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Four Ways To Encourage More Runners To Participate In Your Race

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Planning a road race for charity is fun, but one of the most challenging elements is finding people to participate. Road races have become very common in recent years, so runners have a lot of races to choose from. Here are four ways to encourage more of them to participate in your race.

Give Out Dri Fit Shirts

It sounds silly, but may runners choose races, in part, for the t-shirts that are given out to participants. Some may collect these shirts or frame them as memorials, and others like to wear them. One way to encourage more runners to run your race is to offer a better t-shirt. Instead of cotton, choose shirts made from dri fit material. This material breathes better, so runners prefer it to cotton when working out. A good idea might be to contact companies that offer custom dri fit printing: you can have the dri fit shirts custom printed with your race information so runners can remember your race each time they put the shirt on.

Give Out Hats, Too

If you organize the race that gives runners not only a shirt, but also a hat, runners won't be able to help themselves! Consider ordering hats made from the same dri fit material as the t-shirts, and design them to match the t-shirts, too. You can include the hats for free with the price of registration, or you can add a surcharge of $2 or $3 for runners who want a hat with their race registration.

Publish Your Race Course

So many road race organizers only offer vague descriptions of their race courses online. They may say that the race "weaves though the downtown area" or "circles the park." Runners want more specifics. They want to know if the route is a big loop or an out-and-back. The easiest way to give them the information they want is to publish an exact course map on the race website. If runners know exactly where the course leads, they're more likely to choose your race.

Include Fun Activities

Plan a fun after-race party for all participants! You can have a local band play live music, a couple of food trucks show up to serve food, and even a few fun activities like bocce ball or giant Jenga for the kids. This way, runners can count on being entertained after the race, something they don't experience with every road race.

With the tips above, you'll turn your road race into a can't-miss event for all local runners.


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