Tips to Maximize Donations this Giving Tuesday

At Visceral, we love the holidays. Stuffing ourselves with mashed potatoes and pie, stringing up colorful lights and baking cookies are all amazing.

But what we enjoy the most about the holiday season is giving back. That’s why we get stoked each year for Giving Tuesday—a day that brings us all together for one common purpose: to celebrate and encourage giving.

Here’s what you can do to make your own Giving Tuesday donation campaign seamless and successful this year on November 27th:

Donation Form

The online donation form might seem like an obvious way for people to make an easy donation. But we still see a lot of PayPal buttons and “send a check to this address” on websites. Online donation forms aren’t nearly as challenging as they once were. If you’re on WordPress (and if not, why not?) you can use Give to have a beautiful, fully-functional donation page up and running in less time than you think. Other platforms like donate.ly and Classy can help as well.

Tell Good Stories

Is the story you’re telling about your cause compelling? Are you doing a good enough job of engaging your audience and making them care? A great content strategy is one of the most often overlooked parts of a digital strategy and can make all the difference in converting lurking visitors into active donors.

Social Sharing Buttons

Not everyone has the resources to make a donation, but they can still have an impact by spreading the word on their social media platforms. And those who are able to donate can amplify their contribution by encouraging others, too. Make sure you have options for visitors to share your donation page in a visible but not overly intrusive way.

Transparency

What exactly will the donation money be used to support? Donors want to create a real impact with their dollars, and increasingly, this means they want to know specifically how their contribution fits into the bigger picture of your organization. Statements like “For every X dollars we raise, we can do Y” help quantify the impact your donors can make. Charts and infographics can drive this home as well. Also, if you have a good Charity Navigator rating (and, again, if not, why not?), showcase that on your website to further establish trust with your donors.

Corporate Sponsorships

Getting a corporation to match your #GivingTuesday donations not only doubles the amount of revenue you can generate, but also encourages more visitors to donate in the first place. Choosing the right partner (one who shares your values, etc.) is obviously important. But if you find the right one, this can be a very effective strategy. Find out more on how to pitch a corporate sponsorship.

Email Marketing

Get your email campaign designed and ready to go so that you can easily message your list of subscribers, donors, advocates, etc. Be careful not to overwhelm folks with information, but two or three emails at various times of the day is generally okay. If possible, make sure your email marketing and donor management systems are integrated so that people who have already donated don’t get the follow-up emails.

Start Planning Now

This may seem like a no-brainer, but the earlier you get started with your planning, the better off you’ll be. There’s nothing worse than frantically trying to put everything together the week of Thanksgiving.

Helping organizations raise awareness of, and money for, important causes is one of the reasons we founded Visceral. If you need help planning your #GivingTuesday strategy, contact us.