3 Fun Giving Tuesday Strategies to Try on Your Social Channels

My mom always complains about the fundraising marathons that pop up occasionally on public access television or radio. While I understand that they’re totally necessary fundraisers that help pay for services we love, I also kind of get her point. They’re not very engaging!

#GivingTuesday is kind of like one of those fundraising blitzes, only it happens online instead of on the radio or late-night television. Giving Tuesday is a valuable opportunity to engage donors and raise money. But appeals can seem boring or annoying if they’re not done right… especially when your viewers are being inundated with appeals from other nonprofits.

So what can you do to keep your Giving Tuesday campaign interesting and engaging? Here are three quick (and free!) ideas you can use to stand out from the crowd.

Unusual Giving Tuesday strategies stand out! Try a thankathon

Turn Giving Tuesday on its head and focus on thanking existing donors instead of trying to recruit new ones. Running a thankathon on your social media and email channels can accomplish a few objectives. First, it’s a fantastic way to show donors how much you appreciate them—that’s a huge part of donor retention! Donors want to know that their gift is recognized, appreciated, and will be used well. This is one great way to show them those are all true.

Secondly, it can encourage a lot of engagement, which helps you expand your reach on social media channels. If donors share your messages, their friends, family, and colleagues will see what you have to say. Who knows? They may never have heard of your organization before.

Thankathons also show potential donors that you really do value and admire your supporters, which may move them to get involved in your mission, too. Seeing that others support your work and have a positive relationship with you is powerful social proof, and it’s a great way to inspire others to get involved, too.

Stream videos on social media and Instagram

Stand out from the noise with live videos! On Giving Tuesday, social media channels will be full of photos, pre-recorded videos, and text posts asking for support. All of those can be effective! Combine those efforts with a live streaming video to really make an impression on potential donors.

Don’t think your live video needs to be only an earnest appeal for donations! There are all kinds of things you can include in your live video. Try including material like:

• Tours of your facility
• Interviews with other donors
• Interviews with clients, volunteers, or board members
• Making exciting announcements (if you have any)
• Doing goofy stuff if you hit fundraising milestones

You’re only limited by your creativity here! The key is to be engaging and to let donors know you need their support without being boring. It can be a tricky line to walk, but it’s possible—and it can be a lot of fun!

Organize a social media takeover

Give your social media coordinator a break and do something to grab donors’ attention! Letting other people take over your nonprofit’s social media channels for an hour or two can be a fun way to bring a fresh voice and perspective to your fundraising.

Let a volunteer, client, board member, or other staff person take over your Facebook, X, or Instagram account for a while. Invite them to share what they think is special about your organization, interact with your fans and followers, and show off parts of your operation.

Now, because this person will be taking over your social media, you’ll want to have some ground rules in place. If your guest poster is going around the office or facility, make sure people know ahead of time and are okay with being featured. If you work with an organization that deals with at-risk people or health-related causes, give your poster parameters and guidelines that will keep anyone’s privacy from being violated. You’ll also want to offer some backup! If you’ve got a client or volunteer on your social channels, they might not know how to answer questions about your organization or what to do if a troll starts bothering them.

Takeovers are a fun way to shake up your social media presence and boost interaction among your followers. Giving Tuesday is a great opportunity to try it out!

Final thoughts

If you’re planning on participating in this year’s Giving Tuesday, it’ll be worth your time to plan some fun strategies that will help you stand out. Lots of other organizations will be vying for your donors’ attention and support—what can you do to stand out?