Giving Tuesday is a great opportunity for your church to raise funds for a specific cause or initiative. In this article, I’ll explain how to create and launch the perfect Giving Tuesday campaign for your church.
Join the fundraising movement! Join the fundraising movement!Founded in 2012, Giving Tuesday is a global movement that encourages generosity and charity during the holiday season. It takes place the Tuesday after Thanksgiving in the U.S. This year, Giving Tuesday will fall on December 1, 2026, but it’s important to start planning weeks ahead to maximize your church’s fundraising potential.
If you want to make the most out of Giving Tuesday for your church, I’ll share ideas and tips to help you raise more.
Yes, churches and places of worship can leverage the increased generosity of Giving Tuesday to support the local community or fund a ministry project. Run a Giving Tuesday campaign to fill a need in your community, or raise money for your ministry or upcoming mission trips.
Below, I’ll explain how to create a successful Giving Tuesday campaign for your church.
| Task | Description |
|---|---|
| Confirm your campaign focus | Decide what your church's Giving Tuesday campaign will fund (e.g. ministry program, mission trip, etc.) |
| Decide on a fundraising goal | Set a clear goal to let donors know how much you need to raise. |
| Assign specific roles to team members | Decide who will manage the campaign landing page, communications, social media, and donor follow-up |
| Prepare your campaign landing page | Create a shareable Giving Tuesday campaign page with a clear purpose, story, goal meter, and visuals. |
| Craft your communications | Create and schedule emails, social media posts, and other appeals in advance. |
| Plan your follow-up outreach | Prepare thank-you messages and your follow-up plan to share the impact of gifts with donors and inspire continued engagement. |
Determine why you’re fundraising before you plan the rest of your campaign. Many churches use Giving Tuesday to raise funds for a specific initiative, like a new Sunday School or outreach program.
Giving Tuesday is also ideal for raising funds for your community before the holiday season begins. For example, raise funds to purchase Christmas gifts for families in need. Or, use Giving Tuesday as a kick-off to a larger year-end campaign.
See how Life Community Church Alexandria used Donorbox Crowdfunding to raise more for their preschool program. They’ve included a compelling video to share why they’re fundraising.
Secure buy-in from your church leaders and volunteers to increase the success of your campaign. Share details on why you want to fundraise, how you plan to do it, and what support you’ll need to make it happen.
For example, you may have a volunteer interested in building your campaign landing page and another who can draft the copy for your communications. Share the workload to avoid one person being too overwhelmed.
Once you have your fundraising purpose and team in place, decide on a fundraising goal to work toward. A clear, realistic goal will guide your outreach and enable you to scale your campaign.
Your fundraising goal should be ambitious and achievable. Review any major campaigns you’ve run or your 2025 end-of-year giving numbers to determine a Giving Tuesday fundraising goal for your church.
Pro tip: Consider what’s reasonable for your donors for this one day of giving and then add 5% or 10%.
For help setting a goal, read this blog post.
Next, it’s time to build your campaign’s landing page – the page your donors will “land” on when it’s time to donate. Use intuitive fundraising tools to create a compelling Giving Tuesday landing page.
Platforms like Donorbox Crowdfunding enable you to easily create a Giving Tuesday landing page that includes your fundraising story and engaging visuals. Plus, add a goal meter to build campaign momentum and let supporters know how much you need to reach your goal.
To build social proof and instantly acknowledge gifts from consenting donors, include a donor wall on your church’s Giving Tuesday campaign page.
See how the Catholic Connect Foundation highlighted their supporters on their donor wall:
Your chosen fundraising platform should streamline the giving experience for donors while allowing you to easily create and manage your Giving Tuesday campaign.
Here are some key features to look for:
Bonus: To learn more about creating a conversion-optimized Giving Tuesday crowdfunding page, check out these resources.
Build out your communications ahead of time to:
Giving Tuesday really thrives online, but especially on social media. Plan to build a few email appeals and a handful of social media posts throughout the day.
Use the free resource below for research-backed tips and methods for writing the perfect Giving Tuesday appeals for these platforms.
Consider mentioning scripture or talking about the upcoming holiday season and what it means to your church. This will distinguish your Giving Tuesday campaign from other nonprofits’ campaigns.
Pro tip: Leave room for spontaneity. Update your audience on your progress toward your goal throughout the day. If something exciting happens (e.g., you receive a large corporate donation), highlight this news in a post as well.
What is #iGiveCatholic on Giving Tuesday?
#iGiveCatholic is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that created a national giving day for Catholic ministries, schools, and nonprofits in partnership with the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
In 2025, #iGiveCatholic raised nearly $27 million for 1,845 churches, schools, and nonprofit ministries. If you’d like to participate, register here.
As I mentioned before, your primary outreach will be email and social media, but it’s important to generate interest in person, too. Mention your Giving Tuesday campaigns in your welcome speeches during the weeks leading up to Giving Tuesday. And announce your campaign in your newsletter.
Send an email on the day before announcing your campaign, and then at least one email on Giving Tuesday itself to remind supporters to give. Social media posts should be made throughout the day.
Pro tip: If you don’t have a large social media presence, ask supporters to share your campaign with their networks. Make this easy for them by including social sharing buttons on your crowdfunding page.
Expressing your gratitude is a key part of any successful campaign. Send automated tax-compliant receipts with a personalized thank-you message to donors, so no gift goes unacknowledged.
Remember to send a thank-you email to supporters the day after Giving Tuesday to share your gratitude and announce how much you raised. Use this as an opportunity to build momentum for your year-end campaign, too.
Peer-to-peer fundraising is a great way for your church to raise more on Giving Tuesday. This fundraising method enables your top supporters to ask their network to donate to your church via their own customized fundraising pages.
Platforms like Donorbox Peer-to-Peer allow you to quickly turn your crowdfunding campaign into a peer-to-peer initiative by toggling a switch. Then, invite your fundraisers by email or let anyone sign up to fundraise on behalf of your church.
See how the Catholic Connect Foundation enabled peer-to-peer fundraising to extend their reach:
Learn how churches use peer-to-peer fundraising in this ultimate guide.
Churches like yours have a unique opportunity to collect more in-person donations during weekly services and meetings. However, many congregants don’t carry cash or checkbooks, so provide a cashless alternative.
If you plan to host an in-person Giving Tuesday event or service, use donation kiosk software like the Donorbox Live™ app to collect cashless gifts in person. This app turns a tablet and card reader into a giving kiosk so donors can give using cards and digital wallets.
Place your giving kiosk in a high-traffic area, such as your church lobby or entrance. Educate members about your kiosk and Giving Tuesday campaign. Consider including an information stand or having a volunteer or staff member stand by to support less tech-savvy donors.
See how the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and Shrine placed their Donorbox Live™ Kiosk at their church entrance:
No kiosk or card reader available? Have your volunteers collect funds via their smartphones with the Donorbox Live™ Mobile mode for Android smartphones and iPhones.
Invite your church community to a special event to generate even more excitement around Giving Tuesday. This can be as simple as getting everyone together for dinner. Use an event ticketing tool to sell tickets online and accept additional donations as supporters buy their tickets.
Pro tip: Use a donation kiosk at your event to raise more money and make giving seamless for your donors.
Encouraging recurring donations during your campaign is a fantastic way to inspire lasting support for your church long after Giving Tuesday ends.
Platforms like Donorbox make collecting recurring gifts effortless. Choose from seven recurring donation intervals and add up to four on your form. Recurring donors can manage their plans at any time via the Donor Portal.
Plus, features like Recurring Donation Upsell and Recurring Donation Boost (available to Pro and Premium users) allow you to gently nudge one-time donors to sign up for monthly giving, and upgrade existing recurring supporters to increase their existing ask amount.
Bonus resource: Learn how to build a sustainable ministry with recurring giving in this blog post.
Your church can use Giving Tuesday as an opportunity to raise more funds for a new initiative or outreach project. #iGiveCatholic is a movement specifically for Catholic churches and nonprofits, but all denominations can fundraise successfully on Giving Tuesday.
With intuitive fundraising tools on hand, you can raise even more this Giving Tuesday. Donorbox MinistryMomentum, for example, offers tools and resources to help churches like yours fundraise and do more good.
Sign up today and launch your first campaign.
For more church fundraising tips, check out the Nonprofit Blog.
Lindsey Bower is a writer, content strategist, and nonprofit consultant. She specializes in helping nonprofits craft compelling messaging for websites, blogs, social media, and email marketing, with a strong focus on SEO and AEO strategy. With a background in fundraising and membership management, she knows firsthand what it's like to juggle priorities and wear many hats in the fast-paced nonprofit world.
Join the fundraising movement! Join the fundraising movement!
