4 Ways to Make the Most of Employee Giving Programs

Corporate giving programs are a powerful resource in which businesses contribute to the charitable organizations their employees support, either through donations or volunteer hours. 

 

Any nonprofit can benefit from corporate giving. However, many either underestimate these programs or simply don’t know they exist. But through corporate giving, supporters can make the most of their contributions, corporations get a positive public image, and organizations receive the funds to pursue their missions!

Corporate giving programs can take the form of matching gifts, volunteer grants, and others, but here are a few consistent best practices you can use to maximize their impact for your nonprofit.

 

1. Educate your support system.

The biggest reason nonprofits and donors fail to tap into corporate philanthropy is their lack of knowledge about programs like corporate matching gifts. They’re not aware a gap exists, so they don’t know to fill it.

 

In the case of matching gifts, here’s how you can bridge that gap:

 

• Communicate with your donors. Most supporters would love to double their donation without reaching back into their own pockets. Educating them about matching gifts can create a huge jump in revenue.
• Communicate with your team. Arm your staff with the knowledge it takes to successfully market matching gift programs to your donors and volunteers, and you’re sure to see a spike in your fundraising.

Communication gives potential donors the push they need to make their first contribution, so you may secure new donations you wouldn’t have gotten in the first place.

 

2. Incorporate a donor-friendly search tool.

One of the easiest ways to identify opportunities like matching gifts is through matching gift software. It can be difficult for nonprofits to collect corporate giving and donor employment data on their own, so consider investing in a dedicated tool like Double the Donation’s matching gift database. 

 

With a matching gift tool, donors can search for their employer right in the embedded tool before or after making a donation, which streamlines the whole process.

 

Larger nonprofits may benefit from a more advanced matching gift platform, which can offer automated features to make it even easier on your team by:

 

• Tracking each individual’s matching gift status.
• Identifying a donor’s employer through email domains. 
• Contacting eligible donors. 

 

By integrating a matching gifts tool with your donor database, you’ll significantly expand your revenue. To learn more about other online fundraising tools like matching gift tools, visit this guide.

 

3. Explore non-monetary options.

Nonprofits tend to focus their efforts on seeking grants and donations while overlooking other types of contributions. Many businesses offer in-kind support, such as:

 

• Donated goods that help you pursue your mission or host events.
• Free services or expertise to help you tackle areas you have no experience in, such as tax advice, marketing, or web design.
• Volunteers to help free up your team’s time and raise more through individual and team volunteer grants. 

 

In-kind donations are just as valuable as monetary support and help build important lasting partnerships. 

 

4. Build giving campaigns for local businesses. 

If local businesses aren’t already implementing giving campaigns on their own, make it easier for them to run a partner campaign by creating the necessary assets for them. 

 

Here are some examples:

 

• Create the campaign page and use your fundraising software to turn over the page to your corporate partner. 
• Provide your partners with the right resources, like sample social media posts, visuals, and email templates, so they can make the most of their campaign with less effort on their end. 

When you provide your corporate partner with everything they need for a campaign, they’re more likely to launch it. 

 

If you give supporters an opportunity to increase their impact through corporate giving, they’ll likely be excited to participate, and this can potentially double your funds!

 

Written by Adam Weinger, President of Double the Donation

 

Double the Donation is the leading provider of tools to nonprofits to help them raise more money from corporate matching gift and volunteer grant programs. Connect with Adam via email or on LinkedIn.