A new fundraising sweepstakes site has launched to the public encouraging people to get their friends placing bets on the outcome of events, such as the London Marathon.

Guess2Give is a for-profit website which involves individuals setting up a sweepstake based on an event, and then encouraging their friends and supporters to make a guess on the outcome for £3. It is designed to leverage fundraising for events like marathons, or can be set up for the fundraiser’s own event.

Of the £3, 50p is put into a prize pot – to be won by the guess closest to the result – and the remaining money is directed to the charity for which the individual is fundraising, minus costs. Of that £3 donation, for a player making one guess, £2.01 ends up with charity – the amount to charity increases as players make more guesses, with up £24.51 going to charity from a player making ten guesses (worth £30).

The costs are the result of Guess2Give's need to comply with gambling law in registering and checking the eligibility of players.

It has been six months in development and beta phase and has secured some big name charity clients, including Cancer Research UK, Muscular Dystrophy Campaign, Whizz-Kids and Macmillan.  

In promoting the new service, Guess2Give has released a video taking a shot at face-to-face fundraising. The video features two street fundraisers attempting to sign up people on the street, and presents its charity sweepstakes as an alternative way to give to charity.