August 16, 2022 | GivingTuesday

How to Set Giving Tuesday Goals & Plan Your Campaign

Phase 1: Research & Goal Setting; Phase 2: Writing & Repurposing; Phase 3: Executing & Stewarding

Setting a goal for GivingTuesday starts with assessing your reasons for participating. Besides donations, think about what you hope to gain from your GivingTuesday efforts. For many organizations, the answer is new donors. What better way to draw in new supporters than a worldwide, community-based appeal with recognizable nonprofit branding? Last year, 35 million people and 80 countries participated – and these numbers are steadily increasing each year.

Who will be involved in Phase 1 of your GivingTuesday journey:

Strategist: Suggests your campaign goals & how the funds should be used; Administrator: Prepares your data & maintains your system during the campaign process
5 Role-Based Steps to Start Your Giving Tuesday Campaign

Giving Tuesday goal-setting step #1: Review historical data

Strategist: Compare data from previous campaigns.

  • If available, look at historical data from Giving Tuesdays past. Which communications performed well? Which donor segments responded well? What is your retention rate for first-time Giving Tuesday donors?

Strategist: Determine how the funds will be used.

  • Review budget requirements and upcoming initiatives.
  • Review progress on annual fundraising goals.
  • Will the funds raised on Giving Tuesday be operational or goal-specific? Will your solicitations differ between Giving Tuesday and End-of-Year?

Administrator: Pull donor lists to be used for segmentation and outreach.

  • Based on your available data, determine which donor segments would be best to target this year, and pull the reports that support your reasoning. Ex. People who usually give during the last three months of the year.

Giving Tuesday goal-setting step #2: Determine your need

Strategist: Pinpoint the reason for your Giving Tuesday campaign.

Administrator: Consider what your system will need for a successful campaign.

Strategist: Create specific, actionable goals with target amounts and percentages.

  • Ex. Raise 20% more than last year, and acquire 50 new donors.

Administrator: Create an infrastructure to measure your Giving Tuesday goals.

Giving Tuesday goal-setting step #3: Go for the story

Strategist: Develop a theme and story that match your Giving Tuesday cause.

  • Think about how you will spread your theme across all campaign assets (website, donation page, thank-yous, video messages, end-of-year appeals, etc.). How do you want constituents to feel?
  • To communicate your theme, tell a story that will move people to give. It could be as simple as the story of how your nonprofit started, or an impact story from a beneficiary.
  • Need backup? Go to step #4!

Administrator: Determine viable avenues for sharing the story.

  • Update addresses and other key donor information. Ex. DP Address Updater, powered by TrueGivers, does this for you overnight to save time!
  • Does your team have the tools to post on social media? Do you have a dedicated team member to help with website changes?
  • Consider integrations that could dramatically increase your story’s reach. (Ex. DP Social Campaign allows supporters to add their photo to a digital frame that communicates your mission and brand. DP Video allows your team and board to create personalized video messages. With DP Text, you can send day-of updates straight to your donor’s mobile device.)

Giving Tuesday goal-setting step #4: Lean on your network

All roles: Brainstorm with your team, board, and fellow fundraisers.

  • Strategist: Ask for feedback on your campaign strategy. Reinforce your ideas and keep everyone aligned with the scheduled reports you set up in Step #1. Have a backup plan to suggest.
  • Administrator: Discuss content needs for your Giving Tuesday form. See what your team comes up with as far as messaging, tone, and imagery – let them know which of their suggestions are possible.

Giving Tuesday goal-setting step #5: Set the stage

Strategist: Delegate preparational tasks to the necessary team members.

  • Who will determine how you prioritize each donor segment? How many hands will you need on deck to communicate to these segments?
  • Who will develop messaging for your Giving Tuesday donation page?
  • Are there any tech issues for your Administrator to address (i.e. payment processing, integrations)?

Strategist: Develop a plan to capture and keep new donors.

Administrator: Prepare all resources your team will need for the campaign.

More than one-third of annual giving happens in December, so why not steward new donors acquired on Giving Tuesday while also connecting with existing constituents for an extra prosperous year-end? Your Giving Tuesday campaign is a signal to your existing donors that it’s time to make their last contributions of the year and make them count. In fact, many organizations incorporate the same theme in their Giving Tuesday and End-of-Year campaigns so donors feel called to action and stay engaged. Whatever your process, the DonorPerfect team is here to support you!

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Meet the author: Ally Orlando

I’m Ally, a lifelong Pennsylvanian now living south of the Mason-Dixon Line. My main thrills are eating and sleeping, but I also enjoy music, art, film, politics, and animals. I love to learn new skills, and I’m not afraid to be a “master of none.”

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