In 2012, the 92nd Street Y in New York City started a movement known as Giving Tuesday. The yearly event, stylized as #GivingTuesday for its social media slant, takes place on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving and focuses on motivating people to donate to great causes. The following are just a few benefits of participating in Giving Tuesday.
1. Great Marketing Potential
Between 2012 and 2016, the amount of money processed through just a single online donation collector more than quadrupled. This is because people have taken notice of the event, and this provides an exceptional marketing opportunity for nonprofit organizations.
You can actually start promoting #GivingTuesday months in advance, and you can even mention the event while soliciting donations throughout the year (ex. “No need to wait until #GivingTuesday!”). International focus is provided to Giving Tuesday, so the outreach potential is limitless.
2. People Are in the Giving Spirit
Maybe one of the largest benefits of Giving Tuesday is the fact that people are already in the giving spirit. Even socially conscious individuals who can’t give during the rest of the year make a point of donating on this special day. In reality, this is more than just a benefit. Since droves of people are donating to at least one charity on Giving Tuesday, failing to participate means your organization is essentially giving away money.
3. Increase Organizational Profile
Giving Tuesday also provides your organization with the opportunity to get noticed by more people. First off, individuals will be searching out #GivingTuesday and similar hashtags, and if they come across your group’s, your name recognition will immediately increase. Additionally, people will want to announce the fact that they’ve donated on Giving Tuesday, and this will result in their followers on social media hearing about your organization.
4. Opportunity to Develop Trust
Unfortunately, not everyone using the #GivingTuesday banner is a legitimate or trusted charity. Fortunately, people are starting to realize this, but this also means smaller organizations can have difficulty building trust in an oversaturated market.
As it turns out, though, many states have their own Giving Tuesday websites. This gives you the opportunity to verify your organization with the state’s database and get listed on their websites. When people see you listed on these sites, you immediately gain a measure of trust. Fortunately, this trust outlasts a single Tuesday after Thanksgiving.
5. Collect New Donor Data
It’s typically much easier to collect money from former donors than first-timers. This is why collecting donor information is so vital to an organization’s success. Fortunately, Giving Tuesday opens the door to gaining droves of first-time donors. After this, they’re no longer “first-timers.” Instead, they’ve become prior donors who are much more likely to give again.
This makes it vital that your organization collect donor data on Giving Tuesday. If you utilize fundraising software, this is a simple process thanks to online form and nonprofit platform integration. If you’re taking donations in-office or at a local event, be sure to download your software’s corresponding mobile app. A name, phone number and address is enough data to reach out long after Giving Tuesday has ended.
Getting your organization involved in Giving Tuesday is a great way to give more back to your community, but as evidenced by the aforementioned points, the benefits don’t stop there. This international day of giving has presented an abundance of opportunities for organizations, and if this is your first year getting involved in the #GivingTuesday trend, your group is in for a pleasant surprise.
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