Maximizing the impact of your fundraising events is a top priority for any nonprofit or school. One of the most effective yet often underutilized strategies is leveraging matching gifts. After all, the corporate giving programs offer a powerful opportunity to double—or even triple—your revenue.
By educating your donors about matching gifts and integrating them seamlessly into your events, you can unlock significant untapped potential. In this post, we’ll explore four practical tips to help you harness the power of matching at your next event and take your revenue to new heights.
We’ll cover the following tried-and-true practices:
- Market matching gifts alongside event promotions.
- Provide tax receipts with FMV for tickets and purchases.
- Promote match opportunities directly within your event.
- Follow up with match-eligible donors after the event concludes.
Ready to scale up your fundraising events with matching gifts? Let’s begin.
1. Market matching gifts alongside event promotions.
As your organization’s upcoming event approaches, you likely have a plan to promote it to your audience, drive registrations, and rally excitement around the opportunity. Marketing matching gifts within these event promotions can be a particularly strategic move to enhance your nonprofit or school’s fundraising efforts.
Why? Tons of match-eligible donors have never been informed of the programs, which means those dollars are likely going to be left on the table. That is, unless you can drive awareness of matching alongside your event, increase familiarity with the programs, and get donors to submit their matches.
Here’s how you can do so:
1) Mention Matching Gifts in All Event Communications: When promoting an event, provide details about matching gifts in each communication channel—including emails, social media posts, event pages, and printed materials. The more they see matching gifts leading up to the event, the more likely donors will be to participate.
2) Highlight Existing Matching Gift Companies: If your organization has received matching gifts from companies in the past (you probably have, even if you’re not tracking them), mention those employers by name in your promotions. This can encourage employees to donate, knowing their contributions will be matched.
3) Make it Easy for Donors to Check Their Eligibility: For donors who work for other companies, you’ll want to make it easy for them to determine their matching gift program eligibility. We recommend providing a matching gift search tool, such as one from Double the Donation! This way, donors conduct a quick search of the database and are provided with company-specific program criteria, submission forms, and more!
2. Provide tax receipts with FMV for tickets and purchases.
Whenever an individual contributes a donation or makes a purchase to support your cause (e.g., buying an event ticket), you should provide them with a gift receipt. After all, this documentation can be essential for tax purposes, personal finances, and more—including submitting matching gift requests.
For events or other “purchases,” however, you’ll want to take an extra step to include the fair market value (FMV) of the goods or services the donor receives. This transparency is crucial because it allows donors to accurately determine the tax-deductible portion of their contribution—which is typically also the match-eligible amount.
Here’s an example: Let’s say you host a gala and sell tickets for $100 each. The price of the ticket includes a $35 meal, which would put the tax-deductible portion of the cost at $65. The individual should then request a matching gift for $65, rather than the full $100, from their employer.
By making this information easily accessible, you can help donors maximize their tax benefits and matching gift opportunities, ultimately increasing the overall impact of the donation.
Top tip: Include a brief reminder about matching gifts on your donation receipts to encourage donors to take the next step to double their funds.
3. Promote match opportunities directly within your event.
Picture this: The big day has finally arrived, and you’re excited to engage attendees with your cause through the event. Those who register and attend are at the height of their involvement with your organization as they actively participate, and it’s a great opportunity to encourage them to do more without giving more.
Enter: matching gifts—and incorporating matching gift promotions directly within your event!
This could include:
- Promoting matching gifts on event signage
- Mentioning matching gifts in speeches or presentations
- Having real donors share examples of their successes with matching gifts
- Sharing examples of companies with matching gift programs
- Highlighting the tangible benefits of matching on your cause; including specific impact stories made possible through matching gifts
- Setting up donation and/or matching gift kiosks that allow donors to access company-specific information in real-time
- And more!
Promoting matching gifts during your event capitalizes on the heightened emotional and financial commitment of your attendees. When donors are reminded that their contributions can be multiplied, they’re more likely to feel motivated to give and follow through on the match process.
This real-time promotion not only maximizes the immediate fundraising potential but also encourages donors to take full advantage of their company’s matching programs, significantly boosting the overall funds raised for your organization.
4. Follow up with match-eligible donors after the event concludes.
Once the event is over, you still have a chance to follow up on match-eligible gifts to encourage submissions by your donors. We recommend doing so within 24 hours while the experience is still fresh in their minds.
Why? Following up with match-eligible donors after an event is a crucial step for maximizing the impact of fundraising efforts. And it can be as simple as triggering automated emails to donors who are likely eligible for matching gifts, reminding them to complete their employer’s request process to secure additional funds on your organization’s behalf.
For the best results, these communications should include all the necessary information a donor will need to submit a match, such as the donation amount, the name of the organization, and instructions on how to complete the matching gift process. Providing direct links to matching gift submission forms or the employer’s matching gift portal can also make the process easier for donors, therefore driving more matches to the finish line.
Matching gifts are a game-changer for fundraising events, providing a straightforward way to multiply the impact of every donation. By implementing these four tips, you can ensure that your organization fully capitalizes on this opportunity.
Not only will you boost your revenue, but you’ll also deepen donor engagement and strengthen relationships with corporate partners. As you plan your next event, make matching gifts a central part of your strategy—because doubling your revenue could be as simple as making the ask.
