November 27, 2016

By Amy Goodwin, Founder & Principal, Mindful Giving

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3 Quick Tips for Making the Most of your #GivingTuesday Contributions

 

For those planning to make any end of the year charitable gifts, Giving Tuesday- the charitable follow up to Black Friday and Cyber Monday- is a great time to donate to a cause you care about, and maximize your impact by leveraging the power of social media. Branded as a “global day of giving,” the #GivingTuesday movement inspires hundreds of thousands of generous individuals to add a charitable component to their holiday spending each year.

 

Here are three simple ways you can make the most of your participation:

 

Make it “Personal”

This may seem obvious, and yet so many people I encounter tell me they chose to give to a particular cause simply because “someone asked.” While there is certainly nothing wrong with this approach, I’ve found that one of the easiest and most effective ways to feel good about your charitable giving is to start with a cause that is important to you.

 

Share It

One of the compelling aspects of #GivingTuesday is it’s collective nature. On this one day of the year, charitable giving becomes top of mind for millions of people via social media, and you can play an important role by reminding your own social network about the importance of charitable giving. By posting publicly, either about #GivingTuesday in general, or about your giving specifically, you are helping to build the momentum needed to make this day a success for thousands of nonprofits around the world. If you’ve chosen a cause that you are passionate about, or has impacted you personally (see Tip 1 above!) then sharing your story becomes that much more impactful.

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Turn “Peer Pressure” into a Positive

Take your social media post one step further by “challenging” your friends to join you in supporting a particular campaign or cause. This can be accomplished with a simple tweet “I just donated $25 to _________ for #GivingTuesday. Will you match my gift for a great cause?” Include a link to the campaign, if possible, to make it easier for others to contribute. If you are in a position to do so, you could also consider offering to match your friends’ giving dollar for dollar, up to a certain amount. This can be especially effective, as people love the idea that they are “doubling” the impact of their gift just by contributing at the right time. As a bonus, I’ve always found it to be a great bonding experience when a group of friends or colleagues band together to accomplish a giving goal.

 

However you choose to participate in #GivingTuesday, I hope you’ll remember to bask for a moment in the joy and pleasure that comes along with helping others. There’s really nothing else like it. 

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