5 Tips for Donors on ROC the Day - November 28, 2023
(Originally published in 2022 and updated for 2023)
In the Rochester and Finger Lakes area, we celebrate Giving Tuesday with a “24-hour, online giving extravaganza” called ROC the Day and powered by United Way of Greater Rochester and the Finger Lakes. This year’s event begins at midnight on November 28th!
The majority of local nonprofits (500+) are registered to receive donations through the ROC the Day secure platform. Just visit roctheday.org and search for your favorite organizations, or browse all organizations by category to find one or many that you would like to support.
You can find the answers to many of your questions as a donor on the ROC the Day website. Here are five of my tips for donors to make the most of this year’s ROC The Day!
Prepare to track your donations.
If you donate to several organizations throughout the year and on ROC the Day, keeping track of your donations will be very helpful when it comes time to file your taxes and make your donation budget for next year. I use a simple spreadsheet with one column of organizations to which I donate, and a column for each year. Many nonprofits follow the best practice of making multiple requests for donations throughout the year, so this spreadsheet let’s me track the donations that I make and see which organizations I’d like to donate to on ROC the Day or through other year-end appeals.
Decide which organizations will receive your support.
You can either search for your favorite organizations on the ROC the Day website, or search by the cause you’d like to support. With over 500+ organizations participating, ROC the Day has the best database of nonprofit organizations in the Rochester and Finger Lakes region. Each organization that registers (for free!) gets a listing with information about their organization, website, and social media handles, and it stays up throughout the year, even after ROC the Day is over.
Check your email and social media feeds.
If you are following your favorite organizations, check your email and social media feeds for updates on their ROC the Day goals. Also don’t forget to follow United Way on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram! There will be two “ROC’n hourly bonuses” on ROC the Day!
• On the odd hours during ROC the Day, one donor will be randomly selected to designate a gift of $500 to a participating organization.
• On the even hours during ROC the Day, the organization with the highest amount of donors between the last two hours will receive $500 from United Way.
Check to see if your favorite organizations are encouraging donors to donate at a certain hour or looking to meet other goals!
Cover the processing fees.
Per the ROC the Day website, registration and participation is free for qualifying organizations. They are only required to cover the standard 4% administration and credit card processing fee, which is similar to what most organizations pay to accept online donations through their own website. If you are able to, I suggest choosing the option to cover the 4% fee in addition to your donation. For a $25 donation, that amount would be $1 - which is about what it costs for you to write a check and buy an envelope and stamp! Online donations reduce the need for staff time dealing with the mail, so it really is a win-win for everyone!
Save your records.
ROC the Day will send you an email confirming your donation has been received, and you will also receive a tax receipt. Don’t forget to enter your donations on your tracking spreadsheet!