I’ve always believed in giving and giving back. I believe that it is each person’s responsibility to help those in need and to give thanks to those who have done good in their lives. I try to instill this value of giving to my kids, especially my two tween daughters, in everything that we do. That is why I am so pleased to find out recently, that they both pooled the money they have saved up since last Christmas, not to buy what they want for themselves but to buy Christmas gifts for their family and friends. This may not seem much in the grand scale of things but it means a whole lot to me. It’s a great start, if I do say so myself.
So, when I heard about this new advocacy from the Global Team of 200, I was immediately interested because it’s all about giving and giving back. On November 27, 2012, #GivingTuesday will be launched in the U.S. What is #GivingTuesday?
#GivingTuesday is a call to action and not a new giving platform. It encourages Americans to proactively contribute to their communities and help make this season the biggest giving season yet. It provides an opportunity for people to be part of a national celebration of a great tradition of generosity. Retailers, charities, online organizations, community centers, individuals, families and more will come together to help improve their communities in better and smarter ways.
To ensure that the #GivingTuesday message spreads to more people, social media will be utilized to let people know about how to celebrate this occasion and serve as an inspiration as well. Interested to know more about how you can help? Here are some ways:
- Launch a special campaign to support your favorite cause.
- Partner with major philanthropic media channels and aggregators.
- Invite your company to match employees’ donations on that day.
- Create a dynamic online giving initiative for #GivingTuesday.
- Invite your organization to commit a portion of proceeds on #GivingTuesday to your favorite cause.
- Create a volunteering initiative.
- Invite your local retailers to add a donation to purchases for a charity for #GivingTuesday.
- Announce a donation or new initiative of your own on your blog or social media channels.
- 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 for baked goods on #GivingTuesday which will be ready for the holiday.
There are more ways to participate. The key is to find what will work for you and your community. You can encourage others to participate as well by doing the following:
- Like #GivingTuesday on Facebook ‐ www.facebook.com/GivingTuesday
- Follow on Twitter @GivingTues or and use the #GivingTuesday hashtag
- Follow on Pinterest ‐ http://pinterest.com/givingtuesday/giving‐quotes/
- Submit a video to their You Tube channel
- Share your favorite giving quote or image on their Tumblr page
- Share all of #GivingTuesday’s social media channels in your organizational and personal social networks
- Participate in a “Thunderclap” of social media to announce #GivingTuesday has begun
If you believe in giving and giving back, just like I do, this is your chance to actually do something about it. Make your holidays a more meaningful one by participating in the #GivingTuesday efforts and help make it a success.
