Companies are becoming more aware of their duty to create a positive impact within their communities. By engaging in corporate giving, they support the charitable organizations that matter to their employees and customers. In turn, they can fulfill their obligations to do more good and create a better society.

This quick guide to corporate giving will outline the basics of these programs. Whether you work at a company that wants to start a matching gift program or a nonprofit that wants to raise more through corporate giving initiatives, you’ll learn everything you need to know to get started.

What Is Corporate Giving?

Corporate giving refers to the actions a company takes and the investments it makes to support nonprofits. Also known as “corporate philanthropy,” corporate giving includes all of the ways in which companies create positive social impact through generous financial donations, employee time, or their products and services. Common types of corporate giving programs include matching gifts, volunteerism, and in-kind donations.

Why Does Corporate Giving Exist?

Corporate giving provides nonprofits with the monetary and moral support they need to thrive. Whether they need financial support, in-kind services, or extra volunteers, companies can swoop in to fill the gaps.

Nonprofits aren’t the only ones who can benefit, though. Companies can position their organizations as desirable places to work by creating a culture where employees feel supported. Employees and customers alike are always on the lookout for philanthropic companies. Nonprofits Source’s online giving statistics page shows that:

• 71% of employees indicate that it’s very important to work at a company that partakes in philanthropy.
• 87% of human resource executives believe their employees expect their companies to support causes and issues that matter to those employees.
• 88% of millennials find their job more fulfilling when they have opportunities to make a positive impact on society and the environment.
• Approximately two-thirds of young employees won’t take a job at a company with poor corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices.

In other words, corporate giving contributes significantly to employees, companies, and the nonprofits they support.

Types of Corporate Giving Programs

The best part of corporate philanthropy is that it’s such an expansive space. There’s really no limit to how companies can support the causes in their communities.

Our guide to corporate giving dives into the different types of CSR programs, and we’ll give you a rundown of the most important ones you need to know.

Matching Gifts

As the most popular type of corporate giving, matching gifts have the power to multiply donations at no extra cost to donors. A business that offers this type of corporate giving will match the donations their employees make to charity, most often at a dollar-for-dollar rate.

So, if someone donates $100 to a nonprofit, their company might match that donation and send an additional $100, totaling $200.

Here’s how the process works:

1. An individual donates to a nonprofit.
2. The donor researches their eligibility for their employer’s program using a corporate giving database.
3. If eligible, they visit their company’s giving portal or use the form the matching gift database provides them.
4. After receiving the request, the employer confirms the initial donation with the nonprofit.
5. If everything’s in order, the company will send a check to the nonprofit.

Auto-submission technology takes a few steps out of this process. Instead of having to navigate to an external portal and fill out a request form, donors can automatically submit their requests using Double the Donation. After donating, they’ll be prompted to answer a few additional questions to determine their eligibility for auto-submission. If eligible, our platform will submit the request to their employer for them!

While still somewhat new, auto-submission functionality is projected to yield an incredible 80% increase in matching gift revenue, according to our matching gift research. After all, who would pass up the opportunity to level up their gifts when it won’t cost them any more money or effort?

Volunteer Support

Corporate volunteering simplifies volunteer recruitment for nonprofits. It gives nonprofits the hands-on support they need while allowing employees to gain new skills like problem-solving and customer service outside of the workplace. Corporate volunteerism comes in a few different forms, such as:

• Dollars for Doers. Also called “volunteer grants,” Dollars for Doers programs require companies to donate to nonprofits where their employees regularly volunteer. When someone puts in a certain number of hours at a nonprofit, the company will typically donate a set amount. For instance, a company might donate $500 once someone spends 25 volunteer hours at a nonprofit within a year.
• Team volunteer grants. These are similar to Dollars for Doers programs. The difference is that these require multiple employees to volunteer at a nonprofit together. For example, Walmart offers this type of corporate giving program. When a group of five or more employees accumulates 25 hours at a nonprofit, Walmart will donate $500. The company offers different tiers, all the way up to 50 associates accumulating 250 hours for a grant of $5,000.
• Volunteer days. A company might choose a nearby nonprofit and set aside a day for employees to volunteer there together. These are great team-building opportunities!

There are a few other types of corporate giving through volunteering, but these are the most common examples. Some companies even provide volunteer paid time off (VTO), so employees can volunteer at their favorite organizations during the workday without giving up their paychecks.

Fundraising Matches

Similar to matching gifts, fundraising matches require companies to match donations to nonprofits. The difference is that these are the donations that employees raise on behalf of an organization.

So, if someone raises $2,000 for their favorite charity during a peer-to-peer fundraiser, their employer might match that amount and donate an additional $2,000. Like matching gifts, companies may offer fundraising matches at different ratios and have eligibility guidelines.

Automatic Payroll Deductions

Automatic payroll deductions use a similar process as contributing to a retirement account. Employees can opt into this corporate giving program to allocate part of each paycheck to their favorite charity.

Note that gifts are typically deducted post-tax, so donors should be able to write these donations off on their taxes. By marketing this type of corporate giving to donors, nonprofits can build a reliable pipeline of recurring donations.

In-Kind Donations

Corporate giving isn’t always about monetary donations. Companies might donate goods and services, which are also referred to as “in-kind donations.”

Jitasa’s guide to in-kind donations explains that when a nonprofit receives monetary gifts, it proceeds to invest that funding into its operations and programming. For instance, an organization might plan to spend $10,000 on event space and catering for an upcoming charity auction. When a company donates that space and catering in-kind, the nonprofit skips the extra step of paying for it themselves. Then, that frees up the $10,000 to be reallocated to other aspects of the organization’s mission.

In-kind donations can take several other forms, such as accounting services, graphic design services, and auction items. It all depends on what a nonprofit needs to keep its doors open.

Identifying the Best Corporate Giving Opportunities for Your Cause

Finding the right corporate giving opportunities starts with aligning your nonprofit’s mission with companies that share your values and philanthropic goals. Not every business is the right fit—and that’s okay. The key is to focus on organizations whose corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives naturally complement your work.

Start by researching companies that already support causes like yours. Many corporations publish CSR reports or highlight their philanthropic focus areas on their websites. Look for signals such as past nonprofit partnerships, employee volunteer programs, and matching gift initiatives. These clues can indicate a willingness to deepen their impact through sponsorships or larger-scale support.

Using tools like Double the Donation’s updated database can dramatically streamline this process. Their search functionality now includes detailed information on companies’ giving priorities, sponsorship guidelines, and contact information—making it easier than ever to pinpoint businesses that are actively looking to support nonprofits in your sector.

Additionally, analyze your donor database. Are there companies that employ a large portion of your supporters? If so, those businesses may be more inclined to invest in a sponsorship or partnership, especially when they see their employees already engaged with your cause.

Start Your Own Corporate Giving Program

Now that you know what corporate giving is and how it can impact your business, you can create your own program. Here are three tips to help you get started:

• Clearly define your goals and objectives. Before launching your workplace giving program, it’s essential to have a clear understanding of what you hope to achieve. Define specific goals, such as the amount of money you want to raise, the causes you want to support, or the level of employee participation you’re aiming for. Having well-defined objectives will help you stay focused and measure your program’s success.
• Engage employees and seek their input. Employee involvement is key to the success of any workplace giving program. Encourage employees to share their ideas and preferences for the causes or charities they care about. When employees feel a sense of ownership and connection to the program, they are more likely to participate.
• Provide recognition. Incentives like awards, personalized thank-you messages, and public acknowledgment can motivate employees to get involved in your workplace giving program.

As your corporate giving program expands, keep employees informed about the impact of their contributions, share success stories, and be open to suggestions for improvement. Regularly evaluate the program’s effectiveness and make adjustments as needed to ensure you continue to meet your goals.

Other Resources to Explore

Nonprofit Basics – Learn more nonprofit management essentials by exploring other expert resources.

Double the Donation’s Matching Gift Academy – Take a deep dive into corporate matching gifts with our new online learning experience.

Best Corporate Giving Software for Companies (& Trends We’re Seeing) – On the lookout for corporate giving tools to streamline your company’s philanthropic giving? Look no further! This guide walks through some of the best options on the market.

Corporate Sponsorships: The Ultimate Nonprofit Guide – Lining up sponsorships is a great way to build a reliable revenue stream for your nonprofit. Check out our complete guide to this type of corporate giving.

Engaged employees are motivated to work, easy to get along with, more likely to stay with the company, and happy to speak well of their employer to friends and family. For nonprofits, engaging your employees and volunteers will make your organization more efficient and a better place to work. 

Additionally, nonprofits can also appeal to for-profit organizations by emphasizing how employee engagement can be improved through corporate philanthropy. To pitch your organization to these businesses, your team will need to have a strong understanding of what employee engagement is and how it impacts both the for- and nonprofit worlds. 

What is employee engagement?

Employee engagement is how mentally and emotionally connected employees feel with their work. Engaged employees feel a personal investment in completing their day-to-day responsibilities and actively seek to help their organization succeed. 

What are examples of employee engagement?

Employee engagement will look different at different organizations, depending on the industry, size, workplace culture, and engagement opportunities. However, a few common types of employee engagement across workplaces include:

• Participation in work-related events
• Open socialization and camaraderie with co-workers
• Interest in additional opportunities outside of daily responsibilities
• Promotion of your organization to friends and family outside of work hours
• Consistent attendance, performance, and positive attitude 

Employees will show their engagement in various ways based on their personality, interests, and role. For example, more introverted employees working on tasks they can complete independently may not be as social as team members on collaborative projects, but they can still show their engagement by meeting a high performance standard and actively seeking out growth opportunities for their role. 

How can I improve employee engagement?

While employee engagement looks different for everyone, you can boost employee engagement throughout your company with the following tips:

Create an employee satisfaction program.

You can measure how engaged your employees currently are, what is impacting their engagement, and take action to increase their engagement with an employee satisfaction program. 

Employee satisfaction programs primarily rely on information collected from your employees. Surveys are an easy way to centralize all of your workplace feedback. Send out surveys to your employees following key moments in their work at your organization. For example, you might survey new employees who just completed onboarding to understand what materials were helpful for their training and what parts of the process were confusing. Or, you may send out a general survey at the beginning of the year asking employees what types of events they participated in or would look forward to joining in the future. 

Negative surveys can often be even more helpful than positive ones if your organization has a closed feedback loop system in place. The closed feedback loop process follows these steps:

• Employee provides feedback. Survey your employees on a semi-frequent basis to ensure you’re receiving a reliable stream of feedback without overwhelming your staff with surveys. Try surveying random samplings of employees at various intervals to ensure no one employee is over-surveyed. 

• Technology alerts manager if immediate follow-up is needed. Employee satisfaction tools can analyze a survey’s content and elevate it to manager if the feedback is negative. For example, your survey might ask employees to rate their overall satisfaction out of 10 and any surveys with a six or below are automatically elevated. 

• Manager takes action. Upon receiving a survey, a manager will evaluate it and get in touch with the employee who submitted it to address their concerns. 

• Causes of problem are identified. After collecting multiple surveys, analyze their contents to find common trends that could be a sign of persistent problems that impact multiple employees. 
• Organization fixes underlying factors that caused the problem. Consult with employees and management to understand why issues are occurring and create a system that addresses these concerns. 

The cycle then repeats the next time an employee provides feedback. By continuing to act when concerns are raised, you can improve immediate employee engagement and identify and resolve root causes of problems. 

Explore corporate philanthropy. 

Today’s employees want to work for organizations that make a difference in the world. Research shows that 71% of employees expect their employers to support charitable giving and volunteering. Plus, 90% of staff members at socially-minded companies say they’re more inspired, motivated, and loyal.

By participating in corporate philanthropy and providing employees with opportunities to give back, you can boost their engagement and create a workplace culture of generosity. Here are some ideas for getting staff members involved in your company’s philanthropic efforts:

• Start a matching gift program in which your company financially matches staff donations to eligible nonprofits.
• Launch internal employee giving campaigns such as team fundraising challenges, in-kind donation drives, and 24-hour giving day initiatives.
• Promote volunteerism through volunteer grant programs, company-wide volunteer outings, or paid volunteer time off.

Keep track of employee participation in philanthropic activities by leveraging a corporate giving solution. Collecting, storing, and analyzing data on your programs in a streamlined manner will help you determine how engaged your employees are in corporate philanthropy and improve your strategy going forward.

Provide growth opportunities.

Employees will feel more motivated to work if they feel they are advancing professionally. After all, it’s easy to stay engaged when the work is engaging, rewarding, and challenging. 

Have managers meet with their direct reports to discuss the future of their careers and gather ideas about how their roles can be expanded. Then, give employees the opportunity to move into higher roles by allowing them to take on new responsibilities, attend professional courses, or sit in on meetings for positions they’re considering moving into. 

Recognize employees.

Positive reinforcement has been proven to boost morale, motivation, and overall job satisfaction, leading to increased productivity and reduced turnover rates. In fact, 37% of employees report that the best way to improve their engagement is for their superiors to give them recognition.

Here are several ways to recognize employees for their hard work and dedication to your business:

• Verbal recognition: One way to recognize employee achievements is through verbal recognition. This can be as simple as saying “thank you” or acknowledging their efforts during team meetings or one-on-one conversations.
• Awards and incentives: Hand out certificates, trophies, or plaques for outstanding performance or milestones. Incentives like bonuses, gift cards, or additional time off can also be used to recognize exceptional work. These rewards not only show appreciation but also provide motivation for employees to continue performing at a high level.
• Personalized eCards: eCards are a convenient and cost-effective way to recognize employees. With easy-to-use solutions like eCardWidget, you can create and send personalized messages in minutes. The software will also provide a digital record of recognition, making it easy to track and reference employee achievements.
• Public celebrations: Organize celebrations, such as employee of the month/year ceremonies, team outings, and social events. When employees are recognized in a public setting, other team members will likely take notice and feel inspired to put in the same effort.

It’s important to tailor recognition efforts to the specific needs and preferences of your workforce, as what works for one employee may not work for another. Regularly evaluate and adjust recognition strategies based on employee feedback to ensure they are effective at engaging and motivating employees.

Other Resources to Explore

Nonprofit Basics – Learn more nonprofit management essentials by exploring other expert resources.

Top Corporate Giving Software to Drive Employee Engagement – Get more information on corporate giving tools and how they can directly improve employee engagement. 

Getting Employees to Care: Employee Engagement and Culture – Explore how employee engagement, workplace culture, and motivation are tied together and can be improved by making strategic changes at your organization.

Creating the right image for your nonprofit is essential for generating positive brand awareness. Sloppy or unprofessional-looking marketing materials can reflect poorly on your nonprofit and veer prospects away from your cause. On the other hand, effective graphic design for nonprofits will help create a memorable and inviting tone for your organization.

Whether you hire in-house nonprofit graphic designers or outsource the work to an agency, your team should understand the basics of designing attractive artwork for your cause. To help, we’ll explore the fundamentals of nonprofit graphic design, including the different types and elements to include in your brand guide.

What Is Graphic Design For Nonprofits?

Nonprofit graphic design refers to the artwork a nonprofit uses to market its cause. It’s the practice of composing and arranging words, shapes, colors, and other artistic components to communicate a message. Nonprofits use graphic designs in a variety of digital and print materials, from their official logo to printed flyers and solicitation letters.

Materials that incorporate designs might be used to advertise an upcoming campaign, express gratitude to supporters, or tell the nonprofit’s story. Used in both the digital and print space, artwork tells supporters what the organization’s cause is all about.

By implementing branding and visual hierarchy techniques, a nonprofit can create designs that spruce up its marketing materials and communicate its message.

3 Types of Graphic Design For Nonprofits

It doesn’t matter what your organization’s mission is or what platforms your nonprofit uses to promote its work. Nonprofit graphic design is an essential part of furthering your cause.

Design intertwines with every piece of collateral you create, starting with your logo and even filtering into your office space and event venues. To help you gain a better sense of where design comes into play, let’s explore three main types of graphic design for nonprofits.

Digital Designs

Modern organizations need to have a digital presence if they want to continue their work. From designing your nonprofit website to venturing into social media and email, effective digital graphic designs for nonprofits can help your cause thrive.

Across these different platforms, you might create designs, such as:

• Infographics. These break down complex information into bite-sized pieces and visuals. Often used to articulate statistics, infographics make it easier for people to understand the importance of your work. They’re also incredibly shareable, making them perfect for social media marketing.
• Illustrations. These are original visualizations drawn by artists. Think of it as a way to explain an idea without text. Eye-capturing artwork can help tell your nonprofit’s story. While ideal for digital outreach, you can also incorporate them into printed materials, like t-shirts.
• Videos. Great for embedding into your website or posting on social media, videos are a proven way to humanize your nonprofit’s work and put a face to your cause. They enable supporters to hear directly from your leadership, volunteers, and beneficiaries. While you might not immediately associate videos with needing graphic design expertise, there’s a lot that goes into video, audio, and graphic editing.

Whether you’re designing your website, a board report, or an email newsletter, these common types of graphics will be helpful for communicating your message. Note that more goes into your design than these reusable graphics, though. As we’ll explore later, you’ll also want to consider the layout of your website, emails, reports, and so on.

Print Nonprofit Graphic Design

Even in a digital-first world, print marketing is still essential for pushing your cause forward. A few common print materials that incorporate graphic design for nonprofits include:

• Flyers. When designed effectively, your campaign flyers can stand out among a swarm of other brochures on a bulletin board. Kwala’s guide to fundraising flyers explains that your design should include elements like your campaign name, participation details, fundraising goal, contact information, and a call to action.
• Direct mail. Any piece of direct mail you send to supporters should come across as professional. This includes everything from donation solicitations and volunteer appreciation letters to postcards. Add your logo to your letterhead, brand your envelopes, feature your brand colors and fonts, and include perforated return slips with pre-addressed envelopes for donations.
• Merchandise. From t-shirts to stickers, make sure your merchandise designs encapsulate your organization’s identity. Infuse your brand colors, logo, typography, and illustrations to effectively communicate your mission.

Print materials are essential for keeping in touch with supporters who aren’t active online. Especially when you put thought behind your designs, these materials can come across as much more personal than generic digital outreach, like mass emails or social media posts.

Environmental Designs

Believe it or not, graphic design for nonprofits comes into play with your environment, too. Whether in your office or at an event space, the designs you use can help create an immersive, inviting atmosphere.

For instance, you might incorporate design strategies by creating:

• Donor walls: Show appreciation to sponsors and major donors with a donor wall. Choose a layout that complements the architecture of your office space. Then, brand it using your organization’s preferred fonts, colors, and shapes that communicate your mission.
• Murals: Ideal for your office or a prominent location in your community, a well-painted mural can draw awareness for your mission and create a more immersive environment. Illustrations should feature your nonprofit’s name and contact information, like your social media handle.
• Banners: This is one of the simplest types of environmental design. Create a lightweight banner that you can transport to different locations, like fundraising events and industry events. All you really need to include is your logo, tagline, and colors.

This type of nonprofit graphic design should be more subtle and blend into your environment. Combining elements of graphic design with interior design will ultimately create a coherent, branded space.

Elements of Nonprofit Graphic Design

Regardless of the types of designs you create, several elements play into all of them. Whether you’re brand new to graphic design for nonprofits or a seasoned expert, make sure you know these basic elements before your next project:

• Color palette. Colors create a mood within your artwork and can help tell your brand’s story. For instance, red communicates urgency and is often associated with health or disaster relief organizations. Green is often associated with the Earth and growth, making it ideal for environmental organizations. Note that different color combinations can alter supporters’ impressions further.
• Typography. Fonts can also alter the mood your designs elicit in supporters. The main categories of fonts are serif, sans serif, cursive, and script fonts. As an example, sans serif fonts are minimalistic and offer crisp readability. If an existing typeface doesn’t suit your brand, you can always create your own.
• Spacing. White (or negative) space refers to the space between design elements. Morweb’s guide to nonprofit web design best practices explains that an appropriate amount of space makes it easy to read content without feeling distracted.

Before creating your nonprofit’s graphics, your best bet is to create a brand guide that defines these characteristics and guidelines that every design should follow.

In any case, remember that your ultimate goal should be to balance aesthetic appeal with technical functionality. In turn, you’ll create standout, visually-engaging graphic designs for your nonprofit.

Other Resources to Explore

Nonprofit Basics – Learn more nonprofit management essentials by exploring other expert resources.

Nonprofit Branding: The Complete Guide + 10 Examples – Your nonprofit’s brand should shine through in its graphic designs. Learn the essentials of nonprofit branding and see real-world examples from notable organizations in this guide.

12 Best Nonprofit Graphic Design Tools to Amplify Your Cause – Transform your designs with the right tools. This guide shares some of the best low-cost tools out there.