There are plenty of matching gift opportunities that are overlooked because your donors are simply unaware of their employer’s corporate matching gift programs. This is why your online matching gift marketing strategy is so crucial to your fundraising success.
In order to help your supporters submit matching gift requests to their employers, you’ll need to make sure they have access to the right resources.
Luckily for you, we’ve navigated through a few tips to revamp your online strategy so no donor misses the chance to double their donation. You’ll need to take a look at the following avenues of communication to take your matching gift strategy to the next level:
- Promote matching gifts on your online donation pages.
- Mention matching gift programs on confirmation screens.
- Remind your donors about matching gifts in your thank-you emails.
- Create a dedicated matching gift page.
- Post matching gift content on social media.
If you’re ready to revamp your online matching gift strategy to maximize your donations, let’s go ahead and get started!
1. Promote matching gifts on your online donation pages
Marketing matching gift programs on your online donation pages is the most opportune spot to expose supporters to these fundraising opportunities because they’re already engaged and receptive to your nonprofit.
Before your donors have even given to your organization, they can research their employer’s programs, policies, and other information regarding matching gifts through your matching gift tools.
This way, constituents are informed of the potential they have to make a change with your organization when it matters.
Giving your supporters resources about matching gift programs not only encourages them but also walks them through how to complete matching gift requests. When they learn how much they can help further your mission just by submitting paperwork, they’re sure to jump at the opportunity when making a donation.
Your organization will simply need to invest in a matching gift software provider so you can give your donors accessibility to a matching gift database directly on your online donation page.
Every provider is different, but Double the Donation provides your organization with a searchable widget that you can embed on any page. This tool grants your supporters access to a matching gift database so they can learn everything they need to know about the matching gift request submission process, like the following information:
- Submission deadlines
- Matching gift minimums and maximums
- Eligible nonprofit organizations
- Match ratio
- Employee eligibility (full time, part time, retiree)
- Guidelines
In addition, with Double the Donation’s tool, donors can research all this information without ever leaving your donation form so there’s no worry that they’ll lose interest in contributing.
By educating your constituents about matching gift programs, you empower them to make a larger difference without breaking the bank.
The bottom line: Because your supporters are most passionate when giving monetarily through your online donation page, take this opportunity to raise awareness about matching gifts.
2. Mention matching gift programs on confirmation pages
Your confirmation screen is what your donors see right after they contribute a gift to your organization. Mentioning matching gift programs while you still have supporters’ attention is a great space to engage them.
Promoting matching gift programs on confirmation pages encourages supporters to submit their matching gift requests now, instead of weeks or months later.
They’re more likely to take interest in the corporate matching gift programs available to them right after donating to your organization than they are further down the line.
Adding your matching gift widget into your confirmation page keeps these corporate giving programs fresh in your donors’ minds.
The bottom line: Mentioning matching gifts on confirmation screens will keep supporters from forgetting to submit their own matching gift requests all the while educating them on the program.
3. Remind your donors about matching gifts in your thank-you emails
Another timely opportunity to ask your donors to submit their matching gift forms is your acknowledgement email.
After your supporter has contributed to your organization’s latest project or overall mission, you’ll need to send them a thank-you as a gesture of gratitude and start your donor stewardship process.
While expressing your gratitude, you can easily market matching gift programs and ask donors to take a moment to research their employer’s program and make their donation even more valuable! Plus, donors will be open to helping you stretch their dollars further because you’ve shown how much you value their support.
You’ll want to include links in your email’s content to your matching gift database and to instructions on how to begin the matching gift process. These links can take your supporters to your matching gift page (coming up next!), which will host all the information they need to get started.
The bottom line: Donors love to be recognized. When you send your thank-you email to express your appreciation for their latest gift, be sure to include information about matching gifts.
4. Create a dedicated matching gift page
Create a dedicated matching gifts page that acts as a central hub for all of your organization’s information about matching gifts.
Putting all of your organization’s resources on matching gift programs in one place gives your supporters an educational point of reference and allows you to reap all the benefits of matching gift programs.
Matching gift pages are filled with educational and background information about these corporate giving programs, typically including:
- An overview of how matching gifts help an organization
- Statistics on matching gift programs
- A list of companies or database of companies that match gifts to nonprofits.
You’ll also want to spell out tips for donors when submitting their matching gift requests, include links to forms and guidelines for submission, and examples of previous matches to your organization that your supporters have made possible!
You’ll want your matching gift page to be as helpful as possible so try to include as much education content as you can.
In addition, you’ll want to make sure this matching gift page has a link in your nonprofit website’s navigation so it’s accessible to donors from any other page on your site.
The bottom line: Make sure that you’re posting helpful and educational content regarding matching gift programs on your dedicated matching gift program so your donors can easily understand the program and the submission process. The better you phrase it, the faster your donors will know what to do and the more likely they are to submit a request.
5. Post matching gift content on social media
Your online matching gift strategy extends to your nonprofit organization’s social media platforms as well.
Dig into your donor management software and find your supporters’ preferred methods of communication. Plenty of younger donors will list social media platforms as the best point of contact.
We often see nonprofits market matching gift programs through social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and more because it’s an easy to connect with your constituents when you’re on their favorite sites.
Remember that your content won’t be directly transferable from one site to the next. While a text-heavy post explaining how to submit a matching gift request will work well on Facebook, it won’t read well on instagram, which is a visually-based site, so copy and pasting from platform to platform isn’t a good idea. Try a how-to video for Instagram instead!
Using social media to spread the word about your matching gift programs even provides your organization with the opportunity to expand your donor base as well. As your loyal supporters share, retweet, and like your content, their networks can see your posts on their feeds. Make sure your content is attention-grabbing so you can secure new prospective donors.
The bottom line: Social media is the perfect avenue for marketing matching gift programs. Capitalize on its easy sharing capabilities and explain how easy matching gift submissions are.
Bonus! Check out Double the Donation’s Top Donor Management Software Solutions so you can find the perfect provider to help you store your constituents’ preferred methods of communication.
Now that you have our 5 top tips for revamping your online matching gift strategy, there’s nothing holding you back from doubling your contributions. Make sure your donors know about their employer’s corporate matching gift programs and educate them on how to submit their requests. Then all you’ll have to worry about it accepting donations!
About the Guest Blogger
Adam Weinger founded Double the Donation while he was working at a major bank and made donations to his university, the local Big Brothers Big Sisters organization, and LLS.
By the time he realized his company had a matching gift program, it was too late to get many of those donations matched.
Discussions with multiple nonprofits revealed they all viewed matching gifts as bonus money. Double the Donation was started to help organizations proactively grow their matching gift revenue and focus more of their resources on their core mission.