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This is a basic guide about how you can use corporate giving to increase employee engagement at your company.

Increase Employee Engagement with Corporate Giving

September 2, 2022/in Learning Center, Corporate Consulting /by Adam Weinger

The importance of employee engagement, which is defined as the emotional and functional commitment an employee has to their organization, cannot be overstated. According to Gallup, companies with engaged employees outperform those without by up to 202%.

As we discuss in another article, engaged employees are also happier, stay with companies longer, and are more philanthropically minded.

While the benefits are clear, employee engagement is a struggle for most companies, with over 71% of employees reporting that they are not fully engaged.

One effective way your company can increase employee engagement is through corporate giving. When companies offer accessible ways for employees to get involved in philanthropic endeavors, whether that’s through matching gifts, corporate volunteerism, or other forms of nonprofit support, employees will be more likely to participate. This in turn boosts their engagement level.

In this article, we’ll discuss some basics of employee engagement and dive into how you can use corporate giving programs to increase your employees’ engagement. This includes:

Three Key Drivers of Employee Engagement
How Companies Can Increase Employee Engagement
Using Corporate Philanthropy to Increase Employee Engagement
How to Implement or Enhance Your Corporate Giving Program
Driving Employee Engagement with Matching Gift Auto-Submission
Conclusion: Why Corporate Giving Programs are a Win-Win for Everyone

Let’s get started.

Three Key Drivers of Employee Engagement

It’s said that employees don’t leave companies; they leave people, and it’s true. Many of the reasons employees claim they aren’t engaged in their company have to do with people.

Let’s take a look at these statistics and the key drivers behind employee engagement:

Employees’ relationships with their direct managers: 80% of employees who were dissatisfied with their direct manager were disengaged.
Employees’ belief in senior leadership: 70% of employees who lack confidence in the abilities of senior leadership are not fully engaged.
Employees’ pride in working for the company: 54% of employees who are proud of their company’s contributions to society are engaged.

Offering corporate giving programs can have a positive impact on all three drivers of engagement. When leadership takes an interest in corporate philanthropy and makes a point to focus on how the company can help the community, employees tend to view this in a positive light.

How Companies Can Increase Employee Engagement

There are many strategies companies can use to increase employee engagement. Dale Carnegie highlights five great reasons to do so, and we’ve added a few ideas that our own research has shown enhances employee engagement:

Senior leadership must articulate a clear vision to all employees. Without a clear goal, employees will not know what they’re working toward.
Employees should be encouraged to openly communicate and influence the company’s vision with their input.
Direct managers should foster healthy relationships with their employees.
Senior leadership should continuously demonstrate that employees have an impact on their work environment.
Managers should show employees that they are valued as true contributors, giving them a sense of empowerment.
Managers should organize and encourage team volunteerism in communities as a way of giving back and encouraging social interaction outside the office.
Companies should give back to local nonprofits. Corporate giving programs, like matching gift programs and volunteer grants, are a great way for corporations to support organizations that employees care about.

Management and senior leadership should take a hands-on approach to encouraging employees to engage with these opportunities at their company. Now that we’ve covered the basics of employee engagement, let’s jump into corporate giving specifically.

Using Corporate Philanthropy to Increase Employee Engagement

Keeping employees engaged and helping the community at the same time seems like a pretty great deal, right? That’s why many companies are investing in corporate social responsibility (CSR) to help improve the communities in which their employees live and work.

One major component of CSR is corporate philanthropy, and within that, there are several corporate giving programs companies can offer. When employees participate in those programs, this enhances their view of the company and gives them an opportunity to help nonprofit organizations that they care about.

In order to boost employee engagement, companies can:

Offer matching gift programs. Nearly two-thirds of Fortune 500 companies offer a matching gift program that makes employees’ charitable contributions go twice as far. Matching gift programs help engage employees by showing them that the company not only encourages donating, but takes part in it as well. Employees can feel proud knowing their employer gives back.
Encourage volunteerism. Whether a company offers paid time off for employees to volunteer or encourages employees to team up and participate in fundraising events, employee engagement can skyrocket when volunteerism is part of a company’s philanthropic culture. Allowing employees to band together to better the community helps them feel like the company supports them and will boost their dedication.
Offer volunteer grants. Volunteer grants are donations that companies make to nonprofits after an employee has volunteered for a certain amount of time. Volunteer grants demonstrate a company’s commitment to helping worthy causes and instills a shared sense of philanthropy among employees, boosting engagement and satisfaction.

When companies support the causes their employees care about, this helps strengthen the relationship between not just the company and its employees, but also between the company and the nonprofits they help. All of these effects come together to create a positive reputation for the company, happy employees, and a better community.

How to Implement or Enhance Your Corporate Giving Program

When it comes to corporate giving, managing your program can be overwhelming. After all, if your company offers a matching gift or volunteer grant program, you’ll need to track each employee donation and volunteer hour, as well as the requests that come through for matches or grants.

Corporate giving software for companies is an effective option that many corporations already take advantage of. These solutions allow companies to manage workplace giving, matching gifts, volunteer opportunities, and more.

For example, the right corporate giving solution equips your company to:

Set up and view employee donations, such as automatic payroll deductions.
Review and/or automatically approve matching gift requests.
List volunteer opportunities for employees.
Track employee volunteer hours.
Manage and approve volunteer grant requests.

Whether you’re setting up a new corporate giving program or trying to build on what you already have, corporate giving software can help you get the most out of your program. After all, the easier it is for employees to log in and participate, the more engagement you’ll get in the long run.

If you’re looking to get started with corporate giving or improve and better manage your company’s philanthropic programing, working with a software provider will allow you to incorporate all of the recommendations above and begin seeing real results as soon as possible.

Driving Employee Engagement with Matching Gift Auto-Submission

In order to maximize employee engagement through philanthropy, a company must first determine how it can get its workforce on board with the programs it establishes. For that reason, it’s essential that your corporate giving programs be as easy as possible for team members to participate.

That’s where auto-submission comes in! Matching gifts are one of the most popular forms of corporate philanthropy⁠—but tons of companies’ programs are underutilized due to overly complicated donation and request processes.

To overcome this obstacle, we already mentioned that equipping your team with dedicated workplace giving software can go a long way. But there’s another key feature offered only by select CSR management platforms that is revolutionizing the way that companies, their employees, and the nonprofits they support are participating in philanthropy⁠—and that is matching gift auto-submission.

When a company enables auto-submission through its workplace giving platform, the process looks like this:

An employee donates to their favorite nonprofit as usual, providing the name of their company when prompted on the organization’s giving page.
Upon completing their donation, the employee is directed to a gift confirmation screen, where they’re informed that their donation is eligible for a corporate match.
The employee enters their email address on the confirmation screen to verify their gift and authorize Double the Donation to submit a matching gift request on their behalf.
The matching gift request is processed behind the scenes (with no additional steps from the employee), and the corporate match is disbursed to the organization the employee supports!

This streamlined experience automates a number of steps in the traditional process⁠—ultimately allowing donors to skip past and complete their submissions with new levels of ease. At the same time, it removes several critical roadblocks (such as having to log into a separate platform and provide specific donation details) that often result in abandoned matches.

The end result? Higher levels of participation⁠ in the programs—and, thus, elevated employee engagement⁠—that lead to significant returns on the company’s initial investment.

Conclusion: Why Corporate Giving Programs are a Win-Win for Everyone

In summary, there are many benefits of incorporating giving programs like matching gifts, volunteer grants, and volunteerism. These include:

Employees getting to experience an enjoyable and rewarding team-building event.
The corporation giving back to the community.
The corporation’s reputation in the community being enhanced through positive press coverage and other channels.
The nonprofits receiving volunteer support and/or additional funding.

While there are a multitude of ways to increase employee engagement, utilizing corporate giving programs can be one of the most beneficial options for employees, companies, and nonprofits alike.

Additional Employee Engagement & Corporate Giving Resources

If you’re interested in learning more about corporate giving and employee engagement, we’ve compiled some excellent resources for you:

Corporate Giving Programs: The Ultimate Fundraising Guide. Want to learn the basics around corporate giving programs? Check out our ultimate guide!
Corporate Philanthropy: The Ultimate Guide to Giving. Corporate philanthropy is huge these days. Learn more about it with our comprehensive guide.
Employee Engagement: The Essential Guide. If you’re just getting started with employee engagement for your company, we’ve broken it down here!

Check out these Atlanta matching gift companies to find corporate philanthropy opportunities for your nonprofit.

7 Major Atlanta Companies with Matching Gift Programs

While Double the Donation works with nonprofits across the country, the fact that we’re headquartered in Atlanta means we have a special place in our hearts for Atlanta nonprofits.

Through corporate giving programs, nonprofit supporters can double (maybe even triple!) their contributions to eligible organizations, allowing their employers to showcase their social responsibility. These programs boost nonprofits toward their goals by contributing much-deserved revenue. Your organization does not want to overlook these opportunities.

If your nonprofit is based in Atlanta, brush up on these important areas of corporate giving:

Statistics on Atlanta Matching Gift Companies.
Companies in Atlanta with Matching Gift Programs.
Exploring Revenue Opportunities with a Matching Gift Database.

Ready to boost your nonprofit’s revenue by learning about corporate giving opportunities in your area? Let’s get started!

Statistics on Atlanta Matching Gift Companies

From a nonprofit’s standpoint, being located in a major city like Atlanta is ideal for raising money with corporate giving programs. The city is home to many of the largest employers in the world, some of which offer extensive employee matching gift and volunteer grant programs. Here are a few statistics on Atlanta-based companies and their employee giving programs which may interest you:

Atlanta ranks 4th, just behind New York City, Houston, and Dallas, in the number of Fortune 500 companies headquartered within city boundaries.
4 Fortune 100 companies call Atlanta home. This includes Coca-Cola, Home Depot, United Parcel Service (UPS), and Delta Air Lines.
26 Fortune 1,000 companies are headquartered in Atlanta, 16 of which are in the Fortune 500.
75% of Fortune 1000 companies have employees in the Atlanta market.
65% of Fortune 500 companies match donations made by their employees.
40% of Fortune 500 companies offer volunteer grants for employees.

Curious about employee matching gift programs and volunteer grant programs? Click here to explore more corporate philanthropy statistics.

Otherwise, let’s dive into some major companies that offer matching gifts in the Atlanta area!

Companies in Atlanta, GA with Matching Gift Programs

With over 75% of Fortune 1000 companies having a presence in Atlanta, there are definitely opportunities for your nonprofit to increase fundraising from employee giving programs. A great place to start is by looking at the largest companies based in Atlanta.

Let’s take a look at a few of the employee giving programs at some of Atlanta’s leading employers.

Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola offers a very generous employee giving program. The company offers a 2:1 match, which means eligible employee donations are tripled! They’ll match donations anywhere from $25 to $20,000, as long as they’re made to eligible nonprofits.

Coke is willing to match donations to nearly all nonprofits but does have a few restrictions on their matching gift program. For instance, part-time employees are ineligible to participate.

Another aspect of Coca-Cola’s program worth mentioning is that the company does a great job promoting the programs to Coke employees! Read more about this in our previous article that covers employee matching gift participation rates at various companies across the nation.

Click here for additional info on Coke’s matching gift program.

Home Depot

As one of the major companies based in Atlanta, Home Depot is also a generous supporter of nonprofits in the city. They match donations anywhere from $25 to $3,000 at a 1:1 ratio.

Similar to Coca-Cola, the company has few restrictions in place. For instance, both full-time and part-time employees are eligible, but unlike some other major companies, retired employees are ineligible.

The company has an easy-to-use electronic matching gift submission process, which means your donors can submit matching gift requests in a matter of minutes.

If you’re interested in learning more about the typical process a donor goes through to submit a matching gift request electronically, learn more about Home Depot’s electronic submission process.

Click here for additional info on Home Depot’s matching gift program.

IBM

IBM matches donations made by both current employees and retirees.

The matching gift ratio varies depending upon whether it’s an employee or retiree making the donation. For instance, IBM will match eligible contributions of up to $5,000 per institution per current employee at a 1:1 ratio. For retired employees, they’ll match at a .5:1 ratio.

Plus, they provide volunteer grants for employees and retirees who prefer to donate their time rather than money. They offer both individual and team volunteer grants. Depending on the amount of volunteered hours, employees can request from $500 to $5,000, starting at 40 hours.

Charitable employees who volunteer for eligible organizations can request either a monetary grant or an equipment grant. Specifically, team volunteer grant requests for eligible schools and nonprofits can be up to $7,500 in equipment. For individuals volunteer grant requests, IBM employees and retirees can request up to $3,500 in technology grants or $1,000 in cash awards each year.

Click here for additional info on IBM’s matching gift program.

Delta Air Lines

Delta matches employee donations to a wide range of educational institutions, including those that are both public and private. Plus, they make the match request process simpler through electronic forms.

Delta matches up to $5,000 annually per eligible individual at a dollar-for-dollar rate. This is up from a 50% match on up to $2,000 annually just a few years ago.

The program is offered to full-time employees, part-time employees, and retirees.

Click here for additional info on Delta Air Lines’ matching gift program.

AT&T

AT&T is the largest provider of mobile and fixed telephone systems in the United States. As of 2018, it’s the ninth-largest company in the U.S. by total revenue.

While AT&T doesn’t offer a matching gift program, the company supports organizations that full-time employees are passionate about through its Cause Cards program.

Cause Cards are grants from AT&T given to eligible charities recommended by employees. All employees that participate in the annual Employee Giving Campaign are eligible to receive a Cause Card.

The grant amount depends on each individual employee’s total giving amount. These Cause Cards are expected to range from $25 to $250, and once they’re approved, employees are notified of the amount offered by AT&T and the deadline to select an eligible charity.

Click here for additional info on AT&T’s matching gift program.

United Parcel Service (UPS)

We get more questions from our nonprofit clients asking us about UPS’s matching gift program than any other company. Unfortunately, this confusion arises from the fact that UPS is still listed on the majority of the random lists of matching gift companies found on various websites.

UPS does not offer an employee matching gift program. Upon hearing this news, our team reached out to the UPS Foundation for confirmation and received the following response:

“The UPS Foundation formerly offered a gift matching program for educational and cultural organizations. However, on February 20, 2009, UPS’s Board of Trustees approved the action to suspend the Gift Matching Program due to the economic climate. At this time, there are no current plans to restart the program.”

While they don’t match employee donations, they are avid supporters of their local communities. For instance, in recent years, they’ve invested over 1.8 million volunteer hours and over $100 million to charitable organizations.

Equifax

Equifax matches employee donations to nearly all 501(c)(3) organizations. While the company provided us with a paper matching gift form copy, we always encourage employees to check the company intranet to ensure it’s the most up-to-date version.

Both full-time and part-time employees are eligible to participate in the program. Donations of $50 to $5,000 may be matched at a 1:1 ratio. In other words, donations to eligible nonprofits can potentially be doubled!

As with many corporate giving programs, Equifax aims to enable employees to use a part of the company’s budget to support their own philanthropic interests.

Click here for additional info on Equifax’s matching gift program.

Additional Atlanta Matching Gift Companies

Hundreds of other major employers in the Atlanta area also match employee donations. Check out some other Fortune 1,000 companies in Atlanta that offer matching gift programs:

By familiarizing yourself with employers who offer corporate giving programs, you set yourself up for a successful fundraising strategy. Otherwise, you may miss out on important revenue opportunities.

Exploring Opportunities with a Matching Gift Database

By adding a matching gift database (like Double the Donation) to your nonprofit’s tech toolbox, you’ll substantially increase your revenue potential.

Double the Donation’s database has data on more than 20,000 companies that represent 15+ million match-eligible individuals, making it the world’s leading matching gift database. Here’s how it works:

You embed the search tool across your fundraising channels (e.g. your website and donation webpage).
Donors/Volunteers search for their employers.
Your supporters instantly receive updated info on their employers’ giving programs.

Larger nonprofits may benefit even more from 360MatchPro by Double the Donation. It recognizes match-eligible donors through email domain screening and enables email automation to drive matches to completion.

Want to find out how these tools can help your Atlanta nonprofit increase its fundraising potential?

Get started with Double the Donation!

Atlanta is home to many of the nation’s leading companies that match employee donations. Make sure everyone in your organization is familiar with major employers that offer giving programs in your area.

At the very least, your organization should share the above companies with both your team and your supporters. Making sure they’re familiar with these major companies can help your organization boost its revenue.

You should also consider taking it a step further by providing donors and volunteers with detailed information on their company / their spouse’s employer. By raising awareness and simplifying the match process for supporters, you should increase your fundraising revenue.

Take a tour of Double the Donation’s matching gift service to see if we can help your organization raise more money from these programs.

The Impact of Matching Gift Programs on Employee Engagement

September 2, 2015/in Learning Center /by Adam Weinger

Philanthropy has become a core value of many American corporations. CEOs and corporate leaders see philanthropy as a major part of their commitment to society as well as a valuable benefit for their employees. It’s a way to give something back to employees and support causes that are important to them.

One of the biggest ways that corporate philanthropy manifests itself is in the form of matching gift programs.

However, an important consideration for implementing, maintaining, or expanding a matching gift program should be its impact on employee engagement.

What is Employee Engagement?

Employee engagement is typically defined as the extent to which employee commitment, both emotional and intellectual, exists relative to accomplishing the work, mission and vision of the organization.

Engaged employees work with passion and feel a strong connection to their company. Companies with high levels of engagement also see higher levels of employee retention.

Find out more about why employee engagement is so important.

Unfortunately the converse is also true. Disengaged employees feel distant from their organization and generally do not view their connection to their employers as anything more than a job.

They are less likely to commit time and effort to help the organization succeed. Studies show that disengaged employees are less productive than engaged employees.

A key driver of employee engagement has been reported to be an employee’s perception of the organization’s values. Without a positive feeling about the values of the organization, employee engagement will likely remain low.

At a time when employee engagement is on the decline and corporations are depicted as greedy and insensitive, a well-designed matching gift program can help companies show their employees that they care and have shared values. While this is not the sole driver of engagement, it is an important contributing factor.

Check out these companies that do a great job engaging employees through their corporate giving programs.

Common Themes of Effective Matching Gift Programs

They are easily understood and communicated to employees.
They are easy for the corporation to administer.
They are flexible enough to be utilized by employees in their desire to support nonprofits and causes of their choosing.

Check out these best practices for matching gifts!

An alternative approach is to construct the matching gift program in a way that garners and encourages support for causes that the organization chooses to champion. With this approach, corporate values are emphasized and reinforced for employees who share those values.

Conversely it can have less of a positive impact on employee engagement as it limits their choices to areas that the company values. This would be the case where a corporation focuses its matching gifts program exclusively in areas like education, for example.

Learn more about matching gift and other corporate giving programs.

Companies seeking to positively impact employee engagement should consider implementing a matching gift program that is broad in scope, easy to communicate, and demonstrates the shared values of the company and employees.

For other ways to increase employee engagement, check out these best practices.

Learn about matching gift deadlines here.

It’s Never Too Late for Donors to Submit Matching Gift Requests

June 5, 2015/in Learning Center, Marketing Strategies /by Adam Weinger

Are you just jumping on the matching gift bandwagon? Worried about having to build a program from the ground up with all new donations?

Fear not, many of your past donors are still eligible for matched gifts.

Matching gifts don’t have to be submitted immediately after the donation is made. Although, it is to your benefit to encourage your donors to make the request as soon as possible because:

The farther from the donation a supporter gets, the less likely he will be to follow-up with a matched gift
The sooner your nonprofit receives the extra funds, the sooner it can put those funds to good use

Matching gift deadlines vary by company, so there’s still time to promote matching gifts to donors who contributed to your organization this year.

Donors simply have to fill out and submit their employer’s matching gift request forms. However, you need to inform donors of this opportunity first.

How Do I Promote Matching Gifts?

Matching gift request submission deadlines mean little if your organization isn’t informing donors of the opportunity presented to them through matching gift programs. How will a donor know to submit a request on time, if they aren’t aware they’re supposed to submit one in the first place?

Luckily, marketing matching gifts to your donors is easier than ever with the help of matching gift tools. With proper software, you can both inform donors of their match eligibility and provide them with information regarding starting the matching process. When updating your matching gift processes, be sure to consider Double the Donation’s 360MatchPro.

This matching gifts automation software automatically discovers which of your contributors are match-eligible. Then, after identifying these opportunities, the software sends match-eligible donors marketing emails detailing how to begin the gift request process! 360MatchPro is a robust solution, best suited for larger nonprofits looking to improve already-existing processes.

Matching gift deadlines typically fall under one of three types:

Within a set number of months — A company will stipulate that it will match a gift up to, for example, 3, 6, or 12 months following the initial donation.
By the end of the calendar year — This option is fairly straightforward. Employees must submit for a match within the calendar year of the donation.
By the end of the calendar year with an extended grace period — In this instance, a company will grant matched gifts through the end of the calendar year and then tack on an additional month or two for employees to submit their matching gift requests. Standard extensions go through end of January, February, or March, but rarely go past the 31st of March.

To get a better understanding of what the guidelines look like in practice, let’s look at some examples.

Deadline #1: Within a Set Number of Months

While most companies allow donations to be submitted far after the date a donation was made, deadlines do vary. Some major companies have much more time-sensitive deadlines for their matching gift programs.

Here are four companies with matching gift submission deadlines ranging from 30 days to 365 days from the donation date:

Adobe

Adobe offers a matching gift program wherein the company matches donations up to $10,000 per employee per year. Employees are also able to submit grant requests for $250 per every 10 hours they volunteer with a nonprofit.

The company offers an easy to use online portal for employees to submit their matching gift requests and to log their volunteer hours.

Match request deadline: All matching gift requests must be submitted by employees within one year of the donation date.

Click here for additional details on Adobe’s matching gift program.

DirectTV

DirectTV matches donations of up to $20,000 per employee per year and provides grants of $10 per hour (max $250) volunteered by an employee. DirectTV has an easy-to-use online submission process for both programs.

Match request deadline: All matching gift requests must be submitted by employees within six months of the donation date.

Click here for additional details on DirecTV’s matching gift program.

Altria

Altria offers a generous matching gift program (up to 30K annually per Altria employee) as well as large volunteer grants ($500 after 25 hours of volunteering).

Match request deadline: All matching gift requests must be received by Altria’s program administrator within 90 days from the date of the gift.

Click here for additional details on Altria’s matching gift program.

Fannie Mae

Fannie Mae matches employee donations up to $2,500 and offers grants up to $500 when employees volunteer. Unfortunately, some organizations miss out on this funding since they aren’t ensuring donors submit matching gift requests in a timely manner.

Match request deadline: Fannie Mae donors and volunteers must submit a matching gift request within 30 days of the date of the donation, or by December 31st of each year, whichever is sooner.

Click here for additional details on Fannie Mae’s matching gift program.

Deadline #2: End of Calendar Year

Many companies ask that employees submit their match requests in a timely manner but will still match donations made in a calendar year, or by December 31st of that year.

Here are a few examples:

Aetna

Aetna matches donations from employees and retirees up to $5,000 to approved organizations. Aetna also enables employees to allocate a $300 grant to a nonprofit after they volunteer for 20 hours in a year.

Match request deadline: Employees are encouraged to submit the matching gift request as soon as possible but have until December 31st to submit their matching gift requests.

Click here for additional details on Aetna’s matching gift program.

Freeport-McMoRan

Freeport-McMoRan matches donations of up to $40,000 to a wide range of nonprofits. The first $1,000 donated is matched at a 2:1 rate. Anything above $1,000 is matched at a dollar for dollar rate.

Match request deadline: While Freeport-McMoRan encourages employees to submit matching donation requests at the time of the initial donation, employees can submit matches until Dec. 31st of the year following the date of the donation.

Click here for additional details on Freeport-McMoRan’s matching gift program.

Deadline #3: End of Calendar Year + Grace Period

Here are three companies that extend their calendar year deadline with a grace period.

Boeing

Boeing offers a monetary match, a volunteer grant match, and a grant when employees participate in a fundraising event such as a walk or run for a cause. The deadlines for all three of Boeing’s employee giving programs are as follows:

Employee deadline: Boeing employees must submit gift match requests no later than January 31st of the year following the contribution/participation.

Click here for additional details on Boeing’s matching gift program.

Verizon

Verizon matches donations up to $5,000 to educational institutions and up to $1,000 to all other nonprofits.

The Verizon Foundation also provides grants of $750 to organizations where an employee volunteers for at least 50 hours in a calendar year.

Employee deadline: Matching gift requests must be entered into the electronic matching gift system before January 31st of the year following the date of the donation.

Click here for additional details on Verizon’s matching gift program.

Bank of America / Merrill Lynch

Bank of America (including Merrill Lynch) matches employee donations to nearly all nonprofits. The company also provides grants when employees volunteer on a regular basis.

Employee deadline: Employees must complete an application and have the recipient organization verify the gift. This information must be received by January 31st of the year following the date of the donation.

Click here for additional details on Bank of America’s matching gift program.

Learn how to use social media to promote matching gifts today.

Social Media: 12 Matching Gift Posts to Schedule Today

January 18, 2013/in Marketing Strategies, Learning Center /by Adam Weinger

Social media – we all use it in one way or another. Whether we’re connecting with friends or catching up on the latest breaking news, social media has become an integral part of the daily routines of many.

But are you maximizing the impact of your social media platforms for your fundraising efforts, specifically in regards to matching gift programs?

Remember: With corporate matching gift programs, your organization is able to collect two donations for the price of soliciting one. Through these programs, employers pledge to match the donations made by their employees to nonprofit organizations such as yours, effectively doubling the impact of the original gift. These programs present a huge opportunity to increase your fundraising revenue,and you want to capitalize on them whenever possible.

Promoting corporate matching gift options using Twitter, Facebook, and the like is a quick, easy and cost-effective way (read: free) to reach your digitally savvy masses.

Social media is incredibly efficient, as you’re able to schedule posts in advance and on a recurring basis. This means you don’t have to remember to continue posting– the networks will do it for you! This paired with the extensive network available to you through these platforms makes social media an opportunity to use to the fullest.

We’re going to examine marketing matching gifts on social media through the following:

Sample Matching Gift Posts for Twitter
Sample Matching Gift Posts for Facebook

However, before you begin posting about matching gifts on social media– which will inevitably bring forth donors interested in the programs– ensure your internal matching gifts processes are comprehensive.

The Best Way to Market Matching Gifts

Once you begin posting about matching gifts on social media, there’s a decent chance you’ll have a few interested donors inquiring about their eligibility. The easiest way to push donors in the right direction and get them started with the matching gift process is by simply directing them to a comprehensive matching gift tool!

For example, Double the Donation’s 360MatchPro is the perfect tool for nonprofits looking to build their matching gifts solicitation processes. Embed this comprehensive, searchable database directly on your donation form and website, and then link to it in your social media posts. Then, when donors see your posts and are interested, they know exactly where to look to search for their own eligibility!

Additionally, this automated matching gifts tool allows for the immediate searching of a donor’s eligibility upon making a donation. Once an eligible donor is identified, the software sends automated marketing communications to inform the donor of matching gift opportunities.

Matching gift software provides you with an easy way to manage the influx of interest generated by social media posting. Now, let’s check out the following 12 sample posts to inspire your Twitter and Facebook-based matching gift marketing.

Sample Matching Gift Posts for Twitter

Because of Twitter’s 280-character limitation, be concise and to-the-point in your communications. Further, include a quick link to your organization’s giving page, website, or dedicated matching gift page so interested donors can access it on-the-fly via tweet

Here are some example matching gift tweets:

1. Did you know your gift can be doubled, tripled & even quadrupled? Your employer might offer matching gift programs.

2. Did you donate to us this year? There’s still time to submit a matching gift request from your employer!

3. It’s February – do you love us? We love you, too! Click here to see if your company will double your donations: <insert URL>

4. Ever wonder if your employer matches donations? Search our database to learn more about your employer at <insert URL>.

5. Last year, we raised $X from corporate matching gift programs – help make 20XX a better year!

6. Did you know that tons of organizations offer matching gift opportunities? Check to see if yours does.

7. It takes just a few minutes to submit corporate employee matching gift forms… have you submitted yours?

Additionally, with retweets, donors can also easily share the word about your organization’s offering. The platform was made with efficiency in mind—so if you want to simply and quickly inform your donors, Twitter is a great place.

However, to educate donors about matching gifts through more in-depth communications, consider using Facebook.

Sample Matching Gift Posts for Facebook

Facebook doesn’t present the challenge of character limitations as Twitter does, but that doesn’t mean you can ramble on. The following examples balance offering more in-depth information with catering to the shorter attention span associated with the internet.

Here are some example matching gift posts for Facebook:

1. We sincerely appreciate all donations to <Your Organization’s Name>! Did you know that your generosity has the potential to be doubled, tripled, or even quadrupled? Check to see if your employer offers a matching gift program!

2. What do Microsoft, Bank of America, IBM, and Verizon all have in common? Each one matches donations made by their employees’ to nonprofit organizations. This means that if you donate, or have donated to <Your Organization’s Name>, and work for one of these four companies, the company will double your donation. Many major employers offer similar programs. Search <insert URL> to find out if your employer offers something like this, as well as to access program guidelines, how-to instructions, and relevant forms.

3. A huge thanks to all of our donors, and a double thanks to those who submit matching fund requests from their employers! Does your employer offer a program like this? Check today!

4. Help us <Your Organization’s Mission>. Ask your employer to match, double, or even triple your donation today! Check out your organization’s matching gift options here: <insert URL>

5. We like to brag that our donors are the best. Not only do they contribute to us, but they also take the extra step to see if their employer offers a matching gift program that may double the total donation to our organization! Have you checked to see if your company offers a matching gift option? Thanks for being a super donor if so! Check here to see if your company has a program like this: <insert URL>

Just as with Twitter, donors can easily share your Facebook posts with their friends and family. It’s a great way to get in front of new donors you might not reach otherwise!

If used correctly, social media can be a valuable resource in marketing matching gift opportunities. For more information on how to use social media to market matching gift programs, check out some additional social media ideas.

Five Companies Providing Volunteer Grants when Retirees Volunteer

January 9, 2013/in Lists and Rankings, Volunteer Grant Companies /by Adam Weinger

If your organization has a large number of volunteers, you’ve probably received volunteer grants, also known as Dollar for Doer grants.

Not familiar with volunteer grant programs?
Check out this article which outlines the basics of volunteer grant programs. It also provides an overview on how organizations can benefit from this source of corporate giving.

At Double the Donation, we help nonprofits raise more money from employee matching gift and volunteer grant programs. While we recognize that many company programs are geared exclusively towards current employees, some companies extend their grant programs to retirees who volunteer on a regular basis.

Five Companies which Provide Grants when Retirees Volunteer

Bank of America

Bank of America offers both a matching gift and volunteer grant program. Through Bank of America’s dollars for doers program, the bank offers the following two different thresholds of volunteer grants:

50 volunteer hours = $250 grant
100 volunteer hours = $500 grant

Learn more about Bank of America’s Volunteer Grant Program.

ConocoPhillips

Like many other energy providers, ConocoPhillips offers generous employee giving programs. In addition to the ConocoPhillip’s matching gift program, the company also provides donations to nonprofits where employees volunteer on a regular basis. ConocoPhillips also offers two different levels of volunteer grants:

20 volunteer hours = $500 grants
40 volunteer hours = $1,000 grants

Learn more about ConocoPhillips’ Volunteer Grant Program.

Prudential

In addition to matching up to $5,000 of each employee’s donations, Prudential also offers grants when employees volunteer on a regular basis.

Specific grant amounts vary between $250-$1,000 and are based upon the number of hours and type of volunteer work performed. Each employee must volunteer for a minimum of 40 hours before being eligible for a volunteer grant.

Learn more about Prudential’s Volunteer Grant Program.

Alliant Energy

Through Alliant Energy’s Volunteer Program, the company recognizes personal volunteerism performed by employees and retirees by providing grants to the nonprofit. The company has three different volunteer grant thresholds:

50-149 volunteer hours = $100 grants
150- 199 volunteer hours = $300 grants
200+ volunteer hours = $400 grants

Learn more about Alliant Energy’s Volunteer Grant Program.

ExxonMobil

In addition to ExxonMobil’s generous matching gift program to higher education and arts & cultural organizations, Exxon Mobil also offers two types of volunteer grant programs:

ExxonMobil Individual Volunteer Grants

20 volunteer hours = $500 grants
40 volunteer hours = $1,000 grants
60 volunteer hours = $1,500 grants
80 volunteer hours = $2,000 grants

Spouses and dependent children (ages 12-25) of both employees and retirees are also eligible to participate and request volunteer grants for their volunteer hours.

ExxonMobil Team Volunteer Grants

A $500 grant is awarded to nonprofit organizations when a team of at least five ExxonMobil employees and retirees volunteer together for at least 20 combined hours. Click here to read about other companies providing grants when groups of employees volunteer.

Learn more about Exxon Mobil’s Volunteer Grant Program.

We also encourage you to explore Double the Donation’s matching gift and volunteer grant service to see if it can help your nonprofit raise more money from employee giving programs.

To boost your nonprofit's revenue through corporate philanthropy, check out these San Diego matching gift companies.

San Diego Companies with Matching Gift Programs

January 6, 2013/in Matching Gift Companies, Lists and Rankings /by Adam Weinger

In previous articles, we dove into Atlanta matching gift companies and New York matching gift companies, but for this article, we’ll take a look at a west coast market.

California is home to many of the country’s most socially responsible companies. Because of this, California nonprofits are well-positioned to take advantage of matching gift programs.

As the 17th largest metropolitan area in the United States, San Diego is home to many leading companies. Nonprofits in San Diego can benefit from increased revenue by focusing on employee matching gift programs. If your nonprofit is located in the San Diego area, take a look at these major matching gift employers in your area:

Qualcomm
Kaiser Permanente
Sempra Energy
LPL Financial Services
Raytheon (formerly United Technologies Corporation)

Matching gift and volunteer grant programs are widely offered employee benefits. In fact, 65% of Fortune 500 companies match employee donations while 40% offer volunteer grant programs. You don’t want to miss out on these important revenue opportunities.

Ready to get started? Let’s explore a few companies in San Diego which match employee donations!

1. Qualcomm

With approximately 13,000 employees in the San Diego area, Qualcomm is one of the largest employers in the San Diego community.

Even though Qualcomm matches donations made only by full-time employees, its program is still quite generous. Annually, a Qualcomm employee can request donation matches starting at a minimum of $50. If eligible, the company will match the donation at a 1:1 ratio, doubling the employee’s gift.

Qualcomm also provides grants worth $250 whenever an employee volunteers for at least 15 hours. Employees can apply for additional grants for the same or a different charitable organization once they volunteer for another 15 hours.

However, the company has a combined limit for each employee for both their matching gift program and their volunteer grant program. Depending on the employee’s level (e.g. associate, director, etc. ), the limit ranges from $1,000 to $5,000 per year.

Learn more about Qualcomm’s matching gift and volunteer grant programs.

2. Kaiser Permanente

Kaiser Permanente employs more than 7,000 individuals in the San Diego metropolitan area.

Its matching gift program varies region-by-region, but fortunately for San Diego employees and nonprofits, they do offer a match program. Every year, Kaiser Permanente offers an employee giving campaign around September or November. The program is open to full-time and part-time employees. However, retirees are not eligible.

During the annual giving campaign, they match employee donations to most nonprofits. Match amounts range from $25 up to $5,000 at a 1:1 ratio.

Learn more about Kaiser Permanente’s matching gift program.

3. Sempra Energy

Sempra Energy employs more than 4,500 individuals in San Diego and serves approximately 3.7 million customers in southern California, making it the largest utility provider in the San Diego area.

The company is a strong supporter of local nonprofits and matches donations to most organizations. Donations eligible for matches range from $25 to $2,500. The program is open to both full-time employees and part-time employees.

Also, Sempra Energy offers two types of volunteer grant programs:

Individual volunteer grants. Employees who volunteer at least 10 hours with a nonprofit or a school may request up to $1,000, depending on the number of hours volunteered.
Season of Giving team volunteer grants. During the holiday season, when teams of employees volunteer together, they can request a Season of Giving grant.

Learn more about Sempra Energy’s matching gift program.

4. LPL Financial Services

LPL Financial offers a matching gift program for its financial advisors. Through LPL Financial’s program, full-time financial advisors can request matches for donations made to most nonprofits. They can request up to $500 in matching gift funds each year.

Outside of its matching gift program, LPL Financial finds additional ways to give back to its community. A few of these philanthropic strategies include:

Mentoring at-risk youth.
Teaching productive job search techniques to unemployed individuals.
The Employee Volunteer Corps that organizes volunteer events.
And many others.

Learn more about LPL Financial’s matching gift program.

5. United Technologies Corporation (UTC) (Now known as Raytheon)

In 2012, Goodrich merged with United Technologies, and as part of the merger process, the two companies combined their employee giving programs. Then more recently United Technologies joined Raytheon through a merger.

UTC used to match employee donations to most nonprofits. Each employee could request up to $10,000 in matching gift funds each year, as long as the request is made within 12 months of the initial donation. Now the program is under Raytheon’s employee giving program.

UTC also offers a volunteer grant program. When employees volunteer a minimum of 60 hours at eligible nonprofits, they can request a $250 donation. Each employee can submit grant requests for up to two nonprofits per year.

Learn more about Raytheon’s matching gift program.

How a Matching Gift Database Can Help

Corporate philanthropy, such as matching gift programs and volunteer grant programs, represent a major revenue opportunity for nonprofits. With a matching gift database like Double the Donation, you won’t overlook much-deserved revenue. Here’s how it works:

Your team embeds the tool across all your fundraising channels (e.g. matching gift pages and donation pages).
A donor or volunteer starts typing their employer’s name.
The tool generates autocomplete suggestions for the user to select.
The donor receives up-to-date info on their employer’s giving program.

Double the Donation works with nonprofits across the country, including San Diego. In the database, there are more than 20,000 companies that represent over 15 million match-eligible employees, making it the industry’s leading matching gift database.

Plus, larger nonprofits can streamline the process even more with 360MatchPro by Double the Donation. It enables email automation and drives matches to completion with live match tracking.

Think your nonprofit could benefit from Double the Donation?

Start a free trial of the leading matching gift database!

While the above companies are major employers in San Diego, there are many other local companies that offer these programs. Pinpointing them takes some research, simplified with a matching gift database.

If you’re a nonprofit, check out this list of the top national companies that offer employee giving programs. Now that you know some of the major employers in your area that offer matching gifts, start boosting your revenue!

4 Ways to Increase Matching Gift Revenue in 30 Minutes or Less

December 9, 2012/in Marketing Strategies /by Adam Weinger

Are you looking to raise more money from employee matching gift programs but don’t have much time?

If you can find 30 minutes, you can make small adjustments to enhance your organization’s matching gift strategy.

Four Easy Yet Effective Ways to Increase Matching Gift Revenue

Promote matching gifts on social media

Do you maintain Facebook and Twitter accounts for your organization? If so, odds are donors and members are scrolling through past messages on a regular basis.

Take a few minutes to create a post about matching gifts. Not only will it appear on your fans’ walls today, but your matching gift post will linger on your organization’s wall forever. Here are a few sample matching gift messages you can use.

And don’t forget, if you use a service to schedule messages in the future, go ahead and create a few matching gift messages to post automatically over the coming months.

Effort: Ten minutes

View examples of how other organizations are promoting matching gifts through social media channels.

Modify your acknowledgement letters and emails to promote matching gifts

Do you send out an acknowledgement letter to donors? If so, this is a great place to promote matching gifts.

While asking donors to “check with your HR department to see if your employer will match your contribution” still places the burden of research on them, it’s better than nothing.

If you subscribe to Double the Donation’s matching gift service, make sure you’re including a link directly to your organization’s custom matching gift website. This makes it easy for your donors to access everything they need to submit their matching gift requests.

Effort: Five minutes

View additional suggestions on ways to modify the acknowledgement letter to promote matching gifts.

Add a sentence about matching gifts to your email signature

Do you ever communicate via email with individual donors or members? If so, utilize your email signature as an easy way to remind donors to submit matching gift requests.

If you subscribe to Double the Donation’s service, link directly to the custom website we maintain for your organization. Otherwise, ask donors to “please check with your company to see if they’ll match your donation.”

Effort: Five minutes

View email signatures you should consider using.

Educate colleagues about matching gift companies in your city

Send out a list of the top companies which match donations to everyone involved with fundraising in your organization. For instance, if you sell memberships, make sure your membership sales reps receive this email. You’ll be surprised to find out that some of your colleagues have never heard of employee matching gift programs.

While you’ll only be able to include a handful of companies representing a small percentage of companies in your area that will match donations, they’re a good way to raise awareness around the potential of matching gifts.

Effort: Ten minutes

View downloadable resources you can use to educate colleagues about matching gifts.

Take your matching gift efforts a step further:

Take a tour of Double the Donation’s matching gift service to see if our service would benefit your organization.

You may also want to check out a list of additional suggested ways to promote matching gifts. While many of them are more slightly time consuming than the above suggestions, they provide greater benefits and help maximize matching gift revenue. These include:

Matching gift newsletter articles
Banner ads promoting matching gifts on thank you confirmation screens
Incorporate matching gifts on the “Ways to Give” page
Include a matching gift link on your website’s navigation bar

Readers: How does your nonprofit promote matching gifts to donors and members?

Learn how to determine the tax-deductible amount for events for corporate matching gift programs.

Determining the Tax-Deductible Amount for Matching Gifts

November 15, 2012/in Learning Center /by Adam Weinger

If your organization derives a significant amount of funding from membership programs, annual fundraising galas, or special events, you may wonder whether those donations are eligible for corporate matching gift programs.

By not promoting matching gifts to donors, your organization may be leaving money on the table. In almost every case, the tax-deductible amount of nearly all cash and stock contributions is eligible to be doubled through employer matching gift programs.

To take advantage of these important revenue opportunities, go over the following key subjects:

The Relationship Between Tax-Deductible Contributions and Matching Gifts
Calculating the Tax-Deductible Amount for Matching Gifts
How a Matching Gift Database Can Help

Need a refresher on corporate philanthropy? Visit our guide to learn more about corporate matching gift programs. Otherwise, let’s get started!

1. The Relationship Between Tax-Deductible Contributions and Matching Gifts

When nonprofits have membership programs or host special events, there should be a defined tax-deductible amount listed. This should be a specific dollar amount. Also, it should be above the fair market value (FMV) of any benefits received.

That way, attendees and their employers know the specific amount for IRS income tax reporting purposes. The tax-deductible amount of the donation, event ticket, or membership is also what donors should submit to their employers when requesting a match.

It’s the responsibility of the organization to determine the tax-deductible amount and inform event attendees or its program’s members.

For instance, for events, the tickets should have a line similar to the following: “Did you know that $X of your ticket is tax-deductible? If your employer has a matching gift program, this amount might be eligible to be matched.” To learn other ways to promote matching gifts to attendees, visit this guide about matching gifts for special fundraising events.

Now that you know the tax-deductible amount of contributions can be matched, let’s dive into how to calculate it.

2. Calculating the Tax-Deductible Amount for Matching Gifts

As previously stated, it’s up to the nonprofit organization to determine the tax-deductible amount of each contribution. The first step is to determine the FMV of the benefits received.

There are a few ways to do this. Start by comparing the benefits received by the donor with what those benefits would cost if it were not a fundraiser.

For example, let’s say you charge $500 for an annual gala ticket. At the gala, there’s a performance by a well-known band as well as a five-course dinner. Let’s say the nonprofit determines the dinner would cost $50 from a local restaurant while a ticket to see the band would cost $100. In this case, the fair market value of the gala ticket would be $150. Therefore, the tax-deductible amount of the ticket would be $350.

Donors should use this fair market value, rather than the overall purchase price, on their company’s matching gift form.

While each organization has full discretion in determining the FMV, the key is to ensure the values placed on each benefit are reasonable. For instance, is it reasonable for a steak and lobster dinner with dessert to cost $10 at a five-star restaurant? Probably not. An appropriate method is to take a look at the menu of a local restaurant and use its pricing as guidance.

Calculating the FMV isn’t an exact science. It could vary by several dollars and any amount within a reasonable range would be acceptable for government reporting and matching gift requests. The important part is that your organization is taking a fair and honest approach when estimating the FMV.

3. How a Matching Gift Database Can Help

When hosting event fundraisers or heading a membership program, nonprofits might overlook corporate giving opportunities. Corporate philanthropy is vital for nonprofits. Missing out on these opportunities can be detrimental to an organization. That’s where Double the Donation, the industry-leading matching gift database, can help!

By adding a matching gift database to your tech toolkit, your nonprofit won’t overlook revenue from corporate giving programs. For instance, Double the Donation:

Enables donors and volunteers to search for 20,000+ companies.
Gives users all available info and forms on companies’ giving programs.
Allows nonprofits to embed the tool on their online fundraising channels.
Allows nonprofits to do even more with matching gifts!

Before your event, research your attendees’ employers. You’ll be able to pinpoint which donors are matching-gift eligible. That way, you’ll know who to approach about corporate giving at your event. Whenever someone signs up for your membership program, your team can see which donors might be match-eligible, too! Then, you can reach out to them.

Plus, larger nonprofits might benefit even more from 360MatchPro by Double the Donation. This tool streamlines the process by automatically identifying match-eligible donors in a comprehensive database, following up with them until they complete the match process, and even creating an automated plan for matching gifts! Either tool is great for pinpointing corporate giving opportunities.

Many different types of donations to your organization have a tax-deductible component that can be submitted to corporate matching gift programs. Make sure you’re communicating this with your donors.

Now that you know more about tax-deductible contributions, relay this information to your team and supporters. Start boosting your nonprofit’s matching gift revenue now!