Turning Alabama’s Biggest Rivalry Into $639K for Foster Kids on GivingTuesday
When ABCH expanded foster care services into Tuscaloosa and Auburn, the state's biggest rivalry became the backdrop for one of their most ambitious GivingTuesday campaigns yet.
I developed the messaging framework and digital strategy, collaborating with the fundraising team to build the campaign, with execution carried out across the broader marketing team.
Results
$639,844 raised in 24 Hours
28% over goal
$500,000 original goal
Broader Impact
The Giving Tuesday campaign was one part of a larger digital fundraising strategy. Across all digital campaigns in 2023:
36% increase in average digital gift size
$1.3M generated in donations from digital campaigns
17% of total fundraising revenue (all sources)
39% of individual giving was generated through digital fundraising
Strategy
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I crafted the campaign messaging around two things our donors cared about: foster kids and Alabama's biggest football rivalry.
Alabama and Auburn fans were pitted against each other in a friendly head-to-head fundraising challenge, with foster kids as the real winners.
I wrote campaign copy across social media, emails, and the landing page to house the rivalry challenge, capture donations, and display real-time progress to keep the competition alive throughout the day.
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I partnered with the fundraising team early on to craft messaging that secured a total of $250,000 in matching gifts.
On Giving Tuesday, that match became the campaign's urgency engine, giving donors a concrete reason to give now rather than later.
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I helped build a peer-to-peer fundraising program from the ground up, developing toolkits and training materials for board members, staff, volunteers, key donors, and foster parents to mobilize their personal networks and extend the campaign's reach beyond ABCH's own audience.
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The campaign didn't start on Giving Tuesday. I crafted multi-channel communications deployed throughout November across social, email, and website pop-ups to build awareness, stoke the rivalry, and prime donors to give when the day arrived.
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Segmented nurture campaign strategies were developed to guide donors at every stage after Giving Tuesday, moving first-time givers toward long-term support and encouraging existing supporters to deepen their involvement.
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