Sept. 28, 2016 (COLUMBIA, S.C.): Central Carolina Community Foundation – the Midlands’ expert on philanthropy – has launched nonprofit registration for Midlands Gives, scheduled for Tuesday, May 2, 2017. A number of improvements have been made to the annual 24-hour online giving challenge, including a new online giving platform, CiviCore; an updated set of eligibility requirements for nonprofits; and an earlier registration deadline, to give participating charities more time for fundraising and marketing training in advance of the event. Nonprofits can register for Midlands Gives until December 19, 2016 at www.yourfoundation.org/
Entering its fourth year, Midlands Gives is a 24-hour, local online giving day during which hundreds of nonprofits rally together to raise funds for their causes. Supported by thousands of givers from across the 11 counties served by the Community Foundation – and from across the nation – Midlands Gives has generated more than $3.8 million for local charities since its inception in 2014.
“Midlands Gives continues to showcase the best of our community’s generosity,” says JoAnn Turnquist, President & CEO of Central Carolina Community Foundation. “Each year, as the event grows, hundreds of additional nonprofits are impacted by thousands of donors. “
In May 2016, the third annual Midlands Gives raised more than $1.6 million for 382 local nonprofits via 12,536 donations, despite technical difficulties encountered nationwide by more than 50 giving day organizations using KIMBIA. KIMBIA is an online giving platform specifically designed to facilitate giving day events and donations.
Because the Community Foundation is dedicated to making Midlands Gives 2017 a pleasant, valuable and trouble-free experience for nonprofits and donors, the organization is making some key changes for the fourth annual event.
New Online Giving Platform
After extensive research, the Community Foundation has elected to use a new system, CiviCore, as the online giving platform for Midlands Gives 2017. CiviCore has powered some of the largest giving days in the country for nearly a decade, including Colorado Gives, which raised $28 million in 2015.
“CiviCore quickly emerged as an industry leader during our research,” says Turnquist. “Their platform features innovative and donor-friendly giving tools and, most importantly, incorporates a technical framework that has proven redundancies and backup systems.”
Helping Nonprofits Learn and Succeed
Over the last three years, Midlands Gives has trained hundreds of nonprofit professionals and volunteers, expanding their capacity and helping them to acquire fundraising, branding and outreach skills that extend beyond the giving day. The Community Foundation views this training as a vital part of the Midlands Gives program, each year taking measures to enhance the training sessions offered.
Since a number of nonprofit participants will be returning for a fourth consecutive year, Midlands Gives training will focus on helping charities identify a specific goal for their giving day and then create a plan to reach their goal. A series of eight webinars offered by South Carolina Association of Nonprofit Organizations (SCANPO) will dive deeper into specific giving day strategies related to their goals.
Information Webinar for New Participants, Oct. 12
The Community Foundation will hold an Information Session Webinar on October 12 at 12:00 p.m. for those who are new to Midlands Gives and want an introduction to the event. The webinar will be recorded and made available afterward at www.yourfoundation.org as a resource.
Updated Eligibility Criteria
The Midlands Gives campaign is truly a community effort, requiring a significant investment of time and resources on the part of each participating nonprofit, from social media and email marketing to donor cultivation and fundraising work. In order to increase the likelihood of success for participating nonprofits on giving day, additional eligibility requirements have been set for nonprofits who wish to register. These requirements were determined based on survey data as well as anecdotal evidence from the Community Foundation’s management of the event over the past three years.
In addition to meeting eligibility requirements from 2016, nonprofits must have a minimum of one full year of financial history as a 501c3 nonprofit; they must have at least one social media page; and they must have actively made posts on that social media page in the past 90 days. View the full requirements at www.yourfoundation.org/
What You Can Do to Get Involved
This fall, community members can get involved by encouraging their favorite local nonprofits to register for Midlands Gives. For those with a knack for getting the word out, consider offering your services as a volunteer to a preferred nonprofit, to aid in their social media outreach and fundraising efforts leading up to the May 2, 2017 event.
Become a Corporate Philanthropy Champion
Corporate and community partners can make an enormous impact by making early plans with the Community Foundation to provide matching gifts, bonus pools, prizes and gift amplifiers on Midlands Gives day. These help engage the public and get “everyday philanthropists” fired up about making charitable donations.
For more information about Midlands Gives, nonprofits, partners and community members can visit www.yourfoundation.org, call 803-254-5601 or follow #MidlandsGives on Twitter: @CCCFTweets. Nonprofit organizations can register for Midlands Gives online through December 19, 2016 at www.yourfoundation.org/
About Central Carolina Community Foundation:
Central Carolina Community Foundation – the Midlands’ expert on philanthropy – is a nonprofit organization serving 11 counties in the Midlands by distributing grants and scholarships and linking the resources of donors, nonprofits and area leaders to communities in need. Major initiatives include the Midlands Gives 24-hour giving challenge, Connected Communities grants, the One SC Fund, the Best of Philanthropy Awards, annual scholarships and more. For more information about the Community Foundation, visitwww.yourfoundation.org or call 803.254.5601.
