Soapbox Engage Blog

Have you come to dread Thanksgiving dinner because it’s always somewhere between your first and second helping of mashed potatoes that you realize you forgot to plan for #GivingTuesday? Even with the massive movement behind the global day of giving which generated more than $116 million for charities in 2015 alone, it can still can sneak up on busy nonprofit professionals. No need to panic or risk turkey day stress-induced indigestion, though! You’ve got time before this year’s November 29th big event and we are here to hand you a few tools to build success!

Over the next four weeks, we will share some tried and true tips on our blog to help you make this year’s #GivingTuesday the best yet! Then, on Thursday, July 28th at 1 pm ET, we’ll wrap up the series with a live webinar to bring it all together and respond to your #GivingTuesday questions!

UPDATE 7/12/2017: Watch our free webinar recording, Seize #GivingTuesday Success with Fundraising Wisdom and Salesforce. which was originally broadcast on July 11, 2017.

Step 1: You need a plan

You could wait until November 29, 2016. Do a couple of posts on social media. Maybe shoot out an email. Cross your fingers. Hope for the best. If you really want to see bang for your campaign buck, though, a little planning will go a long way.

Haven’t started planning? We get it. It’s tempting to think “Sure, I’ll plan my #GivingTuesday campaign right after I finish those grant applications, my board report, and run my organization’s biggest fundraising event.” You have a lot on your plate which is why we are here help get you started. Here’s a crash course in the basics:

Set realistic goals

Be realistic about what you can accomplish for #GivingTuesday. Here are a couple of starter questions to help you identify what your goal should be:

• How much money did you raise on last year?
• How many gifts did you receive?
• What was the average gift size?

Use the answers to these as a benchmarks and increase it by 5-10% to give you your 2016 targets. And, you get bonus points if you can look at a couple of years in a row and find trends or giving patterns.

Set your communication timeline

When and how will you get your message out? Early and often is your best bet. We’ve created a basic communications plan for #GivingTuesday. Just click File > Make a Copy to save and make it your own. Remember, your content should be “sticky”. Links from your social media posts or emails should go to your blog or website and expand on the story you’re telling.

Next week we’ll give pointers on how to craft your message and test it so you know it will drive donors to your donation form and get them excited to give! Don’t forget to sign up for Your Tools for #GivingTuesday Success webinar taking place July 28th!