"Giving Tuesday" Advice from a Chief Information Officer

Ademola Popoola (MSIT '19) shares valuable strategic advice from his experience at Loyola Academy.

In 2018, non-profit organizations around the world received more than $400 million in donations as part of Giving Tuesday (known as #GivingTuesday for the prominent role social media has played in the day's success). This annual day of giving was launched in 2012 as a way to encourage people to do good on the heels of Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and in a short manner of time has grown into a charitable phenomenon. More than $1 billion has been raised online in the U.S. alone during that time. 

For the past few years, Ademola Popoola (MSIT '19) has helped Loyola Academy, a private Jesuit high school a few miles north of Northwestern, organize #GivingTuesday campaigns. As Chief Information Officer, Popoola has helped facilitate collaboration between the school's technology and advancement teams to ensure everyone is using all available tools to maximize giving opportunities for the ultimate benefit of all stakeholders.

With #GivingTuesday coming up on Dec. 3, 2019, Popoola took a few minutes to reflect on his experiences and share advice for other non-profits looking to organize their own fundraising campaigns. 

What role have you played with Loyola Academy's #GivingTuesday campaigns?

My primary role is oversight of the partnership between the IT side of the house and the advancement team (fundraising, communications, marketing). We’ve worked collaboratively to develop a strategy for the entire campaign. Once the strategy is set, we get down to the important work of determining which vehicles, tools, and techniques we will leverage to execute an effective giving campaign. My team has helped to think through the best digital solutions for data gathering, analytics, messaging, communications, campaign management, payments, and gift processing. 

What have you learned from the experience?

Plan, plan, plan! We’ve learned to begin the planning process for the event three months in advance. It’s also incredibly critical to have a clear and well-crafted communications strategy that revolves around the question: What story are we trying to tell? From there, we have to determine how to best communicate that story and how that story is told on our different messaging channels (i.e., email, social media, phone calls).

What is your approach to #GivingTuesday this year?

We’re making a concerted effort to take advantage of the consumer-driven Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday events and shift the tone from commercial to causes. New things we’re integrating this year are SMS messaging and the acceptance of new digital payment platforms. We’re also planning to incorporate strategically placed digital video as an added component of our messaging to trigger an emotional element in prospective donors. 

From your perspective, why has #GivingTuesday become such an important day and opportunity for non-profits?

Well, first, it’s the holiday season, which means it’s the season of giving. With that, there is a wide willingness within the donor community to be a part of something bigger and to make a social impact. This is evident by the immense growth in the areas of Peer to Peer (P2P) fundraising and crowdfunding. What we are trying to do is leverage this opportunity in order to make it easier for people to find and donate to a worthy cause they care about. There’s also a tax advantage playing a role, since, for most, this is the last opportunity to enjoy tax savings before the end of the calendar year. 

What advice would you give to a non-profit considering running its own #GivingTuesday campaign for the first time?

Intrinsically, people love to hear stories. Take advantage of this natural desire and ensure you have a convincing story that resonates with your donor base to communicate your cause and succinctly get your message across. Know your donors and what is important to them. Find out what drives them when it comes to making a social impact. Then, determine where they congregate and meet them where they are. Segment your donor base and use specific tools and techniques to reach each band.

When it comes to IT and online giving, particularly as it relates to #GivingTuesday, what are some pieces of advice you would offer?

There can be a temptation to use all the levers (email, social media, phone blitzes, traditional online giving). I would recommend developing a concise strategy based on data. Be disciplined and focused on developing an informed strategy. Then, devise definitive tactics aligned with that strategy to carry out the activities of the campaign. If you have the resources, track and monitor the activities associated with the event and leverage that data to further develop and hone your #GivingTuesday strategy for the following year.

It also is important to optimize for mobile. Research has shown that a single second delay in a page’s load time can lead to an 11% decrease in traffic and significantly lower conversions.

Lastly, use tools such as Venmo and Zelle to make it easier to give. It’s a great, quick, and easy way for younger donors to give.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

Leverage social ambassadors. Social media ambassadors are the new thing in P2P fundraising. People trust who they know. So, when active and well-known social media users share your message and ask others to donate, the results can be huge. Make it easier for your social ambassadors to share your campaign message by giving them pre-written posts.

It’s also very important to acknowledge all donations and donors. When someone receives an email after giving, there’s a higher likelihood to open and act from that message and subsequent emails. Don’t forego that opportunity!

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