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FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN#GIVINGTUESDAY
THE COMPREHENSIVEGUIDE TO PLANNING A
CONTENTSGETTING STARTED: SETTING A GOAL 4
DETERMINING REWARDS AND DONATION TIERS 7
RALLYING AN AUDIENCE 10
CRAFTING COMMUNICATIONS AND STORYTELLING 13
USING PERSONAL FUNDRAISING PAGES 16
PUBLICIZING YOUR CROWDFUNDING CAMPAIGN 19
BUILDING YOUR CAMPAIGN ON CAUSEVOX 22
ABOUT CAUSEVOX CauseVox is a crowdfunding and peer-to-peer fundraising platform for nonprofits and social good projects.
3THE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO PLANNING A #GIVINGTUESDAY FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN
Fall is officially underway and the onslaught of holidays is coming full speed ahead. It’s likely
you’ve already seen the first of many commercials advertising this season’s hottest deals, toys, and gadgets, and stores are already stocking their shelves with decorations and giftwrap galore.
For nonprofits, getting into the holiday spirit means launching your own major fundraising campaign, often referred to as a “holiday appeal” or “end-of-year campaign.” And for the last couple of years, a new “holiday” has put even more emphasis and spotlight on the good work nonprofits are doing during this time of year, and it’s giving everyone a chance to shift the focus from getting to giving.
Two years ago, the 92 Street Y in NYC and the United Nations Foundation joined forces to create #GivingTuesday, a one-day annual
movement focused on charitable giving during the holiday season. The thinking was, if there is a Black Friday and a Cyber Monday, why not a Giving Tuesday? In the two years since #GivingTuesday was launched, the campaign has engaged more than 10,000 organizations around the world, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars. In 2013, collective reporting showed a 90% increase in online giving compared to 2012, and a 270% increase in giving on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving.
This year’s #GivingTuesday falls on December 2. Since early September, we’ve been sharing some resources and information on the CauseVox blog on how to plan for your own campaign, but this eBook is meant to provide a full overview from start to finish. From setting a goal, and crafting your story, we’ll walk you through each step to prepare for the big day. Let’s get started!
Get the big picture on #GivingTuesday in their webinar video
THE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO PLANNING A #GIVINGTUESDAY FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN GettinG Started: SettinG a Goal
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A lthough #GivingTuesday is only a 24-hour fundraising campaign, it’s still important a realistic, yet aspirational fundraising goal. And
perhaps because of the timeframe, it’s even imperative that you choose a campaign goal that stands out from your ongoing fundraising. Here are some initial questions to think about:
1 What is a problem you’re looking to solve in the immediate or near future?
2 Who or what are you trying to impact?
3 What do you need to do it?
Your big picture goal for the holiday season or the calendar year may remain the same (i.e. preventing malaria, building schools, rescuing dogs), but this is a great opportunity to try a unique approach – a story that makes your organization and your quest to better the world different, personal, and relatable right now.
THE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO PLANNING A #GIVINGTUESDAY FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN GettinG Started: SettinG a Goal
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and based on what is achievable. Although we certainly are no strangers to failure, and even embrace it, we also think it’s important to set yourself up for success as much as possible. The SMART framework is one approach:
SMartMeaSUraBleAttainaBleReleVantTiMelY
You can read more about SMART goals and get other examples on our blog. You should also consider that hundreds (thousands even) of other organizations will also be participating in #GivingTuesday and coming up with their own unique fundraising goals – so when you are creating yours, think about the story you will tell and the opportunity to make an impact beyond December 2.
Take time to read through the collection of case studies on GivingTuesday.org featuring nonprofits, small businesses, students, cities, and more.
Based on your answers to the three questions above, break down your long-term mission and your story into a short-term, tangible action for your campaign. Some examples:
ITEM SPECIFIC: We want to send 100 bed nets to a specific village in Malawi
DOLLAR SPECIFIC: Help us to provide novels for five classrooms in a middle school for the start of the new semester in January ($1,000)
TIME SPECIFIC: Fund arrangements for foster homes for 5 shelter dogs within 24 hours
These uber-specific mini goals all feed into your larger one, yet give people a sense of the impact they can make with their #GivingTuesday donation – the more you can show immediate impact and results, the stronger your appeal will be.
As with other fundraising campaigns, remember to think about these new goals in context of your current financials,
THE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO PLANNING A #GIVINGTUESDAY FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN deterMininG rewardS and donation tierS
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Giveaways for Giving
Many organizations use rewards and premiums (gifts) to incentivize donations, and it’s become a common element of crowdfunding campaigns. Rewards can range from the most basic, like donor acknowledgment on social media, to high-end gifts or recognition by the organization.
Many giving challenges are successful because they use prizes and incentives as a key part of their strategy. America’s Giving Challenge and GiveMN are just a couple of the bigger giving challenges in the last few years that have awarded extra funds to organizations that “beat” their peers for raising the most amount of money in a certain timeframe, by having the most donors, etc.
Think of opportunities to reward your donors throughout the 24 hours of #GivingTuesday. You could offer an exclusive meetup with people from your organization or an entry for a trip to see your work on the ground. Or maybe you have handcrafted goods or gifts that directly relate to your impact. And perhaps it’s as simple as sending the first 10 people to donate a handwritten thank you letter or featuring them in your next newsletter. If you’ve been debating using prizes and incentives, #GivingTuesday could be the perfect opportunity to test this tactic.
THE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO PLANNING A #GIVINGTUESDAY FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN deterMininG rewardS and donation tierS
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Keep in mind EVERYONE LOVES SURPRISES: Go beyond the standard automated email thank you and mail a handwritten note, or send a gift after the donation has been completed, instead of using it to push donations.
ALIGN WITH YOUR MISSION: If you choose to give back to your donors, pick something that fits your purpose. Examples: a dog bandana or collar if you’re an animal shelter, a personalized or branded notebook if you’re an educational organization, or a recipe guide made by your team if you work on food and hunger issues.
PEOPLE, NOT PREMIUMS: Think about what you would want from a nonprofit you support, and choose something that creates a deeper connection with your donors. For instance, an exclusive conference call with the Executive Director, or a special note from someone who was impacted by the campaign. Use it as a way to cultivate relationships with new donors beyond #GivingTuesday.
Establishing Gift Tiers
Another popular feature of crowdfunding is using donation tiers to provide several options of giving for a campaign. It takes the guesswork out for the donors, but also gives you a chance to tie your goals more specifically to your mission, giving the donor a better handle on what they are supporting.
#GivingTuesday is the perfect opportunity to use gift tiers to show that extra level of impact. To determine the donation tiers for your campaign, take a look at your total fundraising goal, what the funds will be used for, and what it will take to get there. Each campaign will be different, so your tiers may vary from one project to the next. Here’s an example setup that could be used by an organization advocating for youth fitness:
$10 Covers the cost of a jump rope for a child
$25 Covers the 5k race entry free for a child
$35 Buys a new pair of running shoes for a child
$50 Pays for two swimming lessons for a child
It’s not always easy to match donation levels with specific impact goals, but when you can, it really increases your chances of success, especially on a day when donors’ attention is being called to thousands of options. If you can clearly show the path from investment to impact, you’ve got an advantage. You can create donation tiers quickly and easily through your CauseVox admin dashboard, and edit them at any time.
THE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO PLANNING A #GIVINGTUESDAY FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN rallYinG an aUdience
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A n essential element in planning your #GivingTuesday campaign is determining your audience. Will you be using it as an
opportunity to attract new donors and grow your community? Or are you focusing on enhancing existing donor relationships? Whichever strategy you choose, it will affect the campaign concept and fundraising goals.
Through social media, nonprofits have been growing their communities at exponential rates, finding thousands of new supporters through Facebook, Twitter, and other platforms. And if you combine those folks with the people on your email list, your direct mail list, your partners, and all the other channels you use to get out your message, the potential for success is endless. Additionally, you’ll receive exposure as a #GivingTuesday nonprofit partner.
CURRENT DONORS
PARTNERS
SOCIAL MEDIA
EVERYONE ELSE
THE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO PLANNING A #GIVINGTUESDAY FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN rallYinG an aUdience
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Activating Your NetworkSo, you’ve got all these people, and you’ve got a countdown to #GivingTuesday. Now what? It’s time to get your supporters working on your behalf – after all, they can be just as much of an ambassador for the cause as your staff. As we’ve seen in the last couple of years, and as the campaign’s organizers recommend, it’s never too early to start communicating about your participation in #GivingTuesday. So, here are a few ways to rally your community and get them ready for December 2:
GIVE A SNEAK PEEK: Pull reports on your most active donors and supporters, and send them a special email a few days before #GivingTuesday. Give them the rundown, and ask them to spread the word in their networks.
CALL YOUR PARTNERS: If you’re working with a specific partner for #GivingTuesday, you should have a joint marketing plan ready to deploy. And if you’re not, create a “family and friends” list of select past partners, sponsors, peer organizations, and champions to call or email in advance of the campaign launch, asking them to share with their networks. Prepare a simple marketing toolkit with sample social media updates, relevant imagery, and links.
HEAD TO THE WATER COOLER: If you’re doing a lot of listening on social media and online, you know the people who are always mentioning you on Twitter, tagging you on Facebook, or posting about you in blogs and discussion forums. Go to these people, and tell them about #GivingTuesday and a hint at what you’ll be doing. Think about a way you can acknowledge or thank them for being an ambassador for your cause.
And here are some other steps you can take to build a community for your campaign.
CRAFTING COMMUNICATIONS AND STORYTELLING
THE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO PLANNING A #GIVINGTUESDAY FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN craftinG coMMUnicationS and StorYtellinG
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Y our campaign concept is mapped out, your audience is primed, and now you need to craft your story. This is your chance to
really bring a hyper-focused look at the work you’re doing and make a connection with your donors in a 24-hour time period.
Just like with other types of fundraising campaigns, there are a few questions to think about when creating a communications plan for an event like #GivingTuesday:
n What is the goal of this campaign?
n How do we achieve it?
n What does success look like?/ What is the impact?
n Who or what is involved and what’s the story?
n Will we (or can we) carry the story through the holiday season and beyond?
Your campaign timeline may already be set, but now perhaps you can dive deeper into the communications tools you will use, and the story you will tell on December 2. Learn more about some of these elements here.
The story you tell and how you tell it is impacted by the answers to these questions as well. Some campaigns may be better served by frequent email updates or blog posts, with a text-heavy component. But others may need a more visually appealing or interactive approach, with plenty of photos, videos, or graphics.
For a #GivingTuesday campaign, these options are significantly more limited because you’re working on a very short timeline, which means you may want to cut down on some of your typical tactics and focus on a couple that will bring you the most bang for your buck (and time). Despite only having 24 hours to raise funds, it’s still important to start the story in advance of December 2, to give your community time to connect with your cause. And for those who choose to fundraise
within their networks on your behalf, they need the opportunity to create a personalized version of your appeal and do some storytelling of their own.
Don’t start too far in advance – stories with no immediate call-to-action won’t be absorbed as well, and you want to avoid fatiguing your donors before you get to the big day. Consider teasing out your campaign theme and sharing a short story two weeks ahead (the week before Thanksgiving), when people really start thinking about their holiday giving and gifting plans. Then over the next couple of weeks, amp things up with save the date messages on social media and your website, and send at least one email to your list a week in advance, with a strong story and a reminder of the #GivingTuesday date.
Calls-to-Action and Storytelling Mediums
THE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO PLANNING A #GIVINGTUESDAY FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN craftinG coMMUnicationS and StorYtellinG
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Your most relevant and resonant stories should be saved for #GivingTuesday itself. Whether you choose to use one story and share different pieces throughout the day, or share multiple stories that all point back to your fundraising ask, the content should be focused, emotionally strong, and timely. Bonus points for a new perspective or angle you’ve never told before, for using humor or hope in new ways, or creating an innovative visual presentation. Don’t use the same story you told two weeks before. Ultimately, your #GivingTuesday day story should make someone want to give to your organization. Does it do that?
There are so many directions you can take with storytelling and communicating for crowdfunding campaigns. No matter what you choose, it’s important to keep in mind relevancy, personalization and connection, timing, and your audience’s behaviors and interests to make sure you get the right mix for the best results.Here are a few ideas to get you going:
CREATE A MATCHING CAMPAIGN with a partner or major donor. Matching campaigns work extremely well for short timelines – they can be completed even in minutes or a few hours!
Do something fun and different on SOCIAL MEDIA, using a platform you’ve been wanting to play with, or a hashtag that will go great with #GivingTuesday.
TELL 24 STORIES IN 24 HOURS, or a complete story in 24 installments, and consider locking it with fundraising achievements throughout the day. People love “To be continued…” storylines. Keep them coming back for more!
Integrate a PHYSICAL OR VIRTUAL EVENT for extra engagement on December 2. Think of ways the online giving could correlate to an activity on the ground.
FOCUS ON YOUR DONORS, and use the day to show why people give during the holiday season. In other words, make use of the #GivingTuesday concept and show your community some love!
GivingTuesday.org has an entire section of story and campaign ideas for nonprofits, businesses, cities, schools, individuals, and more. View and download them here.
THE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO PLANNING A #GIVINGTUESDAY FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN USinG PerSonal fUndraiSinG PaGeS
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If you’re looking to take your #GivingTuesday campaign one step farther, personal or peer-to-peer (P2P)
fundraising is a great way to do it. Research shows that people are more likely to donate to a cause after being asked by someone they know. Think of how many times you supported a project because your nephew, neighbor, or grandmother asked you?
YOU GET LOTS OF EXTRA HELP! Peer-to-peer fundraising campaigns on CauseVox raise two times more than regular crowd-funding campaigns. Your community is your best asset. While your team is busy managing multiple tasks behind the scenes at your organization, your donors are out there making connections, building awareness, finding new supporters, and raising money for you – for free.
YOUR NAME GOES FAR AND WIDE. One of the greatest ben-efits of P2P fundraising is that your cause and brand are introduced to potentially hundreds and thousands of new people – all potential donors and activists. Sally in Montana may have never heard of you or asked her entire book club to donate if it wasn’t for her granddaughter Lizzie sending her a personal note and a link to her fundraising page.
YOU ARE MAKING IT PERSONAL. A lot of donors support a cause because of a per-sonal connection. When you take it a step further and let them recruit fam-ily and friends through a personal fundraising page, they can make the story their own. The deeper the connection, the deeper the impact.
More Resources, More Reach, More ResultsLet’s face it: you’re probably already feeling pressure to reach yearly fundraising goals for your organization, and an intense 24-hour crowdfunding campaign may only seem to pile it on. Crowdfunding is hard work, we know, but incorporating personal fundraising is worth it for many reasons, such as:
THE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO PLANNING A #GIVINGTUESDAY FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN USinG PerSonal fUndraiSinG PaGeS
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You have to give your community the right tools to help them tell their story well, and to help make your campaign a success. After all, they’re supporting you because they want to, and because it makes them feel good. So it’s in your best interest to make their experience fun, easy, educational, and fulfilling. This is even more important for #GivingTuesday, because they, and you, only have so much time to make a strong enough appeal for donations – so preparing your community is an absolute must in this instance.
Consider setting up mini training sessions with fundraisers via web conference at least a month before December 2, providing online toolkits and tips, and creating a special email series with behind-the-scenes updates, exclusive content, and notes of encouragement. You may even think about asking people to “sign up” in advance, so you know exactly who will be doing P2P fundraising for #GivingTuesday, and
as much as possible, you can work directly with them to achieve their goals (and your organization’s).
Just as important is helping your fundraisers craft their own personalized versions of your #GivingTuesday story to use in their campaigns. This is why it’s essential to communicate with your fundraisers several weeks in advance, so you can share your message and provide them all the tools necessary for customization. Research shows that personal stories provide a much better return on donations than “generic” ones, so think about providing a list of options for how to make your goals personal for someone fundraising on your behalf.
Check out our guide to getting started with personal fundraisers for more best practices that you can apply to #GivingTuesday, including the basics on fundraising and crowdfunding technology, and ways to empower your supporters to achieve their goals.
Set Them Up for Success
THE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO PLANNING A #GIVINGTUESDAY FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN PUBlicizinG YoUr crowdfUndinG caMPaiGn
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So you’ve got a great story, an enthusiastic community of supporters, and an awesome goal for your #GivingTuesday campaign. A little love
and attention from writers and journalists would be helpful, too, right? Publicity can be a great way to get your brand and campaign to the masses, and appeal to folks that might not usually come across it otherwise, even through friends and family. It also can lend some credibility to your campaign – a positive article or blog post could go very far in pushing prospective donors to check you out and join the campaign.
The good news is that #GivingTuesday has already made a name for itself in the couple of years since it began, and has been covered by all manner of news outlets. Most of the philanthropic community knows about this movement, and so now the key is making your campaign stand out from the thousands of others participating.
THE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO PLANNING A #GIVINGTUESDAY FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN PUBlicizinG YoUr crowdfUndinG caMPaiGn
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1 REACH OUT TO THE #GIVINGTUESDAY TEAM about your plan: they may be able to provide some media opportunities for you – they’re all about promoting their partners!
2 Make the most of FREE SEARCH TOOLS in the places journalists are listening: Twitter, Help A Reporter Out (HARO), Seek or Shout, and others. Check to see which ones are writing about your issue area, or about unique stories in philanthropy or tech.
3 Craft your pitch so that it can be easily used for multiple journalists, but then take the time to tailor them and pull out SPECIFIC ATTRIBUTES OF YOUR CAMPAIGN THAT WOULD BE APPEALING TO THE INDIVIDUAL REPORTER OR BLOGGER. Don’t send a mail merge – it’s worth the effort to personalize your pitches.
4 THINK BEYOND TRADITIONAL media and consider reaching out to radio, podcast services, niche bloggers, or even your local TV station. If you’re in a college town, call the student newspaper. Ask partners organizations to mention you in an e-newsletter or on social media, especially if they are a well-recognized name with a larger audience.
5 PREPARE CAMPAIGN MATERIALS TO INCLUDE IN YOUR PITCH. Create a toolkit with media, with links, logos and approved photos, and quotes from spokespeople or champions. GivingTuesday.org has an assortment of toolkits for various audiences.
6 TAKE THE OPPORTUNITY TO BEGIN CULTIVATING RELATIONSHIPS with a select few journalists or bloggers for future campaigns. Or if you already have a great relationship with a reporter, give them an exclusive.
Reaching Out to Reporters
You may not have the time or resources to pitch journalists and bloggers about your #GivingTues-day efforts, but if it makes sense to add a publicity component, here are a few approaches to consider in your strategy:
For more best practices and recommendations on planning a pitch strategy, see our guide on publicizing your campaign.
23THE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO PLANNING A #GIVINGTUESDAY FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN create YoUr own fUndraiSinG Site
n EASILY CUSTOMIZABLE FUNDRAISING SITE to integrate with your branding and design
n COMPREHENSIVE FUNDRAISING TOOLS to help you manage your campaign (metrics, emails, social media, content, donation progress, and more)
n EASY AND CLEAN USER INTERFACE AND ADMIN DASHBOARD to manage donors, create content, adjust your campaign, and get real-time updates
n PERSONAL AND TEAM FUNDRAISING PAGES for more resources, more reach, and more results
n STRAIGHTFORWARD DONATION PROCESSING with offline gift integration, donor data, and compatibility with the major transaction processors
n WIDGETS AND API capability so you and your community can raise funds anywhere online and on personal networks
n FREE GUIDES, TOOLKITS, CASE STUDIES AND RESOURCES, in addition to our frequently updated blog to help you be as successful as possible
W e know you’re itching to start pulling all the pieces together for #GivingTuesday,
and we’re ready to help you make it happen! If you haven’t already, we hope you will sign up for CauseVox today to support your fundraising campaign. As a CauseVox organization, here’s just a few of the features you’ll have access to:
There’s a lot more where that came from, including multiple #GivingTuesday specific resources like blog posts, webinars, and more. Don’t hesitate to reach out for more information on any of the topics covered in this guide, and feel free to browse our website for related content if you want to dig a little deeper.
READY TO GET STARTED? Sign up on CauseVox today.
