They’re the largest generation alive on the planet, and they’re on the precipice of inheriting $30 trillion. You should definitely be thinking about how to reach millennial donors in your fundraising plan, and giving GivingTuesday is a great opportunity to get started.

Here are three creative ideas for engaging millennials on social media and within your community on GivingTuesday:

1. Share your most compelling photos.

Pair your posts on social with images. Millennials will be much more likely to engage—in fact, tweets with photos are 150% more likely to be retweeted!

2. Show some personality.

I work with a lot of nonprofits.So many of them are, sorry to say, boring with their communications strategies. When energy is low on social media, your staff and volunteers seem uninspired. Even if your work seems impactful, as a millennial, I won’t stay engaged if it doesn’t feel dynamic and exciting. Balance the substance of the work you do by just having fun (and being human!) within your posts and out in the community. GivingTuesday is a great day to get out there. Team up with a local young professional’s network or invite your current young philanthropists out for a night of pizza and bowling or wine and theatre. Have fun and infuse a soft fundraising ask into the event. Here’s a sample idea for an invitation:


“Join us on GivingTuesday a night of bowling and enjoy pizza donated by the board chair of our organization! Make a team and join us for fun, plus, updates from our recent work in the field. If you’re feeling the spirit of GivingTuesday, we encourage you to donate your best bowling score to our mission, in a way that works for you. Score a 250? Donate $2.50, $25, or $250—just get in the spirit!”

3. Pose interesting questions to millennial followers.

It’s always good to have those out in the virtual world stay connected to your work, and asking questions is a great way to inspire a meaningful, two-way conversation with your donors.. Here are some examples based on various missions:


• Animal Rights/Welfare: “What’s the right thing to do if you think an animal is being abused?”
• Gender Equality: “In your opinion, are things actually improving for women and girls around the world? Why or why not?”
• Education: “What’s working and what isn’t in your state, in terms of public education? What do you wish could change?”

4. Partner with social media influencers to spread your message.

Sure, partnering up with a celebrity like Angelina Jolie to attract new donors is a budget-changing plan. But finding a celebrity evangelist can be a difficult endeavor for small nonprofits with little marketing resources. That doesn’t mean you can’t tap into the power of social media influencers. Take a close look at your network. Do you have the support of a local policymaker or a millennial with a big social media following or club connections at a university? Start with who know or interact with already, and ask your best advocates to spread your GivingTuesday messages to their network.

Get Millennials engaged with their hearts, minds, and imaginations. Use GivingTuesday to energize yourself, as well, with new creative fundraising ideas. Far too often, we forget to celebrate meet our fundraising goals, so make sure to celebrate your success, too!