Have you started planning for #GivingTuesday 2018?

#GivingTuesday is the biggest online giving day of the year for nonprofits and has become a global giving movement. It follows the Thursday of Thanksgiving in the U.S. and the consumer holidays of Black Friday and Cyber Monday. In 2017, a reported $274 million dollars were raised through #GivingTuesday campaigns. This year it falls on November 27th and will be here before you know it!

Whether you’ve participated in the past or are thinking about running your first #GivingTuesday fundraiser, you’ll want to save the date and use the months ahead to get ready for the big day. In this post, we’re sharing advice to help you jump-start your #GivingTuesday plans so you can run a successful campaign.

All successful fundraising starts with a plan.

You might already have a #GivingTuesday campaign on your fundraising calendar (or perhaps you’re penciling it in now). Once you decide to participate, it’s time to start building your campaign strategy. The three biggest details to pin down right away are:

1. What program or project will you fund through your #GivingTuesday campaign?
2. How much money do you need to raise?
3. Will you run the campaign for a single day or use it to launch your end-of-year fundraising efforts?

Once you define these overarching campaign details, you can begin thinking about specific ways to generate support.

Think about: FindING a matching grant

A matching grant is a great way to raise more money on #GivingTuesday. Matching funds are donated on the condition that your organization will need to raise an equal amount to receive the full amount. They help your individual donors’ dollars go further and encourage giving. But where can you find one?

Board members, corporate sponsors, and major donors are all potential sources for a matching grant. You can brainstorm potential funders and reach out to them in advance of your campaign with some help from our matching grant post.

Once you secure a matching grant, you’ll want to make sure to include details about it in your campaign copy. You can even use online design tools like Canva to create graphics that offer exposure for your funder’s business. Make sure to let donors know that the matching grant will double the impact of their donation!

Get ready for: Peer-to-Peer Fundraising

You can picture your most enthusiastic close friends and your nonprofit’s biggest supporters. These folks might even be part of your staff. These individuals are people who can potentially fundraise on behalf of your organization! Peer-to-peer fundraising allows individuals to create their own campaign pages and reach out to their networks online to exponentially grow your donor base.

Peer-to-peer campaigns are all about increasing engagement with your campaign and organization. A successful peer-to-peer campaign requires you to effectively engage your nonprofit’s supporter network ahead of time. Through face-to-face meetings, calls to your best friends, and emails to a select shortlist of potential fundraisers, you’ll want to think early about inspiring people to fundraise for your cause.

learn how to: Tell one powerful story

While you plan the details of your #GivingTuesday campaign, you’ll want to think about the specific story you’ll share with your supporters. Instead of focusing on big numbers and statistics, it’s worthwhile to carefully craft an inspiring narrative. Research has shown that people are more likely to respond generously to the story of one person in need.

Even if you don’t consider yourself a writer, you can learn the elements of an effective story and use them to bring your nonprofit’s work to life. This #GivingTuesday you can share a story that illustrates your impact and drives more campaign donations.

Skill up: Make a better nonprofit video

Video is one of the most engaging mediums out there. But making a great video for your nonprofit can be expensive if you have to hire a professional. Luckily, the folks at Retainer Media worked with many nonprofits just like yours. Knowing that not everyone has the budget for a production team, they created a list of expert tips so you can DIY.

Using a tripod and shooting in natural light are among their list of 10 tips for how to create a better nonprofit video on a budget. Creating a short video for #GivingTuesday will let you share supporter stories on your campaign page or social media to build awareness for your campaign.

Check out: a #givingTuesday campaign in action

Your #GivingTuesday campaign will take shape based on your organization’s needs. You’ve got plenty of time to plan ahead, set goals, and create content. Once everything is ready, you’ll be ready to create a campaign page to share with your supporters. We’ve created a Flipcause #GivingTuesday Planning Campaign so you’ll have a template and inspiration for yours in 2018.

If you’d like to learn more about how your nonprofit can use Flipcause’s full suite of engagement tools to build your #GivingTuesday campaign, you can schedule a demo today for a personalized walk-through.

How are you planning for your #GivingTuesday campaign? Let us know in the comments!