With hundreds of cause awareness days each year, nonprofits have the opportunity to create mini-campaigns and stories around topics that are not only of interest to their organizations but to prospective donors as well. Knowing when these dates fall can save you time as you plan your content for the year–organic, paid, fundraising and otherwise.

This year, as part of our annual cause awareness days post, we have provided an updated list of dates for 2020 (including monthly and weekly observances) below, and have provided some tips on how you can use these days to your advantage and start planning now for a successful fundraising year ahead.

Step 1: Download and select key dates

We’ve already saved you some time by vetting most of the key cause dates for 2020. Download this handy PDF and place it with your campaign planning documents or stick it on a bulletin board in your office so that you can refer to it often. If you have a digital content creation team, this is a great guide to provide to them even as they are creating organic content each month; some cause dates don’t necessarily warrant a campaign each time, but if there are days that mesh with your cause or mission, it can be fun to talk about them on your social media channels or send out special email campaigns to give your donors a fun piece of information or relevant story.

Step 2: Backdate and plan

Once you have selected the key cause dates, weeks or months that are relevant to your organization, take the opportunity to backdate and sketch out your plan. For example, if you know that you would like to plan a fundraising campaign that coincides with Autism Awareness month in April, then you’ll want to figure out your go-live date(s) and all the key content, design, campaign creation dates leading up to that date. We have provided a high-level example of how to do this further down in the article.

Step 3: Create content and decide on channels

The beauty of planning ahead is that you can create content well before these cause dates happen. Content can be small-form (i.e. social media posts) or long-form (i.e. direct mail letters, emails or blog posts). The channels you choose to use to talk about these dates throughout the year will likely depend on how much emphasis you want to give to each date. If it’s a campaign in full, you’ll want to create multiple pieces of content to hit your donors on all levels. If there are dates that are fun to talk about but that may not always tie directly to a fundraising ask, you can plan content for those closer to the dates themselves.

Step 4: Launch your campaign

Once the planning is done and your content has been created, it’s time to launch. Once you launch your cause day-related campaign, ensure that you have key staff in place to monitor components of the campaign as it’s running. Establish touchpoints and check-ins with you as a way to track the success of content, landing page views, donations made, etc. throughout the length of the campaign.

At a very high level, here are some of the key elements you can prepare for timing-wise as it relates to an Autism Awareness campaign that you want to run in April (per our example above):

February

Establish your game plan and your dollars raised goal (research what other organizations may also be doing; create partnerships if it makes sense to do so)

Mid-February

Collect stories from those families with ASD (autism spectrum disorder)

March

Design digital assets (copy, images, emails) with clear CTAs (calls to action)

Mid-March

Pre-set any pieces of content that can be scheduled; craft thank you messages and follow-ups so they’re ready to go

April

Campaign go-live date

As you are putting your ideas to paper, make sure that you have set up any fundraising landing pages pertinent to the campaign(s) so that your donors have the best experience. Think about how you can utilize particular themes and days to dress up your landing pages. Highlighting key facts, statistics and personal stories is one way to draw your donors in and have them relate to the cause you’re raising funds for. We provide another example of how to set something like this up in our New Year’s Eve blog post. In a similar fashion, we took a key date of the year and applied it to a year-end ask; use this same mindset to plan for cause days this year to keep your fundraising fresh.

Cause days are a great way to talk about your nonprofit’s mission and share your story outside of your typical fundraising methods. The key is to plan ahead and know which days are most relevant to your organization.

How will you use cause days in 2020 to grow your fundraising efforts?

2020 Cause Awareness Day Calendar

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January

Cervical Health Awareness Month
Dry January
National Blood Donor Month
National Glaucoma Awareness Month
Thyroid Awareness Month
National Braille Literacy Month

8-14 – Obesity Awareness Week
11 – National Human Trafficking Awareness Day
16 – National Religious Freedom Day
19 – World Religion Day
20 – Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service
19-31 – Healthy Weight Week

February

American Heart Month
Black History Month
National Cancer Prevention Month
National Children’s Dental Health Month
Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month

2 – World Wetlands Day
4 – World Cancer Day
2-8 – Burn Awareness Week
7 – National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
7 – National Wear Red Day (Women’s Heart Disease Awareness)
8 – World Whale Day
9-15 – National Cardiac Rehabilitation Week
14 – V-Day (Violence Against Women)
14 – National Condom Awareness Day
14 – National Organ Donor Day
17 – Random Acts of Kindness Day
20 – World Day of Social Justice
20 – Love Your Pet Day
22 – World Thinking Day
25 – World Spay Day
27 – World NGO (Non-Governmental Organizations) Day
27 – Digital Learning Day
29 – Rare Disease Day

March

Brain Injury Awareness Month
Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month
Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Month
National Kidney Cancer Awareness Month
National Nutrition Month
National Professional Social Work Month
National Women’s History Month
Red Cross Month

2-8 – National Eating Disorders Awareness Week
3 – World Wildlife Day
8 – International Women’s Day
10 – National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
12 – World Kidney Day
13 – World Sleep Day
13 – K9 Veterans Day
15 – World Consumer Rights Day
16-22 – Brain Awareness Week
20 – National Day of Action Against Bullying and Violence
20 – National Native HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
21 – World Down Syndrome Day
22 – World Water Day
24 – National Agriculture Day
24 – World Tuberculosis Day
28 – Earth Hour
30- April 3 – National Youth Violence Prevention Week

April

Alcohol Awareness Month
Autism Awareness Month
National Child Abuse Prevention Month
National Counseling Awareness Month
National Humor Month
National Minority Health Awareness Month
National Sexual Assault Awareness & Prevention Month
National Youth Sports Safety Month
Parkinson’s Awareness Month
Stress Awareness Month
Testicular Cancer Awareness Month

1 – National Day of Hope
2 – World Autism Awareness Day
2 – International Children’s Book Day
7 – World Health Day
10-16 – Parkinson’s Awareness Week
11 – World Parkinson’s Day
12 – Easter Sunday
14 – National Dolphin Day
19-25 – National Volunteer Week
19-25 – National Library Week
20 – Volunteer Recognition Day
22 – Earth Day
23 – Take Your Daughters and Sons to Work Day
20-24 – National Environmental Education Week
25 – Malaria Awareness Day
24 – Arbor Day
30 – Adopt a Shelter Pet Day

May

ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) Awareness Month
Asian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month
Better Hearing and Speech Month
Clean Air Month
Foster Care Month
Hepatitis Awareness Month
Lupus Awareness Month
National Arthritis Month
National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month
National Brain Tumor Awareness Month
National Celiac Disease Awareness Month
National Physical Fitness and Sports Month
Mental Health Awareness Month
National High Blood Pressure Education Month
National Skin Cancer Awareness Month
National Stroke Awareness Month
National Teen Pregnancy Prevention Month

3-9 – Be Kind to Animals Week
5 – National Teacher Day
6-12 – National Nurses Week
8 – World Red Cross Day
10-16 – National Hospital Week
9 – World Fair Trade Day
9 – World Migratory Bird Day
10 – World Lupus Day
10 – Mother’s Day
10-16 – Women’s Health Week
11-17 – National Bike to Work Week
12 – International Nurses Day
12 – Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Awareness Day
17 – International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia
15 – Bike to Work Day
16 – Armed Forces Day
18 – International Museum Day
18 – HIV Vaccine Awareness Day
19 – World IBD Day (Chrons and Colitis Day)
20 – National Rescue Dog Day
21 – World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue & Development
25 – Memorial Day
27 – National Senior Health and Fitness Day
30- World Multiple Sclerosis Day
31 – World No Tobacco Day

June

Cataract Awareness Month
National Great Outdoors Month
National LGBTQ Pride Month
National Migraine & Headache Awareness Month
National Safety Month
Men’s Health Education and Awareness Month
Professional Wellness Month

5 – World Environment Day
7 – National Cancer Survivors Day
8 – World Oceans Day
10-16 – National Men’s Health Week
11 – Family Health and Fitness Day
14 – World Blood Donor Day
19 – World Sickle Cell Day
20 – World Refugee Day
21 – Father’s Day
27 – National HIV Testing Day
27 – PTSD Awareness Day

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July

Juvenile Arthritis Awareness Month
National HIV Awareness Month
National Parks & Recreation Month

1-7 – Clean Beaches Week
4 – Independence Day
11 – World Population Day
28 – World Hepatitis Day
29 – International Tiger Day
30 – World Day Against Trafficking in Persons
31 – National Mutt Day

August

Children’s Eye Health and Safety Month
National Breastfeeding Month
National Immunization Awareness Month
National Water Quality Month
Psoriasis Awareness Month

1-7 – World Breastfeeding Week
1 – World Lung Cancer Day
4 – National Night Out
8 – International Cat Day
9 – International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples
12 – International Youth Day
12 – World Elephant Day
15 – World Honey Bee Day
19 – World Humanitarian Day
26 – International Dog Day

September

Hunger Awareness Month
Childhood Cancer Awareness Month
Fruits & Veggies – More Matters Month
Baby Safety Month
Gynecological Cancer Awareness Month
Healthy Aging Month
Leukemia Awareness Month
Lymphoma Awareness Month
National Alopecia Areata Awareness Month
National Alcohol & Drug Addiction Recovery Month
National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month
National Cholesterol Education Month
National Infant Mortality Awareness Month
National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month
National Sickle Cell Awareness Month
Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month
World Alzheimer’s Month

5 – International Day of Charity
8 – International Literacy Day
6-12 – National Suicide Prevention Week
10 – World Suicide Prevention Day
13 – National Celiac Awareness Day
21 – World Alzheimer’s Day
21 – International Day of Peace
22 – World Rhino Day
28 – World Rabies Day
29 – World Heart Day
30 – National Women’s Health and Fitness Day

October

Cyber Security Month
Down Syndrome Awareness Month
Energy Awareness Month
Healthy Lungs Month
Learning Disabilities Awareness Month
National ADHD Awareness Month
National Breast Cancer Awareness Month
National Domestic Violence Awareness Month
National Liver Cancer Awareness Month
SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) Awareness Month

4 – World Animal Day
4-10 – Mental Illness Awareness Week
4-10 – National Fire Prevention Week
5 – World Teachers Day
5-9 – Malnutrition Awareness Week
6 – World Cerebral Palsy Day
5 – World Habitat Day
8 – National Depression Screening Day
10 – World Mental Health Day
10 – World Homeless Day
11 – International Day of the Girl
12 – World Arthritis Day
16 – World Food Day
16 – National Mammography Day
17 – International Day for the Eradication of Poverty
18-24 – National Health Education Week
23-31 – Red Ribbon Week
29 – World Psoriasis Day
31 – Halloween

November

Alzheimer’s Awareness Month
American Diabetes Month
Great American Smokeout Month
Lung Cancer Awareness Month
National Epilepsy Awareness Month
National Family Caregivers Month
National Hospice Month
National Native American Heritage Month

8-14 World Kindness Week
13 – World Kindness Day
14 – World Diabetes Day
15 – National Philanthropy Day
15 – America Recycles Day
16-20 – American Education Week
25 – International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women
26 – Thanksgiving

December

National AIDS Awareness Month
National Drunk and Drugged Driving (3D) Prevention Month
National Human Rights Month

1 – World AIDS Day
1 – #GivingTuesday
3 – International Day of People with Disabilities
5 – International Volunteer Day
9 – International Anti-Corruption Day
10 – International Human Rights Day
10-18 – Hanukkah
18 – International Migrants Day
25 – Christmas
26-Jan 1 – Kwanza
31- New Year’s Eve

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