6 essential strategies to improve your corporate donations

Every donation matters when it comes to nonprofit fundraising. Monetary contributions allow many organizations to keep operations up and running. In 2019, corporate donations accounted for over $21 billion in nonprofit funding. And, that number continues to increase every year. 

When businesses donate to nonprofit organizations, it can be mutually beneficial. However, getting companies to contribute to your efforts isn’t always easy. The following are six essential strategies for improving your corporate contributions and maintaining ongoing relationships with your donors. 

1. Choose the right companies

When working on your nonprofit’s corporate giving strategy, finding businesses that align with your mission is crucial. Investing time in the right companies is important, as nonprofits often rely on donations to keep their operations funded and running properly. 

To facilitate a successful partnership between a corporation and a nonprofit organization, the two must make sense together. For example, a dog food company is more inclined to donate to an animal rescue nonprofit than a children’s charity. 

Finding the right match for your nonprofit will require some research. You should check out the following regarding your potential corporate donors:

• The company’s background
• Recent achievements
• Plans for the future
• Key mission
• Donation history

Researching possible partners will give your nonprofit information on whether a company is a good match. Partnerships work best when both the corporation and nonprofit share the same goals. 

2. Find common ground

In addition to finding the right companies, nonprofits can enjoy more success by pinpointing potential corporate donors that share common ground with them.

Seeking businesses similar in size to your nonprofit can be beneficial, as larger corporations may be more challenging to partner with. Small businesses, especially those in the same geographic region as your organization, can share a lot in common with your nonprofit. 

Working with businesses that are proportionate to your organization can be advantageous for both parties. Both can leverage the partnership to reach more individuals in the local community. When corporations team up with local nonprofits, they can benefit from giving back to their community while getting excellent publicity for their brand. 

Finding common ground allows your nonprofit to create more meaningful partnerships with corporations that could become long-term donors. Connecting with businesses that are close to yours in location and size can positively impact the corporate philanthropy strategy for their companies and your nonprofit alike.

3. Share your annual report

When working with a corporate donor, sharing your annual report can be beneficial. People love to see their successes right in front of them. These reports allow corporations to see exactly how much they have contributed to your mission. 

By sharing your annual report, your organization offers a transparent look into its operations. Your nonprofit can highlight its areas of success and initiatives that need more funding, which encourages greater donations in the future.

You can also add pages to the annual report specifically to thank your donors. Having dedicated sections to offer gratitude is a great way to convey your organization’s appreciation and recognize the impact of corporate donations.

Giving annual reports to donors should be part of every strategy for boosting corporate donations to nonprofits. Both donors and nonprofits can benefit from reports shared openly. 

4. Focus on employees

Many corporations are finding that to attract and retain the best talent, they must integrate philanthropic efforts into their operations. Now more than ever before, it is important for employees to feel their place of work gives back to the community and has a charitable company culture.

Volunteering for and giving to nonprofits can boost employee morale. It can also influence a greater sense of purpose behind work. Nonprofits should look at what a company’s employees are interested in and engage them in fundraising efforts.

Through corporate fundraising, employees can participate in meaningful team-building opportunities that influence a greater sense of unity for corporate workforces. Businesses can host charity events where employees can enjoy seeing their philanthropic efforts pay off in real-time. 

Plus, when a business publicly aligns with a nonprofit and participates in fundraising activities, employees are more likely to feel engaged with their employer.

5. Prepare campaigns in advance

When proposing a donation campaign to a corporate partner, nonprofits should prepare in advance. This allows businesses to get in on the action without needing to dedicate too much time or energy to your cause. 

Companies often want to participate in giving campaigns but lack the time and resources to do so. Having things prepared will encourage businesses to contribute to your nonprofit because there will be less work on their part. 

Making it easier for businesses to donate is in your organization’s best interest. Using fundraising software like GiveSmart can help donors seamlessly contribute to your nonprofit from anywhere. The less work your corporate donors need to do, the better. Creating campaign assets like social media posts or email templates can encourage companies to participate in your fundraising efforts. 

6. Invest in a lasting relationship

When working to improve corporate donations to nonprofits, it is preferable to invest in lasting relationships instead of one-time donations. 

If you can bridge your nonprofit’s goals with a corporate donor’s objectives, you can work in a partnership that uplifts both parties. Partnerships like these allow a nonprofit and a company to utilize one another’s strengths.

Donor retention is an important factor in long-term fundraising efforts. To convert first-time donors into lasting supporters, your organization must show them how valuable their contributions are and how much you appreciate their partnership. 

Beyond sending thank-you cards and expressing gratitude for their donations, regularly engaging with your corporate donors is an important part of building lasting relationships. Acknowledging donations is a crucial part of maintaining relationships. You want your donors to feel inspired to keep giving year after year. 

Strengthen Corporate Giving Programs by Simplifying Donations

Many companies are implementing corporate giving programs to support a wide variety of causes. From disaster relief to volunteering for local advocacy groups, there has been a shift in the last decade to more charitable behavior in the workplace. In the past, employees had to remember to bring checks or visit a website, and companies would have to process paperwork. With mobile fundraising, this process can be streamlined, allowing your organization to have a bigger impact more quickly. Additionally, custom branded mobile donation pages (see below) receive 38% higher donations than generic online giving pages.

Corporate giving programs can even improve a business’s reputation in the community. A 2013 study from marketing and public relations firm Cone Communications and Echo Global revealed corporate social responsibility initiatives are a major purchase driver for consumers. Based on similar product availability and prices, 91% of customers will switch to brands that support good causes. A similar percentage said they would ditch a company that was involved in unethical practices. Not only is charity good for internal morale, but it can help companies attract socially conscious customers.

Whether your company is hosting a fundraising event or sponsoring a local cause, mobile donations are well-suited for corporate giving. Here’s a look at how you can benefit from this type of fundraising:

• Corporate giving can boost employee engagement: Many companies struggle to maintain worker happiness over an extended period of time, but supporting a cause can get employees excited again. This enthusiasm can be reflected back in other parts of their work, according to Triple Pundit.

• Easy to integrate into your business: Managers don’t want employees to be distracted with external activities, but mobile fundraising makes it easy to schedule an event. Plus, donating from a smartphone takes less than 60 seconds, meaning it’s one of the most time-effective ways to support a cause.

• Encourage employee involvement: Many people are passionate about charitable causes outside of work, and your team members may be a great source of fundraising ideas for a foundation or event to support. If your company gets involved with a social issue employees care about, they will be more likely to participate. Mobile fundraising makes it easier to share campaign information on social media, which spurs engagement.

Add an element of competition to company fundraisers There is a multitude of ways you can use mobile donations to engage your employees in charitable causes. Offer matching contributions, which will encourage workers to get involved. Using GiveSmart’s Event Thermometer, you can inspire a sense of competition and urgency because employees will be motivated to meet the goal by a certain time – especially when they have a clear visual. You can also highlight giving amounts per employee, which can further increase participation.

In the past, administrative costs and paperwork processing were barriers to implementing corporate giving programs. GiveSmart’s platform gives organizations of all sizes a cost-effective way to give back to their surrounding communities without making it complicated. If you’re trying to quickly raise funds for disaster relief or support an annual event at a local nonprofit, mobile donations can strengthen your workplace giving programs.

Build your corporate relationships with GiveSmart

If your nonprofit is wondering how to get corporate donations or how to improve fundraising efforts, several methods can benefit your organization’s bottom line and encourage better relationships. 

In addition to these six strategies, consider using GiveSmart, a fundraising software platform that helps nonprofits reach their goals and engage with their donors. With the industry-leading solution for raising money, our team believes in long-term partnerships and data-driven insights. Our technology is customized to fit your needs and updated frequently so your organization can always enjoy the best-in-class solution for fundraising. 

Interested in learning more about how GiveSmart can help you build lasting corporate relationships? Schedule a free demo today!