Top Strategies to Double Revenue with Matching Gifts

Imagine doubling your nonprofit’s donation revenue without asking donors to reach deeper into their pockets. Sounds too good to be true? It’s not, thanks to matching gift programs.

These corporate philanthropy initiatives empower donors to make an even bigger impact, often with just a few clicks. Yet, billions of dollars in matching gifts go unclaimed each year simply because donors aren’t aware of the opportunity.

That’s money that could⁠—and should⁠—be going to causes like yours. Which is why, in this post, we’ll break down top strategies to unlock the full potential of matching gifts. These include:

1. Making matching gifts central to your fundraising plan.
2. Promoting matching gifts throughout the donor journey.
3. Using matching gift software to automate the process.

Whether you’re just getting started or looking to optimize your current efforts, these proven tactics will help you educate supporters, streamline the process, and ultimately double your fundraising revenue.

Let’s dive in!

1. Make matching gifts central to your fundraising plan.

To truly unlock the potential of matching gifts, they can’t be treated as an afterthought. Instead, they should be baked into your overall fundraising strategy from the start. When matching gifts are given a prominent role, they can boost both revenue and donor engagement, without increasing acquisition costs.

Here’s how to make matching gifts a core pillar of your fundraising plan:

Train your internal team.

Your team is on the front lines of donor engagement, so they need to understand how matching gifts work⁠—and why they matter. This includes development staff, volunteers, board members, and anyone involved in fundraising campaigns or donor communication.

For the best results, we recommend:

• Holding regular training sessions to explain the basics of matching gifts and how to promote them during donor conversations.
• Providing talking points, cheat sheets, and FAQs so team members can confidently answer questions.
• Integrating matching gifts into your scripts, email templates, and campaign plans to keep the message consistent.
• Leveraging educational resources like Double the Donation’s online Matching Gift Academy, as well as webinars, guides, and more.

All in all, the more knowledgeable and enthusiastic your team is about matching gifts, the more likely they’ll be to mention the opportunity and guide donors through the process proactively.

Set goals and track metrics.

Like any strategic initiative, matching gift efforts need to be measured and managed to be effective. Setting specific goals will give your team direction, while tracking metrics will show what’s working and what needs improvement.

A few key match-related metrics to track include:

• Percentage of match-eligible donors
• Matching gift submission rate
• Matching gift completion rate
• Total revenue generated from matching gifts

For the best results, you’ll want to set both short-term and long-term goals and use the data to optimize your strategy over time. For example, if your submission rate is low, that may signal the need for more follow-up communications.

By keeping matching gifts at the forefront of your planning and execution—and empowering your team to lead the charge—you’ll set your organization up to capture significantly more revenue with every campaign.

2. Promote matching gifts throughout the donor journey.

One of the most effective ways to increase matching gift revenue is to consistently promote the opportunity at every stage of the donor experience. After all, many donors simply don’t know their employer offers a matching gift program, or they forget to take action after giving. By placing reminders and calls to action at strategic points in the donor journey, you increase both awareness and follow-through.

Here’s how to integrate matching gift promotion at key touchpoints:

• On donation forms ⁠— Start by including a matching gift prompt directly on your donation form. This is the moment when donors are most engaged, and a simple reminder, along with a searchable database of matching gift companies, can plant the seed before the gift is even completed. You might include a short sentence like, “See if your employer will match your donation!” near the payment fields to encourage them to take action.
• On confirmation pages ⁠— Next, use the confirmation page to reinforce the message immediately after the gift is made. This is a perfect opportunity to thank donors for their generosity while also encouraging them to check their match eligibility. You can include personalized messages and a direct link to matching gift submission forms, making it as easy as possible for donors to follow through while the donation is still fresh in their minds.
• In follow-up emails ⁠— Finally, follow up with a dedicated email within 24 hours after the donation. This reminder should clearly explain the impact of matching gifts and provide step-by-step instructions for submitting a request through their employer. If you know the donor’s company, you can personalize the message even further, making it more likely that they’ll complete the match process.

By integrating matching gift promotion into every step of the donor journey, you make it easy and natural for donors to take action, resulting in more matched donations and a more substantial return on your fundraising efforts.

3. Use matching gift software to automate the process.

One of the biggest barriers to capturing matching gift revenue is the manual effort required from both nonprofits and donors. Many supporters have good intentions but never get around to submitting the paperwork. That’s where matching gift software becomes a game-changer.

By using dedicated tools, you can automate the entire process, streamlining it for your team and simplifying it for donors. Matching gift software typically includes features like employer search functionality, automated email follow-ups, and access to thousands of company matching gift policies. These tools remove the guesswork, reduce friction, and dramatically increase the likelihood of a donor completing their match.

A great example of this is the integration between Double the Donation and Springboard by Jackson River. This partnership allows nonprofits to seamlessly embed employer search tools into their donation forms and automatically trigger follow-up emails to eligible donors. It ensures that donors are reminded and guided through the matching gift process without extra lift from your staff.

With automation in place, you can capture more revenue from existing donations while freeing up your team to focus on other strategic efforts. Investing in the right software means you’re not leaving money on the table—you’re making it easy for donors to double their impact with minimal effort.

Matching gifts are one of the most underutilized tools in nonprofit fundraising—but they don’t have to be. By implementing the right strategies, you can turn a missed opportunity into a significant revenue stream. From raising awareness to automating outreach, each step you take brings you closer to doubling the impact of every dollar.

Now’s the time to make matching gifts a cornerstone of your fundraising strategy. With the right approach, you won’t just increase revenue—you’ll empower your supporters to make a greater difference with every gift they give. Good luck!