Extend Donor Giving Beyond One Day Giving Events
Your organization never stops working to achieve its mission; there’s always another initiative to pursue or problem to solve. So why should your fundraising come from a single annual event, when your need is year-round?
A regular influx of giving lends stability and alleviates reliance on a single event. Because of a recession, or something else, sometimes donors just give less, and a low-performing event can be stressful and difficult.
Another great reason to extend giving over longer periods of time is that donors who give in smaller chunks across longer spans of time, end up donating more overall. And a donor that gives a few times is likely to continue giving in the future!
Extending one day giving campaigns
One way to create sustained giving is with a “Local Day of Giving,” if your community has one. (If it doesn’t, consider starting one or join Giving Tuesday!)
These types of events drive philanthropy to local nonprofit organizations on a certain day of the year—but inspiring members of your community to donate locally doesn’t have to end just on that one day.
Inspire people to “give local” year-round. Emphasize in your ads, or community organizing in your area, that you’re a local charity, especially if you specialize in tackling local issues. Turn a “day” of local giving into a week, or a month, or a year.
Try this approach with Giving Tuesday, Christmas, or your typical end-of-the-year campaign. What if you had “Twelve Days of Christmas Giving” instead of just one? Offer donors the option to give smaller amounts over a longer period of time, like an advent calendar of philanthropy.
Inspire giving around a goal, project, or initiative
Focusing giving on a particular mission or goal instead of an individual fundraising event is another great way to extend giving. The nonprofit organization Splash conducts campaigns around getting clean water to cities, sometimes entire countries. Splash asks donors to continue contributing until the goal has been met (e.g., until a whole city has access to clean water).
What immediate projects or objectives could you design a campaign around? Consider something that extends over enough time to raise enough funds, but not so long that it could lose steam before you achieve the goal.
Keep your donors updated as you progress, and with both of you now invested in the outcome, you can all celebrate your success together. Throw your gala at the finish line!
Tools for sustained giving campaigns
- Start by creating a donation page on your Greater Giving site for your goal or initiative-based campaign, then enable recurring donations. This is the easiest way for donors to make regular and sustained gifts, and with the option to automatically stop their donations on a certain date, they can participate for the length of a campaign, just a few months, or forever.
- Show how much work your organization’s already done with money raised so far. Emphasize how continuing support is critical to reach your overall goal or accomplish the greater initiative. (“We have one well up and running, but we still need to bring clean water to the whole village.”)
Showing progress helps build your organization’s reputation for transparency and strengthens donors’ trust in your word and your work.
