Welcome to Boost My School’s series “Planning Your Day of Giving in Six Steps” for independent schools. We will be laying the foundation of your campaign in this step.

Set a goal

Running an independent school giving day without a goal is like being on a ship without a sail. It’s important to set a goal that you feel is attainable. If this is your first Day of Giving, it may be even more difficult to set a realistic goal. When setting a goal, here are a few tips to keep in mind:

1. Look at past data: This is a no-brainer if you already have held a Day of Giving. If you have not, plan your day for the month where you have received the most pledges. It’s common practice to apply donations received that month to your Day of Giving. If you are setting a dollar amount goal, set it roughly 50% higher than the total amount of pledges received for that month.

2. Decide on a dollar amount or donor goal: A donor goal may be easier to attain if this is your first Day of Giving. There’s also less pressure since smaller gifts will count to your overall goal. Using a fundraising platform that engages your donors, you will keep them motivated to an amount they feel comfortable with while still feeling like they contributed to the greater goal.

3. Consider the economy: With the advent of COVID-19, independent school advancement teams are faced with so much uncertainty. It’s important to gauge how your donors feel about donating when the economic climate changes. Ask your major donors for advice or observe if the donation amounts are lower than the previous year. This will help you set a realistic goal when the economy has taken a downturn.

4. Lock in matching gifts and challenges before setting or adjusting your goal. You will be able to estimate a dollar goal based on your challenges and making an assumption that they will all be unlocked.

Don’t forget to set smaller goals such as the number of new donors, the number of recurring donors, and the number of young alumni. These are good metrics to track and improve on every year.

Pick a Theme

Select a theme that speaks to your constituents. Incorporating school traditions into your giving day will tug at your alumni’s heartstrings and will reconnect donors with your school. Check out how this school used the #ringthebell hashtag to promote their Day of Giving, based on a long-standing tradition of ringing the campus bell when an athletic team wins.

Brainstorm with your team on what speaks to your constituents. COVID-19 has changed the world for the present time and its lasting effects may impact your school community for months or even years to come. A popular mindset across fundraising teams is to raise money consciously. This means that adapting a community-centric theme will speak positively to your constituents and will help you reach your goal.

What does raising money consciously mean? Here are a few ideas:

• Partner with a local organization such as a restaurant willing to help your community. Ask them to donate a certain amount of meals to a food shelter if your donors unlock a specific challenge. Your donors will feel good that their donation will help hungry families.

• Use an old theme and spin the message. For example, a school changed its “Be our Heroes” campaign which normally highlights its seniors to a more appropriate theme during COVID-19. The heroes were not only the graduating seniors, but the frontline heroes in their community such as the nurses and doctors.

• Rally your community like this school who is using the “Pulling Together” theme to give a sense of momentum and purpose to their campaign. Be transparent with the messaging around your theme and let your constituents know what their contribution will benefit.

Stay tuned as we focus on the second step, creating a communication plan.