Get ready for GivingTuesday with a cohesive digital campaign 

You’ve probably been bombarded lately by expert advice on what to do for GivingTuesday campaign. I know I have. There’s a lot of pressure to get ready for this one day, and it can feel overwhelming.   

But, there is  a way to simplify this. By filling out your Candid nonprofit profile on GuideStar, you can ensure your digital presence is up to date and prioritize creating content to share on GivingTuesday. 

Update your nonprofit profile on Candid’s GuideStar 

On GivingTuesday, traffic to Candid’s GuideStar increases by 50%. This is the biggest day for donors to research nonprofits they want to support, whether to simply check legitimacy or to dive deeper into mission and impact. With all that traffic, it’s important to make sure your profile is up to date. 

Here are the basics: 

1. Claim your profile if you haven’t already. Simply create your GuideStar account, then match yourself to the organization. 

2. Check basic information. This includes things like nonprofit name, contact information, and address. This is critical to make sure donations are going to the right place. 

3. Add a logo. Your logo is a quick and easy way for donors to confirm the charity they are searching for is the same one they see on GuideStar.  

4. Add your current mission statement. The mission statement communicates your nonprofit’s purpose, what groups you serve, and how you do so. Make it clear, concise, and easy to understand.  

5. Highlight your programs. Focus on programs that have the most impact for communities you serve and summarize this in a succinct way.  

6. Showcase your impact. Donors want to know that you are making an impact. The results section of your profile is the perfect place to address this. Add metrics that demonstrate effectiveness, like individuals served, community members reached, animals adopted, etc.  

7. Level up with demographic information. This can take a little more preparation but is critical for some donors and increasingly important for grants. Our Knowledge Base Article can help you collect demographics about your organization. 

Bonus: Your Candid nonprofit profile is connected to Facebook and Instagram’s fundraising platforms. That means, once you publish your updates, they will appear on both social media sites. It takes about 24-48 hours to be updated, so it’s good to make these edits well before GivingTuesday.  

Use your Candid profile on GuideStar as inspiration for a GivingTuesday social media campaign 

The Rule of 7 states a person needs to see an advertisement at least seven times before they act. The same rule often applies for donations. 

You can use your Candid profile to inform your social media strategy to get that consistent, repetitive messaging across platforms.  

• Audit your accounts: check to make sure your social media accounts match your Candid profile on GuideStar: do they have the same name? Same logo? Same mission statement? 
• Use your Candid profile for social media content: Turn the text you wrote for your profile into social media posts leading up to GivingTuesday. Each post can highlight a program, impact, or part of your mission. Then, add a call to action for a donation or to promote GivingTuesday.  

• Example: You run an animal rescue nonprofit, and one program is a senior pet adoption. Share the program, highlight the impact, and remind your audience about GivingTuesday (paired with a cute photo): #TBT to our Senior Pet Adoption weekend where 165 pets went to new homes. Thanks to all our 2022 donors for making this possible. Donate on GivingTuesday to help us do it again next year!  

• Showcase your Candid Seal of Transparency: If you took the steps above to fill out your profile, chances are good your nonprofit earned a Seal of Transparency. Research links earning a Seal to a 53% increase in contributions, so make sure to show that off in social posts.  
• On GivingTuesday, restate the top posts with clear calls to action: If there’s messaging that really resonates with your audience, share that again to remind your audiences why your work matters. 

• Example: Donors loved reading data about your impact. Reuse the same data in a new post but with a clear call to action: We were able to serve 27% more people in our community this year. Let’s make it 40% next year! You can help by donating on GivingTuesday via our website.  

Use your Candid profile on GuideStar as inspiration for a GivingTuesday campaign email 

Email is one of the most effective ways to reach an audience, and nonprofits have higher than normal open rates (around 26% open rates versus the industry standard of 6%).  

Similar to reusing your Candid profile for social media, you can use it to highlight the most important aspects of your work in an email.  

Consider this as an outline of how you can remix your profile content: 

• Begin the email with gratitude that this individual has subscribed to your email, and if possible, include their name. 
• Restate your mission at the beginning to highlight why your work is critical. 

• Showcase your impact and accomplishments from the last year. If you’ve earned a Seal of Transparency, now is a good time to showcase that!  
• Then have a clear call to action with easy-to-understand instructions.  

Crafting a GivingTuesday campaign can be a lot of work. But, by using your Candid nonprofit profile on GuideStar as a starting point you can reduce the work and ensure your donors are getting a consistent message about your mission and impact.  

Want to learn more? Join Candid and GivingTuesday on Tuesday, October 25, 2022 at 2 p.m. ET to get easy tips to maximize your nonprofit’s success ahead of GivingTuesday. Register now for this free webinar.