Help Us Make History on #GivingTuesday

This year, on Tuesday, November 27, 2012, we are part of a call to action and national movement that will change the calendar and help make history. We are celebrating a new day dedicated to giving—when nonprofits, families, businesses, community centers, students, retailers and more will all come together to create #GivingTuesday—a new movement to celebrate giving and encourage more, better, and smarter giving during the holiday season. GuideStar is a proud nonprofit partner of the #GivingTuesday initiative.

#GivingTuesday will create a national day of giving around the annual shopping and spending season, typically the giving season's "opening day." The #GivingTuesday campaign will provide a platform for you, your organization, and the world to help make this season the biggest giving season yet!

We invite you to be part of this national celebration of our great tradition of generosity. #GivingTuesday will show how Americans can do much more with our wallets than just consume.

What can you and your organization do to be involved in #GivingTuesday? It's easy! Here are some ideas:

• Like them on Facebook—www.facebook.com/GivingTuesday
• Follow them on Twitter—@GivingTues, and use the #GivingTuesday hashtag
• Follow them on Pinterest—http://pinterest.com/givingtuesday/
• Submit a video to their YouTube channel—http://www.youtube.com/user/givingtuesday
• Share their social media channels in your organizational and personal social networks
• Announce your participation in #GivingTuesday to your networks and e-mail lists
• Launch a special campaign to support your favorite cause
• Partner with major philanthropic media channels and aggregators
• Match your employees' donations on that day
• Create a dynamic online giving initiative for #GivingTuesday
• Commit a portion of proceeds on #GivingTuesday to your favorite cause
• Create a volunteering initiative
• Offer your community members the chance to add donations to their purchases on #GivingTuesday
• Announce a major donation or new initiative
• Partner with shops to donate a portion of sales to a charity on #GivingTuesday
• Organize a local toy drive, consignment sale, or holiday goods sale to raise money and goods for charity
• Organize a holiday bake sale or pre-order on #GivingTuesday baked goods that will be ready for the holiday

The success of #GivingTuesday depends on our collective efforts, so on behalf of the entire initiative, thank you for anything you can do. You are the most important part of making this movement a reality.

• How useful did you find this article? Give us your feedback

Lindsay J.K. Nichols, November 2012
© 2012, GuideStar USA, Inc.

Lindsay Nichols is GuideStar's communications director.