Now entering its sixth year, #GivingTuesday is a global day of giving fueled by the power of social media. To tap this potential, your NGO, nonprofit, or charity needs to activate its social media presence before, during, and after #GivingTuesday to help build the movement and, in the process, raise awareness and funds for your organization and mission. Presented on September 27 via webinar, below are the notes and deck. To register for future free webinars, please see the Nonprofit Tech for Good Webinar Schedule.

Best Practice #1: Start Promotion by October 28.

  • Website: Create a landing page on your website, a microsite, or on a third-party platform, such as Razoo.
    1. Prominently feature the date (November 28), the #GivingTuesday hashtag, a “Donate” button, links to your social networks, social sharing, and an e-newsletter opt-in.
    2. Optional: List three additional calls-to-action (share on social media, become a monthly donor, become a #GivingTuesday Ambassador, etc.).
    3. Please note: Online donors most trust the .org (72%), .edu (7%), and .ngo (6%) domains. The least trusted domains are .net (30%), .com (29%), and country-code (13%).
  • Email: Integrate #GivingTuesday into your email campaigns.
    1. Approximately one month before send a “Save the Date” email, link to your website, and make a prominent pitch for #GivingTuesday Ambassadors.
    2. Thereafter and through November 27, add a #GivingTuesday footer or header image (600 x 200) to your email newsletter that links to your #GivingTuesday website.
  • Social Media: Prepare in advance a month-long campaign.
    1. On October 28 start sharing “Save the Date” posts/graphics on social media 2-3 times weekly.
    2. Write a minimum of 20 posts/tweets (with social media graphics) in advance that can be easily copied-and-pasted in the days leading up to and on #GivingTuesday.
    3. Include a link to your website and use the #GivingTuesdayhashtag in almost every post on social media.

Best Practice #2: Design Visual Content

Best Practice #3: Launch Ambassador Program

  • Recruit ambassadors for your #GivingTuesday campaign:
    1. Create an ambassador sign up page and provide sample email text and social media graphics/avatars.
    2. In the weeks leading up #GivingTuesday, email your ambassadors and ask them to update their social media profiles. Email them again the day before to provide encouragement and last minute updates.
    3. If applicable, ask ambassadors (and supporters, in advance) to create a fundraising page for your #GivingTuesday campaign.

Best Practice #4: Activate Your Networks

  • Send a minimum of two emails on #GivingTuesday. One for announcing “It’s #GivingTuesday” and another for announcing that your nonprofit has reached XX% of its fundraising goal. Also, activate your ambassadors.
  • Be very active throughout the day on social media. You’re first post should be between 5-7am.
    1. Post on Facebook a minimum of 3X and have a budget to boost your posts ($100 per post). Go live at least once and if you have signed up for Facebook fundraising tools, add a “Donate” button to your Facebook Live streams.
    2. Tweet a minimum of 2X hourly. Retweet donors, supporters, and ambassadors. If you have a large following on Twitter, host a tweetchat.
    3. Post on Instagram a minimum of 3X, update your bio link to your landing page or microsite, and go live at least once.
    4. Optional: Post on LinkedIn, Google+, Pinterest, and Snapchat.

Best Practice #5: Report Success

  • Write an article or blog post summarizing the success of your giving day and then:
    1. Send an email to donors thanking them for their gift and ask them to sign up to become an ambassador for next year.
    2. If you did not reach your goal, send an email to those who did not give and let them know the campaign has been extended another week in order to reach your goal.
  • Post thank you graphics on social media the day after your giving day.
  • After #GivingTuesday, update your landing page or microsite and include a “Save the Date” for 2018 (November 27) with an email opt-in and #GivingTuesday Ambassador call-to-action.
  • Resources: How to Land a Sponsorship for your #GivingTuesdayCampaign and the Complete #GivingTuesday Toolkit.

Available in العَرَبِيَّة, English, français, Português, and español, the 2017 Global NGO Technology Survey seeks to gain a better understanding of how NGOs and NPOs worldwide use technology to engage their supporters and donors.

If you work at a NGO, nonprofit, or charity, please volunteer 4-7 minutes of your time to take the survey. The findings will be published January 29, 2018 in the third edition of the Global NGO Technology Report. Thank you!