Races can range in size from a small group of runners to thousands of participants. Typically, larger races result in greater publicity, funds raised, prestige and awareness (if there’s a specific cause being promoted).
Larger and more established races, such as many of the marathons, don’t need extensive outreach campaigns because they’ve been around for so long. They’ve reached the status where the media, sponsors and participants come to them. Last year at the Susan G. Komen Foundation’s “The Race for a Cure,” sponsors included Ford Motors and Yoplait. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice appeared at the beginning of the race to encourage runners. Once a race is established in the running world, planning becomes pretty easy.
However, on the other end of the spectrum are first-time races. A lot needs to be done to host a successful race, especially if you want to make it an annual event. Obviously, one of the key factors is participation. Without enough people running, you’re not likely to have long-term success.
Most first-time events are not repeated. I’m sure that will be the case with the last race I ran, about two weeks ago. I found this 5k at a source called runwashington.com. Apparently, this was the only promotion they did, and they paid for it—there were only three runners, including me.
I felt bad because the people who hosted the race put time and money into constructing the course, making t-shirts and providing refreshments and prizes. I can’t imagine that they raised anything for their cause. Unfortunately they learned the importance of publicity the hard way. Hopefully, if the race returns, they’ll invest more in marketing and promotion.
