Harness The Power of Matching Gifts and Double Your Fundraising Profits
You see a social media post or an email from your child’s school. They’re raising money to replace outdated playground equipment. You’re going to make a donation and want to maximize the power of your gift.
But how?
Did you know that 65% of companies offer matching gifts as a part of their corporate giving program? This means that they will match the amount one of their employees donates to a nonprofit, usually up to a certain dollar amount. So if someone donates $100 to your cause, you might be able to net $200, simply by asking that someone to fill out their company’s gift-matching form.
Here are just a few companies that match donations, there are many, many more!
- Wells Fargo offers at 1:1 matching ratio, doubling an employee’s donation. With more than 230,000 employees, there’s a chance your donor pool already has a Wells Fargo employee in it.
- Bank of America will match gifts up to $5,000, and has more than 130,000 employees that might be ready to donate to your cause.
- Intel matches up to $10,000 a year for their roughly 130,000 employees: $5,000 for eligible charitable organizations and another $5,000 for eligible education institutions (with some caveats).
- Home Depot matches up to $3,000 per year per each of their 490,000+ employees.
- McDonald’s will match each of its 205,000 employee’s donations up to $5,000 per year.
- Deloitte will match up to $3,000 per employee per year. With more than 415,000 employees that’s not chump change.
- Microsoft will match up to $15,000 per employee per year. No small gift given their 221,000 employees!
- Coca-Cola matches at a 2:1 ratio, meaning each employee gets up to $20,000 in donation matching per year.
- IBM matches up to $5,000 per employee per year and has more than 288,000 employees.
- American Express will match up to $8,000 per year for each of its 77,000 employees.
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It’s easy to find other companies that match charitable donations
Simply:
- Google the company name with the term “matching gifts.” For example, “Home Depot matching gifts.”
- Discover local businesses, factories, and corporations that will gladly help your organization. Include a sample of this list with your parent/donor communications.
- Check out a service like Double the Donation to make it easier for donors to submit their match requests.
- Note: your school or program must be an eligible non-profit.
If your employer isn’t listed, be sure to check with them directly about their giving policy. Tell them how much you plan to donate and ask if they will match your gift. Tell your donors and volunteers to ask the same of their employers.
Imagine how quickly and easily fundraising goals could be met if every donor got a matching donation!
Even small donations will add up quickly.
If you’re part of the staff, administration or PTO, be sure to include information on corporate matching in communications with parents/donors. Educate them on the power of matching gifts by asking them to consider:
- Where they work,
- What their company’s corporate giving policy is, and,
- If they know how to submit matching gift requests.
If you are building an online charity auction or fundraising event, check the company affiliations of your volunteers and board members on matching gifts. Some corporations require volunteer matching hours which can be easier to fulfill if you know the requirements in advance.
Whatever the route you choose, corporate matching programs can turbo charge your fundraising efforts and help you reach your goal faster than ever. Good luck!
