9 Easy Online Fundraising Strategies for Doctor’s Day

BY PAUL ST. ONGE & KEISHA HARTMAN, Doing Good Digital

National Doctor’s Day is March 30, a designated date each year to honor the service of physicians and build a culture of gratitude for your healthcare organization. It also offers an opportunity to grow your grateful patient program.

Although your Doctor’s Day campaign should be matched to your resources, these simple Doing Good Digital tactics can help you build a more successful appeal of any size or scope. Ready to raise awareness (and more donations)? Let’s get started!

1. Create a campaign with three goals.

Don’t get caught up in single-day donations. Your goals related to Doctor’s Day include donations, yes, but also donor acquisition, and stewardship. If your online engagement includes any of these three, you’ll be serving your fundraising goals over the course of a year.

2. Be aggressive only if it works with your calendar.

What’s the status of your larger campaigns? If spring is light on outreach, you can be a bit more persistent in your email cadence in the lead-up to Doctor’s Day:

• 3-4 “warm-up” emails: Scheduled in the weeks before Doctor’s Day
• 1 day-of email: Delivered on Doctor’s Day
• 2 follow-up email: Sent after Doctor’s Day

3. Follow the marketing Rule of 7.

“Warm-up” content keeps Doctor’s Day front of mind, a useful tactic since most people are inspired to take action only after being reminded seven times. Effective nudges:

• Web content (landing pages, blog posts)
• Press releases about events
• Social media posts

4. Try a “light” ask.

If your broader campaigns are in high gear, dial back your Doctor’s Day promotion and solicitation to focus more on stewardship. Or simply segment for a smaller target list.

5. Experiment with segmenting.

Connect with current and prospective donors by reaching them with a personalized, relevant message. Use Doctor’s Day as segmenting practice for your larger appeals. Try these segments:

• Patients (acquisition)

• Current donors

• Midlevel or major donors

• Lapsed donors

6. Don’t ask on Doctor’s Day. Offer a gift instead

Doctor’s Day presents a wonderful opportunity to give back. Build rapport by sharing inspiring or instructive content related to your mission. Bonus: Gate the content to be unlocked with a clearly stated opt-in. That contact info is valuable prospect data. Compelling downloadables:

• Healthy printable recipes

• Calendar

• Condition-specific eBook

• Exercise tips

7. Give your online form a makeover.

Make your donation form smartphone friendly: 28% of online contributions are made on a mobile device. Create strong visual elements, including your logo, and write a motivating headline that echoes the language used in your “warm-up” content. Finally, include the suggested gift amount on the form, perhaps offering a custom form for midlevel and major donors with a starting range around $500.

8. Test. Then test again.

Since Doctor’s Day likely is not your primary campaign, it could be the perfect focused appeal to test your designs, play with video, switch up your subject lines, and experiment with social media tactics. If a conversion effort falls flat, move on quickly to test the next.

9. Go big on social media: #doctorsday!

The more ways to give the better. That includes connecting with your audience on social media. Try these fun and effective tactics: celebrity ambassadors, donate buttons, and IG takeovers.

Check out our Healthcare Webinar series, hosted by Doing Good Digital and Blackbaud.

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