Get ready for Giving Tuesday.
Method Academy · Training module 01
A four-phase training built from our Giving Tuesday 2026 Preparation Checklist. The whole training is here, ready to read now.
Giving Tuesday is Tuesday, December 1, 2026 · 20 days away
Get the training by email
Six emails between now and early December, one per phase, paced to the calendar. Signing up also subscribes you to the Method newsletter. Unsubscribe anytime, from any email.
The email series
One email per phase, paced to the calendar. Sign up late and you start with the next one: every earlier phase stays on this page.
| Sends | What it covers |
|---|---|
| On signup | Welcome: what is coming, and where the whole training lives |
| Tue, Nov 10 | Phase 1 · Prepare: your goal, your story, your giving page |
| Tue, Nov 17 | Phase 2 · Plan: your calendar, your messages, your people |
| Tue, Nov 24 | Phase 3 · Execute: the save-the-date and the final checks |
| Tue, Dec 1 | The day itself: open early, report progress, close strong |
| Fri, Dec 4 | Phase 4 · Follow-up: thank, report, plan the next ask |
1. Prepare
Now through November 10
Step 1
Set one goal you can say in a sentence
Pick a dollar figure and what it pays for. “Raise $5,000 for a year of after-school tutoring” gives donors something to picture and gives you a number to report back.
Step 2
Write your story once
One page: the need, what you do about it, one person it changed, and what a gift does. Every email and post over the next three weeks draws from it.
Step 3
Test your giving page
Make a small gift from your phone, start to finish. Confirm the receipt arrives and names the right organization. If a fiscal sponsor receives your gifts, check the receipt says so.
Step 4
Ask for a match
Ask a board member or a local business to match gifts made on the day. A match gives donors a reason to give on December 1 and gives you a second announcement.
Step 5
Build one list
Pull every donor, volunteer and supporter email into one list, with the date of each person’s last gift. Clear the duplicates now, not on November 30.
2. Plan
Week of November 17
Step 1
Map every message
Write down each message from now through December 4: the day, the channel and who sends it. For a small team, three emails and a few posts on December 1 is a sound floor.
Step 2
Draft everything before Thanksgiving
Write the save-the-date, the day-of appeals and the thank-you now. On the day itself you should be sending, not writing.
Step 3
Recruit your ambassadors
Ask five to ten supporters to share your page with their own people on the day. Give each of them a ready-to-send message and the link.
Step 4
Assign the day
Decide who watches the total, who posts updates, who thanks donors and who answers questions. Write it down and share it with everyone involved.
3. Execute
Week of November 24 and the day itself
Step 1
Send the save-the-date
Early in the week, tell your list the date, the goal and the match. Keep it short, with one link.
Step 2
Test everything again
Repeat the test gift. Click every link in every scheduled message. Confirm who holds each login.
Step 3
Open the day early
Send the first appeal in the morning, then post. Announce the goal and the match before people start their day.
Step 4
Report progress in public
Share the running total at midday and again in the evening. Visible progress toward a goal is what moves the people who have not given yet.
Step 5
Close with a last call
Send a final, short appeal in the evening that says how close you are.
4. Follow up
December 2 onward
Step 1
Thank every donor within 48 hours
A personal note beats a form letter. For a first-time donor, the thank-you decides whether there is a second gift.
Step 2
Report the result
Tell everyone, donors or not, what you raised and what it will do. Thank the match and the ambassadors by name.
Step 3
Write down what you learned
Note what worked, which message raised the most, and what you would change, while it is fresh.
Step 4
Plan the next ask
Put year-end giving on the calendar. Your Giving Tuesday donors are your warmest list for December 31.
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