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#GivingTuesday 2015

GivingTuesday264x792 Template (14x40)On Tuesday, December 8, The Giving Institute hosted a webinar revealing preliminary results, a sampling of success stories and important takeaways from #GivingTuesday 2015. We are pleased to share some highlights of this webinar and celebrate the success of this year’s #GivingTuesday with you. It’s not too soon to begin thinking about how you will be a part of this powerful, annual tradition in 2016.

The fourth year of #GivingTuesday set another milestone in giving: an estimated $116.7 million in donations were made on December 1, 2015 – a 181% increase over 2014.

The brainchild of the 92nd Street Y has once again inspired an incredible demonstration of charitable giving, bolstering the continued development of our philanthropic environment by encouraging bigger, better and smarter charitable giving during the holiday season.

As the numbers continue to grow and our mechanisms for capturing and analyzing activity on this day become more sophisticated, we better understand the impact as well as potential of this event.

The Numbers:

The figures illustrated below are early estimates provided by The Case Foundation, with data gathered from 24 platform partners who collaborated to provide these measurements. It is important to note that while these numbers are approximations, they still illustrate the undeniable growth trends of #GivingTuesday.

#GivingTuesday 2015:

  • $116.7 million in total dollars raised
  • 1.08 million total gifts
  • $107.47 mean gift size
  • 698,961 total donors
  • 1.3 million social media mentions related to #GivingTuesday
  • 114 billion impressions on Twitter
  • 917,313 users reached on Facebook
  • 71 countries participated
  • Top 5 Issues: Education, Environment, Animals, Health Care, International Affairs

The Takeaways:

  • #GivingTuesday is still on the rise: in its fourth year, it continues to gain momentum
  • A #GivingTuesday campaign is an effective way to kickoff year-end giving
  • Nonprofits who participate in #GivingTuesday are outpacing their peers in donations
  • Mobile usage in on the rise: approximately 27.18% of donation forms were viewed on mobile devices
  • #GivingTuesday motivates a broad population through peer-to-peer inspiration and encouragement
  • Graphic images and stories of impact on social media draw maximum attention and donor response
  • #GivingTuesday increases the confidence and comfort of volunteers to make an ask (The entire world is giving back today, and I want my organization to benefit from that.)
  • Establishing an overall goal for a #GivingTuesday campaign helps create a sense of urgency
  • #GivingTuesday is a great platform for encouraging new and/or lapsed donors to give
  • Matching gifts/challenge gifts are a great way to increase the impact of a #GivingTuesday campaign

So what does all of this mean?

We simply cannot measure to full impact of #GivingTuesday: dollars raised, hours volunteered, awareness increased, causes supported, growth in the culture of philanthropic giving—the variables to assess are seemingly endless.

But the growth of this phenomenon is certain. The opportunities for nonprofits to benefit from this collaborative culture of giving and service are tremendous. What was initially dismissed by many as a fad movement, #GivingTuesday has revolutionized the way our world is engaging in philanthropy, and has started an incredible movement that will only continue to build in volume and generosity in years to come.

Don’t Forget to Say Thank You

As the holiday season continues, the folks at #GivingTuesday are encouraging the use of the hashtag #ThankYouWednesday. They are hoping nonprofit organizations can again capitalize on the power of social media to demonstrate impact by sharing stories of success, continuing to educate about why giving is so important and expressing perpetual gratitude for those who support them.

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