Soapbox Engage Blog

Matching gifts and major giving or capital campaigns are definitely a winning combination. Countless nonprofits use capital campaigns to raise money for large projects. One practical and strategic way to increase your chances of reaching your campaign goal is to include matching gifts in your fundraising strategy.

Including matching gifts in your conversation with major donors or as part of your overall fundraising strategy gives people the opportunity to create more impact with their contributions.

There's no need to get overwhelmed by the prospect of incorporating matching gifts into your next major or capital campaign. Let's unpack some of the critical features of matching gifts and wisdom from industry experts so you'll be prepared to successfully add matching gifts to your capital fundraising strategy.

Table of Contents

1. Capital campaign and matching gift basics
2. How to incorporate matching gifts into your capital campaign

Capital Campaign and Matching Gift Basics

Let's start with a few basics and lay a strong foundation for capital campaigns and matching gifts.

What is a capital campaign?

A capital campaign is a fundraising campaign to raise large amounts of money for a specific project. Capital campaigns always have deadlines, but they can be as short as a few months or last several years.

Most nonprofits use capital campaigns when starting a large, drawn-out project that requires substantial amounts of time, energy, resources, and effort. Some of the most common objectives for a capital campaign include raising money for a new building, renovation, expansion, or purchasing land or expensive equipment or supplies.

Organizations, charities, foundations, and nonprofits of all shapes and sizes rely on capital campaigns to fund large projects. There's really no restriction on size or type of organization that can run a successful capital campaign from schools and community organizations to churches and environmental groups.

What are matching gifts?

Matching gifts come in several different varieties and types, but we're referring to corporate matching gifts. These are financial gifts in which companies match donations their employees make to qualifying nonprofits.

So, when an employee makes a donation to your nonprofit, they request the matching funds from their employer, who then make the appropriate donation. Most companies match donations at a percentage (dollar for dollar or 2:1, 3:1, etc.).

Corporate matching gifts are valuable because you can raise more money without expending extra work or attracting new donors. Your nonprofit will receive two donations for one, so to speak. It's also valuable for your donors who appreciate knowing their gifts made a more significant impact. Corporations benefit from the "goodwill" built between their leadership and their valued employees–it's a win-win-win!

Really, even though we're talking about capital campaigns here, matching gifts can be a great addition to any fundraising campaign.

The value of matching gifts for capital campaigns

Beyond their financial value, matching gifts actually have quite a lot of "intangible" value for nonprofits and capital campaigns.

One survey revealed that 84% of participants said they'd be more likely to donate if matching funds were available or offered. Another study showed that mentioning matching gifts in fundraising appeals led to a 71% increase in response rates and a 51% increase in the average donation amount.

In short, adding conversations about matching gifts to your fundraising can lead to higher response rates and bigger donations. Donors understand and value the opportunity to increase their impact.

How to Incorporate Matching Gifts Into Your Capital Campaign

There are many strategies for incorporating matching gifts into your next capital campaign. We gathered some valuable insights from industry experts to help guide the process.

When to talk to capital donors about matching gifts

Capital campaigns typically have two phases. The "quiet phase" usually involves reaching out to your biggest potential donors to secure major gifts before the campaign goes public. Then the second phase is the kickoff and the launch of your campaign's "public phase."

Many nonprofits raise as much as 70% of their campaign funds from major donors during the "quiet phase." For that reason, the "quiet phase" is a great place to incorporate conversations about matching gift opportunities. It's worth the effort to promote matching gifts to all your major donors and educate them about the matching gifts process (if they're unfamiliar).

Matching gifts can also be valuable during the "public phase" of your capital campaign when all types of donors are contributing to the cause. Remember, many donors are more likely to give when matching funds are available. Share resources about matching gifts with donors during this phase, too! Those small donations really do add up quickly, especially when paired with a match!

Communicating about matching gifts during a capital campaign

Promoting matching gifts can take many forms. Depending on which donors you're engaging with (and what phase of your capital campaign you're in), you may communicate about matching gifts in different ways. Here are some common and effective ways to communicate about matching gifts with your supporters:

Add matching gift information to thank you notes: Effective donor care includes thanking each person after they make a donation. Donors are still at the height of their engagement at that point. They are more likely to take steps to explore their matching gift eligibility. Mention matching gifts in early communications and thank-you notes when the contribution is new and likely still eligible for the matching funds.

Send personalized matching gift information to major donors: Major gift fundraising involves a lot of personalized and face-to-face interaction with supporters. Take the time to look up their employer's matching gift program and present the guidelines and steps to the donor. It might require a little extra leg-work on your part, but the additional revenue more than makes up for it! And major donors are more likely to complete the process when there are easy steps to follow.

Establish a giving society for major donors and promote matching gifts: While this strategy isn't specific to capital campaigns, it can be an effective strategy to increase the matching gifts your nonprofit receives overall. Giving societies can help nonprofits cultivate stronger relationships with their major donors.

In short, once a donor makes a "major" gift, they receive an invitation to be part of your major gifts society. Most nonprofits offer unique benefits, insider information, luncheons, exclusive fundraisers, and other gatherings for these donors. It's crucial to create opportunities for them to interact with each other and key people within your nonprofit.

Though many major donors are probably familiar with matching gifts, some of them might not have followed through to initiate the match from their employer. So, incorporating conversations around matching gifts at various events throughout the year can raise everyone's awareness and understanding of the process (and benefits).

Add details about matching gifts to your donation pages: Many donors will give to your capital campaign directly through your custom donation page. Include information about matching gifts on your "ways to give" page and your donation page. Some nonprofits even have a dedicated matching gifts page with extensive information and "how-to" guides.

The more information you provide readers, the more likely they will follow through with the matching gift process.

Use matching gift software to identify key donors with matching potential: Matching gift software like Double the Donation can be a valuable tool for nonprofits wanting to identify donors in their network who work for companies who give matching gifts. Some software options even enable donors to look up their eligibility for matching gifts on your website! What a great resource to offer donors–and a clever strategy to promote matching gifts at every level for your capital campaign and every other fundraising effort.

While nonprofits employ many other creative strategies to incorporate matching gifts into their capital campaigns and other appeals, these are some of the most common and practical approaches. While it might take a little time and energy to build momentum around matching gifts, the statistics and results show it's well worth the effort.

Now that you're well on your way to adding matching gifts to your next capital campaign, here are three more resources to keep you moving toward your fundraising goals.

• Matching Gifts and Year-End Fundraising: What to Know: This blog unpacks how to best utilize matching gifts from foundations or major donors to match the contributions made to a particular fundraising campaign. This type of matching gift is often called a "challenge grant." It can be very effective at kickstarting or fueling a fundraising campaign–including your year-end fundraising efforts.
• How to Drive Matching Gifts this Giving Tuesday 2021: Matching gifts can really help maximize your Giving Tuesday fundraising success. This blog offers a handy guide to help nonprofits prepare for Giving Tuesday and drive matching gift revenues to new heights.
• Turn Your Nonprofit Social Media Followers Into Donors: Social media can be a central part of attracting and retaining donors, and it's a fantastic tool for keeping people updated and engaged. Still, it's not enough to create a Twitter or Facebook account and wait for the donations to start rolling in. Even when social media engagement is high, it takes strategy to lead someone from being a follower to a financial supporter. Check out this blog for some wisdom from industry experts about converting social media followers into donors.