Latest / The Nonprofit Podcast / Ep 134| The Ultimate Guide to Year-End Matching Gift Campaigns

Transcript

Ep 134| The Ultimate Guide to Year-End Matching Gift Campaigns · The Nonprofit Podcast

• 0:04
  SPEAKER_02: The Nonprofit Podcast, powered by DonorBucks.
• 0:09
  SPEAKER_02: Did you know that you could be leaving double the donations on the table during the most critical time of year for fundraising?
• 0:17
  SPEAKER_02: That's right.
• 0:17
  SPEAKER_02: Matching gifts have the power to turn one donation into two.
• 0:21
  SPEAKER_02: And if you're not capitalizing on this, you're missing out on a huge opportunity.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_02: Welcome to the Nonprofit Podcast.
• 0:27
  SPEAKER_02: I'm Jenna, Education and Community Engagement Manager here at DennerBox.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_02: We are here each week with practical actions you can use today to take your nonprofit to the next level tomorrow.
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_02: I'm excited to be joined by Amelia Bauman, partnership success specialist at Double the Donation, an industry-leading automated matching gift software provider.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_02: Thousands of nonprofits and educational institutions are boosting the revenue with their software 360 MatchPro.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_02: And today we're going to chat about how your nonprofit can make the most out of this time of year by incorporating matching gifts into your year-end strategy.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_02: Welcome, Amelia.
• 1:06
  SPEAKER_02: Thanks for being here.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you so much for having me here today, Jenna.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_01: Excited to dive into matching gift basics and also some strategies you can think about ahead of year-end.
• 1:16
  SPEAKER_02: Let's do it.
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_02: So with giving season approaching, I think that there are a lot of conversations about giving season, swarming, the interwebs, and everything else.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_02: And nonprofits are already starting to focus on bringing in as much support as possible.
• 1:31
  SPEAKER_02: But sometimes in all of the hustle, we can overlook strategies that can make donations go even further.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_02: So to kick us off, why are matching gifts so important to consider during uh giving days or the giving season?
• 1:47
  SPEAKER_01: Well, there's a lot of reasons, but I know already on top of nonprofits' minds are reaching those fundraising goals ahead of year end.
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_01: I know a bunch of nonprofits already have their annual goals and they're wanting to just get that last extra boost to make sure they're killing their goals and they're able to set up correctly for the next year.
• 2:07
  SPEAKER_01: But I also want to say end of year is timely for companies as well, since a lot of matching gift program deadlines fall at the end of the year.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_01: So that means if a donor made a gift in January of this year, it's still eligible up until December 31st.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_01: So once that December 31st timeline comes and goes, then that gift of 70 or even$1,000 is no longer eligible.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_01: So you want to think about the gifts given throughout the year, how you can go ahead and double those with matching gifts.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_01: And then lastly, a lot of first-time donors come in at the end of the year just because it's the giving season, people are thinking about being generous.
• 2:46
  SPEAKER_01: So you'll want to go ahead and think about how you can steward those new donors well and make sure they're educated on the match and gift front as well.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_02: That's not something I had thought about, the eligibility of donations that have happened earlier in the year.
• 3:00
  SPEAKER_02: Something that I, when I've met double the donation at conferences and in person, I always ask, why aren't more people using this tool?
• 3:10
  SPEAKER_02: It's such an amazing tool.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_02: Can you talk about some common misconceptions that donors have about matching gifts or how nonprofits can use these effectively?
• 3:21
  SPEAKER_02: Because I think that may be one piece as to why maybe more nonprofits are not rolling out these programs.
• 3:27
  SPEAKER_02: It's because they think that their donors may be apprehensive.
• 3:31
  SPEAKER_01: I think it's mostly because most donors don't know about matching gifts.
• 3:35
  SPEAKER_01: And even if they do, they're not quite sure how their company handles them because matching gift guidelines and programs differ company to company.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_01: And it's a company's prerogative to update them.
• 3:46
  SPEAKER_01: And then, of course, if you update your program deadline or guidelines, it might come through that you forgot to update your employees, or maybe you're a new employee and you're not quite sure how that's handled at your new company.
• 3:57
  SPEAKER_01: So, all that to say around 80% of eligible donors are unaware that they have matching gift eligibility, which is why we see a lot of those potentially doubled donations fall through the cracks.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_01: The reality of this here is that 65% of Fortune 500 companies actually provide a corporate match, and that includes nearly 27 million individuals.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_01: These individuals just don't know that they're eligible.
• 4:23
  SPEAKER_01: And that's the main issue, and that's why those donations fall through.
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_02: So it really comes down to communication, which is the perfect segue into my next question.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_02: So once you've got these matching gift opportunities in place, you need to think about how you're sharing them.
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_02: It's not just enough to mention them, though, right?
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_02: You've really got to work them into your messaging.
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_02: So, how can nonprofits introduce matching gifts into their marketing appeals and how they're communicating with their donors so that they do know?
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_01: So I think you take the educational aspect.
• 4:58
  SPEAKER_01: I think a lot of nonprofits jump the gun and assume that their donors already know about matching gifts.
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_01: But if you think about how a donor learns about your cause and then you bake in matching gifts within that process.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_01: So if you have a ways to give page, that's always the easiest way to mention matching gifts.
• 5:18
  SPEAKER_01: You're already mentioning other ways to give.
• 5:20
  SPEAKER_01: Matching gifts are one of those unique ways where you're not asking the donor to go back into their own pocket, but you're really just encouraging them to seek a corporate match.
• 5:30
  SPEAKER_01: And so you can provide those resources.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_01: And again, if you want to bake that into your email campaigns, your SMS campaigns, use what you're already using and then add those match and give touch points throughout and educational touch points throughout as well.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_02: I'm gonna put you on the spot here.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_02: So taking it from the educational angle, what would be a short, easy message that a nonprofit could use to say this is what a corporate matching gift is?
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_02: I think defining what it is first and then letting them know how they can take advantage of it is important.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_01: To give you a brief definition of a corporate match, it's the most common form of corporate philanthropies.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_01: It would be where a company matches a donation, sometimes at a one-to-one ratio, sometimes even at a two to one ratio for their employees.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_01: So that would mean if Home Depot has a matching gift program at a one-to-one ratio.
• 6:27
  SPEAKER_01: And if I work for Home Depot and I gave$100 to your cause, Home Depot would be able to match that gift at$200 total for your cause.
• 6:37
  SPEAKER_01: And so when you take a step back, you're getting donors to think about, hey, did you know your gift could be doubled or your gift could be amplified?
• 6:46
  SPEAKER_01: And the messaging there is kind of making the donor feel like the hero and not making it feel like yet another ask for them to complete.
• 6:54
  SPEAKER_01: I've seen a lot of great pages do a really good job of describing those programs, using that question of, hey, did you know your gift could go twice as far?
• 7:04
  SPEAKER_01: And then explaining many companies offer matchy gift programs, check your eligibility here.
• 7:10
  SPEAKER_01: So that's just a very brief way to boil it down.
• 7:14
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm sure that's such an aha moment for people.
• 7:16
  SPEAKER_02: And the fact that they can go and check their own eligibility is really awesome too.
• 7:20
  SPEAKER_02: Thinking about reaching out to your donors, how important is segmenting when promoting matching gifts?
• 7:28
  SPEAKER_02: How can nonprofits tailor their communications to different types of donors?
• 7:32
  SPEAKER_02: If we want donors to find this opportunity on their own, but of course, nonprofits need to take some initiative there as well.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_02: How do they know who they should reach out to?
• 7:42
  SPEAKER_01: Where do you begin?
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_01: So I think with 360 Match Pro, one of the things we're really, really good at is helping you identify who is eligible, who is not eligible, and then also nudging the donors in your group, which I'm sure there are nonprofits out there that are just like, I have no idea where my donors work.
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_01: And so our software does a really good job of helping you segment those different donor profiles and then following up with automated outreach depending on where that donor falls.
• 8:13
  SPEAKER_01: So if I've already identified I work for the Home Depot, I'll be able to receive automated outreach saying, hey, did you know your gift could be doubled?
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_01: Look at Home Depot's specific matching gift guidelines.
• 8:25
  SPEAKER_01: However, if I interact with a donation form and it seems like I'm not eligible, maybe I'm a stay-at-home mom and I don't have an employer, then you'll be able to segment that outreach appropriately.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_01: And we don't want to bug donors that aren't eligible to request a matching gift.
• 8:41
  SPEAKER_01: So there's a lot of different bells and whistles you can use, but starting out by figuring out whether or not your donor is eligible and then tailoring that outreach accordingly is the best strategy there.
• 8:54
  SPEAKER_02: Yep.
• 8:55
  SPEAKER_02: Absolutely.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_02: Donor box CRM can really help with that segmentation too.
• 8:59
  SPEAKER_02: If you're getting ahead of that and staying organized in the CRM that you're operating in, you can really make this process a lot easier too, and making it easier to personalize those messages and reach out.
• 9:11
  SPEAKER_02: So you should be segmenting your communications and your donors.
• 9:15
  SPEAKER_02: Okay.
• 9:15
  SPEAKER_02: Have you seen any creative multi-channel marketing campaign examples that have really stood out in promoting matching gifts?
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_01: I have seen a couple of really great ones.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_01: One that comes to mind immediately for not multi-channel in the sense that they did this for email and text messaging, but just in the sense of they provided a really great educational resource that they've been able to link to throughout any messaging that they've wanted to use.
• 9:42
  SPEAKER_01: So this was University of Georgia's match and gift page.
• 9:45
  SPEAKER_01: I love their match and gift page.
• 9:47
  SPEAKER_01: I point it out as many times as I can, just because they list the top companies that their donors work for.
• 9:54
  SPEAKER_01: And so they already know what their donor base kind of represents.
• 9:59
  SPEAKER_01: And then they also list those company or corporate match and gift guidelines for each of the companies.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_01: And I will say too, there's a lot of great marketing examples for nonprofits that actually go to those companies and say, it looks like your employees have a heart for our cause.
• 10:17
  SPEAKER_01: Here's some more information about us so that you can continue to spread the word.
• 10:21
  SPEAKER_01: That way you're using both your nonprofit arm and then you're also using your corporate partnership arm as well.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_02: Okay.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_02: Let's talk about preparing your internal team.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_02: Getting those corporate matching gifts over the finish line takes organization and teamwork.
• 10:40
  SPEAKER_02: So, how can nonprofits best prepare their team to reap the benefits of doubled or triple donations and really getting the buy-in for this program?
• 10:49
  SPEAKER_01: I think it starts with knowing first where your donors work and then also knowing what are the major companies that are around you or in your region.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_01: So if I'm so I'm based in Atlanta, I know that Coca-Cola actually matches gifts at a two to one ratio.
• 11:07
  SPEAKER_01: That means I'm on the lookout for donors who work for the Coca-Cola company.
• 11:12
  SPEAKER_01: And I'll also say I know Coke offers that program for retirees as well.
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_01: So the more data and information I can have on my personal donor base and also on the regional matching gift landscape around me, the better my outreach.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_01: And then, of course, the more double donations I will see on the back end.
• 11:34
  SPEAKER_02: What type of internal training or tools would you recommend development teams stay on top of these matching gift campaigns during the year-end rush, especially?
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_01: I'm always going to say 360 Match Pro, just because our automation makes it very easy to track eligible donations and it makes the email outreach easy as well, so that you can use that as a stewardship item instead of something that you're always thinking you have to individually track down.
• 12:04
  SPEAKER_01: This is something you can use to tailor based off of eligible donors, donors with unknown companies.
• 12:10
  SPEAKER_01: And then, of course, you can turn off for ineligible donors as well.
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_01: And then if you have enough information just to be able to speak about matching gifts in your ongoing conversations, I think that way it comes up a little bit more naturally.
• 12:25
  SPEAKER_01: So if you're used to meeting with major donors and you can ask, hey, did you know your company just increased or enhanced its matching gift program?
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_01: That's just a very easy, very natural way to say your original donation could go twice as far, or you can amplify your generosity.
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_02: Kind of flipping the script a little bit and making sure that you're not only securing, you know, these double donations, but that it is the gift that keeps on giving.
• 12:59
  SPEAKER_02: Do you have any advice on how to turn these matching corporate gift programs into long-term partnerships that benefit both the nonprofit and the company?
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_02: So, say it's an organization in Atlanta and Coca-Cola, how do they continue to hone in on that relationship and those benefits?
• 13:16
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I think matching gifts are the most popular corporate philanthropy route.
• 13:21
  SPEAKER_01: And that also means they're pretty easy to use as a touch point between your nonprofit and the company itself.
• 13:29
  SPEAKER_01: And you can use that as a launching pad for future projects.
• 13:34
  SPEAKER_01: So if my nonprofit has a lot of donors working at Coke, I can knock on Coke's door and just say, hey, it looks like a lot of your employees have a heart for our cause.
• 13:45
  SPEAKER_01: Would you be interested in a volunteer day or in a corporate engagement opportunity?
• 13:50
  SPEAKER_01: And I think the flip side of that is understanding that there are a lot of companies out there that want to show evidence for social good.
• 13:59
  SPEAKER_01: So you're providing a really great route for them to do that because they already have buy-in from their employees.
• 14:05
  SPEAKER_01: And it's a really great way for you just to say, hey, we can take this partnership even further because look at how far we've already come.
• 14:12
  SPEAKER_02: That's a really great point, is that so many companies do have those social good initiatives and they're required to do so many volunteer days.
• 14:21
  SPEAKER_02: So it is a win-win altogether.
• 14:23
  SPEAKER_02: Okay, so now we've inspired donors to connect with this program, but it's just as important to nurture those relationships as we just talked about with those match eligible donors.
• 14:36
  SPEAKER_02: How do you recommend nonprofits balance being persistent and following up with match gift eligible donors without seeming overly pushy?
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_01: Great question.
• 14:47
  SPEAKER_01: So I think it comes down to both the timing and the messaging that you use.
• 14:52
  SPEAKER_01: Part of it being end of year, I think it's already top of mind for donors.
• 14:57
  SPEAKER_01: So this is a natural opportunity with the giving season in mind for you to check back in, but always doing it in a way that shows gratitude first and saying, thank you so much for that original donation of X amount.
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_01: Did you know it could become doubled or tripled?
• 15:13
  SPEAKER_01: It looks like you work for X company.
• 15:16
  SPEAKER_01: Here's a quick way to request a matching gift.
• 15:19
  SPEAKER_01: And that way you can also plan on using automation to either block some donors so you can make sure, hey, I know so-and-so doesn't have a matching gift program or they don't want to want to receive communication.
• 15:31
  SPEAKER_01: And then you can also use those sending limits to your advantage as well.
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_01: So making sure you know when that communication is going out and it's not clogging up their inbox in any way.
• 15:41
  SPEAKER_01: But it feels natural.
• 15:42
  SPEAKER_01: So if I'm just donating on a specific platform to a cause, and then 24 hours I receive that email saying, hey, did you know you're eligible?
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_01: That feels natural.
• 15:52
  SPEAKER_01: But if maybe I was donating in January and then I receive an email, I'm gonna be like, for what?
• 15:58
  SPEAKER_01: For why?
• 15:59
  SPEAKER_01: What's going on here?
• 16:00
  SPEAKER_01: So using it in a way that feels natural for the donor and then making sure your messaging exudes gratitude would be my two takeaways there.
• 16:08
  SPEAKER_02: So now as we consider how technology is shaping the future of fundraising, it's really interesting to think about how it will evolve the landscape of matching gifts with all these new tools.
• 16:20
  SPEAKER_02: Thinking about 360 Match Pro and the way that it has developed, all these new tools are changing donor behaviors, and there's so much potential for growth.
• 16:30
  SPEAKER_02: How do you foresee the future of matching gifts evolving, especially with the rise of all this technology and this online giving?
• 16:37
  SPEAKER_01: My hope is always that we're able to close that donor awareness gap.
• 16:41
  SPEAKER_01: I know I mentioned previously almost 80% of donors just don't know that they have matching gift eligibility.
• 16:49
  SPEAKER_01: And with the rise of 360 Match Pro and also the rise of corporate social responsibility, I think that gap is going to get smaller and smaller and smaller over time.
• 17:00
  SPEAKER_01: And so using tech and tools like automation makes that so much easier.
• 17:05
  SPEAKER_01: And then you're also getting a lot more buy-in from companies.
• 17:09
  SPEAKER_01: They're gonna be there to help support you on the other side, saying, Hey, did you know our company offers matching gifts or our company also offers volunteer time off?
• 17:20
  SPEAKER_01: And so that's something that I do foresee a lot of companies actually promoting more and more.
• 17:24
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm just excited to see how the tech is gonna keep catching up with everything else.
• 17:31
  SPEAKER_02: What about technologies like artificial intelligence or donor analytics?
• 17:37
  SPEAKER_02: Do you think that those will have any influence on the matching gift landscape in the coming years?
• 17:43
  SPEAKER_01: I think so.
• 17:44
  SPEAKER_01: I think um in terms of artificial intelligence, we've already seen it now help with messaging.
• 17:50
  SPEAKER_01: So there's a lot of really unique ways you can think about doubling or tripling your donation.
• 17:57
  SPEAKER_01: If we're talking about a school specifically, I think using language like um extend your legacy is something very cool.
• 18:06
  SPEAKER_01: And so finding very niche and unique ways to use AI to speak to the language around matching gifts that would resonate with your donors, that's where I think AI is going.
• 18:18
  SPEAKER_01: As far as donor analytics, instead of just knowing where your donor works, now we're seeing a lot of nonprofits also be able to see, okay, is this donor a CEO at this employer?
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_01: Is this how long has this donor been working here?
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_01: What does that industry look like?
• 18:37
  SPEAKER_01: And so you're able to dig a little bit deeper and spot, okay, maybe this donor has specific influence at their company and this is already a cost that they care about.
• 18:47
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe this is something that we can use as an advocacy opportunity within their workplace.
• 18:53
  SPEAKER_01: That's just a brief overview of where I think we're headed.
• 18:57
  SPEAKER_02: So definitely a better view of who your potential donors are and more personalization to come with it is what I'm hearing.
• 19:06
  SPEAKER_02: Before we wrap up, I would love to ask you for one practical action our listeners can do right away to start their matching gift efforts.
• 19:14
  SPEAKER_02: What would you recommend?
• 19:16
  SPEAKER_01: I would recommend making matching gifts as intuitive as possible.
• 19:21
  SPEAKER_01: So thinking about ways that you can add it into your donation flow and add it into your match or your ways to give page, because that's just something that donors are already using, they're already used to.
• 19:34
  SPEAKER_01: And then if you use that opportunity to spotlight matching gifts, it's going to get them curious.
• 19:40
  SPEAKER_01: And then that way, by the time they're on your form, they're ready to donate, they're curious of whether or not they have that eligibility.
• 19:47
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so that would be my takeaway there.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_02: There you have it.
• 19:51
  SPEAKER_02: For those of you looking to enhance their matching gift strategy, be sure to check out double the donations 360 match pro.
• 19:59
  SPEAKER_02: We will go ahead and link that in the show notes for you.
• 20:02
  SPEAKER_02: I think it's an absolute game changer for nonprofits wanting to maximize their revenue.
• 20:07
  SPEAKER_02: Plus, if you're in need of a robust solution to manage donor relationships, donorbox CRM is here to help streamline your fundraising efforts.
• 20:15
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you so much, Amelia, for sharing your insights with us today.
• 20:19
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you so much, Jenna.
• 20:20
  SPEAKER_02: I had a great time.
• 20:21
  SPEAKER_02: And thank you for joining us on the Nonprofit Podcast.
• 20:25
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