Giving Tuesday: Maximize Donation Impact with These Fundraising Ideas for Private Schools

The National Association of Independent Schools found the average private school raises roughly 23 percent of its total annual income from outside of net tuition revenue. Expanding philanthropic strategies presents schools with greater financial opportunities and stability.

Giving Tuesday is an international day of generosity offering private K-12 schools one of these opportunities to boost their fundraising efforts. For schools looking to raise funds, enhance community engagement, and share their mission with a broader audience, Giving Tuesday presents an ideal opportunity to tap into the philanthropic spirit of the holidays. Through a mix of strategic planning, storytelling, community engagement, and technology, schools can maximize donor impact and achieve fundraising success.

This e-book is tailored for school development officers, principals, administrators, and financial officers who seek to leverage Giving Tuesday effectively. Here are a few fundraising ideas your private school can use to ensure a successful campaign.

READ THE FULL BOOK OF STRATEGIES HERE.

Partner With Local Businesses

What better way to promote your school than through partnerships with the local businesses and organizations your students and families interact with? Help raise awareness with these strategies.

Partner with businesses that align with your school’s mission through paid sponsorships. Offer to promote them in campaign materials, student scholarships, or athletic events in exchange for donations.

Use cross-promotion to work together with community organizations and reach a broader audience. This may take the form of hanging school banners in the establishment, hosting school events, and student discounts. When donation season rolls around, further the impact of these symbiotic relationships with extra tie-ins to Giving Tuesday.

Utilize Your Website Effectively

Your website should be a central hub for all Giving Tuesday activities. Make sure site visitors can easily find information on how and where to give. Here are some fundraising ideas to make that happen for your private school.

• Create a Giving Tuesday Landing Page: This page is used to direct audiences to actually donate, regardless of whether they come from email, social media, or elsewhere on your website. Include campaign details, donor stories, a donation button, and updates on fundraising progress to make a more persuasive case.
• Display a Countdown Timer: Build urgency by including a countdown to the beginning of Giving Tuesday or the campaign’s end date. Place this at the top of your website – this will immediately catch readers’ attention.
• Incorporate Videos and Testimonials: Showcase videos featuring students, staff, or alumni talking about your school’s impact to drive shareable content across your community.

Get School Leadership Involved

School leaders, including your principal and development officers, play a crucial role in setting the tone for the campaign. Utilize community trust to have your greatest internal resources promote your Giving Tuesday campaign.

• Letter From the Principal: Have the principal write an open letter about the importance of Giving Tuesday and how the funds raised will be used. Include how to donate, further ways to volunteer or assist, and ways the funds will improve student experiences.
• Involvement in Events: Encourage leadership to participate in live events or virtual webinars to share insights and engage with the school community. These may include a pep rally, community block party, or silent auction.
• Give Real-Time Updates: Throughout Giving Tuesday, provide real-time updates on your social media and website. This information provides donors with a way to see how you’re making progress toward your goal and inspires donations from community members who haven’t given yet. Donors will be excited and encouraged by seeing the immediate impact of donations and watching as the progress bar gets closer to your school’s goal.

Measure and Evaluate Campaign Success

Understanding what worked and what didn’t is essential to improve future campaigns. Review the following steps to evaluate your Giving Tuesday efforts and determine any next steps.

• Track Key Metrics: Monitor donation amounts, number of donors, social media engagement, email open rates, and website traffic sources throughout the campaign, comparing to previous years to find improvements and discrepancies.
• Post-Campaign Evaluation: Once Giving Tuesday is over, gather the data and assess your overall impact compared to initial goal setting. Identify which fundraising ideas worked for your private school and efforts that need improvement.
• Share Results with Donors: Communicate campaign outcomes to donors, showing how their contributions made a difference. This transparency builds trust and encourages continued support.

Focus on a Specific Project to Create a Connection

Identifying a specific project helps your families and alumni feel more connected to the cause. It adds a level of tangibility to the campaign, letting your community and families see exactly where their money is going and what their contribution will achieve.

For example, your school’s project might be raising money for a new student computer lab for your school. Here are three ways to showcase the specific project and potential impact.

• Create a Visual for Donors: Show potential donors a rendition and how the lab will be incorporated as part of the school to help them visualize their donation in action.
• Highlight Student Need and Usage: Highlight positive impacts the lab will make and include the number of students that will benefit from it during the school year.
• Identify Benefits for Instruction: Discuss how the new lab will enable students to access advanced educational tools and resources, such as online courses, coding software, and expanded learning assignments.

Additional Fundraising Ideas for Private Schools

The  fun(d) doesn’t stop there. The following are even more ideas to maximize the impact of Giving Tuesday at your school.

• Host a Kick-Off Event: Launch your campaign with a live or virtual event to energize the community and build excitement.
• Use Live Streaming: Platforms like Facebook Live and Instagram Live allow for real-time interaction with donors. Host a Q&A session, showcase student talents, or give a tour of the school.
• Create a Giving Tuesday Toolkit: Equip your supporters with social media graphics, email templates, and videos they can use to promote the campaign.
• Promote Recurring Giving: Encourage donors to sign up for monthly donations, ensuring sustained support throughout the year.

As the giving season approaches, early preparation and creative strategies can help turn this one-day event into a springboard for long-term fundraising success.

Conclusion

Implementing these private school fundraising ideas can not only make your Giving Tuesday campaign more successful but also lay the groundwork for a culture of philanthropy within your school community that lasts throughout the year.

When it comes to executing fundraising logistics, consider Diamond Mind’s suite of solutions, where your school can easily take and reconcile online Giving Tuesday donations. With Diamond Mind, add your school’s unique branding to all payment forms and offer families the ease of mobile donations, ensuring the convenience of making secure payments 24/7.

Diamond Mind offers comprehensive financial reports, enabling informed data-driven decisions to finetune donation strategies. Easily create and pull in-depth reports reflecting online fundraising success, in addition to any other school-related events.

Learn how Diamond Mind solutions can ensure your Giving Tuesday is a success!