Was Giving Tuesday a flop for you?

Giving Tuesday has come and gone and by now your numbers are in. Did you do well? Did you expect miracles like I mention in this video?

For Giving Tuesday to be anything other than a kick-off to the end-of-year giving season, you have to really work it.

This means working your database all year by building relationships and communicating about things besides asking for money.

This means marketing your organization and prioritizing messages about philanthropy’s role in the organization.

And this means doing more than a social media post or two on Giving Tuesday. 

In my second video about Giving Tuesday, I touched on one other element to consider and that is the absolute swarms of competitors communicating that day. The volume of communications is overwhelming to people and unless recipients absolutely LOVE your organization, they’re not tuning in. 

Here’s another approach that reduces competition and could give you a different time of year to connect with an online giving ask:

Pick a day that is meaningful to your organization. It could be a national awareness day about your cause. It can be a week or a month that is dedicated to the people that you serve or to the people that work on your team.

Ideas include:

• a founder’s birthday

• the official day your organization was founded

• an important anniversary (e.g. 20 years!)

• a day that draws attention to children or pets or seniors or whoever you serve

• a day that focuses on the challenges you fight every day (like homelessness, cancer, ADHD or hunger)

• a day that honors key people who serve others like teachers and nurses. 

There are so many things you can do. I did a beautiful March Is Reading Month campaign for an organization. (Message me, I'd love to tell you more about it!)  

Once you pick a date, you need to do more. You need to spend time planning with a strategy, communicating, giving people other things to do than just give; this could be sharing things, learning things, doing an activity or volunteering. Use the time and grab a week or a month instead of Giving Tuesday to really, really communicate and do more than just ask.

Build more relationships. Share your message. Let them tell other people about it. You will have a greater amount of success than putting your efforts into Giving Tuesday when you take your own day, make it yours and make it special. 

If you need help figuring out what day would work well, or if you want to hear more about my favorite reading month ever, reach out to me. And, definitely follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube where I will continue to share all of my favorite tips and strategies with you. 

Have the best day ever, no matter what the occasion! 

Angie