This year, #GivingTuesday falls on November 28, 2017. With the holidays nearly here, your church may not have planned much for this day of generosity. While we're just a little shy of week away from #GivingTuesday, there's still time to rally your church and ride the momentum into year-end giving. Here's a simple 3 step guide to get you started:
Step #1: Pick a specific goal
One concern we hear from churches is that they're worried participating in Giving Tuesday will cannibalize the other gifts that may come in during December. That is, church members might just give on November 28th and call it good for the year, while ongoing needs are left neglected.
By picking a specific goal for your church and dedicating all gifts that come in on November 28th to that goal, your givers are more likely to jump in for some extra generosity. Youth missions trips, local aid projects, facility updates, and building projects are common areas that need extra support.
Step #2: Make the giving process as simple as possible
Often, the gift giving process is so complicated that people abandon their gifts before ever completing it. Just by simplifying your giving process, you'll see an increase in giving participation immediately!
Here are a few ways to simplify your giving process:
- Ask for a specific dollar amount (See Seacoast Church's story on requesting a $20 gift)
- Have a simple text and online giving tool in place (if you don't have one in place, you can start receiving gifts in less than 10 minutes with Kindrid!)
- Select a keyword that's easy to remember
- Use an Action Link (check out how churches used Action Links to respond to Hurricane Harvey!)
Step #3: Communicate, Communicate, Communicate
Whether it's making an announcement from stage on Sunday, 11/19 or 11/26, through email, calling each of your church members by phone, or simply posting messages with a link to give on social (maybe even all of the above?), clear communication is key to your successful Giving Tuesday.
We recommend using the following communication tools:
- Social media every day during the week leading up to Giving Tuesday
- Live church announcement at every service the week before and the week of Giving Tuesday (we recommend using video + slides)
- Bulletin announcements
- 3 email reminders throughout the week prior to Giving Tuesday
