Guide to Board Engagement for Give Big Pittsburgh
As a nonprofit leader, you know your board best! You know what strengths and connections your board members bring to the table, to help further your organization’s mission and have a stronger impact on your community. On Give Big Pittsburgh, you’ll need support and assistance from your board members to make it an all around success for you and your organization, which is why we put together this list of tasks you can utilize your board members for!
Give Big Pittsburgh Board Responsibilities
This guide outlines the following tasks:
- Community Partnerships & Outreach
- Press & Promotion
- Donor Outreach & Follow Up
- Fundraising Champions
Community Partnerships & Outreach
Your board likely has several members who serve as important and active members in of your community. Whether it’s a connection to local businesses or the ability to acquire sponsored or matching gifts, you’ll want to utilize these board members to help build a solid foundation to for your Give Big Pittsburgh campaign.
Tasks for these board members could include:
- Reaching out to local businesses for potential partnerships - Partnerships can range from sharing your Give Big Pittsburgh page on social media, in-kind donations for day-of events, or utilizing what’s special about your community to promote the big day!
- Acquiring sponsors for matching gifts or incentives: Give Big Pittsburgh is a great opportunity to entice your donors to have a greater impact on your organization and your community by offering donation matches! Having some extra funds for Give Big Pittsburgh to use as incentives for your donors can really motivate them to participate and further their impact.
- Local promotion throughout the community: There are lots of creative ways you can engage with your community to promote Give Big Pittsburgh! From flyers to road signs - this is a great opportunity to use the connections of your board to utilize local promotional opportunities! For more creative ideas for community engagement check out this blog!
Press & Promotion
One of the biggest things we hear from donors after a Day of Giving is that they had no idea it was even happening! Don’t let this happen to your community and utilize your board members to get the word out about Give Big Pittsburgh before the big day! While your staff members will also be working on marketing and promoting this event, your board members can play a crucial role in educating those who otherwise may not have seen your messaging. Just by putting up a flyer in a local business or having a conversation with their co-workers, your mission has the potential to impact more people with the help of your board.
Tasks for these board members could include:
- Getting the word out about Give Big Pittsburgh: Your board can play a huge role in getting the word out about Give Big Pittsburgh. Whether it’s distributing flyers throughout your community or simply talking about it with their network both online and offline, encouraging your board members to promote Give Big Pittsburgh will result in more connections and more donations for your organization on the big day!
- Acting as Social Media Champions for your organization: With online giving, social media can play a crucial role in your success. The problem with social media is that you can spend all day crafting up perfectly engaging posts, but they aren’t going to really have an impact if nobody sees them! On social media, people are more likely read and click on a post that their friend shares as opposed to a generic ask from an organization. Have your board members get active on social media, supporting your campaign, sharing your Give Big Pittsburgh page, and getting the word out about why your mission is so important to them and your community. Provide them with this social media guide that they can use to help promote your organization before, during, and even after the big day!
- Share their board story: Each of your board members is serving your organization for a reason. They care about your mission, your impact, and the community and people you serve. Having your board share why they are proud to be a part of your organization has the power to show your supporters and potential donors how your organization is rooted in the passion of those people helping to further your mission. Both you and your board members can use their stories (with their permission of course) in letters, emails, social media posts and beyond! True stories that highlight the impact of your organization and power of your mission can go a long way!
Donor Outreach & Follow Up
Letting all of your donors and supporters know about Give Big Pittsburgh can be challenging. You’re going to want to send them emails, social media posts, and maybe even a direct mail appeal to get their attention and gain their support. Letting donors know that their impact is being celebrated is a great way to get them excited about the big day!
Tasks for these board members could include:
- Host a calling bank: Did you know that by simply giving your past donors a call to thank them for their support and letting them know about the day, they’re more likely to show their support again? Your board members probably already make calls to big donors, but for Give Big Pittsburgh no donor is too small to let them know about the big event and how to see your mission in action! Check out our sample calling scripts for templates your board members can use to engage with your supporters and encourage them to be a part of the fun on Give Big Pittsburgh!
- Personal letters to bigger donors: Before the big day, you should give your big donors some recognition, and let them know about Give Big Pittsburgh while you’re doing it! Whether it’s by way of a personal letter, note, email, or even a phone call - let your donors know how they have made an impact on your organization and your community, and invite them to see that impact in action on Give Big Pittsburgh. They will not only appreciate the recognition, but will be more likely to support your organization on Give Big Pittsburgh.
- Ask for Give Big Pittsburgh Pledges: Before Give Big Pittsburgh you can invite your supporters to make pledges to support your organization! Using free photo editing tools like Canva, you can create a custom social share image for your organization’s Give Big Pittsburgh pledges, so they can let their network know before the day that they will proudly be supporting your organization. This is also a great way to “secure” gifts before Give Big Pittsburgh that will have a greater impact on the big day!
Fundraising Champions
Even if your board members aren’t required to make a contribution to serve your organization, they should never turn down an opportunity to support your mission and fundraise on your behalf. Acting as a fundraising champion, each board members can rally around your mission and collect donations as an ambassador and ally for your organization.
Tasks for these board members could include:
- Create fundraisers on behalf of your organization: For Give Big Pittsburgh your board members as well as any other key supporters, can create their own personal fundraising pages to share out with their network to support your organization. Sharing their personal stories of why they support your cause and your mission will entice donors you would never have been able to reach to support you on Give Big Pittsburgh.
- Host a FUNdraisers party: Invite your board members, volunteers, or best supporters to come together to learn about how they can rally around your cause on Give Big Pittsburgh. All you need are some light refreshments and a few computers to get everyone set up with their own personal fundraising page. Check out this blog for tips on how to throw your own Fundraising Champion party!