GivingTuesday is over, but year-end isn't

Giving Tuesday is behind us, but your year-end campaign is just getting started. The next three weeks are critical: sustaining momentum, keeping new donors engaged, and converting that GivingTuesday energy into a successful year-end push.

This week, we're sharing strategies to carry you through December 31st, from co-targeting your direct mail and digital ads to testing new channels like native advertising. We'll also share how to mine your GivingTuesday data for insights about which donors want a deeper connection with your mission, setting you up for stronger relationships in 2026.

The take-home template

Need year-end ads but short on design time? We've created free Canva templates organized by nonprofit vertical—conservation, museums, orchestras, theaters, and more. Each template is ready to customize with your logo, images, and messaging in minutes, plus it includes design best practices for visual hierarchy, legibility, and CTAs that convert.

Snackable snippets

A sleeper channel for growth 📖

Native ads are the third-largest digital channel behind Facebook and Google, but most nonprofits aren't using them. Tobes Kelly recommends to start testing with $10,000 once paid social and search are running consistently, and focus on bold creative with clean post-click experiences.

The simple step your channels will thank you for 📖

Co-targeting sends direct mail and digital ads to the same donors simultaneously. The strategy is simple—mail drops on the 15th, while display and Facebook ads run two weeks before and after. Co-targeted audiences consistently outperform mail-only groups, especially during year-end and urgent campaigns when donors are already in a giving mindset.

One of the biggest fundraising days of the year 📖

Last year's GivingTuesday raised $3.6 billion. This year, nonprofits face mixed conditions: new tax deductions are encouraging more households to give, while a strong stock market is boosting major donors, but also increasing service demand amid government funding cuts. Many organizations are using matching programs to multiply donations on this high-stakes fundraising day.

For your inspiration folder

Global Fund for Women didn’t wait for December 2nd to ask. They promoted their $50K matching campaign early, telling donors the match is already active and ready to double their impact. By asking ahead of GivingTuesday instead of on the day itself, they're building momentum before inboxes get slammed and giving supporters time to plan their gifts rather than competing with hundreds of other last-minute appeals.