GiveMN, a collaborative venture launched in 2009 by the Minnesota Community Foundation and 14 other funders, recently announced that its annual fundraising campaign Give to the Max Day saw record-breaking contributions. The 24-hour online giving event took place on November 15 and received more than $16 million in donations from upward of 53,000 people. This tops the $13.4 million that was raised during last year's philanthropic marathon.

"People across our state know that when we all pitch in, great things happen," said Dana Nelson, executive director of GiveMN. "Give to the Max Day has become a celebration of Minnesota's philanthropic spirit and nonprofits have done an excellent job of embracing the day."

This year, the organization made it even easier to participate, adding mobile and scheduled donations to its online fundraising options. That way, Minnesotans could make contributions no matter where they were via smartphones and tablets, or schedule a payment ahead of time if they were not planning to log on during the 24-hour window.

As foundations tap into emerging digital channels to raise funds online, they can benefit from nonprofit fundraising software that tracks incoming donations and quantitatively measures the success of their efforts.