With Giving Tuesday and year-end campaigns just around the corner, we’re very busy developing content and creative strategies. This year the calendar has thrown us a fun curveball with Giving Tuesday landing in December, adding a bit more crunch to our usual year-end hustle.
At Fresh Eyes Digital, our team is filled with seasoned experts who’ve been in the digital fundraising space for many years (remember life before Giving Tuesday?). We’ve seen it all and are excited to share the tips and insights that will help us—and you—navigate this busy season and head into the new year strong.
Tips from the Team
Rachel: Prioritization is your friend. Yes, the pressure is on in this season of the year, and this work deeply matters to sustaining nonprofit missions. BUT! Not every tactic or phrase or design decision is going to make or break your revenue goals. As you’re moving through drafting, review, and quality control, remember – we’re all doing our best and not all optimizations are equal. It might drive you nuts that you know your choice for a button color pops more. But it will matter more to push for a campaign theme that is urgent and timely.
Jenn: Remember that the real tough months for campaign planners and writers are October/November. December is the real tough month for developers/implementers. Have empathy for all those tough moments and jump in when you can to help your team. Also, eat lunch every day!
Erin: I ensure that I am making time for regular yoga classes, which is essential for my mental health.
Ilana: Taking care of your mental health during Giving Tuesday/Year-End season is so important. But it can often feel hard in the moment to actually let yourself take a break. To prepare for that, I always spend a good chunk of September figuring out different activities that I know I’ll be excited about doing during crunch time, so everything is all ready to go for me. This can be figuring out what books I want to read, getting new puzzles, or this year, stocking up on tons of crochet patterns. It’s much easier to take a break when you have something you’re really excited about doing during it!
Jordyn: Every Giving Tuesday/Year-End season, I’ve done a couple things to help keep me grounded! I make sure to take quick intentional screen breaks throughout the day – even just a quick 5-10 minute step outside can help clear my head and make me so much more productive! I drink a lot of herbal tea to relax (my favorite is peppermint). And I also try to do nice stress-free activities after work like reading, crafting, or getting outside!
Thelma: As someone who has spent most of her career in-house at various nonprofits, and am preparing for my third Giving Tuesday/Year-End season as a consultant, I think my number one tip is to plan ahead! That means to try and get as much pre-built and ready to go as early as possible both content and calendar-wise. But also preparing for the unexpected moments! Define who will be the backup person to schedule or edit an email in case life happens. Make sure your team knows who the backup approver is if a change due to a world event in December affects the content you developed in September. Define and spell that out to prevent last-minute stress for everyone involved. This year-end I’m definitely going to be focusing on getting plenty of sleep and maybe getting some meal delivery started.
