Thanksgiving’s just around the corner. So is Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday. But scoring great deals isn’t the only thing happening this week.
Once the shopping frenzy dies down, Giving Tuesday arrives, along with the realization that the money for your favorite nonprofit went towards luxurious bedsheets.
Now, every time you tuck into bed, you feel a tinge of guilt. But it was such a good deal! Maybe I’ll return them? I’m such a bad person!
We’ll take it from here because you’re not a bad person and you deserve those bedsheets. But that’s not all.
You deserve to have a guilt-free Giving Tuesday. And you can have that with Braid Money Pools.
Braid Pools aren’t just a savvy, separate place for the money you’ve earmarked for charity. They also enable you to donate funds directly to your favorite nonprofit.
Keep reading to learn all about Braid, how to set up a Money Pool, and how to give a donation you’re proud of!
How does Giving Tuesday work?
Falling on the first Tuesday after Thanksgiving, Giving Tuesday is relatively new. It first launched in 2012 and since then, Americans have given over $1.9 billion to nonprofit organizations.
Giving Tuesday is a wonderful opportunity to focus attention on those less fortunate than ourselves and to put your money where your mouth is.
But as you probably know, it’s hard to give to charity if you accidentally spend donation money on Amazon.
It’s not because you’re lackadaisical with your funds. Chances are, you’re missing an important tool.
Collect donation money in a free Braid Pool and give big this Giving Tuesday. Click here to get started.
The #1 reason why people miss out on Giving Tuesday
You might think people can’t donate on Giving Tuesday because it’s preceded by a 4-day spending spree. Or, because they have many other financial obligations. But there’s more to it than that.
People often miss out on Giving Tuesday because the money they intend to donate is mixed with rent money, grocery money, shopping money, etc.
In reality, the problem isn’t a lack of funds. It’s that donation money mixes with the wrong crowd.
Keep your spending money and donation money separate with Braid. That way, you can spend guilt-free and give a donation you’re proud of on Giving Tuesday.
What is a Braid Money Pool?
A Braid Pool is a smart new way to manage money. For starters, it’s a dedicated, separate place for your donation dollars. You never have to worry about accidentally spending it.
Braid is designed to be collaborative so you can manage funds with anyone you want. You can also invite people to get generous and pitch into your pool, too.
The best part? When Giving Tuesday arrives, you can donate to your favorite nonprofit directly from the pool. There’s no need to transfer pool funds to your bank account first.
How does Braid work?
Ready to participate in Giving Tuesday the Braid way? Follow these four quick steps to start your own Money Pool.
1. Set up a free Money Pool
Once you download Braid, start your free pool for Giving Tuesday. Keep it simple and call it “Giving Tuesday” or name it after the nonprofit you are supporting, like "The Humane Society", “The Boys and Girls Club of America”, etc.
To use money on Braid, we verify your identity in a few quick steps. Braid doesn’t check your credit or report anything to the credit bureaus. Once we verify your identity, you’re free as a bird to use Braid.
2. Customize and share the Pool Link
Every Braid Pool comes with a Pool Link. Share this link with anyone so they can contribute to the pool with you.
For example, if you and your partner want to team up on Giving Tuesday, they can add money to the pool. (The next section explores five ways to collect money from friends, family, or coworkers to make a bigger impact so keep reading!)
Customizing your Pool Link is fun. You get to choose a color theme, add a photo, and write a brief description so people know exactly what their donation is for.
To make your pool more personal, tweak the Pool Link so it makes sense to everyone who receives it. For example, your link can look something like braid.co/p/Giving-Tuesday or braid.co/p/Alzheimer-Foundation-Donations, etc.
There are over 125k Braid Pools. Start your Giving Tuesday pool today!
3. Add money to the pool by bank transfer, debit card, or credit card
Adding money to your pool is a piece of cake. Do it via bank transfer or debit card for free. Or, add money by credit card for a 3% fee.
Once you collect funds into your pool, they stay there as long as you need them to. Your pool is Home Sweet Home for your donation dollars.
You’ll like this feature because it means you never accidentally spend Giving Tuesday money on a single Black Friday sale.
4. Donate to your favorite nonprofit with the free Braid debit card
When the shopping frenzy is over, feel proud of yourself. You didn’t spend a single penny of your donation money. It’s safely waiting in your Money Pool and now you get to put it to good use.
Braid makes it easy.
You don’t have to transfer funds to your bank account to donate them. You can contribute to your favorite nonprofit directly from the pool with the free Braid debit card that comes with it.
The Braid card works everywhere Mastercard is accepted. There are no transaction fees, monthly fees, or overdraft fees. This means you can donate 100% of the pool funds to your charity of choice.
If you need a physical debit card, you can order one from Braid at no extra charge.
5 Giving Tuesday ideas that make a big impact
Using Braid as a haven for your donation money is only one smart way to use Braid for Giving Tuesday.
You can also use Braid Pools to mobilize family, friends, or coworkers to get generous, too. Here are five inspiring Giving Tuesday ideas to consider.
1. Share your Pool Link with coworkers
Which charity is near and dear to your colleagues’ hearts? Together, you can pool money with Braid.
This way, everyone can easily donate for free (if they contribute with debit cards) or for a 3% fee (if they contribute with credit cards).
The best part? You can collect money from your colleagues whether they work at the brick-and-mortar office with you or on the other side of the country.
Simply share your Pool Link via email, text message, message board, or social media, and start collecting funds.
Everyone can donate to your Money Pool without downloading Braid. They just need to click your Pool Link and pay into the pool. The same goes for the next four ideas!
2. Give as a family
Giving as a family is a wonderful way to bring people together and focus on what matters most.
- Did one of your siblings serve in the military? Start a Money Pool to collect donations for service members.
- Are your pets part of the family? Your pool can support a local animal shelter.
- Have you lost an elderly relative? Share your Pool Link so everyone can donate to hospice.
Click here to learn how you can use Braid this Giving Tuesday.
3. Raise funds with fitness studio members
If you exercise regularly, you know that a good workout gives you a kick of dopamine, making you feel happy and rewarded.
But did you know that giving has the same effect?
Do everyone a favor and share your Pool Link. The easiest way to do that is by leaving a visible, well-placed QR code at the studio or gym. People can donate in less than five minutes right from their phones.
You’ll be helping those in need and giving your workout buddies a double dose of dopamine.
4. Collect donations at school
Don’t wait until after graduation to make an impact in the world. Invite classmates to participate in Giving Tuesday this semester instead.
If you’re an English major, you might inspire classmates to donate to a nonprofit that promotes literacy. As a law student, you might garner collections for the Legal Aid Society so underserved people can obtain legal representation.
As a budding veterinarian, you can’t stomach animal cruelty. That’s why you invite your class to donate to The Humane Society with you.
5. Channel your passion into giving
If donating is new to you, where should you start? What should you donate to?
If it’s hard to choose, try the following tip. It might seem strange, but you’d be surprised how effective it is at helping people pinpoint the right nonprofit.
Start by answering these questions:
- What bothers me? What upsets me?
- What makes me say “That’s so unfair”, “That’s not right” or “Who does stuff like that?”
Your answers will show you an injustice that bothers you. And when you donate to nonprofits that work to right this wrong and uplift people (or animals), you’re actively helping to make the world a better place.
