The Giving Movement: It’s More Than Just #GivingTuesday

WASHINGTON—Giving Tuesday has revolutionized giving days. A movement that started in 2012 by 92nd Street Y and the United Nations Foundation, Giving Tuesday aims to “celebrate and encourage giving during a commercially focused season,” Jessie Salpeter, senior digital account executive for Chapman Cubine and Hussey, said during the DMA Nonprofit Federation Conference.

According to the #GivingTuesday Data Project, there was a total of $168 million online donations in 2016—1.56 million online donations, 2,399,092 social media engagements, a mean gift size of $107.69 and a year-over-year growth of 44 percent.

While Giving Tuesday is a great way to increase end-of-year giving, nonprofits should consider incorporating addition giving days throughout the year. All giving days are important because they “further an organization’s mission to turn more people into philanthropists, expand impact for nonprofits and create a culture of giving,” Salpeter said.

She shared a reliable formula for planning and hosting a giving day, which includes planning ahead, being transparent, creating a clear goal and creating a name and mission for your giving day. But if you can’t hit all those points of the formula, here’s her advice:

Focus on mission over tactics: Depending on your organizational mission, there may be days throughout the year that are natural giving days. Use these natural fits to create a giving day that makes sense for your organizations.

One size does not fit all: There are a variety of strategies that have been used to host giving days. The most successful giving days build on the strengths of the host organization and align with its strategic purposes.

Conduct an honest evaluation: Even the most successful giving day can benefit from an honest review of what worked and what could be improved. A review is also important to assess whether the event is still the right fit for your community.

A few tactics that have been shown to be effective are hashtags (#GivingTuesday), matching gifts, sponsorships and gamification. Adding these tactics to your strategy creates a fun environment for your giving campaign—incentives to keep your donors engaged because they will feel that they will part of a community, and people love feeling like they are a part of a community.

To have a successful giving day, Salpeter advises to focus on these key points:

• Start with Giving Tuesday if your organization has never organized a giving day.
• Create urgency around giving days.
• Have organizational buy in when establishing a giving day.
• Give yourself as much time as possible to plan a giving day.
• Understand the investment in your giving day.