Giving Tuesday Tips & Tricks

Giving Tuesday is a global movement that connects individuals, communities and organizations to celebrate and encourage philanthropy. People love to make a difference and they are motivated when they believe in your cause. Although this year has been challenging for many, there are still an abundance of good to be done and that means there is money to be raised. It’s important to make your campaign impactful and get people involved. We have put together a few things you can do to ensure a successful campaign, even during a pandemic.

Strategy

Determining your strategy is the first step in creating a successful Giving Tuesday Campaign. It doesn’t matter if you organization is large or small, it is imperative that you have a plan for your staff and donors. It can be as simple or sophisticated as you would like, but you need to ensure your organization can support it and your donors will be moved to contribute. You can start designing your strategy by by answering these questions:

• Is this a one-time event, or will you be kicking of a longer end-of-year campaign?

• Are you wanting to solely raise money, or will you be creating a call to action with something like clothing, toys, petitions or volunteer pledges?

• What are the best channels to engage your constituents?

• Will there be a matching gift from a sponsor?

Goals

Once you have laid out your strategy, it’s important to start working on more specific goals. This allows your team to effectively measure the success of the campaign and it is proven to help you raise more money. When setting your goal, be sure it is a realistic stretch and communicate it with your donors.

When you are thinking about your goal, be sure to decide on the impact that goal can make. Will it feed 50 people? Provide education and resources to 25 children? Rescue 5 dogs? By setting a defined intention for the money, you give people something to rally behind. This is the most important part of the goal when you are communicating with your donors. People want to have an integral role in helping your mission. This allows them to know that they are making a difference in a solid manner.

You will also want to be sure your goal is front and center on your donation page. A meter to track donations in real time is a great way to encourage people to donate more or send it to their friends. It also makes Giving Tuesday seem a little more interactive and exciting. Donation Page

Touch Base

Now that you’ve set your campaign goal, it’s time to tell the donors! It is vital that they know your Giving Tuesday plans before the big day. Send them an email at least a week out encouraging them to give. You will also want to motivate them to talk to friends, family and colleagues. Be sure to check in again right around Thanksgiving, expressing your thanks to them for their contributions to your cause throughout the year. Black Friday and Cyber Monday are great days to send at least one reminder each day about Giving Tuesday. This keeps you at the top of their mind as they are budgeting their spending. Then, of course, you will want to communicate several times on Giving Tuesday.

Sponsors & Matching Gifts

There are many companies who are eager to connect with causes leading into Giving Tuesday. Small businesses in your area are a great place to start. If you have a connection with a larger company, you can always use that to find out about their end-of-year giving strategies. Ask if they will support your organization on Giving Tuesday with a matching donation, promotional support, or both. This can be pitched to businesses and brands as a way to expand their audience (and yours) and garner positive press coverage.

Emails

As you finalize your Giving Tuesday plans, you will want to create a detailed schedule to ensure that every member of your team understand their role and how and when they should be playing it. Some things you may want to include in your schedule are:

• Changing website banners

• Emails

• Social media posts (all social media channels)

• Facebook Live or Instagram Reels

• Texts messaging

• Sharing supporter/influencer content

• Campaign updates

• ‘Thank you’ messages

You will start with the end in mind. Imagine if the campaign was as successful as possible across every channel - clicks, impressions, engagement, donations, shares - the make sure your team members understand which metric they’re responsible for.

Email is one of the most powerful channels to utilize on Giving Tuesday. It’s the easiest way to raise money on the day—even if it’s just an email reminder that Giving Tuesday has arrived. You can set up these emails as scheduled content or put someone in charge of sending them, but you don’t want to miss this opportunity to touch base with your donors.

When developing subject lines and email content, be sure to think of ways to stand out. You want them to open and give based on your email, so be sure that it is centered on your work and vision for your mission.

You will want to send multiple emails throughout the day: your kick-off email, a mid-day reminder with an update on the progress to your goal, and a final reminder notice. Don’t forget to remove people that have already given in the day so that you don’t ask them to give again on the same day. You will also want to tailor your campaign for those people who have opened at least one email in the last 6-12 months to increase the likelihood of giving.

The entire point of your email campaign is to encourage action. Whether you use pictures, videos, or stories to engage your subscribers, you will want to be sure that you:

• Set a clear goal

• Connect the supporter directly to the success of the mission

• Make giving easy

It’s important to remember that you should have one clear ask. Let supporters know the progress you made together.

Social Media

Giving Tuesday is driven in a huge way on social media. Supporters, influencers, and organizations share about the ways they’re giving back and doing good, inspiring others to do the same. The best campaigns on social media are those where supporters and influencers are encouraged to share about the causes that matter most to them—think of it as free PR. The point is to get your supporters talking about the work you’re doing and the reason your cause is so important.

You may want to consider creating a social media toolkit for your supporters in preparation for the day. Let them know you want to hear from them on social! Make it easy for them by providing pre-written posts and examples of the types of pictures they’d love to see on social media. Remind them to tag you, use your hashtag, and encourage their friends to participate in the movement, too!

Crowdfunding

You may also have supporters and volunteers who are willing to do more than give and share on social media. If that is the case, you should consider asking them if they would be willing to lead crowdfunding campaigns. This might be a contest with a reward to the person who raises the most money at the end of the day.

Crowdfunding campaigns take a bit more preparation, but the results are typically worth the extra effort. When you create a crowdfunding campaign, you will want to be sure to provide your supporters with templates, examples, and technology to make fundraising easy. You could encourage your fundraisers to:

• Create a list of family and friends they will reach out to personally

• Share the campaign across their social media

• Use personal stories and pictures to show others why your cause matters

• Set personal fundraising goals

• Recognize their friends and family as they support their campaign

• Say ‘Thank You!’

Crowdfunding is a powerful way to raise more money, but it can also be used as a way to recruit new supporters. Even if a person only gives because their friend asked, you should still follow up. Let them know that their gift was valuable and ask if they would like to learn more about how they can be a part of your mission. Not everyone will engage, but it is important that you provide the best possible experience with your brand, even for your one-time donors.

Thank You

The most important part of any fundraising campaign is the donors, so be sure they know it. As soon as a person donates, thank them for their gift and tell them how they’ve helped further your cause. Within the thank you email (as well as on your online thank you page) give them additional opportunities to show their support for your organization.

At the end of the day, email your supporters again thanking them for contributing on Giving Tuesday. Express your gratitude and tell them how the money raised will have an impact. You may also want to take it one step further and send an old-fashioned snail mail thank you note that doesn’t ask for another donation but simply shows your gratitude. Thanking donors makes them more likely to give to your organization again and again. Touch base with the same donors again before year’s end.