We originally wrote this as a guest article for Fabulous Fundraising.
One of the best things about social media is the ability to start a groundswell of engagement with just a little bit of planning and execution.
On #GivingTuesday, held annually on November 27, organizations can use social media as an invaluable tool to reach, engage, and prompt those in their own community to donate.
According to the #GivingTuesday website, which you should definitely check out before starting your own campaign, #GivingTuesday connects diverse groups of individuals, communities and organizations around the world for one common purpose: to celebrate and encourage giving. A team of influencers and founding partners joined forces, collaborating across sectors, offering expertise and working tirelessly, to launch #GivingTuesday and have continued to shape, grow and strengthen the movement.
This all sounds great, right? But how do you go about not only getting your organization up to speed before #GivingTuesday arrives, but enacting and maintaining a quality social media campaign leading up to and during November 27?
Here are 5 Tips that can help you get a handle on how your organization can reach those in your community.
Make it Easy
The whole point of #GivingTuesday is to connect those in the community who want to donate to an organization and that organization. The easiest way to do this is to make sure that each and every post your put up via social media is very clear on where and how they can donate to your organization. Whether this is a link to a page on your website that takes donations or a phone number they can call, the easier you make the act of donating, the better results you will have.
Create Content Ahead of Time
Don’t make the day before #GivingTuesday into #ManicMonday. Start planning ahead of time how you want to not only present your campaign, but also what you’re going to share. Get graphics ready to go. Make a Facebook event. Ask others in your organization to share out those images that you present to them. Make sure you use the #GivingTuesday hashtag as well. A little bit of planning can go a long way.
Show Others How to Do It
Consider sending out an email to organization employees, your newsletter, or even creating a blog post that shows how people can donate and also get the word out. Include your pre-made graphics and let people know exactly what hashtags you plan to use and what link or phone number they should share each time they post about your organization.
Ask Those In Your Community Directly
Tagging in partner organizations into tweets and Facebook posts is a good way not only to get the word out, but to also encourage those organizations, and those within them, to consider donating as well. Also make sure you share your #GivingTuesday campaign on your personal social media as well, if you’re comfortable doing so. You’d be surprised how many people will see your personal posts compared to the posts on a Facebook page that they may not even follow.
Keep Engaging All Day (And After)
#GivingTuesday is all about engagement. If anyone tweets you in response, be sure to tweet them back. Thank those who publicly donate. You may spend extra time on social media (or your social media manager may be more busy than usual) but that’s okay!
Make #GivingTuesday fun for those in your organization and those who donate by planning, engaging, and thanking. Also keep in mind that #GivingTuesday is also a fantastic time to introduce yourselves to those in your community for the first time!