Giving Tuesday melted my brain and my inbox

Maybe it’s just me, but did Giving Tuesday this year feel… overwhelming?

As some background, I have a small handful of orgs that I contribute to as a recurring donor. On the business side, I’ve also had multiple nonprofit clients, and my team and I select a local nonprofit to contribute to each quarter. So, yeah, I might be on a few more email lists than the average bear. 

Still, with so many orgs making big fundraising pushes--not to mention many of them losing grant funding under the current federal regime here in the U.S.--it became tough to even process it all, let alone engage or donate.

With that in mind, I had to wonder: is Giving Tuesday serving nonprofits as well as it used to?

Year-end fundraising is still the go-to play for nonprofits

When Giving Tuesday was first created in 2012, it was meant to highlight giving as a counterpoint to consumerism. They placed it right on the heels of big consumer shopping days, to shift our thinking towards community giving before we got swallowed up by the gift-giving frenzy.

That made sense from a values standpoint, and it also fit well with what nonprofits were already doing. October through December are months where nonprofits have consistently been able to harness the spirit of giving that comes with the year-end holidays, not to mention holiday bonuses for folks with corporate jobs.

In the increasingly-online, late-stage capitalism landscape we’re living in now, though, the Giving Tuesday and year-end asks play out a bit differently than they used to.

Nonprofit fundraising needs marketing that stands out

Think about how the run-up to Thanksgiving and holiday shopping season plays out in our inboxes nowadays:

• Businesses tease their Black Friday and Small Business Saturday deals several days prior--or even open access to them early
• Every business you’ve ever bought from in your young life has awkwardly come out of the woodwork to email you about buying something
• The online marketing blitz for online shops and products extends several days beyond Cyber Monday, “just in case you missed it.”

Then, add in the fact that many of us are feeling the economic effects of the current regime. And, again, maybe it’s just me, but we’re also constantly unsubscribing from unwanted messages from political action committees with big talk and little real action. 

Is it any wonder that, by the time Giving Tuesday rolls around, we were too overwhelmed to read through all of those charitable giving asks?

Fundraising is going to be a lot tougher when everyone else is asking for money at the same time. If a nonprofit doesn’t have their messaging and online marketing dialed in for that year-end fundraising push, they’re much more likely to be overlooked than they were back in 2012.

Consistency is key in online marketing--even for nonprofits

Don’t get me wrong: I’m not suggesting that nonprofits abandon Giving Tuesday or year-end giving. It still works.

And I’m certainly not suggesting that nonprofits step back from email, either--in terms of time and resources, email marketing still offers the best bang for your buck, and the most control over what you share and who sees it.

Still, do we all need to bombard our fellow bleeding hearts at the same time of year, hoping that they choose us to give their dollars to? In a time of overwhelming headlines and information overload, we could take a lesson from Giving Tuesday--not the day, but the organization that founded it.

As they say on their website:

GivingTuesday reimagines a world built upon shared humanity and generosity. Our global network collaborates year-round to inspire generosity around the world, with a common mission to build a world where generosity is part of everyday life.

In other words, it’s not simply about that big year-end push. 

It’s about making the ask at times of year when it’s not expected, and your ask isn’t fighting for attention with every other org on earth. 

It’s about making those asks consistently. (and no, "consistent," does not necessarily mean, "constant," or, "frequent")

It's about aiming for smaller, recurring gifts, and not just in money, but in time, and shares, and introductions.

Giving Tuesday still has its role, certainly. But in times like ours, it’s looking more sustainable for orgs and for communities if we look towards making generosity into something we do regularly, not just once a year.