Though occurring only one day a year, GivingTuesday’s impact can last months and years when your organization embraces the initiative as a meaningful way to engage both new and existing donors.

As you prepare for GivingTuesday on November 29 this year, as with any campaign, it’s smart to think long term. Fortunately, the immersive nature of GivingTuesday in the media presents an outsized opportunity to garner support from not only existing donors, but also to bring new donors to your organization.

Successfully transitioning GivingTuesday donors from making an initial gift all the way to considering an endowment bequest or planned gift requires a holistic approach. Your campaign will likely begin with any or all of direct mail, email, text, social media or tried-and-true phone calls. Many communications can be customized to acknowledge a prior year GivingTuesday gift or include a nudge to repeat.

And while a monetary donation is the goal, it’s really only a start. To continue the engagement process, show immediate and continuous—but well-timed and heartfelt—gratitude. Because many GivingTuesday gifts are made online and spontaneously, digital “thank yous” work well using these channels:

  • A thoughtful acknowledgement or receipt sent by email, specific to GivingTuesday in words and imagery. Add a reminder message of the day’s significance and total results for your organization.
  • A social media post that updates the campaign progress (while still respecting donors’ privacy).
  • A personalized text message that is direct and to the point. (Make note of donors who reply STOP. Ignoring that ask can invite future pushback or alienation.)
  • A campaign wrap-up message that reports results and reminds how the gift may be used.
  • An end-of-year update reinforcing accomplishments and forecasting the upcoming year’s challenges and opportunities.

Certainly, following your GivingTuesday efforts, new donors will fall into these and other standard campaign efforts; indeed, post-GivingTuesday presents a nurturing opportunity for long-term success. Consult the team at the community foundation for help and expertise to build endowment or reserve funds that go beyond the funds needed for current operations. It is never too early to begin inspiring a new donor to think about supporting your organization’s ability to provide services for generations to come.