Giving Tuesday has become a phenomenon amid more corporate-centric holidays like Black Friday and Cyber Monday. The Tuesday after Cyber Monday is reserved for a global giving effort that has resulted in the biggest giving day of the year for the past 8 years. This year, before Giving Tuesday starts, I wanted to share a bit of financial advice to help you get the most bang for your buck and make the most impact with your hard-earned dollars.
Vet before you give
Before giving a dime, look to see how a nonprofit stacks up at rating sites such as CharityWatch.org, CharityNavigator.org or the Better Business Bureau’s Wise Giving Alliance. These sites assess criteria such as how transparent a nonprofit is about its finances and how much of its budget goes toward programs.
ImpactMatters, a nonprofit backed by the Gates Foundation, rates nonprofits based on their social impact — how much good a nonprofit achieves per dollar of cost.
Utilize your stimulus money
If you received a stimulus check and are in a place where you could contribute some or all of it, good news! People who donate to charity this year can deduct up to $300 of their donation from their taxable income without itemizing, thanks to new rules created by the CARES Act.
Set a donation cap
Figuring out how much you can comfortably give before Giving Tuesday rolls around will help you set yourself up for success. To get a good benchmark on where to start, Generosity for Life has an online tool that factors in income, geographical area and age to provide a guideline on how much to give relative to your circumstances.
Make a “Giving Priorities” list
You will soon see nonprofits and organizations ramping up their social media marketing for Giving Tuesday. I recommend preparing ahead of time, just like you would do for Black Friday sales. When we shop Black Friday sales, we usually have a list of what and who we’re shopping for so we can take as much advantage as possible of the discounts being given. The same philosophy should apply to your Giving Tuesday contributions. After you’ve set the amount you want to give, it’s time to look at the “where.” Of course, you can give to organizations at any point in the year, but if you’re feeling especially generous on Giving Tuesday, consider dividing up your donations in order of importance to your values. Maybe you really love animals and want to donate the majority of your giving amount to an animal rescue. Or maybe you have a heart for women’s shelters and want to split your giving amount between a few different ones. Just remember, no contribution is too small. Even if you’re only able to give $20 to one organization, you’re making a difference. Just do you research ahead of time so you can truly feel good about where your money is going.
Need some guidance? Here are some of our favorite nonprofits to support:
- The Loveland Foundation
- NAACP Legal Defense + Educational Fund
- Fair Fight
- Equal Justice Initiative
- Friends of Animals
- Prevent Child Abuse America
- American Civil Liberties Union
- National Park Trust
- National Alliance To End Homelessness
- RAINN
- Reach Out And Read
- The Trevor Project
- Planned Parenthood Federation of America
