New York Marathon Runners Selling Ads on Their Bodies

Small businesses, take note: Journalist Rachel Sklar is selling her butt for $500. For ad space, that is. The social-media maven will be a "branded spectator" at the ING New York City Marathon on Sunday, bearing Sharpie-written Twitter handles and company names on her arms and legs. Sklar's friend Emily Gannett, a tech events planner, also will be selling her body parts. Running the 26.2 mile trek through all five boroughs makes Gannett's body a hot asset for businesses looking for creative and cost-effective advertising.

For just $150, businesses can "purchase" an arm or leg for the day, exposing a company's name to television viewers, fellow runners and bystanders -- and, of course, Gannett and Sklar's Twitter followers. The creative ad idea came from Team Interactive teammate Michelle Deforest, who similarly "sold" her body during a triathlon in Florida.

Team Interactive is a 15-runner team that includes social media and tech all-stars like Gannett and Foursquare's Dennis Crowley and Naveen Selvadurai. Each team member has committed to raising $5,000, which will go toward Camp Interactive, a nonprofit that provides tech education for inner-city youth in New York.