Giving Tuesday is a great fundraising opportunity for nonprofit organizations if planned the right way. As nonprofit fundraisers, we’re constantly planning out different campaigns throughout the year. However, Giving Tuesday is now a common campaign across many non-profits thanks to it becoming a global movement that encourages people to show their generosity.
Giving Tuesday is a great opportunity to get more people involved in your cause and help you to reach your organization’s goals during the very lucrative year-end fundraising season.
I want to help you to take on this opportunity and to get donors for your cause. This is a step-by-step guide on how your organization can plan a successful Giving Tuesday campaign.
Step 1. Define what you’re raising money for
Step 2. Define your campaign goal
Step 3. Map out your strategies & tactics
Step 4. Create your content plan for a successful Giving Tuesday campaign
Step 5. Create your timeline and project plan
Step 6. Start rolling out your plan!
STEP 1. Define what you’re raising money for
Have a specific ask or a proper project that you want to raise money for. Don’t think that just because it’s Giving Tuesday, people will automatically donate to your organization. A proper Giving Tuesday campaign needs to be developed.
If you’re looking to have a successful Giving Tuesday campaign then having a defined call to action is a must. Your project needs to be:
- Specific
- Tangible
- Deadline-driven
Let donors know what they’re giving to and the impact they’ll be part of.
STEP 2. Define your campaign goal
A successful Giving Tuesday campaign needs to happen days ahead of the main event. And it starts by defining how much money you need to raise for your project. Check your analytics, and historical results from past fundraisings and establish an attainable goal.
These are the steps I suggest you can follow in order to reach your campaign goal:
- Decide how much money you need to raise on your Giving Tuesday campaign. Be realistic.
- Let your audience know your goal.
- On Giving Tuesday day, show the progress you’re making towards your goal. It is encouraging for donors.
- Towards the end of the day, let people know how close you’re to reaching the goal! Send an email or social media post to your audience to motivate them to contribute.
STEP 3. Map out your strategies and tactics
Even though Giving Tuesday is mostly a social media movement to encourage generosity among people, your campaign can be more successful by planning strategies and tactics towards it.
Most of my clients have had pretty successful Giving Tuesday campaigns by sending out really strong compelling fundraising emails. These emails drive traffic to their website and tie into their Giving Tuesday campaign.
In order to do this, it is key that your campaign goes aligned with a communications plan that mentions the channels you’ll be using to transmit your message.
On another note, you can also create your 90-Day nonprofit communication plan by following this step-by-step guide.
STEP 4. Create your content plan for a successful Giving Tuesday campaign
Creating content that builds relationships with your audience in the days and weeks ahead of the main day reinforces your fundraising efforts. I suggest you start posting your Giving Tuesday campaign content one month ahead. Early November might be the right time to start.
Things you can share with your audience:
- Showing impact
- Telling stories
- Your organization’s mission and connecting people with your cause
- Anything that encourages more giving on Giving Tuesday
STEP 5. Create your timeline and project plan
Maybe you’re wondering, why do I need a project plan? Well, let me tell you that the success of a campaign is not only based on the tools you have but how and when you’ll use them.
By setting your strategies, tactics, and content in place at the right time, it’ll guarantee the best fundraising results.
It doesn’t matter if the Giving Tuesday campaign is planned by a full team or just by yourself. A timeline will help you avoid any last-minute headaches and stay on track.
Remember that for having a successful Giving Tuesday campaign, you need to consider your team’s capacity, your organization’s capacity, your resources, and budget.
STEP 6. Start rolling out your plan!
Still too early to start? Nope! It’s never too early to start working on your fundraising initiatives.
I highly encourage you to prepare and start as soon as you can. So when the date comes closer, you’ll have enough time to work on any last-minute thing that comes up.
Some things you can start working on now:
- Prep work of writing your social media post
- Getting your email templates written
- Create some graphics or any other asset that might help your campaign
Ready to plan your next successful giving Tuesday campaign?
I hope that these steps help you to organize a very successful campaign. Follow these tips and have a far less stressful experience for you and your organization.
Remember that any plan needs to come along with a timeline. The earlier you prepare for your Giving Tuesday campaign, the most ready you’ll be for the day.
Can’t wait to hear about your campaigns! Check out my YouTube playlist below, and learn more about Giving Tuesday.
