#GivingTuesday began in 2012 as a collaboration between 92nd Street Y and the United Nations Foundation. Falling on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, the day is designed to promote charitable giving and to “kick-off” the holiday season. With the commercial appeal of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, #GivingTuesday positions itself as a “global day dedicated to giving back.” Recently, Giving USA published a “Giving USA Spotlight” report on the day which includes trends in giving since #GivingTuesday’s inception. Researched and written by Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, the report focuses on the history of the event, success and phenomena of the international giving day and context for year-end giving. As a member of The Giving Institute, we are pleased to share some of the takeaways and highlights from the report. You can purchase a copy of the full Giving USA Spotlight Report here.
Time-Based Giving Initiatives:
#GivingTuesday has experienced incredible success and momentum in just three short years; however, this is not the first time-based giving initiative.
- One of the most successful regional giving initiatives is the “North Texas Giving Day.” Beginning in 2009, this event has flooded more than $86 million into the North Texas community. In 2014, they had over 98,000 gifts totaling $26.3 million and benefiting 1,580 nonprofits.¹
- “Colorado Gives Day” launched in 2010 and has reached a record breaking $26.2 million in donations for 2014.
Is #GivingTuesday Different?
- #GivingTuesday operates from a global perspective.
- #GivingTuesday, like some of its regional counterparts, focuses on unifying people in the spirit of giving rather than focusing on a specific cause or organization.
- #GivingTuesday leverages the power of social media and the connected economy to gain momentum and awareness.
#GivingTuesday and Social Media
- Twitter is a common platform for connecting donors and nonprofits and is definitely leveraged by the #GivingTuesday movement. In 2014, #GivingTuesday made almost 33 million impressions.
- Instagram promoted the #GivingTuesday movement with thousands of #UNselfies.
- The Facebook page for #GivingTuesday showcases photos, logos and stories and connects other global #GivingTuesday initiatives.
Recipe for Success = Online Giving + Social Media?
- #GivingTuesday has “democratized philanthropy” meaning nonprofit organizations are being viewed as more accessible. There is now a dialogue taking place between the organization, the public and its constituents.
- Online giving is growing each year (eNonprofit Benchmarks Study, Network for Good and Blackbaud all report growth in online giving at rates between 10.7% to 21% from 2010-2013).
- Nonprofits are using social media as a direct communication channel to their donors and constituents and the relationships are reciprocal. Nonprofit followers grew 37% for Facebook and 46% for Twitter from 2013-2014.
A History of #GivingTuesday Numbers
Click to download and print.
Advice for Your Nonprofit
- Start planning your involvement in #GivingTuesday now – there are tons of great resources available at www.GivingTuesday.org.
- Concentrate year-end appeals around this day to benefit from the momentum and recognition of the initiative.
- Use multiple mediums for communicating including social media, emails and your organization’s website to spread awareness.
Sources: ¹ https://www.northtexasgivingday.org/#faq ² https://www.coloradogives.org/cogivesday
