Matched funding campaigns are an excellent way to inspire your donors to give in a particular timeframe when their gift will be matched.
This means their gift will have twice the impact. This works especially well if your ask is a tangible ‘thing’ (Twice as many school books, twice as many hot meals, twice as many counselling sessions) but it also certainly works well with bigger ‘values-based’ giving. “Give the gift of hope/of family/of community” etc.
It’s a very similar psychology to “buy one get one free” in retail. It’s getting twice as much for our money so feels like very good value. Its excellent ‘logic’ evidence that will go hand in hand with the emotional decision to support your good cause.
84% of supporters are more likely to give if matching was offered
Matching can increase average donation amounts. The average matched gift made through the Big Give is £333 while the average unmatched gift is £132 1 in 3 donors said that they gave a larger gift because it was matched
Match-funding was rated the most likely factor to encourage donors to give more, scoring more highly than emergency appeals, and Christmas or other religious or cultural festivals.
* Source: The Big Give https://biggive.org/match-funding-research-report-launched/
There are many matched-funding programmes out there such as Aviva or The Big Give...
But did you know you can also run your own?
Not only that…it’s more straightforward than you think it might be!
Remember the psychology as to why your supporters giving a gift of £10 doubled also applies to to your major donors or partners who might want to give £5k / £10k or £20k. The idea that your gift will have twice the impact and help twice as many people is powerful.
5 top-tips to run your own match-funding campaign
Inspire your match-funder to want to use their gift to inspire others. If you have a donor that normally gives around the time you are planning to run your match funding campaign, engage with them early. Talk about the campaign - bring them into the planning. Show how their support will have a big impact. Most of all - listen.
Communicate the impact Why this campaign? Why now? What’s the need? What’s the urgency? “We need to raise £50k to hit our end of year target” is not inspirational! If you don't have a particular need but your ongoing work is - well - ongoing then look to your stories. There will be golden nuggets of “why the need and why now” in other people’s words.
Plan a multi-channel campaign Organisations like The Big Give require all donations to go through their portal for tracking. But running your own campaign means you can utilise postal donations. DM is not dead - use it!
Plan your messaging carefully. Think about your audience. Seek to understand their motivations. What language do they use in their gift notes and on fundraising pages? Make sure that can be reflected back to them in your campaign.
Put just as much time and effort into your stewardship as the asks. This goes much beyond a basic thank you letter. Thank quickly and personally. Follow up. Send a wrap up thank you to all donors after the campaign.
FAQs
How much time should I allow for planning a campaign?
For any campaign, I would recommend a minimum of a 12week lead period. 4 weeks planning, strategy and messaging, 4 weeks copy and design and 4 weeks print and production + digital.
Depending on who you will be approaching to be a matched funder, you may need to allow a little extra time. If you have a super engaged donor who often gives at the time of year of your campaign, and you’re inspiring them to use their gift to be a matched funding ‘pot’ you’ll likely need less time than if you’re engaging someone who is a newer supporter.
Could I have more than one matched-funder
Should we say who the matched-funder is?
What happens if our donors don’t give the target amount to be matched?
What happens if our donors give more?
Want to find out more about how I can help you run a successful campaign - matched or otherwise?
I have a standard “appeal management” package, where I look after everything from strategy to copywriting to stewardship plans. Or you can bring me on for key elements such as the story-finding and telling.
Drop me an email on hello@fundraisersarah.com I’ll be happy to have a cuppa and hear what you’re planning and how I can help.
Photos by the wonderful Susannah Fields
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