New Backend Technology and Virtual Fundraising Event Debrief Case Study Key Topics: Fundraiser, team fundraising success Integrated technology Timer going the extra mile RunSignup’s data integration Creative virtual approach, success during Covid-19 Virtual race considerations Event Showcased: 2021 Steps for Students, Galveston-Houston, Texas Race Organizers Interviewed: Julie Eberle, Associate Director of Development – Special Events, […]
As announced several weeks ago, we are now in the middle of the payment account transition to a new payment processor. We transitioned about 600 accounts last week, and all new accounts that are created are on the new platform. Most other acocunts will be transitioned over the next two weeks. There are two things […]
We reported back in February that the squabble between Apple and Facebook over user privacy was probably going to result in changes to the Facebook Ads platform. Here is the latest update on how Facebook is changing their ad system and what you need to do to prepare for the change. What Sites are Impacted […]
Want to learn from fundraising event experts while you run, walk, or clean your house? GiveSignup | RunSignup Sales Lead Bryan Jenkins has started a hyper-focused podcast series to bring you stories of successful fundraising events, no reading required. In each episode, Bryan will chat with an influencer in the event industry who’s been instrumental […]
Spring is here and RunSignup | GiveSignup is climbing out of the COVID fog strong with growth across our entire organization. With that investment, we were able to comb our networks for additional high-caliber tech talent which has resulted in another great addition to the development team. We are happy to announce Joseph Kotzker is joining […]
Event management is complicated, and even the smallest of 5K’s requires a team of people to handle the pre-race logistics, marketing, and race day operations. The requirement for teamwork was a significant motivation for our process as we built out features on the RunSignup Dashboard, and our goal is to make it easy for you […]
We have released the ability for non-competitive cycling events that are USAC sanctioned to easily comply with USAC requirements for waiver signature and member number collection and validation. This is not for competitive, categorized races since USAC has an exclusive contract with BikeReg for those. However, a growing number of cycling and gravel events use […]
Q1 2021 marks the turning point for our business. Looking back on the quarter, the year started slowly with many customers and supporters consumed with very high COVID cases, hospitalizations and deaths, concerns about vaccine distribution, and the tumultuous passing of power in our government. By March, things had started to turn back closer to […]
Efficient Race Day Processing of Participants We are very excited to launch our new and improved RaceDay Check-In mobile application! Available for Android and iOS devices, the new release of the free RaceDay Check-In app offers core functionality improvements, simplified user experience, and a refreshed interface. RunSignup’s RaceDay CheckIn app is designed for race organizers […]
Over the next couple of weeks we will be rolling out new payment processing. We have done a major refresh of the code and moving to new payment processors, Adyen and Payroc. The purpose of this is to prepare properly for our next phase of growth as we try to help our customers raise more […]
One of the magical features of our free photo platform is the automated tagging of people based on image processing of bib numbers. For each photo that is uploaded, we automatically send it to a scanning service and it returns the bib numbers. We add nice little touches like filtering for bibs less than 1000 […]
After 2 years of work, California Triathlon is pleased to announce the California Triathlon Endorsed Race Director Insurance Program. At only $2.50 per participant, it offers an affordable insurance alternative for triathlons. A growing consortium of race directors from coast to coast will be utilizing the California Triathlon Endorsed Race Director Insurance Program to insure their […]
SignMeUp is the latest race registration vendor to close down, joining a growing list we have covered before in our Registration Market Analysis. As is typical, these closings happen quickly, without thoughtful migration strategies put in place. For example, their website is still up and telling people to create their race registration with them. This […]
One year ago, 100% of our focus was on helping races and nonprofits pivot to virtual. It’s exciting, then, that April’s Spring Forward Seminar has a very different focus: getting back to live (and hybrid) events. The return of live events isn’t the same as simply reverting to 2019 events, though. Events today are incorporating […]
We are excited to announce our newest team member, Steve Bingham-Hawk. Steve is joining the GiveSignup | RunSignup team as a Senior Account Manager. As an existing GiveSignup | RunSignup customer, Steve comes to us as no stranger. He has over 16+ years of experience in the endurance industry with extensive experience in conceiving, planning, and executing […]
RunSignup’s RaceDay Scoring and ChronoTrack Webinar The recorded session below provides an overview of how to integrate ChronoTrack streams with RaceDay Scoring for delivering officially scored race results. Special guest and ChronoTrack timer, Ryan Harrison with Hermes Sports and Events, provides a practical application and step-by-step guidance on setting up of using RaceDay Scoring and […]
We usually do a Race Registration Market Analysis twice a year – March and September. 2020 was an unusual year, but we did a special one in April, 2020 and September, 2020 to try to capture what was happening in the endurance market. We will share our data and then share observations from the market in general and specific […]
GiveSignup | RunSignup offers event organizers the opportunity to receive event proceeds by ACH or by check. Our preferred payment method is by ACH, but we do offer payment by check and we will continue to do so. However, check payments are expensive to make and they become even more expensive if they are lost […]
More than 9,000 nonprofits raise money with GiveSignup | RunSignup for their fundraising run/walk/ride events. Additionally, nonprofits also raise money with GiveSignup | RunSignup as Charity Partners. Race organizations like to partner with nonprofits because it helps them grow participation as nonprofits encourage their supporters to participate and fundraise. Nonprofits benefit from partnering with races […]
RaceJoy, Web, and TXT Result Submissions Timers using RunSignup’s RaceDay Virtual Results will be happy to hear we’ve rolled out the ability to quickly see the source participants use to submit their results. Timers now have an at-a-glance view of whether participants submit their results through the RaceJoy app, through the event’s result web page, […]
When we said events are back, we meant it: the RunSignup friends and family March Madness bracket is returning for 2021. We are predominantly runners, cyclists, swimmers, orienteerers, hikers, and triathletes… but we like to have a little fun with team sports, too. For years, March Madness has been a chance to engage in some […]
We posted the other day about the positive signs of recovery we are seeing in transactions as we hit the one-year anniversary of the earliest pandemic shutdowns. Today, we want to take a minute to talk more about the activity we are seeing because one is thing clear: events are back. There is, of course, […]
We don’t expect another year quite like 2020, but there is still a lot to learn from the registration patterns of the year. Our 2020 RaceTrends Report showed shifts in marketing strategies as people moved online, and with those shifts, lessons to carry into 2021 and beyond. Marketing is All About Social And we don’t […]
Monday, March 8 is a big day. It is our one year anniversary of understanding the impact COVID would have. And we simultaneously achieved a milestone that says we are coming back. Monday, March 9, 2020 A year ago, we pivoted our business realizing the impact COVID could have. We had started tracking it a […]
RunSignup’s RaceDay Results and MYLAPS Webinar MYLAPS timers can take advantage of providing quick access to scored results by publishing web results using RunSignup’ RaceDay Results. The recorded webinar below covers how to how to publish and manage web results when integrating with RaceDay Scoring. Crisp McDonald demonstrates how to set up the integration, adjust […]
New Registration & Marketing Timer Certification We are super excited to launch the new RunSignup Timer Certification program! This certification program is designed to provide timers with the ability to offer their events new and expanded registration and marketing related services that help increase event registrations. The certification process includes in-depth training on RunSignup’s registration […]
RunSignup customers Brian Pessalano (Fredericksburg Area Running Club) and Kristen Loescher (Arsenal Events) appeared on a local radio show where they discussed a topic at the front of everyone’s mind: organizing running events in a pandemic. Check out their interview to discuss a myriad of topics, including: Managing a running club safely (different paces help!) […]
The First Purpose-Built Event and Donation Platform for Nonprofits Launches Into $50B+ U.S. Market for Online Giving as Virtual Events Heat Up and Live Events Return CloudBees founder and former Eventbrite CFO invest 100+ new nonprofits onboarding weekly to base of 9,000+ nonprofits Highly vertical technology stack delivers 2,000+ annual updates with zero downtime MOORESTOWN, […]
Below is a recorded session that provides an overview on how to set up streams and timing locations using MYLAPS timing hardware and RunSignup’s RaceDay Scoring. Special guests, Amanda Marek and Dave Hebgen, from RaceDay Events walkthrough how to use RaceDay Scoring and share important tips. Watch the video below for a quick overview! RaceDay […]
There is now a full reconciliation summary report for each funds transfer at the payment account level. Transactions, sales tax remitted by GiveSignup | RunSignup, refunds, holdbacks, and adjustments are broken down by line item in a summary table. You are able to easily download each line item for a report across all of your […]
Why Renew? If you made a number of edits to your (cancelled) 2020 race, it may be tempting to just start over. Don’t! Going through the steps to correctly renew your race has a number of benefits, including: Keeps the same URL year-to-year, making it easy for participants to find the event Maintains many settings […]
We would like to welcome Charnele Williams as our VP of Marketing! Charnele will lead our RunSignup | GiveSignup Marketing team (Johanna and Shelly – don’t worry, no one is going anywhere!). Charnele Williams is a University of Virginia (Wahoowa!) alumni and a former congressional intern for Speaker Nancy Pelosi. She is a passionate marketer […]
Anecdotal evidence has long suggested to us that virtual runners are not the same people who show up on race day, but the sudden flood of virtual events in 2020 gave us enough volume (and enough motivation) to pull some new reports focused on virtual for our recently released 2020 RaceTrends Report. Why does it […]
Timers can get a debrief on the recently completed Timer marketing research survey by watching the recorded session below. More than 160 timers participated in this year’s survey. Topics covered include general timer business attributes, impacts of Covid-19, timer strategies, and timers’ use of race day technology. One of the most important takeaways is that […]
We saw a steady increase in in-person events throughout the fall and winter, and expect to see significantly more in Q2 and Q3 of 2021. With more race organizers looking to secure permits for safe, modified events, we are increasingly seeing questions about the type of plan required keep participants safe and to to obtain […]
We are releasing a new Voucher system that allows races to create vouchers that participants can use as a credit when they sign up for an event. For example, you might give Allison a voucher for $30 that she can use on any of your events. In the example on the right, she signs up […]
Godzilla vs Kong is expected to hit theaters in March 2021. In the meantime, we have our own fight escalating between two tech giants that is sure to be just as entertaining as the big screen blockbuster. Just like the two titans on screen, Apple and Facebook have been feuding for years. Apple promises to […]
We wrapped up our 2021 Virtual Winter Symposium on Thursday. Like all of our customers who had to go virtual this year, we missed seeing everyone in-person, but we were grateful for the chance to move forward in some capacity. The bonus? While our in-person capacity usually maxes out at around 300 attendees, we were […]
In November 2019 we wrote about the abrupt brand and platform shut-down of Crowdrise following their acquisition by GoFundMe. While Crowdrise was designed for nonprofits, GoFundMe has been designed from the start as a platform for individual fundraising for many purposes. The change caused some concerns for nonprofits; however, GoFundMe mitigated some of these concerns by […]
We have released our annual RaceTrends report, mining our internal data to evaluate the state of the endurance industry. It goes without saying that this report is unlike any other and every piece of data reflected the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, showing significant participation declines. But the news wasn’t all bleak – the impressive virtual numbers […]
Bryan was having a discussion yesterday with a customer and explaining some of the behind the scenes work we do, and they were surprised by all the stuff they never see. Also yesterday, we released new buttons. It really was a consolidation project. When you develop software for 10+ years, you have different approaches over […]
We are happy to welcome Jenn Levas to the GiveSignup development team! Jenn has enjoyed a long and successful career as a software engineer (she won’t let me tell you exactly how long). For the past 12 years of her career she has been leading technical teams and building fleet management software for ARI. Prior […]
We have a new integration partner, RegForward, who provides an open integration platform between the RunSignup | GiveSignup API and other systems like Email, CRM and Donor Management systems. They have opened a Beta Program and are looking for RunSignup | GiveSignup customers who want to transfer information from our Supporter Engagement Platform to another […]
Many years ago, we introduced the Signup App for iPhone and Android. We retired the Signup app in November. However, the web version of that app was still available – https://signupapp.runsignup.com/. We will be taking that offline as well next week. As stated in the retirement blog post, there was very little use of the […]
We are close to completing our huge project to upgrade our free Photo platform. Here are some of the highlights: New, more scalable and robust infrastructure to handle hundreds of millions of photos Completely redesigned user experience for race and ticket websites, as well as dashboard setup Available for Races and for our GiveSignup nonprofit […]
We have finished a long upgrade of the Notification Email system. We have over 60 types of notification emails the system generates automatically when certain events happen – like a user registered, or a donation was made, or a virtual race milestone was achieved, or a financial payment was made. These can all be custom […]
We began monthly updates in July after doing weekly updates that ended in Week 18, and are shifting to monthly (August and October, November) and Quarterly (Q3) updates. The monthly update is meant to give stats that are useful to the endurance and nonprofit communities we serve. Quick December Numbers: Transaction volume was down 47% to $9.9MM Overall Registrations down […]
TLDR; January – February – Customers are happy, our business is up 29% and life is good! March – OMG-OMG-OMG! We have paid over $75 Million to races that have not happened! Will we survive? Employees take a 50% cut in pay. Everyone stays and works twice as hard. April – PPP! Virtual Races! Employees […]
We usually do our Year in Review in a single blog post. This year has been much too big to put it all in one place, so we are breaking it up a bit. We already published our 2020 Development Recap. This one will cover our product roadmap for 2021. First, we will continue our investment in […]
It’s been a few years since we’ve posted a Festivus blog…but we have to admit, we have a lot of grievances this year. So, in celebration of 2020 Festivus… Runners…We have a problem with constant desire for a race to be fun. Because of you, and the limitations on things like parties this year, we had to […]
