The OpenWater Blog

It’s #GivingTuesday! Here’s What It Means to Give in the 21st Century

With Thanksgiving and Black Friday behind us, organizations and donors are gearing up for Giving Tuesday – a day dedicated to giving back to the nonprofit community in the spirit of the holidays . Did you know that in 2017, #GivingTuesday hit a record figure of $274 million? Buckle up though, because analysts predict that donations from this year will shatter that record into smithereens — estimating that a grand total of almost $363 million will be raised on Giving Tuesday 2018. That’s an almost 20% bump over 2017’s numbers.

How #GivingTuesday is disrupting Philanthropy

In today’s social media and digital age, the inception of something as simple as a hashtag (#GivingTuesday) goes a long way. Data scientists from Facebook, supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, have found that by creating an opportunity around the time of year where charitable givings are most common, gifting behavior can be shaped in a more positive direction. A closer look at the datasets show that not only did Giving Tuesday increase the actual pot of money by increasing philanthropic giving between late-November to early December, it also has a positive impact on donor behavior; encouraging more donors to become recurring donors, and increasing the sum of their donations almost twofold.

The Radical Idea of Making Philanthropy Easier

The success of Giving Tuesday signals the shift in philanthropic behavior that’s almost radical in its simplicity. By making things easier for donors, people will donate more, and by getting people to talk about their giving behavior, the wider the philanthropic spirit will spread. Just how shopping black friday deals have gotten easier online, by increasing the accessibility to philanthropy, Giving Tuesday has made it easier for people to donate.

The State of the SaaS in Grant Management

If only the same could apply to the other end of the process. Despite the success of #GivingTuesday, plenty of philanthropic organizations still report inefficiencies in their management process. Organizations with major grants to give out often face massive challenges every grants season, due to structrual inefficiencies in the process in which grants are administered. Nonprofits rely on these government agencies and foundations for funding, but an antique and inefficient process prevents them from making the most out of this process. In a shocking report, almost 49% of nonprofits state operating without a strategic plan due to inefficiencies, and on the other end, 85% of funders don’t know where to start when it comes to tracking their outcomes. When time is literally money, these figures simply aren’t good enough.

Using a Grant Management Software can Save your Organization

According to a survey conducted by SoftwareAdvice on the state of the SaaS in Grant Management, the most commonly used grant management software functions as a document management (66 percent), grant proposal creation (61 percent) and grant proposal submission (60 percent). Just by taking the manual load off from grant managers on both the nonprofit/grant-giving organization’s end on these three areas, organizations benefit massively. The same survey shows that by taking on a Grant Management Software, there was a positive impact on the amount of grant funding awarded – which is the “ultimate measuring stick of success with grant activities”.

Philanthropy in the digital age is something that businesses and organizations are still tinkering with, especially as free things are often the last things to become efficient. However, learning from the success of #GivingTuesday and leveling the playing field on charitable givings, efficiency in the nonprofit and grant management process can make a huge difference in the long run.  As the saying goes, You think effectiveness with people and efficiency with things.     

Still not sure if a OpenWater’s Grant Management Software is what you need?? Click here to find out more about OpenWater and our Growthstack.

Already with OpenWater? Have you checked if your organization is OpenWater certified? Hurry! Check out our calendar to find out about upcoming webinars and certification programs.

davidl

A Hard Look At The Numbers: What You Should Know about SaaS in 2019

Here’s Why Students Aren’t Applying to your Scholarships