Final two months of the year is the biggest time for donations and International Charity Day is a great way to ramp up your holiday campaign.
The International Day of Charity was adopted by the United Nations in 2015 and has become a worldwide event for nonprofit organizations and NGO to receive donations. The big day is coming up quickly, so mark your calendars for September 5th so that you can make a difference either by giving, r by preparing your organization for donations.
September 5th was chosen as the official day for International Day of Charity to honor Mother Teresa, as that was the day she passed away in 1997. In the last few years, the day has gotten bigger and bigger with more nonprofits participating as well as more patrons.
The most important thing you can do for your organization is get prepared if you’re going to participate. This means:
- Make sure your website is running smoothly, looking clean and professional, and all content is up to date.
- Plan how you’re going to ask for donations. Are you going to promote online, newspapers, your headquarters? How will people know about the day to donate and what your goals are?
- Are you going to do an event at your headquarters or are you going to make it easy and just have a donations page online.
If you currently have a nonprofit organization or want to start one, know that there are resources to help you with planning events like this. If you and your team don’t have enough time to plot and plan for extra events you can always reach out to professionals. Companies like CharityNet USA offer services to help with your nonprofit paperwork to get you started, and can also help with grant writing and fundraising.
If you don’t have enough time to get your organization prepared in time for International Day of Charity this year, keep in mind that there are other opportunities to fundraise and bring awareness to your cause. The next big day for nonprofits is Giving Tuesday (Tuesday following Thanksgiving), and the whole month of November is also dedicated to Nonprofit Awareness, and June 5th is National Nonprofit Awareness Day. Not to mention that the industry or location that your nonprofit operates in might also have their own day that you can participate in. Many nonprofit organizations report that around 50% of their annual donations come from November and December, so being prepared for donation season is one of the keys to a successful fundraising season. International Charity Day is right around the corner so make sure your organization is prepared for your next big day of giving.
“It's not how much we give but how much love we put into giving.”
Mother Teresa
