Giving Tuesday first started back in 2012 as an effort to counteract some of the intense consumerism that tends to happen during Black Friday and Cyber Monday. The Tuesday following Thanksgiving was aimed to raise funding for philanthropic causes and it has grown rapidly since then. Is your organization getting noticed amongst all the buzz?
The GivingTuesday Data Commons estimates that 35 million adults participated in GivingTuesday 2021, with giving in the United States alone totaling $2.7 billion. While the generosity of donors continues to increase on this day, many organizations are feeling they get lost in the noise and plan to transition to their own Day of Giving.
While this effort produces great results in awareness and participation, it can also be a great time to narrow in on top prospects as lead gifts for the 24-hour campaign. The name of the game here is going to be efficient targeting and messaging. Given the short window, reaching out to your constituents with the highest propensity to give is going to help you make the most of your time.
If you’re thinking about having your own giving day the following tips may help you make the most out of those 24 hours.
New participation is the key. The primary goal of these giving days is to attract new donors. Because these giving days are broad, mostly digital marketing campaigns, the cost of acquiring new donors is reduced due to the large audience involved. Instead of the normal direct mail or direct call and phone-a-thons, this is an opportunity to cast a large net all at once. A giving day is a rally cry for the community’s philanthropy. People don’t pick up their phones anymore, so how do you find mass participation? Use intelligent data insights to reach constituents with a high propensity to give.
Keep in mind that a giving day is not just a day to ask for donations. It’s also a day to thank those who have given this year. Stewardship is important, and can also show new potential donors that they should join this large group of people who have already donated. Engage your volunteers and your major gift donors by thanking them for helping get your organization to where it is and make a push to encourage them to help you reach your giving day goal.
Before your outreach begins be sure to set a fundraising goal. Having a set goal and communicating that goal to constituents and potential donors is a much more effective message than trying to simply raise as much money as possible. Rally your donor base by making them a part of a team effort.
Getting people excited about donating can make all the difference. Make reaching your fundraising goal a game or a challenge for your constituents. There are many ways you can go about this such as segmenting your donors into teams and challenging the teams to reach fundraising goals. Fundraising competitions are a great way to tap into the competitive nature of your donor base and can be especially successful with alumni groups.
When it comes to this mass outreach via email, social media, and other digital platforms, be sure to segment your outreach into groups to deliver them dedicated messaging, and test that messaging. Re-engaging previous donors will utilize a much different message than reaching out to first-time donors. Another example is to segment high-level donors who haven’t donated in a while. Reach out to those individuals and ask if they are willing to do a donor match! Being meaningful with your calls to action and measuring engagement will help you improve your messaging the next time you do a giving day.
Using Windfall data can help you prioritize your efforts this winter to cultivate hidden gems to find matching gift donors, unlock donors, and lead gift donors to maximize your Giving Day efforts.
For more information on how to prioritize and segment your Windfall data, visit this best practice guide.
