Examples & Insights from the Workplace Giving Idea Exchange
Double the Donation recently facilitated the third annual Workplace Giving Idea Exchange. This was an opportunity for nonprofits, schools, and other fundraising groups to share their best matching gift, volunteering, and payroll giving materials and be inspired by their peers’ ideas.
Why?
Workplace giving is a powerful tool for fundraising organizations, allowing them to maximize donations and engage supporters more deeply. However, few organizations are truly maximizing their potential, and a lack of promotion is a leading reason why.
Over the past three years, more than 100 nonprofits and schools provided their best matching gift-enabled giving forms, email promotions, social media graphics, and more. In this blog post, we’ll walk through some of the most inspiring examples.
We’ve grouped submissions according to the following categories:
Let’s explore them below! As you browse, be sure to keep in mind which elements can translate to your own team’s strategy.
Note: Many organizations use Double the Donation’s tools to streamline their efforts and enhance their workplace giving promotions. Not a client yet? No worries! Click here to get started.
Website Presence
Your website is the digital front door of your organization. By integrating matching gift tools directly into your navigation, donation flows, and dedicated landing pages, you ensure that the opportunity to double a donation is visible at every stage of the supporter’s online journey.
Matching Gift Landing Page – Humane World for Animals
The Humane World for Animals matching gift page promotes corporate matching with a clear, impactful message: “Match your gift, double your impact.” The page includes a search tool for donors to easily check if their employer offers matching gifts, highlighting the potential for them to increase the value of their contribution. The resource also addresses common FAQs about matching gifts, which is a great way to further educate and guide donors.
Key takeaway: A dedicated matching gifts page can serve as an educational hub for donors, providing all the information they need to take advantage of matching gift opportunities.
‘Ways to Give’ Page – Bradley University
Bradley University’s “Ways to Give” page effectively highlights matching gifts as one of the primary ways to contribute, making it easy for donors to learn about the program and take action. The page provides detailed instructions, including a call to action for checking matching gift eligibility with a simple search tool.
Key takeaway: Including matching gifts as one of the top giving options on your “Ways to Give” page ensures that donors are aware of the opportunity from the beginning. It’s important to provide clear, actionable steps so that donors can quickly determine if their gifts can be matched, making the donation process even more rewarding.
Workplace Giving Page – Sound Generations
Sound Generations’ workplace giving page takes a proactive approach by educating potential donors about matching gifts and providing a direct link to check if their employer offers a matching program. The page also encourages donors to reach out if their company is not listed, ensuring that the organization can continuously expand its pool of corporate partners.
Key takeaway: A dedicated workplace giving page is an excellent way to streamline the matching gift process and get donors involved in other workplace giving programs. Providing clear instructions and encouraging donors to inquire about unlisted companies fosters a sense of involvement and increases the likelihood that donors will pursue matching gifts and beyond.
Donation Form – La Salle University
This donation form from La Salle University does an excellent job of incorporating matching gift information directly on the donation page. It includes a checkbox asking donors if their employer will match their donation, and provides an embedded search tool for them to easily find out if their employer participates in matching gift programs. By including this feature at the point of donation, the university encourages donors to check for matching gifts before they finalize their contributions.
Key takeaway: Including a matching gift checkbox directly on your donation form increases the chances of donors taking the necessary steps to secure a match. Make it easy for donors to check their eligibility in real-time during the donation process, ensuring that matching gift opportunities aren’t overlooked.
Confirmation Screen – Blue Faery
After a donation is made, Blue Faery uses its confirmation screen to prompt donors to check if their employer offers matching gifts. The inclusion of a search tool right on the confirmation page makes it easy for donors to immediately follow up and maximize their contribution.
Key takeaway: By capitalizing on the moment when a donor is most engaged and the donation is fresh in their mind, you provide an easy next step for them on your confirmation screen. Incorporating a matching gift search tool on the page further simplifies the process, encouraging immediate action.
Blog Post – Lehigh University
This testimonial blog post from Lehigh University does an excellent job of weaving personal stories into the promotion of matching gifts. By sharing a success story of donors who have used matching gifts to amplify their contributions, the post provides social proof of how impactful matching gifts can be. This method personalizes the experience, showing potential donors the real-world impact of participating in these programs.
Key takeaway: Using testimonials in blog posts is a powerful way to humanize the matching gift process and demonstrate its tangible benefits. When donors see how others have successfully used matching gifts to maximize their impact, they are more likely to be inspired to take action themselves.
Navigation Menu – Resolve
In this example, the matching gift option is prominently featured in Resolve’s navigation menu. By adding “Employee Matching Gifts” as a visible and easy-to-access option, the organization ensures that visitors can quickly find information about matching gift opportunities. This method of placement increases visibility and encourages visitors to explore the matching gift process at any point during their visit to the site.
Key takeaway: Incorporating matching gifts directly into the website’s main navigation menu ensures that it is always visible and easy for visitors to find. This subtle but effective placement increases awareness and encourages potential donors to take action without needing to search for information.
Matching Gift Event Landing Page – Hirshberg Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer Research
To ensure that eligible event donations are successfully matched, the Hirshberg Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer Research implemented a Matching Gifts page on its peer-to-peer fundraising microsite, complete with a matching gift search tool and an overview of the programs. To mitigate any confusion, the fundraising team even provides the correct name and tax ID number that an individual should use when submitting their matching gift requests.
Key Takeaway: Be sure to mention matching gifts with a dedicated callout on your event or campaign pages. Even better? Establish a separate matching gifts page on your event site to ensure your audience is exposed to the idea and provided with the necessary information to get started.
Digital Outreach
Meeting donors where they spend their time (in their inboxes and on their mobile devices) is the key to high conversion rates. These examples highlight how personalized follow-up emails, newsletters, and SMS campaigns can provide timely reminders that turn a standard gift into a matched one.
Donation Follow-Up Email – Food For The Poor
This dedicated matching gift email from Food For The Poor is personalized and immediately relevant, reminding the donor that their employer may match their gift. The email includes simple instructions to start the matching gift process and provides a link to make it easy for donors to take the next step.
Key takeaway: Follow-up emails are crucial for ensuring donors don’t forget about matching gifts. Sending a personalized and timely reminder, right after a donation is made, can significantly increase the likelihood that donors will follow through with submitting their matching gift requests.
Digital Newsletter – Food Finders
The newsletter from Food Finders effectively promotes matching gifts by providing clear information about the program, including a direct link to check eligibility. It encourages donors to double their impact by reminding them of the power of matching gifts, using a friendly tone, and offering a straightforward call to action.
Key takeaway: Incorporating matching gift information into newsletters can be a powerful tool. By keeping the message short, clear, and actionable, nonprofits ensure donors are reminded about the availability of matching gifts. This can be easily replicated by adding a dedicated section in your next newsletter with a link to your matching gift search tool.
Volunteer Newsletter – FIRST
In their January “Volunteer Month” edition, FIRST utilizes its quarterly newsletter to celebrate the deep impact of its supporters while introducing ways to extend that impact in the new year. By framing workplace giving as a way to go above and beyond, the organization seamlessly blends a thank-you message with a call to action. The newsletter highlights that employer programs can double both financial donations and volunteer time, providing multiple pathways for supporters to increase their value to the mission.
Key Takeaway: Seasonal or milestone-based newsletters (like Volunteer Month) are ideal for introducing workplace giving. Doing so presents your organization as a sophisticated partner in the donor’s philanthropy, while the focus on extending impact makes the request feel like a natural extension of the volunteer’s existing commitment.
Email Signature – Pocock Foundation
By incorporating a matching gift reminder in an email signature, George Pocock Rowing Foundation ensures that the message is consistently communicated across all email interactions. The information is clear, and the P.S. provides an additional nudge, encouraging donors to take advantage of matching gift programs.
Key takeaway: Including matching gift details in email signatures is a low-effort but highly effective strategy. Whether in specific donor communications, thank-you emails, or routine outreach, this simple addition can increase awareness and encourage more donors to inquire about matching gifts.
Matching Gift SMS Reminders – Save the Children
According to Nonprofit Source, mobile donations have increased by more than 205% in the past year, and 51% of nonprofit website traffic originates from mobile devices. This text message campaign from Save the Children demonstrates the ease with which a matching gift can be requested right from a donor’s mobile device. An individual receives one or both of the texts below and can initiate their match without hesitation simply by clicking the provided link.
Talk about frictionless giving experiences!
Key Takeaway: Implement a multi-channel engagement approach by incorporating SMS into your outreach strategy, alongside standard follow-up emails and other methods. Double the Donation currently offers automated SMS messaging for its Enterprise-level users. Interested? Learn more about upgrading your account here.
Social Content
Social media is a powerful tool for storytelling and awareness-building. By sharing donor spotlights or using eye-catching graphics on your social feeds, you can educate your broader community and provide the social proof that inspires others to get involved.
Matching Gift Post – Gateway Foundation
This social media post from the Gateway Foundation grabs attention with an impactful visual and a clear call to action. It effectively communicates the potential to “multiply your impact” through matching gifts, urging followers to check if their employer participates in such a program.
Key takeaway: Social media is a great platform to reach a wide audience and raise awareness about matching gift opportunities. Including statistics (e.g., “26 million people work for companies with matching gift programs”) makes the message even more compelling.
Corporate Volunteering Social Post – BEDS Plus
This LinkedIn post from BEDS Plus Inc. targets a specific subset of supporters: volunteers. It uses an informative infographic to explain how time can be converted into funds through corporate volunteer grants and volunteer time off. By highlighting that many companies match hours with donations, the post encourages supporters to “help twice as much” without needing to open their own wallets.
Key Takeaway: Don’t limit your workplace giving promotions to financial donations. Promoting volunteer grants is a fantastic way to engage your most active supporters and unlock additional hidden dollars for your mission. Using simple, side-by-side visuals to explain different types of support helps demystify the process for the average supporter.
Payroll Giving Social Post – San Francisco SPCA
The San Francisco SPCA leveraged the “New Year, New Resolutions” season to promote automatic payroll deductions. By framing workplace giving as a simple, life-saving resolution, the post connects a donor’s routine financial habits (every pay period) to long-term impact for shelter animals. Plus, it uses a high-emotion visual and a timely seasonal hook to drive traffic to their eligibility search tool.
Key Takeaway: Timing is everything. Aligning workplace giving asks with cultural moments, such as New Year’s, makes the call to action feel relevant and urgent. Promoting payroll deductions is a smart move for recurring revenue, as it encourages a “set it and forget it” mentality that provides consistent, life-changing support.
DAF + Matching Gift Social Post – Soymas Foundation
The Soymás Foundation takes a sophisticated approach by positioning corporate matching alongside Donor-Advised Funds. This post speaks to smart giving and strategy, encouraging donors to consult with financial or wealth advisors to maximize their impact. The professional, clean aesthetic reinforces the message that matching gifts are a key part of a well-rounded philanthropic strategy.
Key Takeaway: Elevate the conversation around corporate matching by grouping it with other high-impact giving vehicles like DAFs. This appeals to major donors and those looking for a “smarter” way to give. Reminding donors that these tools “multiply generosity” frames workplace giving as a strategic win-win for both the donor and the organization.
Matching Gift Video – Oklahoma City Museum of Art
The OKCMOA, or the Oklahoma City Museum of Art, created a one-minute informational video that was then embedded directly on its matching gifts page. This resource provides a quick overview of the matching gift opportunity, its benefits to nonprofits, and how donors can determine their eligibility and next steps using Double the Donation’s matching gift database.
Key Takeaway: Take a multimedia approach to your organization’s dedicated matching gifts page. We recommend incorporating a combination of text, video, and graphic elements to best grasp and retain your audience’s attention while they learn about matching gifts on your site. Double the Donation clients can even access a free, pre-made matching gift video (plus a ton of other graphics and materials) or request a custom-branded version for a fee within the platform.
Physical Assets
In an increasingly digital world, tangible touchpoints can cut through the noise. From high-impact direct mail and magazine ads to “thank you” postcards that close the loop, these physical materials provide a professional and memorable way to keep matching gifts top of mind.
Matching Gift Mailer – Randolph College
This direct mail piece from Randolph College uses a fun and engaging theme (“Score More with Matching Gifts”) and highlights the value of matching gifts with an attractive visual. It also directly informs donors that their employer may match their gift, encouraging them to look for more details in an enclosed informational sheet.
Key takeaway: Direct mail can be an effective way to promote matching gifts and break through the digital clutter, especially when it’s engaging and easy to understand. Using a clear and simple message along with matching gift forms or an information sheet ensures that donors can take immediate action when they receive your mailing.
Donation Thank-You Slip – Institute for Justice
The Institute for Justice promotes matching gifts through a dedicated “buckslip” (or a small, impactful printed insert) included in every donor thank-you letter. This touchpoint serves as a secondary call to action while the donor is still feeling the positive reinforcement of their initial gift. The design features a scannable QR code and a direct URL, bridging the gap between a physical mailer and the organization’s digital resources.
The results? This simple addition led to an 80% increase in views to the organization’s matching gift landing page and a steady 60% increase in search widget conversions.
Key Takeaway: The “thank you” moment is one of the most effective times to mention matching gifts. By inserting a dedicated piece of collateral into existing stewardship mailings, you reach donors when their engagement is highest.
Matching Gift Acknowledgment Postcard – UNCF
There are many moving parts when it comes to getting a gift matched. Thanking your donors for their involvement allows you to communicate your gratitude and close the loop at each step of the process. UNCF makes a concerted effort to thank its matching gift donors at multiple touchpoints throughout the supporter journey. This includes upon the submission of their matching gift request and after the company has paid out the matching donation.
To best capture the recipient’s attention and convey their message, the organization uses a well-designed postcard (or two!).
Key Takeaway: Showing appreciation is essential for any donor relationship, and communicating gratitude to your matching gift donors is crucial for retaining their support in the long run. As you do so, remember that they went above and beyond in requesting a matching gift. You, too, should go above and beyond in your thanksgiving.
Magazine Ad – The Nature Conservancy
The magazine ad from the Nature Conservancy effectively promotes matching gifts with a catchy phrase and an informative description of how matching gifts can double or even triple a donation. It’s visually appealing and includes all necessary information without overwhelming the reader.
Key takeaway: Magazine ads can be a great way to target specific audiences, especially if the ad is placed in publications read by potential supporters. Keeping the message concise while focusing on the value of matching gifts ensures that the reader quickly understands the benefit and is encouraged to take action.
Incentive-Based Match Drive – Scouting America
The matching gift drive hosted by Scouting America emphasizes the importance of matching gifts in a dynamic and community-focused way. It clearly communicates the steps for getting involved and encourages donors to check if their employer will match their contribution, providing an extra incentive with a reward (branded Scouting America socks).
Key takeaway: Match drives with an engaging incentive (like exclusive rewards) can spark excitement and increase participation. Nonprofits should create clear campaigns with defined goals and encourage donors to participate in matching gift programs to achieve those goals.
Final Thoughts & Next Steps
As the above examples from the Workplace Giving Idea Exchanges demonstrate, there are numerous ways for nonprofits and schools to innovate and enhance their matching gift efforts. By implementing the strategies highlighted above, organizations can unlock additional funding, strengthen relationships with donors, and drive greater community impact.
All in all, we hope these insights have inspired you to bring your matching gift efforts to new heights. Stay tuned to participate in the next Exchange!
In the meantime, check out these additional resources to grow your knowledge of all things matching gifts:
- Free Downloadable Guide: Top Strategies for Marketing Matching Gifts. This comprehensive resource provides actionable tips and proven tactics to help you effectively promote matching gift programs to your donors. Get the guide to learn more and spread the word about these programs.
- Grow Your Fundraising Revenue: Access Real Double the Donation Case Studies. Discover how other nonprofits have successfully increased their fundraising revenue with Double the Donation. See the tangible results achieved and learn how you can replicate their success to boost your donations.
- 8 Ways to Encourage Donors to Submit Employee Matching Gift Requests. This resource offers practical strategies to motivate your supporters to take advantage of their employers’ matching gift opportunities. Implement these strategies to unlock the full potential of matching gifts.
