More Isn’t Always Merrier During the Season of Giving
Americans love giving during the holidays. And while the holidays and other culturally significant days differ across the globe, here in the United States it’s November through January that has become known as the “season of giving.”
Beginning around Thanksgiving, many nonprofits see an influx of support that persists well into January. But in addition to financial donations which are of course always welcome, many nonprofits also receive so much support in the form of volunteer inquiries and offers of in-kind donations that they end up having to politely decline much of what’s offered, in many cases even turning away well-intentioned volunteers.
Consider these facts about the “season of giving”:
Volunteering in the U.S. increases approximately 50 percent during the holidays.
Some organizations report receiving upwards of a 200 percent increase in volunteer applications and inquiries.
Close to 30 percent of all annual monetary donations are made in the month of December alone.
Unfortunately, this isn’t a case of more being merrier for two specific reasons:
The increased demand placed on organizations during this time can overwhelm and push many beyond their normal operating capacity.
These same organizations will then almost certainly see a drought in support come February when they actually need it most.
Nonprofits - and community-based ones especially - function largely because of the goodwill and support of their local communities so they work hard to be able to take in the influx of in-kind offers of support during the holiday season. But doing so can affect their performance in the long-run in unforeseen and preventable ways.
There are a few things to consider.
1. Understand WHEN your nonprofits and community-based partners need you the most
Create a “giving” calendar that centers your corporate volunteerism engagements around their greatest times of need. Try to identify three to four opportunities throughout the year if possible.
Be open-minded about the opportunities they share. Their greatest need may not be direct service to their clients. It might be administrative or low-profile. It also might not necessarily be glamorous or during a highly sought-after time of year. Embrace this. It may actually be their greatest need. You may even find you can match your assets with their needs better than you thought: for example if you’re slow during the summer months but they have an uptick in needs, perhaps you can plug your employee volunteering in during that time?
Create an educational campaign (i.e. internal emails, webinars, videos) that informs your employees of the strategy behind your employee volunteerism and giving program. It’s important for them to know the positive outcomes that will come from giving during times of greatest need, especially if it requires a change from your previous approach.
2. What if your employees still want to give during the holiday season?
Year-end giving shouldn’t be replaced. But you can supplement this by creating alternative and equally effective mechanisms to harness the energy of employees who will still want to give during the holiday season! You may consider incorporating virtual collection drives through programs like YouGiveGoods to support any charity of your choice to provide brand-new items they need most.
If you are not doing a company “sponsored” activation, you can also provide resources that help your employees make informed decisions as they consider year-end giving.
Make it stand out
3. Giving and volunteering in a more sustainable and responsible way is what is best for our community-based partners.
I always tell people that sometimes how you give is just as important as what you give - and it’s sometimes even more important.
4. “Yes, and”
I think we need to always stress that yes, we should give during the holiday - but it shouldn’t end there. Yes, we should give during the holidays, and we can do better at spreading that love in a way that is the most impactful and beneficial to those we are serving.
So this season of giving, let’s ensure that “more is merrier” by giving in ways that fully meet the needs and true demands of our community. Look around, see where the needs are and how you can best be of service both during the holiday season and after, and let’s make both the holidays and more “ordinary” days merrier.
The Uplift Agency
Uplift builds strategies, programs, and communication campaigns that advance ESG in workplaces, supply chains and communities.
We know how to navigate the road ahead because we’ve already been down it – 90 percent of our team has led environmental or social programs in corporations or nonprofits. Because ESG is all we do, our services are more comprehensive and integrated than most firms.
