5 Inspiring Social Media Ideas for #GivingTuesday

In just a few short years, #GivingTuesday has become a major giving day. Stuffed with food, armed with gifts, and basking in the glow of discounted tech gadgets, folks are ready to donate to the causes they care about. And since #GivingTuesday is fueled by online engagement, it’s the perfect time to focus on your social media strategy. When they’re back to work on Tuesday, checking emails and Facebook (don’t tell anyone’s boss)—you can make it easy for your supporters to keep the warm and fuzzy holiday feeling alive with a social media campaign that brings them to your donate page.

Here are five ideas to help you step up your social media game this #GivingTuesday:

1. build anticipation with a #GivingTuesday countdown

Have you heard of the Rule of 7? It’s a marketing concept that says people need to encounter a product or brand seven times before making a purchase. For nonprofits, this means you need to have a number of positive interactions in the buildup for your campaign to get people to donate. This #GivingTuesday, consider building anticipation for the big day and keeping your organization top of mind with a series of countdown posts.

DuPage Animal Friends did just that for #GivingTuesday. Check out their posts below from the days leading up to their campaign, which successfully raised over $10,000!

Each post highlights their fundraising goals and how supporters on Facebook can help make sure these animals receive the medical care they need. Use this opportunity to share how your supporters can make a difference on #GivingTuesday!

2. Share the giving spirit with an #UNselfie

Ah, the ubiquitous selfie. We’ve seen them, we’ve taken them…but #GivingTuesday is all about flipping the script and focusing on others. So, as the #GivingTuesday movement evolved, the #UNselfie was born. Supporters take a photo of themselves along with their own giving message and post on social media to build awareness for your cause. You can print out the #UNselfie template from the #GivingTuesday Social Media Toolkit, have your supporters write their own messages, and share their photos, too:

3. get the word out with peer-to-peer posts

We know that a fundraising ask is up to 300X more successful when it comes from a friend or family member than when it comes directly from a nonprofit. And asking your supporters to fundraise on your behalf with their own peer-to-peer campaigns for #GivingTuesday can have a ripple effect: once folks start posting about their own campaigns on social media, their content can provide social proof that inspires your followers to give back, too.

Retweet and share their posts to build visibility for your campaign. You can even create your own posts to promote their peer-to-peer fundraising pages; just be sure to tag them!

4. Create your own #GivingTuesday hashtag

First, we’ll say: make sure to tag your posts with the hashtag #GivingTuesday.  Then you can get creative with your own versions related to your cause. Of course, it’s easier if you can come up with something that rhymes with “Tues,” like #GivingShoesDay (if your nonprofit runs a clothing drive) or #GivingNewsDay (if your work deals with journalism) or #GivingTwosDay (to promote a matching grant for the giving day). Keep your rhyming thesaurus within arm’s reach and get creative to stand out in your followers’ feeds.

5.  Share your gratitude

Saying thank you always goes a long way. As donors contribute on #GivingTuesday, consider featuring and thanking them publicly in social media posts. Giving thanks will help you build stronger relationships with your supporters and connect with their networks. You might even inspire their friends to give, too!

What are your favorite ways to get social for #Giving Tuesday?