With one week to go until Giving Tuesday, nonprofit marketers are gearing up to drive millions of dollars in donations from U.S. consumers. Fundraising platform Classy reports that since 2012, “awareness of the day has increased year over year, with more than half of consumers (54%) reporting that they are familiar with or have at least heard of Giving Tuesday.” So, if you’re wondering whether putting the effort into a dedicated campaign is worth it this year, the answer is YES! DEFINITELY YES.
Here are a few trends from Classy’s recently released report,“Why America Gives 2020: How the COVID-19 Pandemic and Social Justice Movement Have Changed Giving,” to consider while putting the finishing touches on your Giving Tuesday campaign:
#1. Despite a tumultuous 2020, the majority of Americans plan to give the same amount or more than they did in 2019.
While many marketers view holiday campaigns as a way to drive year-end engagement amongst their most loyal inner circle of supporters, research suggests that this Giving Tuesday will also be a great time to reach first-time donors:
– 44% of donors plan to give the same as last year
– 39% of donors plan to give more than last year
– 43% of those who have or plan to donate to social justice causes said their donation would be in addition to contributions they would or will make to other causes
– 27% of those who have donated to COVID-related causes, made these contributions in addition to their normal nonprofit support
#2. Approximately 60% of traffic to fundraising pages comes from mobile devices, and of that, 55% of the traffic comes from social.
Make sure you’re reaching this engaged audience by:
– Testing your campaign landing page and e-commerce experience on mobile devices to ensure they load quickly and responsively
– Promoting the campaign across social media channels (don’t forget to use the hashtag #GivingTuesday as well as a link back to your site)
– Encouraging your inner circle of supporters to share information about the campaign on their own personal social media channels
#3. A personalized thank you can make a first-time supporter four times more likely to donate again if sent within 48 hours of the initial gift.
Prepare to thank your donors next week by:
– Setting up an automated email campaign that will immediately acknowledge Giving Tuesday donations as they come in
– Using personalization tokens and list segmentation to make thank you emails as personal in tone as possible (try creating a special version for first-time donors that introduces your organization’s mission, or customizing the Sender Name to your Development Director or CEO instead of using a “no reply” address)
– Highlighting the impact that small contributions have on helping you achieve your fundraising goals (as Classy advises, “Even if a donor gives just $5, that could be the start of a lifelong relationship with your organization.”)
Check out some great examples of thank-you emails here.
