FAQs
What is Team Be The Match?
Team Be The Match is the premier online community of fundraisers who help patients in need of a blood stem cell transplant. Fundraisers deliver cures by helping add new potential donors to the Be The Match Registry®, funding research to improve outcomes for stem cell transplant patients, and funding grants to help ease the financial burden for patients and their families before and after transplant.
How do I join Team Be The Match?
The registration process begins right here on the Team Be The Match homepage. Choose which way you would like to raise funds for Be The Match: On Campus, Memorial, or Freestyle - anything goes!. Once on that page, click on Start Fundraising, complete your registration information and begin.
What's the difference between a Team Page and Personal Page?
or Memorial fundraisers are intended for individuals and only allow personal fundraising pages. On Campus and Freestyle allow for personal and/or team fundraising pages. Click here for an overview of the difference between a team page vs. a personal page.
How do I start a team?
Depending on what type of fundraising page you start, there may be an option to start a team. For On Campus and Freestyle fundraising pages, you do have the option to sign up as an individual or to start a team. You might want a team page if you have others fundraising with you for a certain goal or if you want to include a little friendly competition among teammates.
How do I join a team?
Visit the team page you would like to join, or search for the team using the search box on the Team Be The Match homepage. Then, click the “Join Our Team” button on the right side and continue with your registration. When you join a team, as opposed to creating a team of your own, you will not be able to edit the team page; however, you will be able to update and customize your own personal page.
How do I choose an event category? (i.e. what is the difference between On Campus, Freestyle, etc.)
What if I don't see a category that fits what I want to do? And what the heck is freestyle?
You really can't go wrong. Every type of page allows you to tell your story and fundraise. Here is a quick overview that might help you decide:
On Campus—Make your time on campus count! This is the place to go if you are a student fundraiser and want to track your efforts both online and offline. Start an On Campus page.
Memorial—If you want to create a page in memory of a loved one—start here.
Freestyle—The sky is the limit and if your fundraising idea doesn’t fit anywhere else—start here. You might be holding an event like a car wash or a badminton tournament, so create a page here and tell your story. Get friends to join your team or just start a personal page and start fundraising.
This is also the space to fundraise if you are celebrating a birthday or a transplant anniversary, or if you want to showcase your athletic endeavors. Start a page and let everyone know what physical feat you are trying to accomplish and start raising funds.
What happened to the Birthday and By The Mile categories?
We folded them into Freestyle to simplify the fundraising process. We heard from many of our fundraisers that the options were confusing and they just wanted the freedom to do their own thing. We absolutely still encourage special occasion and physical goal fundraising. Have more questions? Email us at TeamBeTheMatch@nmdp.org.
What if I don’t remember my username or password?
If you have created a page in Team Be The Match, participated in a past Be The Match Walk+Run, or if you have signed up to receive email from Be The Match, you have an existing username and password. You can retrieve your current username or reset your password by following these steps:
- Go to the login page
- Click "Forgot User Name" or "Forgot Password"
- Enter the email address that you previously registered
Your username or a link to reset your password will be emailed to you within minutes. These messages occasionally end up in spam or junk mail folders, so please be sure to check.
If you have any questions, please email us at TeamBeTheMatch@nmdp.org.
Do I have to fundraise?
To help deliver more cures, we count on all Team Be The Match participants to fundraise. There is no minimum fundraising requirement and you can set your own team and individual fundraising goals. However, we encourage fundraisers to set a goal of $100 or more. Setting a fundraising goal and reaching out to your network of family and friends is a great way to help all patients receive the blood stem cell transplant they need, when they need it. Once registered, you'll have access to all the tips and tools you'll need to make fundraising easy! See below for Fundraising FAQs. All funds you raise will help patients in need of a transplant.
Using the Fundraising Center
What is the Fundraising Center?
When you register online for Team Be The Match, you automatically get your very own Fundraising Center. Your Fundraising Center is designed to facilitate your fundraising efforts. Update your page with your story and photo, and then send emails to your contacts asking them to visit your page and make a contribution. You can even connect your fundraising page directly to Facebook! Learn more about fundraising with Facebook.
How can I spread the word about Team Be The Match?
You can spread the word wherever you connect to your family and friends. In addition to the online tools found in your Fundraising Center, we have provided additional tools that you can use.
What if I forget my username and password?
To retrieve your password, log in here, scroll down to the "Forgot Password?" section, and enter the username you created when you registered or that was provided to you. Your password will be emailed to you. If you have forgotten your username, click on the "Email me my Username" section and enter the email address that you used for registration.
Can I upload a photo to my Team or Personal Page?
On personal pages, you can upload up to two photos and one video. On team pages, you can upload a single photo.
Images can be uploaded from your computer or via your mobile device, and must be in the format of a .gif, .jpg or .png file. Images must be under 6,000,000 pixels (calculated by multiplying width and height in pixels).
Please note that the photo resolution of many mobile devices exceeds this size limitation.
To resize your photos in iOS devices:
- From the Photos app, select the photo(s) you want to resize and then tap on the "Share" option (the little arrow icon).
- Choose "Mail" and select your own email as the recipient to resize the photo and share it with yourself.
- Tap on "Send" to bring about the resize options, and choose either the "Small" (320×240) or "Medium" (640×480) resolution option.
- After you receive the email, tap and hold on the photo to save them to your IOS device. The newly resized version can then be uploaded to your personal or team page via your Fundraising Center.
To resize your photos in Android devices:
- From the Gallery app, select the photo(s) you want to resize and then tap on the "Edit" option (the little pencil icon).
- Next click on the "More Options" menu (the three dots icon) and choose "Export".
- Resize your image by decreasing the pixel ratio (something around 640X480 should do the trick) and click "Done".
- A copy of your resized photo should be saved in your Gallery app and can then be uploaded to your personal or team page via your Fundraising Center.
To resize your photos from a desktop computer, use an image editing program like Photoshop or Paint to resize your image before uploading it.
Who do I contact if I have questions about the site?
Contact Team Be The Match at teambethematch@nmdp.org for any questions regarding the following:
We are available to answer questions weekdays between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. CST.
Fundraising FAQs
Where does the money go?
Be The Match Foundation® uses the funds raised to save lives in your community and nationwide by helping patients receive the blood stem cell transplant they need by:
- Growing the Be The Match Registry
- Helping patients with uninsured costs
- Supporting life-saving transplant research
For more information about Be The Match and the life-saving work we do, visit BeTheMatch.org.
Can I raise money for a specific patient?
As a Team Be The Match fundraiser, funds you raise will be used by Be The Match Foundation to help all patients in need of a blood stem cell transplant. The funds cannot be allocated to an individual patient.
Is there a minimum fundraising goal I must meet?
There is no minimum fundraising goal. We encourage participants to set a goal of $100 or more. Setting a fundraising goal and reaching out to your network of family and friends is a great way to help all patients receive the blood stem cell transplant they need, when they need it. All funds raised will help make a difference.
Can I fundraise through Facebook or Twitter?
You may now connect your personal fundraising page with Facebook! Go to your Fundraising Center and select "Fundraise on Facebook" in the blue box. You will then see a link that will take you directly to your new Facebook Fundraiser. Once you are in Facebook, you can customize and promote your fundraiser. All donations received through your new Facebook Fundraiser will appear on your Team Be The Match fundraising page. Learn more.
More frequently asked questions about a Facebook Fundraiser.
Don't forget about Twitter or other social media to invite your friends to support you. Be sure to post regular updates as you make progress toward your fundraising goal and to publicly thank your supporters. Tag your posts with #BeTheMatch or #TeamBeTheMatch to reach even more people
Facebook offers a "Donate Now" button you can add to your posts. If you choose to use the Facebook "Donate Now" button on your posts, all gifts received through Facebook will not appear on your personal page or count toward your fundraising goal. However, all money raised through Facebook will go to Be The Match (minus additional fees).
What if someone wants to give me a check?
Make sure checks are written to Be The Match. Send them in with a contribution form to the address below (and on the form.) Do you have cash? The best thing to do is take it to a bank and obtain a cashier’s check written to Be The Match and mail it with the contribution form. Upon receipt, we will upload all offline gifts to your page.
Be The Match Foundation
c/o Team Be The Match
500 N 5th St
Minneapolis, MN 55401
Can I submit a matching gift for this event?
Many contributions can be doubled if your organization has a matching gifts program. Complete your organization's paperwork for matching gifts and submit the forms to:
Be The Match Foundation
c/o Team Be The Match
500 N 5th St
Minneapolis, MN 55401
We also encourage you to visit our Employer Matching Gift Finder. By entering your company name in the search field, you will see if your employer offers a matching gift benefit to employees or family members. If your employer is in the database, select it. You will see your company's specific instructions for submitting a matching gift.
What if I have trouble with my fundraising page or the site?
You can contact us at TeamBeTheMatch@nmdp.org or visit our contact us form if you have any questions or technical issues.