Giving Tuesday Is Coming! Here’s How to Prepare for a Successful Giving Tuesday

By September 11, 2018Donations

Giving Tuesday, often referred to by its hashtag #givingtuesday, occurs the first Tuesday after the American Thanksgiving holiday (and for those in other countries, American Thanksgiving is always the third Thursday in November).

Started in 2012 by the United Nations Foundation and the New York City 92nd Street Y, Giving Tuesday began as a grassroots effort or “hashtag movement” to counteract the gross commercialism that often occurs on Black Friday. It’s not uncommon in the United States for eager Christmas shoppers to push, shove, and generally behave  rudely in their quest for cheap goods on the first official shopping day of Christmas. Sad, but true.

These charities began the Giving Tuesday movement in an effort to focus people on the more positive message of giving back to their communities. Instead of crass commercialism, the emphasis is on charitable giving. And that’s good news for your organization if you can leverage the momentum of Giving Tuesday.

In 2017, the last year for which figures are available, approximately $274 million was raised in total, with $45 million raised through Facebook donations.

Your nonprofit can ride the surge of donations generated through the hashtag campaign by ensuring an easy way for people to donate. A little preparation now may result in a surprise on #givingtuesday.

Revamp Your Donation Page

Don’t wait until the night before Giving Tuesday to update your donation page. Take the time now to make sure it’s as enticing as possible.

  1. Update your branding. If you’re using PayPal or a similar payment service, customize your checkout pages and thank you pages. Add your nonprofit’s logo, slogan, URL and any other information to remind donors that their donation is making a difference.
  2. Remind donors of your impact. Another great use of the donation page is to remind donors of the impact that your organization makes on the constituents you serve. An animal nonprofit may wish to include a link or stories, photos and other media showcasing their work with animals their charity helps. The best time to remind donors of the impact that their generosity makes is at the time they’re giving. It reinforce their feelings of good will and strengthens the bond between your organization and the donor.
  3. Add monthly giving options. Sure, a one-time donation is great, but what about monthly giving options? You may be able to add monthly giving options so that donors can choose to give in regular increments rather than in one lump sum.
  4. Make it friendly: Make sure that your page can be easily read by multiple devices including desktops, laptops, tablets and mobile phones. Responsinator is a free tool that allows you to see how your webpages look on mobile devices.

Don’t Be a Stranger

One of the best ways to leverage your participation in #givingtuesday is by letting your constituents know ahead of time. Start several weeks before the promotion to let your donors know that your nonprofit is participating in the event. As the date draws near, send more frequently emails. A good sequence is a thank you message on Thanksgiving; email reminders on Sunday and Monday; and a big announcement email on Giving Tuesday.

Incorporate Social Media

Giving Tuesday is a social media-driven campaign; be sure you’re actively participating on social media in the time period leading up to the actual day. Update your social media banners and set up automated messages using tools like Buffer or Hootsuite to make it even easier to keep a steady stream of messages flowing to your constituents.

Remember to use the hashtag #givingtuesday on all posts related to the big donation day. People searching under that hashtag can see your posts; it will show up in the results for the hashtag search. That’s another great way to reach potential donors!

Giving Tuesday, One Great Day Among 365 Other Donation Opportunities

Giving Tuesday is a great event – but so are the remaining 364 days in the year. Every day is an opportunity to connect with donors and raise awareness for your nonprofit. In fact, many of these tips can (and should) be implemented year-round as part of your fundraising and marketing activities.  With a little planning and follow-through, you can expand upon the idea of “giving Tuesday.”

Welter Consulting

Welter Consulting bridges people and technology together for effective solutions for nonprofit organizations. We offer software and services that can help you with your accounting needs. Please contact Welter Consulting at 206-605-3113 for more information.