Last week, DonorDrive hosted a webinar with nonprofit marketing guru, John Haydon, to help nonprofits get ready for #GivingTuesday in 30 days. Here’s how your nonprofit can be #GivingTuesday-ready, no matter how well prepared you are for this major giving event.
Select and leverage the best social (and non-social) channels
A key to #GivingTuesday success is to target the right message to the right person at the right time. Not all donors are equal. Your first-time donors, repeat donors, event participants, volunteers and board members all have different reasons to give to your cause. Make sure that you understand their motivations, and tailor your “ask” in a way that encourages them to take action. They want to be the hero of the story, so make sure that your message values their contribution. Deliver this message across the channels that are most used by your supporters.
Not sure which channels to use? Look at your data and determine the best channels to drive donations from supporters. While social media is critical to get your message out on #GivingTuesday, make sure that you support the program in your other marketing channels. Create a landing page about #GivingTuesday that includes your goal and the “ask”. Also, create a special callout on your homepage to drive people to your #GivingTuesday landing page.
Leverage AdWords to help drive traffic to your website on #GivingTuesday. Email is a critical tool to help you reach different groups of supporters with highly-targeted messages. Don’t just send an email blast to all supporters: think about the messages that are most impactful to each group. Then, deliver highly-customized messages leading up to #GivingTuesday, on the day, and even after the event to share your results.
Engage your supporters for #GivingTuesday and every day
Facebook and Instagram are still great channels for organic support for your nonprofit. Want more people to see your content? Focus on topics that garner comments and shares, and prompt supporters to add their story to the post. Share information that is new, relevant and timely about your cause. Most importantly, share the stories of your impact on your cause and on your community. Want to create even more engagement on #GivingTuesday? Don't be afraid to leverage live video through Facebook, Twitch and YouTube. If you’re not sure how to go live, here are a few tips:
- Pick a topic that people want to discuss
- Tell your followers when you are going live
- Make an outline for your broadcast, with clear introduction, key points that you want to share, and a “thank you” at the end
- End with a call-to-action: donate, support, or learn more
Encourage your supporters to use their streaming to fundraise for your nonprofit on #GivingTuesday. In DonorDrive, supporters of our clients can connect their Twitch, YouTube and Mixer channels right to their fundraising page to raise more money for your cause. Check out Live Fundraising from DonorDrive.
Partner with companies and sponsors to get more visibility
Want to increase your donations 2X on #GivingTuesday? Reach out to your large donors or company sponsors for a matching donations on #GivingTuesday. Call out the donation match and make it focused on a certain time frame. You want to encourage your supporters to act now, so don’t be afraid to drive urgency around the “ask”. If you’re not sure that you can find a donor or company to match donations, check into grants and foundations. Do your research and don’t be afraid to ask.
Enhance your campaign with digital ads
Successful Facebook ads on #GivingTuesday require some preparation and homework. Start planning now on how you can leverage them leading up to the big day. Engagement is much higher on Facebook on Thursdays and Fridays. Build your plan starting a few days before to encourage and prepare your supporters to donate. Leverage video ads to tell the story around your nonprofit and the impact. Tug at the heartstrings to create more engagement with your audience.
Want to drive even more donors to your cause? Build a relevant landing page for #GivingTuesday and drive traffic to it through AdWords. Don’t be afraid to try different keywords around #GivingTuesday and your cause. AdWords requires constant monitoring, so don’t “set it and forget it”. Retargeting website visitors through social and Google Ads will help you to convert more site visitors to donors.
Catch the webinar replay here.
Want even more ideas to prepare for #GivingTuesday? Check out our Complete Guide to #GivingTuesday.
