I know Giving Tuesday campaigns are already underway. But being on the receiving end of so many before noon today, I want to respond by giving some public relations advice.
My thoughts are also influenced both by having worked for a good length of time in nonprofit public relations and as a professor doing research on public relations and nonprofit management and fundraising.
My first thought is that there is a pro and con to even having a day called Giving Tuesday. The pro is isolating the nonprofit sector and providing a high visibility day to encourage charitable giving. The con is that any single nonprofit’s Giving Tuesday push is lost among all the others.
So here are some thoughts about how to manage the public relations behind Giving Tuesday (maybe next year at this point) as well as all other fundraising efforts throughout the year. I used a simple alliterative 3-part list you can call the three Ls of giving appeals.
List. Before even sending and posting Giving Tuesday message appeals, it is vital to think about the recipient. General messages may work to a point, but segmenting the list is better. Manage your database of donors and use it strategically.
Consider that some have given already this year, maybe more than once. What compels them to give again on Giving Tuesday, especially if their last gift was very recent? Consider that maybe donors gave for a variety of specific aspect of your mission. You could offer the option to designate a gift for something specific, or promote not just a gift to the organization but a specific effort that may be new or underfunded.
Also think about the varied capacities to give, in varied amounts. You would not ask a college student to give $1,000 or more, and you wouldn’t want to ask a millionaire to give $10. Make a specific ask in an appropriate amount.
Factoring in the above could lead to a strategy of multiple Giving Tuesday messages and hashtags. Ask for gifts to fund specific capital campaigns or program efforts. Ask specifically in terms of challenging a specific dollar amount.
Leverage. Don’t enter the Giving Tuesday fray all alone. Leverage testimonials from regular donors or partners. A nonprofit partnering with a corporation and leveraging that company’s network can be powerful. It can even be a causer-related marketing campaign that benefits the company with a demonstrated Corporate Social Responsibility or community relations effort.
A challenge—for ever dollar given a company or individual will match—is another way to leverage support in a way that makes Giving Tuesday a unique opportunity for donors and not just a hype day.
Lore. Don’t just ask, tell stories. Demonstrate the impact of past funding, even how last year’s total specific amount from Giving Tuesday had an impact in accomplishing whatever is the mission of the nonprofit—provided a certain number of meals, gave a specific number of scholarships, build a specified number of homes.
Tell these stories in the voices of those affected, let the message be from them and not just about them. Don’t just communicate need for money but show accountability in how it has been used in the past. Donors are no longer motivated by guilt but by opportunity for impact. Make accountability and mission paramount, not a fundraising goal. Let it be about those who benefit directly from the organization’s mission, not the organization’s need for funding.
I love to see nonprofits succeed. I believe that being more strategic and specific in Giving Tuesday appeals will lead to more persuasive messaging and positive result. If that’s the case for your nonprofit, be sure to report those results with a thank you to all who gave.
