The holiday season is fast approaching, and sandwiched between the excitement of Halloween, Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanzaa and New Years is one rapidly growing observance that offers a place to infuse communities with the spirit of giving back… #GivingTuesday on November 29th.
Created as a response to Black Friday and Cyber Monday, #GivingTuesday is a global day of giving fueled by the power of social media and collaboration. Now in its fifth year, the social impact event has become a central focus of many annual holiday campaigns, an opportunity to engage employees in a worldwide philanthropy phenomenon and in the process engage employees in their companies as well.
In 2015, #GivingTuesday unified more than 40,000 nonprofit and corporate partners from 71 countries to celebrate generosity and to give to those most in need. The result was a bonanza of giving that linked organizations across the world in a shared mission for one day, raising $116.7 million for causes across the world.
Clearly, #GivingTuesday is no longer just an idea. It’s a compelling opportunity for companies to grab employee attention amidst a time of so many distractions, making giving back an exciting experience that is as expected as the rest of our holiday landmarks. With employee engagement a perpetual top concern of business leaders, #GivingTuesday offers a unique way for companies to remind employees that their jobs have purpose and meaning far beyond their daily to-do lists and that their companies deserve their sense of pride.
Each year, employees raise an astonishing $4.8 billion for nonprofits through workplace giving programs, according to Charity Navigator. And a study by America’s Charities showed that one of the benefits which employees now expect from their companies is an effective, contemporary workplace giving program. If your company doesn’t offer a giving program yet, the holidays are an excellent time to start. And if you do have an existing workplace giving program, the holidays are the best time to really let it shine.
If you want to maximize the success of #GivingTuesday for your company, planning is essential. While it may be a one-day event, experts agree that companies and nonprofits should not treat it as such.
Fret not: #GivingTuesday makes this planning process easy through an array of tools and resources to help organizations fully leverage the event, including sample press releases, a social media toolkit, a sample outreach email and tips for your website.
According to the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy (CECP), an early partner and endorser of #GivingTuesday, businesses should approach Giving Tuesday with four simple goals in mind:
Download our free eBook to learn the 4 goals of your company’s #GivingTuesday campaign and get quick tips to fast track your campaign planning.