to go Hi, this is (name) with an update on March for Babies. So far, we ve raised $(amount). Just imagine the good that money can do to support the families of babies born too soon, or very sick. But we have a ways to go to reach our goal of $(amount). More money is urgently needed to help give the tiniest babies a fighting chance. Keep up the good work! 2 weeks to go (Name) here, for March for Babies. We re just two weeks away from the big event. Mark your calendar: (date), (location). We re (amount) short of our goal of $(amount). Every dollar you raise gives hope to the families of sick babies. Make (company) proud! 1 week to go This is (name). We have one week to go to March for Babies! So, send out those last reminders to your family and friends. We raised (amount) and I know we can reach $(amount). Let s show everyone how much (company) cares about our babies! 12 1/20/10
Sample CEO Letters Letter to recruit co-captains Ask your CEO to send this letter as a memo to all department heads, asking them to appoint their captains. Our company is participating in March for Babies again this year to help the babies in our community. Every year, (number) babies are born too soon in (state), some very sick. We have more than a few new moms here, dads as well. Let s walk in honor of their babies and help give all those other babies a healthy start! Our event will take place on (day), (date). I ve asked (executive champion) to lead the charge for our company. (He/She) has recruited (your name) as our team captain to assist (him/her) with all of the details of the campaign. And I need your help: Appoint one or more captains to lead the charge for your department. (Executive champion) and (your name) will work with you to set a department goal. We are encouraging each participant to raise a minimum of $200. We had (number) people who raised more than $1,000 last year! Support your captains by offering them the resources they need. Invite them to update the team during each staff meeting. Provide incentives for people to raise money, and lead by example. On March for Babies day, we will all walk together as a big team. We re having a team captain training on (day), so appoint your captains before then. With (executive champion) s and (your name) s leadership and your full support, I am confident we can exceed our goal of $(amount) to support the March of Dimes. Let s show everyone how much (company) cares about babies! 13 1/20/10
Challenge Letter Ask your CEO to sign this letter to send to other local businesses participating in March for Babies. Ask your March of Dimes representative for state statistics. Personalize the letter and print on your company letterhead. I am definitely one to finish what I started and I wanted to formalize the challenge I put out there at (kickoff/nicu tour/ ). My challenge for March for Babies is to see which company s employees can raise the most to help babies in (chapter). The number of employees each of our companies has here is fairly equivalent. I feel confident that my people are up to the challenge and will surpass whatever your employees raise. The executive team of the company that raises the most will be hosted by the executive team that comes in second for a (steak cookout/barbecue/etc ). We are prepared to gloat at this event. The truth is that no matter who raises more, the real winner will be the (number) babies born each year in (state). This is our opportunity to help the March of Dimes give all babies a healthy start. Let the games begin. We ll see if you are up for a little challenge! 14 1/20/10
Letter to Vendors Send this letter to your vendors and business associates, asking them to support your team with a donation. You may also customize the letter to request in-kind donations or sponsorship. Print on your company letterhead. Dear (name): On (date), 2010, our company will be walking in March for Babies to give hope to the families of babies born too soon or sick more than (number) each year in (state) alone. The money we raise will support March of Dimes programs, right here in (community), that help moms have healthy, full-term pregnancies. And it funds research to find answers to the serious problems that threaten our babies, like premature birth. Affecting more than half a million babies in our country each year, premature birth is the #1 cause of newborn death. And the rate of premature birth continues to rise. (Company) wants to do something about this. We ve set a team goal of $(goal). We ask that (vendor company name) support our efforts with a contribution of (specify generous amount) to help end this national health crisis. Our team is excited to walk together for this good cause, and your support would mean a lot. If you have any questions, please call me at (phone number). 15 1/20/10
March for Babies School Team Best Practices Activity Description Level of Difficulty Revenue Potential Notes Sell Baby Die Cuts March of Dimes has die cuts that you can sell for $.50- Easy - Call your March of Dimes HUGE - You can raise between Your local March of Dimes office $5.00 each. This a great opportunity to have a competition among the different grades or classes in your school. office and they will send you the materials you will need. $100 and $1,000 in a short time period. can help you with the planning and/or will provide materials to help you. Hat Day Students pay a designated amount to wear an school approiate hat on a specific day. You only need to ask for permission to host the event at your school and promote it. You can charge $1.00 - $5.00 for hat privilages. Easy - Call your March of Dimes office and they will help you prepare for this event. If 10 people pay $5.00 you can raise $50 for your team. Most students will jump at this opportunity to have a chance to year a hat to school. Advertise previously with a flyer or poster to make it more successful. Pie in the face of the favorite teacher/principal The class or student who raises the most $$ for the March for Dimes, has opportunity to throw a pie in the face of the designated teacher or Principal at a school assembly. Easy - need to get permission to due this and promote to the students/class. This is a fun way to give classes and or students who plan to participate in March for Babies an extra incentive to raise funds. Advertise in morning announcements and at school assembly to kick-off March for Babies campaign. Restaurant Coupon Night Some restaurants will sponsor a window of time one evening and give % of profits to your team. They will allow you to hand out coupons to everyone you know and you get a portion of the proceeds for everyone that presents the coupon during that time period. Medium - Requires coordination with the restaurant. Low/Medium - Sometimes will Some ideas for places to go: raise around $100 for your team, Buffalo Wild Wings, California depending on how many people Pizza Kitchen, Big Boy, Max and show up. (often the percentages Erma's, Wendy's, Apple Bee's, are 15% or 20% of the bill that Red Robin, Mongolian BBQ, is given back to your team) Noodles & Co. Penny wars Each Class has a coin container displayed in a secure comman area. The Class that collects the most pennies wins the race, But other classes can put nickles, Dimes and Quarters in the opposing classes containers and that will deduct from their total amount of pennies. Easy - Medium. Have a coin container for each class displayed in a secure area. Have someone collect the coins on a regular basis and keep a running tally.this activity will require some planning. Medium - the amount raised will vary from $100 to $1,100 it will depend on the classes really getting behind it promoting it ahead of time and keeping the students pumped up. Your local March of Dimes office can help you with the planning and/or will provide materials to help you with the penny wars. Coin Collections Each class has a coin container and they collection as much spare change as they can. You can even have a competetion to see which class collects the most. Easy - Medium. Have a coin container for each class displayed in a secure area. Have someone collect the coins on a regular basis and keep a running tally.this activity will require some planning. Medium - the amount raised will vary from $100 to $1,100 it will depend on the classes. Your local March of Dimes office can help you with the planning and/or will provide materials to help you with the penny wars. Bake Sales Bake goods at home and sell them at your school. Try to place your table and/or booth in a high traffic area. Presentation is everything but don't forget that your baked goods are the best part of your table. Students always like a snack during the day. Best sellers are cookies and brownies. You will need permission and please remember to check on any policies about food allergies. Medium - Will require planning, baking and or picking up donated pies. Low - Sell items from $.50 - $2.00. If you sell 25 cookies and Brownies you can make $25 for you team Advertise previously with a flyer or poster to make it more successful. National "PI" Day Slices of pie are sold by the math club for a amount of Medium - have members of the $ you determine and the proceeds are donated to your math club get pies donated or bake low - Medium - will depend on how much each slice of pie is March for Babies team. them then set up a time to sell them. sold for. Advertise previously with a flyer or poster to make it more successful. School Team T-shirt Design a school March for Babies t-shirt that can be purchased and proceeds go to March for Babies team. Medium - Hard - get permission to have someone get prices for the shirts and place the order then coordinate the orders and payments. Have a few work on the design. Medium - if you sell the shirts for Your March of Dimes $7 - $10 per shirt and you sell 50 representative can help with the shirts you can make $225 to planning of this activity. $375 for your team and be able to advertise your school at the event.
Raise your team totals by auctioning your Stuff The March of Dimes is offering a unique way to raise funds in 2010! Enter your items into our statewide online auction! If you ve got an item laying around, or if you come across something you d like to auction off, send it our way to raise dollars for your team. People across the country can bid on your item and whatever price it s sold for will be the dollar amount credited to your team. Auction Dates: Submit your item by sending it to the state office with the following information: Electronic photo (jpeg) - sent to mgreer@marchofdimes.com April 12-30, 2010 Description of item - the more descriptive, the better! Contact name for questions Team name the dollar amount will be credited to Fair Market Value of item Ask your March of Dimes Representative for more information! Sample items include: Sporting, concert or other event tickets and/or memorabilia Vacation packages Company paraphernalia Collectors Items Kids items Unique opportunities - skydiving, balloon rides, boat trips, etc Please direct inquiries to: Melissa Greer March of Dimes MI State Office 27600 Northwestern Hwy #150 Southfield, MI 48034 Deadline for submitting items into the auction is: Friday, April 9, 2010 Phone: 248-359-1561 Fax: 248-213-4923 E-mail: mgreer@marchofdimes.com Visit the auction at: www.biddingforgood.com/marchofdimesmi/2010
March of Dimes Michigan Offices ANN ARBOR 455 East Eisenhower #75 Ann Arbor, MI 48108 734-761-6331 734-213-2313 fax Event Locations: Hudson Mills Metropark Kensington Metropark Monroe KALAMAZOO 1930 W. Milham Rd., Suite A Portage, MI 49024 269-343-5586 269-343-5587 fax Event Locations: Battle Creek Kalamazoo SOUTHFIELD (State Chapter Office) 27600 Northwestern Hwy. #150 Southfield, MI 48034 248-359-1550 248-213-4923 fax Event Locations: Detroit Hines Park Metro Beach Troy Warren FLINT/SAGINAW 536 Perry Road, Suite #5 Grand Blanc, MI 48439 810-606-8014 810-606-8017 fax Event Locations: Bay City Genesee County Lapeer Midland LANSING 2450 Delhi Commerce Dr. Suite #11 Holt, MI 48842 517-699-4863 517-699-8184 fax Event Locations: Jackson Lansing TRAVERSE CITY 10850 E. Traverse Hwy., #4445 Traverse City, MI 49684 231-947-2488 231-947-1590 fax Event Locations: Cadillac Traverse City GRAND RAPIDS 3351 Claystone St., SE Suite G20 Grand Rapids, MI 49546 616-247-6861 616-247-6864 fax 800-968-DIME Event Locations: Barry County Grand Rapids Holland (Lakeshore) Muskegon PORT HURON 511 Fort Street, #250 Port Huron, MI 48060 810-982-0177 810-982-5932 fax Event Locations: Blue Water River Visit the Michigan March of Dimes Website www.marchofdimes.com/michigan For March for Babies information call 1-800-244-9255 or visit www.marchforbabies.org
Michigan March for Babies Locations 2010 Date Location Start/Finish Reg. Start 4/17 Battle Creek Battle Creek Health System 9:00 10:00 Holland Kollen Park 8:00 8:30 4/24 Grand Rapids Foremost Ins., Caledonia 8:30 9:30 Hines Park Nankin Mills 8:00 9:00 Lansing Riverfront Park 9:00 10:00 Lapeer Rowden Park 9:00 10:00 Warren Warren City Hall 8:00 9:00 4/25 Ann Arbor Hudson Mills Metropark 9:00 10:00 Blue Water River St. Clair Co. Comm. College 8:00 9:00 Detroit Hart Plaza 8:00 9:00 Genesee County Bicentennial Park 9:00 10:00 Jackson Ella Sharp Park 1:00 2:00 Livingston Kensington Metropark 9:00 10:00 Metro Beach Metropark Plaza Area 8:00 9:00 Monroe Wm. C. Sterling State Park 11:00 12:00 Troy Civic Center 8:00 9:00 5/1 Kalamazoo Celery Flats Historical Area 9:00 10:00 Midland Plymouth Park 9:00 10:00 Muskegon Heritage Landing 8:00 8:30 Traverse City Grand Traverse Cty. Civ.Ctr. 8:00 9:00 5/2 Cadillac Cadillac Jr. High School 1:00 2:00 Bay City Boys & Girls Club 9:00 10:00 5/8 Barry County Fish Hatchery Park, Hastings 8:00 8:30 Call 1-800-244-9255 for more information or visit www.marchforbabies.org to register
FOR MARCH OF DIMES OFFICE USE ONLY WALKER LOG DEPOSIT DATE DEPOSIT AMOUNT $ DEPOSIT CODE Team Name Team # Site Location: Team Captain Phone # Bank Day Prize Levels - Prize Levels - Prize Levels - Prize Levels - Prize Levels Y ------- 100.00 Youth T-shirt (thru age 17) Youth S/M/L Adult S/M/L/XL/XXL 1... 200.00-349.99 T-shirt (M/L/XL/XXL) 5... 2,500.00-4,999.99 T-shirt+$125 Super Certificate 2... 350.00-499.99 T-shirt+Sw-shirt (M/L/XL/XXL) 6... 5,000.00-9,999.99 T-shirt+$250 Super Certificate 3... 500.00-999.99 T-shirt+$25 Super Certificate 7... 10,000.00+ T-shirt+$500 Super Certificate 4... 1,000.00-2,499.99 T-shirt+$50 Super Certificate LAST NAME WALKER (please print) FIRST NAME AMOUNT RAISED (includes matching & online) VERIFIED AMOUNT (for office use only) PRIZE LEVEL EARNED (circle one) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. FORM STAYS WITH SPONSOR FORMS WALKER TOTAL PROMOTIONS TOTAL (from team collection envelope) OTHER REVENUE TOTAL (from team collection envelope) GRAND TOTAL $ $ SIZE Final S:\Share\Divisions\March for Babies\MFB 2008\Website-Originals\Originals\Walker Log Form 2008.doc 06/6600
where your money goes The money you raise in March for Babies is used to fund important research and programs that help moms have full-term pregnancies and babies begin healthy lives. And it helps us provide information and support to families whose baby was born too soon, or sick. Here are some of the ways you ve already helped: brain: When a baby is born too soon, even by just a few weeks, the brain and other organs haven t had time to fully develop. Our researchers are working on ways to prevent prematurity so that all babies get their important nine months. smile: Every year, more than 6,800 babies are born with an oral cleft. Our researchers identified a gene responsible for the condition and are working on preventions. eyes: Premature birth and certain birth defects can lead to blindness. Scientists are studying the genetic causes of prematurity and developing treatments to cure vision defects like retinitis pigmentosa. heart: Heart defects affect 1 in every 100 babies and take more lives than any other birth defect. Our advances in diagnosis and surgical treatment mean better survival rates for the tiniest heart patients. spine: Fewer babies are born with neural tube birth defects like spina bifida as a result of March of Dimes folic acid education and fortification campaigns. lungs: Surfactant and nitric oxide therapies now save the lives of tens of thousands of babies suffering from respiratory distress syndrome after they were born too soon. heel: Thanks to our volunteer advocacy efforts, most states now screen babies for 21 or more serious but treatable conditions. A tiny drop of blood from a newborn s heel could save a life.