GiveForward

World Give Day (May 4th) is an annual day that encourages the culture of giving.  We at GiveForward were inspired to create World Give Day because we are lucky enough to work in an industry where we see people who give of themselves every day.  The goal of World Give Day is to mobilize world-wide philanthropy in a way that has never been done before.

Though there are already ample ways to participate in World Give Day, we’re launching a new fundraising contest for GiveForward users to satisfy those with competitive tendencies.

During the week leading up to World Give Day, fundraisers can participate in the World Give Day Video Challenge, where users post videos on YouTube explaining their cause.  The fundraiser whose video has the most views will win a $250 contribution from GiveForward. The winning entry also will be featured on GiveForward’s social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc.) and displayed at the very top of our Facebook page for one week.

There are a few rules to be eligible to win the World Give Day Video Challenge:

• Must have a public fundraiser on GiveForward.com
• Must have or create a youtube account to post video
• Video must be 1-3 minutes in length
• Include “WGD Video Challenge” in video title
• All entries must be sent to worldgiveday@gmail.com no later than 2pm Friday April 27th.
• Number of views are not counted if they are not within the contest run time April 27th-May 4th (regardless of when they were initially uploaded)

This is a great opportunity to both promote your fundraiser through video and support World Give Day.  Your video should briefly describe your fundraiser and share your thoughts on giving.  Remember, the video with the most views will win, so get those creative juices flowing to catch everyone’s eye!

To participate, send your Youtube video link, as well as a link to your fundraiser to worldgiveday@gmail.com no later than 2 PM on Friday, April 27th.

We will add your video to the World Give Day Video Challenge playlist, and keep track of the number views.  We will count the views from Friday, April 27th to Friday, May 4th at 2 PM and present the victorious video on World Give Day!

This contest is a great way to integrate video into your fundraiser and cool way to see other fundraisers on the GiveForward website.  So grab your camera, boot up your webcam, and get ready for your close up! Enter GiveForward’s World Give Day Video Challenge!!

Also, be sure to join the World Give Day discussion by visiting our blog series or following @WorldGiveDay on Twitter.  There’s certainly no shortage of ways to contribute to World Give Day, so go forth and smother the universe in acts of giving!

If you have any questions about rules or participation, feel free to contact a World Give Day expert at worldgiveday@gmail.com.

After handing out hundreds of hugs and donating hundreds of dollars, the GiveForward team is ready to declare World Give Day 2011 a resounding success.

We wrapped up our World Give Day fundraising competition at midnight on May 4th, and with so many amazing donors coming out to support their favorite fundraisers, it was a very close race. Take a look at the winner here.

When we were giving donations, we were giving hugs in downtown Chicago.  Need a smile?  Watch the video:

Giving hugs for World Give Day 2011

Give your heart out!  Today marks the second annual World Give Day and everyone here at GiveForward is excited to be celebrating.

While we hand out hugs to random strangers, here are some ways that you can give today as well:

• Donate to a fundraiser. Today is the last day of the World Give Day fundraising competition, if you have a favorite fundraiser, give a little something and see if you can put them in the lead for the $750 prize!
• Donate to a cause being hosted by a World Give Day partner organization.  These groups are all amazing crowdfunding sites that are working to help people in different ways.
• Get in the giving spirit by reading some of the blog series posts and visit our blogger buddies.
• Check into World Give Day on Foursquare!
• And many many many more ways to participate!

What are you doing celebrate??

Today is the day to start promoting your fundraiser to compete in the official 7 Days to World Give Day Fundraising Competition to win an extra $750 for your fundraising efforts.  Unfortunately, the prize won’t come in a cute little stack of money with a bow on it like this visual display.  (In all seriousness, the GiveForward team will donate $750 directly to the winning fundraising page on May 5th when the winner is announced).

Starting April 28th, the fundraisers that raises the most money throughout the course of 7 full days will win an extra $750 for their fundraiser.  Each day we will post the leaderboard here so you can track the standings of the Top Ten fundraisers.  Even if you’re not always at the number one spot… keep promoting your heart out– there may even be a super secret prize to another lucky fundraiser if we’re really letting the spirit of World Give Day get to our heads *wink*

This is the time to gather your friends and tell the masses!  You only have 7 days to win this competition, so don’t waste any time! Promote your page by asking everyone to help be a part of World Give Day 2011 by giving to your fundraiser and in doing so, helping you win $750.  The more money you raise, the better chance you have at being crowned the King (or Queen) of World Give day 2011!

Winner of the World Give Day Competition

The 7 days leading up to World Give Day were exciting ones as each day it seemed a new leader was in the #1 spot every time we checked the leaderboard.  We were happy to see all the generosity and love that poured out i n honor of World Give Day to all of the deserving fundraisers on the site.

GiveForward is very pleased to announce that the winner of the World Give Day fundraising competition is:

Brian Corbett Recovery Fund

April 18th 2011, Brian Corbett from Fort Lauderdale, FL, was injured in a terrible car accident that unfortunately took the lives of two of his friends.  Brian and two others were lucky to survive, but were seriously injured.  At only 18 years old, Brian is fighting for his life as he suffered  neck and spine injuries and now remains in critical care.  The huge network of support that has come together to help the Corbett family is truly inspiring.

This fundraiser was started by Brian’s cousin, Rob who lives in New York.  Starting this GiveForward page was a way for Rob to organize this community of support even though he was so far away.  This solidifies the idea that distance doesn’t mean you can’t show your love and come together to help a family in need. Congratulations; we send our well wishes and LOTS of positive vibes to the entire Corbett family.

Brian’s fundraiser will be awarded an extra $750 to his page in honor of World Give Day.

Though there are already ample ways to participate in World Give Day, we’re launching a new fundraising contest to satisfy those with competitive tendencies. During the week leading up to World Give Day, the fundraiser that raises the most money will win a $750 contribution from GiveForward.

All public fundraisers on our site are eligible to win the World Give Day Challenge. If you’re rooting for a particular project, be sure to give it that extra boost during the seven days between April 28^th and May 4^th to increase its likelihood of winning. This is a great opportunity to both promote your favorite fundraiser and support World Give Day. With arms sore from our free hugs marathon, we’ll present the victorious fundraiser with its laurel wreath and milk jug on May 5^th.

Also, be sure to join the World Give Day discussion by visiting our blog series or following the hashtag #GiveDay on Twitter. There’s certainly no shortage of ways to contribute to World Give Day, so go forth and smother the universe in acts of giving!

If you have any questions about rules or participation, feel free to contact one of our fundraising coaches at info@GiveForward.com.

Check the updates to the leaderboard every day to see who’s in the top ten!

The second annual World Give Day is just two weeks away and everyone here at GiveFoward is getting excited.

World Give Day is one day a year that we encourage people to focus on giving.  Give a donation, give a hug, just give something.  It is our goal to use this day to encourage people to start promoting a culture of giving and plan to incorporate more giving in their every day lives.

If you were involved at all last year you know the day was a big hug-fest (check out our video) and a total blast.  This year we’re taking it a step further (hint it may involve bouncy balls) but we want you to get in on the action too!

So here are a few pointers on how you can get involved:

If you’re…

someone who wants to make the world a better place: fortunately it is pretty easy to get involved with World Give Day.  The important thing is to spread the word and keep the giving spirit alive past May 4th.  Here are a few easy steps:

• Step one: Make time for one act of giving.  Give a donation, give a hug, just give something.

• Step two: Shout it from the rooftops! Tell people about your act of giving and encourage your friends and family to give as well.  Spread the word via social media, send a text message, use the Bat-Signal, whatever it takes, just tell everyone you meet about World Give Day and encourage them to give as well.

*Important note: on Twitter follow hashtag: #giveday for the latest on World Give Day.

• Step three: This one is critical because it keeps the giving going.  Mark one day on your calendar every month to make a day of giving.

• Step four: Rinse, repeat.

a blogger: take part in World Give Day blog series.  Bloggers are participating by writing about giving by responding to the statement “Small scale donors are the backbone of philanthropy”.  We will then share the posts here on the World Give Day Site and start a conversation about giving.

a crowdfunding site: reach out to us at: info@GiveForward.com and we will get you linked on the World Give Day partner page and send you further information about how you can get involved.

a TVstation/newspaper/writer/other media outlet: give us a holler! We love to talk about giving and we’d be happy to talk more about the history of World Give Day and how we are encouraging people to get involved. You can reach us at:Cate@GiveForward.com or 312-957-6113.

Now get out there and start giving!