How to get the most out of May 5th #GivingTuesdayNow on Givebutter

Have you heard the good news?

On May 5, 2020, Giving Tuesday is launching a 24-hour day of giving called #GivingTuesdayNow: “a global day of unity as a response to the unprecedented need caused by COVID-19.”

This moment for giving back will rally the philanthropic efforts of individuals, nonprofits, communities, small businesses, brands, and more. With $511 million raised for charity in 2019 alone, Giving Tuesday’s #GivingTuesdayNow is expected to be an unparalleled day of global giving.

Since 2012, the nonprofit community has learned the value of investing in top fundraising and marketing technology like Givebutter to boost annual Giving Tuesday donations. This exciting #GivingTuesdayNow also presents a unique challenge: how do you rise above the noise now? Social feeds and email inboxes are more crowded than ever!

Interview with Givebutter Co-Founder, Max Friedman

To answer this question, I’ve turned to Givebutter Co-Founder and CEO, Max, to learn how nonprofits can stand out from the crowd on #GivingTuesdayNow with Givebutter. Frequently praised for its innovation and user-interface, Givebutter has designed a fundraising platform that’s transparent, powerful, and downright fun to use. Combining industry-best practices such as Peer-to-Peer with innovative technologies like Venmo, Givebutter has helped more than 15,000 organizations raise more, increase engagement, and grow supporter bases over time – particularly amongst younger generations.

Did I mentioned that Givebutter is an official Platform Partner of Giving Tuesday?

In this transcribed Zoom interview, Max gives top tricks and tips for the Givebutter community to get the most out of the platform this #GivingTuesdayNow. Enjoy!

#1: What do you think of #GivingTuesdayNow? Should nonprofits participate?

Max: “Absolutely! I’m very excited about the opportunity presented in #GivingTuesdayNow as a rallying point for nonprofits to reach out to their community, asking for support. COVID-19 affects everyone in some way, and it has been incredibly hard for the nonprofit community with things like spring event cancellations. However, what we’re seeing at Givebutter is that the coronavirus is not diminishing people’s desire to give, but it’s actually accelerating generosity. I think this will show itself in a big way on #GivingTuesdayNow.”

#2: What sets Givebutter apart as a fundraising platform to use for #GivingTuesdayNow?

Max: “Three things come to mind that really set us apart for #GivingTuesdayNow. First, Givebutter’s newest feature: Livestream. On Givebutter, nonprofits can make their #GivingTuesdayNow a living, breathing event. All-day long, nonprofits can go live and share video updates with supporters and collect donations all in one place. To add an event like livestream within Giving Tuesday is new, but it might be a good way to sort of pull everyone together, answer questions in real-time, and make sure donors continue to be supported.

The second thing that comes to mind is our team fundraising feature. Not only can donors contribute to your #GivingTuesdayNow campaign, but they can also raise money on your behalf. Givebutter’s team fundraising is a turnkey Peer-to-Peer (P2P) solution. Our Givebutter community is always telling us how easy it is to use - and effective. On average, every Givebutter team brings together 43 members who raise $58,965. The typical team member brings in 6 - 7 new donors and raises $1,372. We also know that over 35% of donors are giving with an alternate payment method like Apple Pay and Google Pay, and 66% of these donations are on mobile. GB is breaking P2P industry benchmarks.

Third, our affordability. Transparency has been a big deal for Givebutter since day one, which is why everything you need to raise more money is 100% free forever with our Givebutter Base. Givebutter has no limits or hidden fees for nonprofits to worry about on #GivingTuesdayNow.”

#3: Tell us more about Givebutter’s new Livestream feature - how can that be used on #GivingTuesdayNow?

Max: “Our team designed and launched Livestream in less than two-weeks to combat COVID-19 charity spring event cancellations. This is a virtual giving experience, unlike any other that we launched in collaboration with Bloomerang, ThankView, and ToneDen. On Livestream, users can stream live or pre-recorded events from anywhere (e.g., ZOOM, Facebook Live, YouTube Live, Vimeo, Twitch) to easily embed it into a Givebutter campaign page. It’s freely availableand comes with top features for #GivingTuesdayNow - “e-tickets,” streaming, campaign pages with supporter feeds, donation collection including Venmo – all in one place, all in real-time.

#4: What are your top 3 tips for getting the most out of Givebutter on #GivingTuesdayNow?

Max: “1. Even though it might be intimidating to do during a crisis, don’t be afraid to ask! People are searching for a way to make a positive difference in the world right now. Show them how they can do that with your charity by making a clear ‘ask’ on your Givebutter campaign page and emails.

2. I would also say try new features on Givebutter, like email automation, text-to-give, and custom giving labels, amounts, and buttons. Be sure to advertise new features to your supporters - like that you now accept things like Venmo.

3. Utilize our free resources to find best practices. Taking advantage of things like the Help Center, Butter Blog, and our Explore feature will help you get inspired and make the most of Givebutter on #GivingTuesdayNow.”

#5: What challenges can Givebutter help nonprofits overcome on #GivingTuesdayNow?

Max: “The engagement factor. More than 73% of donors can leave a personalized message on the Supporter Feeds of campaigns on Givebutter. Online fundraising can easily become stale - even transactional - where it feels like you’re buying something on Amazon. #GivingTuesdayNow on Givebutter is an opportunity to bring isolated supporters together. Everyone misses that sense of belonging. We can help bridge that gap. For the first time ever, the whole Giving Tuesday experience will take its place online. So it’s more important than ever that supporters really enjoy the digital fundraising experience you provide them with. Givebutter is a powerful engagement tool that you don’t have to pay an arm and a leg for.

Just to add to that, on previous Giving Tuesdays, many nonprofits have come to us because they were looking for an all-in-one platform. When you have scattered platforms for 24-hour giving days like Giving Tuesday, it can be quite challenging to retain donors. Givebutter really specializes in donor acquisition, so we integrate with the best in the business for donor retention. Partners like Boomerang allow Givebutter users to steward all new donors with ease.”

#6: What is the one thing a nonprofit should do on Givebutter for #GivingTuesdayNow after reading this?

Max: “If you aren’t already using Givebutter, you should sign-up! It’s free, and it only takes 5-minutes.

If you are already a part of the Givebutter community, I’d say the one thing you should do after reading this is to customize your page with new features and make sure it includes at least some element of team fundraising.”

#7: What’s your best piece of advice to nonprofits for #GivingTuesdayNow?

Max: “Try something different! Lean into that new idea you’ve been putting off. Now’s the time. There’s no playbook for a Giving Tuesday during a global health pandemic. Not taking a risk right now is a risk. So, use this global day of giving as an opportunity to show off your ability to innovate!”

‘No matter how small’

I hope you enjoyed this interview with Max as much as I did! In addition to all of these Givebutter #GivingTuesdayNow resources, don’t forget to take advantage of Giving Tuesday’s public Google Drive toolkit.

In the words of Giving Tuesday CEO Asha Curran: "We each have the power to make an impact with acts of generosity, no matter how small.”

Nonprofit community - we can’t wait to see you go out there this #GivingTuesdayNow and make an unprecedented impact for good! We’ll be cheering you on the whole way.

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Say hi 👋 or get more #GivingTuesdayNow advice from Givebutter: [email protected].