How charities can make the most of online awareness days

Everyone looks forward to special days in the calendar. Online awareness days are opportunities for charities to inspire their audiences and be seen on social media. Building momentum to the day can be important for fundraisers and charities since online awareness and charity days can be diarised. Content can be scheduled in advance, so fundraising teams can gear up towards the launch day. Many charities have been hugely successful in organising their own charity awareness days and amplifying their cause across social media and offline - below are a few examples. Did you know that there is also an official awareness day for almost every day of the year, covering many of the issues that are relevant to charities? These can be great to jump on if charities do not have the time, resources and following to launch their own - some tips here from CharityComms. And click here for the full list!   Brew Monday 2019 Enlisting the celebrity support of Dr Alex George (Love Island 2018), Gemma Cairney, Joe Talbot from IDLES and Hussain Manawer, Samaritans encouraged everyone to host their own ‘celebri-teas’ to reach out to people who feel lonely with a friendly cup of tea. Online and campaign donations were accepted. Samaritans also used Twitter to get the word out, sharing photos and videos from across the UK. > See also: Free webinar launched on content planning for charities   Fairtrade Fortnight 2019 Featuring iconic, well-known, fair-trade chocolate products, Fairtrade held a two-week awareness event. Rather than craft an awareness ‘day’, Fairtrade held a series of charity awareness days supporting female cocoa famers. Bake-offs, on-line petitions, Twitter hastags, and films were a few of the unique content pieces of the fundraiser.   Big London Night Walk 2020 The Big Issue has hosted a night walk for several years running, bringing together hundreds of people raising money for Big Issue vendors who want to move away from a life on the streets. The evening walk sheds light on the challenges of homelessness as well as exploring the sites and sights of London without the crowds.   World Suicide Prevention Day 2019 Led by Samarians in the UK, the charity awareness day focuses on campaigning to prevent suicides. To help connect with audiences, the charity uses personalisation to highlight the struggles of suicide. The UK charity coordinates its day with the World Suicide Prevent Day #WSPD. Global organisations like the World Health Organisation work together with Samaritans to highlight the need for all sectors to engage in conversation.   Movember: Men’s Health Awareness Month 2019 Going from clean shaven to full-on beards, the hugely popular Movember has seen men of all ages and creeds united to stop men from dying too young. Awareness month of Movember enlists men to grow their facial hair in competitions online, in the office, and just about any group possible. The charity accepts donations directly or through group fund raises. > See also: Free webinar teaches social media best practices for charities   Red Nose Day 2019 Offices and schools around the UK look forward to the annual fun of Red Nose Day, Comic Relief’s charity awareness day. Comic Relief has engaged with many organisations to wear a red nose in March, in support of alleviating world poverty in the UK and internationally. Like other charity awareness days, Comic Relief accepts donation forms both physical and online – this year, the charity has raised over £63 million for the cause.   NHS Organ Donation Week Last year, the NHS’ Organ Donation week featured an online personalised video of two brothers, one of which received a liver transplant in 2015 – it was viewed over 4 million times. Making use of social media, the NHS has ready-made materials that can be posted on including graphics, posters, email signatures and videos. Content can be easily shared on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Looking forward, this year’s campaign also shows the generosity of donors and the life-changing impact on recipients.