Champion Cheat Sheet

Post regularly on all social media channels, leading up to Giving Tuesday and throughout the day on Nov. 28. Get creative, or use some of our ready-made posts and photos!
Send personal dm’s, texts or emails to fellow students, professors, alumni, friends and family.
Include your [Personal Champion URL] in all correspondence, and instruct people to select you as a champion on the giving form (there will be a drop down menu of all champions on the form). The only way for donations to count towards the Alumni Council Challenge is for people to select you as their champion on the giving form.
Invite your family and friends to join the SMCM Giving Tuesday 2023 event on Facebook: https://fb.me/e/3WDek4LoZ
Change your link in bio to your [Personal Champion URL] along with instructions for selecting you as a champion.
Use the official hashtags, especially #SMCMgives. The College will reshare posts with #SMCMgives throughout the day.
Check out examples of past champion success stories.

One Week Out: Introduce yourself as a champion. Describe what you are fundraising for and why it’s important to you. Remind everyone to mark Nov. 28 on their calendar! Share one of our pre-made “Save-the-Date” graphics.
Weekend Before: Copy and paste one of our ready-made posts (the Thanksgiving themed one is our personal favorite!)
One Day Out: Remind everyone that Giving Tuesday is tomorrow! Share your personal champion URL and give instructions for selecting you as a champion on the giving form. State why this fund/club/sport matters to you and how the money will help. Don’t forget to change your profile picture and your link in bio!
Day Of Morning: Announce that Giving Tuesday is here! Use a ready-made post, add gifs to your Instagram story, and post a photo on Facebook. Direct people towards your link in bio / share your champion URL. Text your friends and family that it’s time to give!
Day Of Midday: Give everyone a lunchtime update. How many donations do you have so far? How much money have you raised? How many more donors do you need to reach your goal? What merchandise have you earned? Direct people towards the Champion Scoreboard so they can track your progress, and remind them that they can use your “Donate” button to help you reach your goal.
Day Of Afternoon: Tag friends, family, classmates and alumni in your afternoon post and ask them to donate.
Day Of Evening: This is the last call for people to support your fund! Share how many more donors you need.
Next Day: Thank your donors for their generosity. Share the final stats (how much money you raised, how many donors you got, what merchandise you won).

Sample email:

Hi [mom/dad/friend/professor/etc],

I’m participating in the St. Mary’s College of Maryland Alumni Council Challenge to raise money for [fund/club/sport] on Giving Tuesday. Would you consider donating to SMCM on Nov. 28 to support [fund]? By using this unique URL and selecting me as your Champion on the drop down menu, your donation of $10 or more will automatically go towards my fund/club/sport. [Personal Champion URL]

Thank you for your support. I hope you will BeCounted on November 28!

[Your Name]

Sample Instagram Post:

To encourage more student involvement, the Alumni Council rallied together to donate over $20,000 to award the student clubs and teams that create the best videos highlighting one of the pillars of the College’s new brand story.

Here is how you can BeCounted and help our (team/club) win!

Make a gift through the Giving Tuesday donation form (minimum $10 to vote) and you will be taken to a list of participating student organizations.
Select your choice carefully as you only get ONE VOTE.
You did it! Once your gift is processed, your vote will be counted.

#smcmgives