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What began as a simple idea in 2012 has now blossomed into a global movement with one central idea: inspiring acts of generosity and support that help to build a better world. Today, GivingTuesday is celebrated by millions and reaches every country and territory in the world.

In 2021, $2.7 billion was given on GivingTuesday throughout the United States—a 9% increase from 2020 and 37% increase from pre-pandemic records. Even more inspiring was how generous people were beyond financial contributions:

• 9.7 million people volunteered
• 10.2 million people donated goods
• 13.5 million people advocated

2022 is positioned to be an even stronger year of giving. Despite the ongoing pandemic and whispers of an economic downturn, giving continues to outpace consumer spending AND overall giving growth within the United States.

So what can YOU do to optimize your GivingTuesday fundraising this year?

Early preparation and planning are essential to the success of your GivingTuesday campaign. Since GivingTuesday culminates on a single day, the campaign needs to launch weeks ahead of time and include several touchpoints leading up to GivingTuesday. This means that planning needs to start months before.

GivingTuesday is on November 29, so your organization’s kick-off meetings should happen in mid-September to ensure that you have plenty of time to gather resources, develop creative, and roll out a strong campaign.

Your GivingTuesday kick-off meeting should cover these four areas (at a minimum!):

1. Past campaigns: Review your past GivingTuesday campaigns, year-end campaigns, and strongest campaigns to date. Determine what worked, what didn’t, and general areas to improve. Note the number of donations, average donation amount, how supporters made donations, which channels were most effective, what audiences you targeted, and how each audience segment performed.
2. This year’s goals: After reviewing your past campaigns, set realistic and attainable goals for this year’s GivingTuesday campaign. And don’t stop at total revenue goals—include the average donation, number of donations, new supporters (or leads), audience engagement, and other key metrics that your organization uses to gauge success.
3. Campaign strategies: With your target audience and segments in mind, develop campaign strategies such as match opportunities, the utilization of a fundraising tracker, and success stories. And as you solidify your strategies, be sure to determine the appropriate channels to create a cohesive multichannel GivingTuesday campaign.
4. Budget and resources: Once you establish your campaign strategy and ideal channels, determine what you need to make it all happen. From creative assets to website updates to staffing, set your budget, make a plan to secure necessary resources that will bring your campaign to life, and establish a realistic timeline for creating and executing your GivingTuesday campaign.

GivingTuesday celebrates 10 years of generosity this year, making it a great time for your nonprofit to get in on all the fun! By planning ahead, your organization will have plenty of time to connect with supporters, create memorable graphics and videos, and celebrate 10 years of generosity while generating critical revenue.

Looking for more information?

For more information or assistance with your GivingTuesday strategy, check out our 12 Weeks of GivingTuesday resources or contact us at info@thelukenscompany.com.