We’re proud to see several of our members recognized on this year’s list for their outstanding fundraising success and continued dedication to their missions:

• Feeding America (#24)
• Wounded Warrior Project (#32)
• American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Foundation (#54)
• The Obama Foundation (#61)
• Humane World for Animals (#73)
• Best Friends Animal Society (#89)
• WETA (#96)

Congratulations to these organizations for their leadership, innovation, and impact. Their achievements remind us of the power of generosity to drive meaningful change.

Read more from The Chronicle of Philanthropy’s special report on: https://www.philanthropy.com/article/Top-Fundraising-Charities-2025/

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Recent tax changes also provide a potential boost, allowing non-itemizers to deduct up to $1,000 for single filers and $2,000 for married couples. This could incentivize smaller-dollar donors to engage more actively in payroll giving, increasing participation and the overall impact of these programs.

That’s why it’s more important than ever to have a plan for nurturing payroll giving donors. Thanks to workplace giving partners like America’s Charities, many nonprofits now receive detailed reports that include donor information—giving you the opportunity to identify, thank, and build relationships with these supporters. However, engaging payroll giving donors requires a thoughtful approach tailored to how and why they give.

In this post, we’ll share five practical tips to help nonprofits nurture payroll giving donors, deepen their connection to your cause, and raise more through the programs. Whether you’re just starting to track this audience or looking to improve retention and lifetime value, the following best practices will help you turn payroll donors into lasting champions for your mission:

1. Send prompt, personalized thank-you messages.
2. Keep donors up-to-date with regular impact reports.
3. Create an exclusive payroll giving donor community.
4. Celebrate milestones.
5. Invite further involvement.

These small but intentional actions can go a long way in making payroll donors feel seen, appreciated, and connected to your mission. By recognizing their ongoing commitment and tailoring your stewardship efforts, you’ll not only boost retention, but foster a sense of belonging that turns workplace givers into long-term advocates for your cause.

Let’s dive into five key strategies to get started.

1. Send prompt, personalized thank-you messages.

One of the most important ways to nurture payroll giving donors is to acknowledge their support promptly and personally. Because payroll gifts are automatically deducted from paychecks, these donors may not receive the same level of recognition as those making one-time or online gifts, making it all the more important to go the extra mile.

As soon as you receive donor information from a disbursement partner (such as America’s Charities), take the opportunity to send a warm thank-you message. For the best results, you’ll want to include:

• Their name
• The impact of their recurring gift
• A brief note that acknowledges their choice to give through their employer

Even a simple message like “Thank you, Alex, for setting up a payroll donation through your workplace giving program—you’re helping us make a difference every month” can build goodwill and reinforce their connection to your cause.

All in all, a prompt, thoughtful thank-you lays the foundation for stronger engagement and sets the tone for future communication. It shows donors that you’re paying attention and that their recurring generosity doesn’t go unnoticed.

2. Keep donors up-to-date with regular impact reports.

Payroll giving donors often give quietly and consistently in the background which means they may not always see the tangible results of their generosity. To keep them engaged and inspired, it’s essential to regularly share the value of their ongoing support.

In other words, because payroll donors typically don’t interact with your organization each time they give, corporate impact reports serve as a vital touchpoint. These reports don’t have to be long or formal. Brief monthly or quarterly updates that show where their donations are going can be incredibly effective. Highlight the real-world outcomes of their contributions, such as how many meals were provided, how many students were reached, or how their steady giving helped sustain a specific program.

Whenever possible, personalize these updates by referencing their donor segment: “As a payroll donor, your ongoing support plays a key role in helping us plan ahead and respond consistently to community needs.” You can even include cumulative milestones like “Your monthly donations this year have added up to $240 in support!”

While many employers have year-round opportunities for employees to give and it’s important to keep in touch with those donors throughout the year, the opportunity to enroll in payroll deduction giving most often occurs in the third and fourth quarters of the year. That makes timing especially important when thanking current payroll donors and encouraging them to continue supporting your nonprofit’s mission.

By keeping payroll donors informed, you help them see themselves as a crucial part of your mission’s success. This ongoing connection builds trust, strengthens loyalty, and reminds donors that their automatic gift is actively making a difference—even when it may feel out of sight.

3. Create an exclusive payroll giving donor community.

Payroll donors may not always feel the same connection to your organization as one-time or major donors, especially since their giving happens automatically in the background. One powerful way to change that is by creating an exclusive community just for payroll giving supporters.

This doesn’t need to be a formal membership program. Even something as simple as a branded name like “The Monthly Impact Circle” or “Workplace Giving Champions” can give donors a sense of belonging and shared purpose. You can invite payroll donors to subscribe to a dedicated email list, join a private Facebook group, or attend exclusive events like behind-the-scenes tours, impact webinars, or virtual meet-and-greets with your team.

By offering recognition and engagement tailored specifically to payroll donors, you’re reinforcing that they’re not just anonymous contributors; they’re part of a committed, values-driven community. This type of identity-building increases donor satisfaction and retention while also encouraging supporters to spread the word about your mission within their workplace.

When donors feel like they’re part of something meaningful (and exclusive), they’re more likely to stay involved and deepen their connection to your cause over time.

4. Celebrate milestones.

Payroll giving donors may not always realize how much of an impact they’ve made over time, especially when their donations are small but consistent. That’s why celebrating key milestones is an important way to recognize their long-term commitment and deepen their connection to your mission.

These milestones could include:

• Anniversaries (e.g., 6 months or 1 year of giving)
• Total contribution thresholds (such as $250 or $500 cumulatively)
• Broader goals reached with the help of payroll gifts (like funding a program for an entire month)

Upon reaching such milestones, personalized emails, handwritten notes, or digital badges can go a long way in making these donors feel valued. A simple message like “Thanks to your steady support over the past year, you’ve helped us deliver 100 meals to families in need!” is both impactful and deeply appreciated.

You can also highlight payroll donors in newsletters, larger impact reports, or social media shoutouts (with permission) to show public appreciation and inspire others to give in the same way. Recognizing these milestones not only reinforces the importance of recurring giving but also reminds donors that every paycheck contribution is building toward something bigger.

Celebrating milestones makes donors feel seen and appreciated which are two essential elements in keeping payroll givers engaged for the long haul.

5. Invite further involvement.

Payroll giving donors have already taken a meaningful step by committing to support your organization through regular contributions. But that doesn’t have to be the end of their involvement. In fact, it’s just the beginning.

One of the best ways to deepen engagement with these supporters is to invite them to connect more fully with your mission through additional opportunities.

For example, start by promoting employer matching gifts. Many payroll donors give through their workplace, which means their employers may also offer corporate matching gift programs. Remind donors to check with their HR department or use your matching gift search tool to see if their contributions can be doubled. This not only increases impact but also further involves donors in the fundraising process.

Next, consider inviting payroll donors to participate in volunteer opportunities, both in-person and virtually. Payroll givers may be interested in taking a more active role, whether that’s helping at events, serving on committees, or lending their skills in areas like marketing or finance. For the best results, highlight roles that fit flexible schedules and offer meaningful experiences, and don’t forget to remind them about potential employer-sponsored volunteer programs like volunteer grants and VTO, too!

You can even invite payroll donors to attend impact events, join peer-to-peer fundraisers, or participate in advocacy campaigns. These thoughtful invitations show that your organization values them not just as recurring donors, but as mission-driven individuals with much more to contribute.

By offering ways to deepen their involvement—on their own terms—you help payroll donors feel even more connected, appreciated, and empowered. This strengthens their loyalty and turns consistent givers into passionate, long-term advocates.

All in all, payroll giving donors represent a unique and valuable segment of your supporter base, offering reliable, recurring gifts that can add up to a significant long-term impact. With donor details often included in disbursements from CSR partners, your organization has the opportunity to move beyond passive receipt toward intentional relationship-building.

By implementing these thoughtful stewardship strategies, you can transform payroll donors into loyal advocates for your mission. After all, these individuals have already taken a meaningful step by giving through their workplace. Now, it’s your turn to show them that their support matters, and to invite them into a stronger, more connected relationship with your cause.

Interested in learning more about nurturing payroll giving donors?

Check out the webinar, Navigating Workplace Giving Disbursements and Trends, to continue growing your knowledge.

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Washington, D.C. – April 3, 2023 – America’s Charities, the nonprofit that mobilizes the power of giving as a leading provider of volunteering, workplace giving, employee assistance funds, matching gift, scholarships and other social impact solutions, today announced it was selected as a 2023 Best Nonprofit To Work For by the impartial research organization Best Companies Group (BCG). This is the third consecutive year that BCG has recognized America’s Charities as one of the 50 best employers in the industry, scoring well above industry benchmarks for staff engagement and satisfaction. The NonProfit Times published the full list of nonprofit awardees on April 1.

“We work with organizational leaders every day, helping them create corporate social responsibility strategies and programs to engage their employees and improve the world,” said Jim Starr, president and CEO of America’s Charities. “Employee engagement starts with how your people feel about where and with whom they work. It’s also about empowering them to shape their communities, providing incentives for meaningful participation, building-in opportunities to listen and learn from each other, and creating a purposeful culture where a workforce cares for one another and their organization’s mission. We employ these same best practices within our own organization, so being named a Best Nonprofit To Work For again this year, truly reflects who America’s Charities is and what we do to ‘help you help others.’ I am immensely proud to work with such incredibly talented, passionate people.”

To be considered for participation, organizations had to fulfill the following eligibility requirements:

• Must be in business a minimum of 1 year;
• Must be a nonprofit organization with 501 (c)(3) status;
• Have a facility in the United States;
• Have a minimum of 15 employees in the United States; and,
• An organization may enter as a group of nonprofits or as an individual organization as long as each participating organization is a separate legal entity (separate subsidiary). Branch offices may not enter separately from their parent nonprofit unless they are separate legal entities.

The 2023 Best Nonprofits To Work For evaluation process had two parts. BCG first analyzed America’s Charities’ policies, practices, philosophy, systems, and demographics, totaling 25 percent of the total evaluation score. Second, they surveyed staff to measure the quality and consistency of their employee experience, worth the remaining 75 percent of the evaluation. The scores were then combined to determine their final top 50 rankings out of the hundreds of nominated nonprofits.

For more information on The Nonprofit Times’ Best Nonprofits to Work For program, visit www.BestNonprofitstoWorkFor.com.

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“Being recognized as a Best Nonprofit To Work For, for the second year in a row, is a tremendous honor,” said Jim Starr, president and CEO of America’s Charities. “It is a testament to the commitment and compassion of America’s Charities’ staff, leadership, and Board of Directors. This is more proof that each team member cares for our mission, our clients and causes, and each other. We strive to nurture an environment where our people can meaningfully connect with each other, the impactful work of our mission, and the causes they care about, and feel empowered to shape the organization and improve their community.”

The 2022 Best Nonprofits To Work For evaluation process had two parts. BCG first analyzed America’s Charities’ policies, practices, philosophy, systems, and demographics, totaling 25 percent of the total evaluation score. Second, they surveyed staff to measure the quality and consistency of their employee experience, worth the remaining 75 percent of the evaluation. The scores were then combined to determine their final top 50 rankings out of the hundreds of nominated nonprofits.

Eight key categories were measured: leadership, corporate culture and communications, role satisfaction, work environment, relationship with supervisor, training and development, pay and benefits, and overall engagement. America’s Charities scored 91 percent across all eight categories, which was two points above their 2021 score and well above the industry average. BCG considers 70 percent to indicate “strong” levels of engagement and satisfaction, while scores of 80 percent and higher represent “greatness.” America’s Charities’ engagement and satisfaction scores – at 92 percent and 90 percent, respectively – were comparable to their scores last year and also above industry benchmarks.

Drilling down, 99 percent of America’s Charities’ staff value their work environment, and 97 percent said they have confidence in the organization; feel that they are treated as a person, not a number; and rely on the organization’s ample communication. All scores were on par with their 2021 evaluations. Additionally, 91 percent said they are satisfied in their role and have a good relationship with their supervisor, and 90 percent value America’s Charities’ corporate culture and communications. 83 percent of employees would recommend America’s Charities as a place to work, an increase of two points from their 2021 score.

There were several areas about which 100 percent of America’s Charities employees agreed:

• They are proud to work for this organization
• They understand the organization’s long-term strategy
• They like their coworkers  
• They understand the importance of their role in the success of America’s Charities

“We work with organizational leaders every day, helping them create corporate social responsibility strategies and programs to engage their employees and create social change,” added Starr. “Employee engagement starts with how your people feel about where and with whom they work. It’s also about empowering them to shape their communities, providing incentives for meaningful participation, building-in opportunities to listen and learn from each other, and creating a purposeful culture where a workforce cares for one another and their organization’s mission. Being named a Best Nonprofit To Work For last year, and again this year, truly reflects who America’s Charities is as an organization and what we do to ‘help you help others.’ I am immensely proud to work with such incredibly talented, passionate people.”

To be considered a Best Nonprofit To Work For in 2022, organizations had to be in business for a minimum of one year, be a nonprofit with 501(c)(3) status, have a U.S. facility, at least 15 employees in the U.S., and be a separate legal entity or subsidiary. BCG managed the overall registration and survey process, analyzed the data, and determined the ranking. The NonProfit Times, the leading national business publication for nonprofit managers, hosted the survey and published the final list.

Click here to learn more about America’s Charities and the people that comprise the organization and click here for more details about their employee engagement software plus back-end support solutions. Click here for more information about the Best Nonprofits To Work For program. 

About America’s Charities

America’s Charities is a 501(c)(3) membership-based nonprofit that inspires employees and organizations to support each other and the causes they care about. America’s Charities’ deep expertise in workplace giving and employee engagement is anchored in its history of helping employers of all shapes and sizes support causes and their communities and create sustainable impact. Since 1980, America’s Charities has raised nearly a billion dollars in corporate, federal, state, and local government workplace giving campaigns, benefiting tens of thousands of nonprofits addressing a wide range of causes including education, human rights, hunger, poverty, research, animal welfare, veteran assistance, disaster relief, and health services. More information about America’s Charities is at www.charities.org, as well as on our social media networks.

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One of the most frequently asked questions we get from companies regarding nonprofit-corporate partnerships is this:

“How can we best measure the ROI and impact a partnership has on our company, for our nonprofit partner, and for the community as a whole?”

“Impact” means different things to different people. Before you can measure impact and ROI, you need to:

1. Answer the question, “What do you want to accomplish through this partnership?”
2. Consider whether or not the partner you have chosen is a good fit (for you and for them), and
3. Define what “impact” means to you and your partner.

Values and Expertise

Before you select a partner, you need to look within your company. 

• What are your company’s values?
• What is important to your employees and other key stakeholders?
• What resources – financial, human capital, goods – can you contribute to the community?
• What is your expertise, your specialty?
• What would you like to be known for in the community?

The answers may seem obvious to you, but the common hurdle many organizations face is the next question:

“What specific need or problem in the community is your organization best suited to address?”  

Some needs are more visible and apparent than others.  If you look a little deeper into a cause, is there a lesser known, but equally important need that could benefit from your support? For example, if you manufacture or sell apparel you could take the more obvious philanthropic action of donating apparel to a shelter and stop with that. Donating goods can certainly contribute to common ESG goals like reducing waste in landfills. However, a deeper conversation with your nonprofit partner could bring to light another issue that your donation is helping address and open the door for even more collaborative opportunities like employee volunteerism. The combination of the apparel your company donated, combined with your employees volunteer time could play an incredible role in building kids’ confidence and self-esteem, while helping the nonprofit with its clothing budget challenge. 

Finding the Right Fit

Don’t worry if you can’t answer these questions and identify a cause on your own.  A business decision of this magnitude may necessitate outside guidance from a strategic partner like America’s Charities. Our more than 40 years of experience providing employers and nonprofit organizations with charitable giving services and employee engagement solutions puts us in a unique position to help your organization identify which need(s) and nonprofit partner(s) would make the most sense for you. Whether you need help identifying a charity partner, or have hundreds of nonprofits that have reached out to you for support, we can help find the right approach for you (click here to initiate a conversation with us).

Defining Goals and Impact

Once you have identified a charity partner – or group of partners – who fit the needs your company would like to address, the next step is to have detailed discussions with the nonprofit partner to identify what “impact” means to each of you, and what measurements will define a successful outcome. Since every partnership is unique there are no general “systematic measurements” for success that can be applied to every situation.  At times, success can be measured immediately upon completion of a project, or it may take a few years to measure due to the nature of the project.  The key is to be clear about what success means and have patience while waiting for the results.

Below are some things to consider during the initial conversations with your partner:

• Set clear, realistic, shared goals that will benefit both partners and specify who is responsible for delivering what.
• Determine how long the relationship will last and put an exit strategy in place.  Due to the nature of your partnership, some projects may be completed within a couple months, while other projects may take a few years. Consider starting out on a smaller, simple scale to show proof of life over a period of time and to test out the partnership. Put an exit strategy in place to ensure your organization leaves the nonprofit in a better place once your partnership has accomplished its goals.
• A partnership is two-sided. Are there existing methods your nonprofit partner practices that can be used to measure your impact? Measuring impact should not be about collecting more data, but rather what information is absolutely necessary to prove your success.  As a company, you obviously don’t want to burden your nonprofit partner, but don’t be afraid to look to them to help provide some of the answers and indicators of success.
• Stay within your means. Even if there is an ideal way to measure a program’s success, your nonprofit partner may not have the human capital or skills necessary to collect the information.  Your company could help out financially so the nonprofit can hire someone for the job; you may involve your employees who have the skills needed for measuring the program’s success; or you might need to identify an alternative, less ideal measure of success that works within the means of both organizations. Perhaps your company can utilize an existing technology solution to assist with measurement. America’s Charities Engage CSR Solution provides a holistic, easy-to-use platform for collecting, measuring and reporting on results for things like online giving, volunteer management, grantmaking, matching gifts, donation drives, and other creative charitable giving and employee engagement initiatives. Talk to us about your objectives and we can give you a demo of how the platform can be used to address your unique needs.
• Impact can be measured by quantitative or qualitative data. Impact depends on what goals you set. What question(s) will your program evaluation answer? For instance, “How many students improved their grade level of reading” (quantitative) vs. “Did the students have a valuable, rewarding experience” (qualitative).  You can take a similar approach to evaluating the impact the partnership has on your company.  By using surveys, you can evaluate if your involvement in this nonprofit partnership has changed the employee’s (or another stakeholder’s) perception and loyalty to your company.  Or when using employee evaluations, you can gauge improvement in skill levels of employees before and after volunteering with your nonprofit partner. 
• Use Benchmarks and case studies as a roadmap for your partnership.  Don’t reinvent the wheel if you don’t have to. America’s Charities has a library of free resources and we also offer benchmarking and strategy development tailored to your company’s specific interests and needs. Our Expert Advisory Services will give you a clear perspective of how you stack up to peers, and arm you with specific tactics and overarching strategy tailored to your company’s unique culture and interests.      

Measuring the success of a nonprofit-corporate partnership doesn’t have to be hard.  If you bring the right partners and experts together, and are honest and realistic about your objectives and expectations, your partnership can have a significant impact on the nonprofit and the community, while also benefiting your business.

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We have advanced innovative science since Alzheimer’s Disease Research was founded by supporting over 795 projects involving more than 2,624 scientists. This work has led to better understanding of the causes and progression of Alzheimer’s, improved diagnostic tools, and important preventive measures people can take to help reduce their risk of this disease.

Once such diagnostic tool, rooted in key early funding from Alzheimer’s Disease Research, has arrived with the introduction of C2N Diagnostics’ PrecivityAD blood test. Researchers found that this test predicts Alzheimer’s brain pathology in people with memory and other cognitive issues. While the test itself cannot diagnose Alzheimer’s, it is an important new tool for physicians to aid in the evaluation process. This test does not involve any radiation and is noninvasive, requiring only a small blood sample. That sample is sent to C2N’s laboratory for analysis by mass spectrometry, and a healthcare provider will discuss the results with a patient. These features make the test more accessible than other diagnostic methods that physicians use to evaluate issues with memory and other cognitive issues and could pave the way for earlier diagnosis and treatment and greater enrollment in clinical trials. “This is a scientific breakthrough with the potential to dramatically change Alzheimer’s research and patient care now and into the future,” said Stacy Pagos Haller, President of Alzheimer’s Disease Research.

The test was developed by Alzheimer’s Disease Research grant recipients, Phillip Verghese, PhD, and Joel Braunstein, MD, MBA, who built upon the work of previous grantees David Holtzman, MD, and Randall Bateman, MD. Dr. Braunstein said, “The best chance we have for treating Alzheimer’s disease will come from earlier detection and earlier intervention. We are grateful to Alzheimer’s Disease Research for being such a strong supporter every step of the way.”

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Your donation to Alzheimer’s Disease Research will help scientists find ways to better diagnose, prevent, treat, and ultimately cure Alzheimer’s as well as provide free, valuable information to the public about this disease. 

If you’re a military or federal employee, you can support Alzheimer’s Disease Research through the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC). Our CFC number is 30518.

If you’re a private sector employee, you can also help fund Alzheimer’s Disease Research through your employer’s workplace giving program.

Click here if your company would like to start a workplace giving program to support Alzheimer’s Disease Research. We have partnered with America’s Charities, a workplace giving federation, which connects employees to the causes they care about the most.

Through your generosity to Alzheimer’s Disease Research, you can help end Alzheimer’s by donating:

• $2/week ($104/year) to help buy personal protective equipment, data storage equipment, surgical tools, and cell culture dishes in labs.
• $5/week ($260/year) to help purchase enough agarose, a powder used to make gel to isolate proteins, for several weeks in a biology lab. It could also purchase a vial of an antibody to detect tau in animal models of Alzheimer’s.
• $20/week ($1,040/year) to help cover the cost of an experiment to measure Alzheimer’s biomarkers (signs) in blood samples.
• $20 – $40/week ($1,000 – $2,000/year) to help send a promising young researcher to an international science conference to share research results – a critical venue for analysis of discoveries.

To learn more about the research that you can help support, visit www.brightfocus.org/CFC-ADR.

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That type of community support plays an integral role in helping nonprofits fulfill their mission, but there is another vital component that is often overlooked: existing, sustainable support from donors and community partners.

That’s where sustainable, unrestricted funds from workplace giving programs and support from strategic partners play a tremendous role.

Employee giving and strategic partnerships empower nonprofits to have an immediate, effective, and lasting response.  Resources that flow-in after a crisis or disaster strikes through donation relief campaigns strengthen that response, as long as those resources match the nonprofits’ needs.

What nonprofits need most, especially when it comes to crises and disaster relief, are monetary donations and large quantities of needed, organized goods. Often (despite their best intentions), in-kind support donated by individuals does not align with the actual needs of the nonprofit and those they’re helping. For example, donors might run to their closet and send a bag full of clothing when really what the nonprofit needs are sleeping bags, shrink-wrapped pallets of bottled water, and fresh food. Through strategic partnerships with nonprofits, businesses serve as a key solution to this disconnect.  And according to employee donors surveyed in America’s Charities Snapshot Employee Research, 6 in 10 employees want to work for a socially responsible company where the culture supports their passion for volunteering and donating. For instance, whereas a strategic partnership with the community farmers’ market or grocery store, serves as a natural fit and reliable source for a nonprofit to access fresh ingredients and food donations they need (when they need it), cash donations made through an employer-sponsored disaster relief campaign will help fill the needs gap by providing the nonprofit with money to purchase necessary items like shrink-wrapped pallets of bottled water or sleeping bags.  By empowering employees to support the community through organized workplace giving and disaster relief campaigns, and forming strategic partnerships with nonprofits based on their needs and in-kind support your company naturally has to offer, businesses are an indispensable conduit for providing nonprofits much-needed resources – in times of crises AND all year-long. 

America’s Charities is proud to provide employers and their employees multiple ways to provide such support to nonprofits. Through America’s Charities’ employee giving solutions, charitable funds management, and strategic consulting services, we facilitate sustainable giving through workplace giving campaigns, volunteer opportunities, and can also help you turn your employees’ passion into action when crises and disasters strike by setting up a disaster/crisis relief campaign on your workplace giving website. 

More Disaster Relief and Recovery Resources:

• Tips to share with employee donors
• How to start a disaster recovery campaign through workplace giving
• America’s Charities Disaster Recovery Funds

The post Aligning Community Support with Nonprofit Needs in Times of Disaster and Other Crises appeared first on America's Charities.

However, so many options can be overwhelming and confusing – to employee donors as well as to the leaders tasked with coordinating their company’s employee giving and corporate philanthropy initiatives. How can a business help its staff most effectively raise money for causes they care about, create social change, and improve the world around us? Through workplace giving, one of the best-kept secrets to creating individual and collective social impact. 

I say “best-kept” secret simply because those who do, know. However, many still haven’t had the opportunity to try recurring payroll giving. Although workplace giving giving has been around for decades (upon decades), many still don’t understand how powerful recurring giving is for employers, staff, and the causes they support.

While America’s Charities continues to incorporate a variety of recurring donation approaches and methods into our suite of employee giving technology plus customer support options, recurring giving by payroll deduction (aka workplace/ employee/recurring/payroll giving) remains the most cost-efficient way to support nonprofits. In fact, it’s the driving force behind the success of the companies whose workplace giving campaigns we manage. Check out any of our free guides for examples and case studies of the collective impact made possible by workplace giving. 

But, and this is the crucial part, I hear you asking me: why? What makes payroll deduction giving more beneficial to charities, employee donors, and employers – especially compared to other donation payment methods? Beyond that, what would happen if we stopped payroll giving? Or, conversely, if there were even more recurring donations?

We’ve answered those questions when we’ve written about why workplace giving is the ‘unsung hero’ of charitable giving, why workplace giving supports tangible change, why employee volunteering makes good business sense, how the workplace was crucial in the face of COVID-19, and more – but don’t just take our word for it. 

America’s Charities seeks to unveil the secrets of workplace giving and specifically explain why recurring employee giving is so cost-effective in a series of conversations we titled Saving the World, One Paycheck at a Time. Listen to these on-demand webinars to hear from industry experts with whom we discussed the reality of payroll giving. We asked the tough questions so you don’t have to — and to their immense credit, these fearless guests didn’t hesitate to answer.

You’ll hear from Junelle Kroontje, Manager, King County Employee Giving Program (KCEGP), Seattle, Washington; Candi Maciel, Corporate Engagement Manager, Best Friends Animal Society; Willemijn Keizer, Director of Institutional Giving, Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC); Susan O’Brien, Manager of the New Jersey Employees Charitable Campaign (NJECC); and more. 

Go at your own pace as you browse the video series and presentation PDFs, then please, tell us what’s missing! What other questions need to be asked? What would help make the case for you and your organization? What information convinced you to give workplace giving a try? Just email us here to let us know.

Together, let’s make recurring payroll giving one of the worst-kept secrets to individual and collective social impact. 

>> Learn More

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“Segmentation” refers to grouping your supporters based on shared characteristics (e.g. age, donation history, geographical area, etc.) Identifying these common characteristics empowers your team to gain a deeper understanding of donors and what drives them to give. In turn, your marketing and fundraising teams can send tailored messages that appeal to each group, ultimately driving more value for your nonprofit.

If you’re early on in your nonprofit career or just need a refresher, we’re here to help. At Salsa, we empower nonprofits with the tools needed to connect with donors and build lasting relationships. We understand the value that segmentation can bring to all organizations. This quick guide will cover everything you need to know about getting started with donor segmentation, including:

• The benefits of donor segmentation
• The main challenge of donor segmentation
• Best practices for effective segmentation

So long as you have a thorough understanding of this strategy and intuitive online fundraising tools, you’ll be equipped to establish healthy supporter relationships. Ready to cover the basics of segmentation and gather actionable tips along the way? Let’s dive in.

Is workplace giving part of your fundraising strategy? Workplace donors provide your cause with funding all year long, and they give on average five times more than individual donors. Learn more in this Washington Post article, “How workplace giving supports tangible change.”

The Benefits of Donor Segmentation

Regardless of your nonprofit’s mission, donor segmentation is an important strategy that can substantially strengthen your support system. It enables your organization to communicate with donors in meaningful ways. While useful for all-sized organizations, this strategy is especially crucial for larger nonprofits with thousands of supporters.

When leveraged effectively, donor segmentation enables your marketing and development teams to:

• Deliver meaningful content that appeals to donors’ interests.
• Reduce the number of irrelevant messages to donors who don’t belong to certain segments.
• Ask for feasible donation amounts based on giving patterns (i.e. donation amount, frequency, etc.)
• Offer relevant additional engagement opportunities outside of donating.

When you don’t segment your donors, you risk losing them. When someone donates, they shouldn’t be tossed into a generic email list where they’re bombarded with a bunch of information that doesn’t pertain to them. This can easily lead them to unsubscribe and stop supporting your nonprofit altogether, and there’s a high chance that they’ll take their support to a different organization that personalizes their experiences. 

Studies have shown that as many as 94% of people who discontinued communications with a company did so because of irrelevant promotions or messages. Segmentation helps make your communications relevant, personal, and compelling.

The Main Challenge of Donor Segmentation

While segmentation has its benefits, it presents one major challenge that will work against your efforts: inaccurate data.

Inaccurate data can quickly derail your outreach and actually damage relationships rather than improve them. For instance, if you inaccurately record a supporter’s donation history, you may send a donation request that substantially exceeds their budget. Especially when they receive a lot of these appeals, your messages can come off as insensitive and may steer them away.

Maintaining an accurate database is crucial. As explained by AccuData’s guide to data hygiene, good hygiene involves addressing any “dirty data….containing errors, whether it’s outdated, incomplete, duplicated, or simply incorrect.” 

Acting on any false information can have major costs; that same guide estimates that incorrect information costs organizations around $3.1 trillion a year in the U.S. alone.

The easiest way to maintain good data hygiene is to leverage the right constituent relationship management (CRM) system. 

Your solution should automate data collection and pull data from all types of campaigns. When your fundraising and marketing software integrates with your nonprofit CRM, data collection is seamless. Everything will flow into a single system, eliminating manual entry and giving you a 360-degree view of your organization’s performance.

Even when you invest in a powerful CRM, it’s best to regularly clean up your data to ensure it’s as accurate as possible. So regularly check any data that looks out of line and address it quickly.

Best Practices for Effective Segmentation

While segmentation is certainly useful, it’s only effective when you apply best practices. With the right practices under your belt, your communication team will be able to quickly understand who they’re talking to, why they’re reaching out to them, and how to appeal to them. 

Your segmentation can either improve donor retention or (when ineffective) drive valuable supporters away. Let’s walk through a few ways you can make the most of segmentation.

1. Create meaningful donor segments.

An initial step that you’ll need to take is to determine which donor segments make the most sense for your nonprofit. There are several ways to group your donors, each of which will require prospect research, and your team will need to think about which donor segments are relevant to your cause and which contexts they can be used in. Many nonprofits group donors by:

• Giving history. You should be aware of how much and how frequently donors give. This will help you time your appeals and ask for the appropriate donation amount. Another point you’ll want to consider is if they’re a first-time donor or a returning donor. First-time donors often need extra support and outreach than repeat donors.

• Preferred communication methods. An appeal may be fully optimized to convert but go unnoticed because you didn’t contact the donor using the right platform. You can segment donors based on how they prefer to be contacted, whether it’s via email, phone call, direct mail, or some other means. It can also be worthwhile to consider how often they’d like to hear from you.

• How they were acquired. It’s crucial to know where each donor initially came from so you can make relevant appeals down the road. Common examples of this include your nonprofit’s website, social media, and events. There are many other ones to consider, though. For instance, they may have originally been a volunteer that converted to a donor.

Salsa’s guide to the best fundraising strategies for nonprofits explains that your team should track additional information beyond this. Your donor management software should also store valuable information like relationships (whether familial, business, etc.), demographics, interests, and biographical information.

Using segments like these, you can send out optimized communications that are more likely to encourage recipients to convert. For instance, you may choose to send a targeted fundraising ask based on a donor’s current giving level. In this case, it would make more sense to send out appeals based on giving history, rather than their communication preferences.

What do companies want from their nonprofit partners? Access the free report, America’s Charities Snapshot Nonprofit Research, to find out this answer and more. 

2. Deliver tailored fundraising asks.

We’ve briefly touched on the idea that segmenting your donor data allows you to deliver customized appeals. If your development team frequently sends generic appeals to your entire contact list, that’s a good way to drive them away from your cause.

Like we said early on, your donors want to feel your nonprofit cares about their experiences enough that you took the time to understand their preferences. Here are a few ways your team can tailor fundraising to fit different segments:

• Take their preferred giving methods into account. Tailor your asks to segments that prefer to give using a certain platform. For instance, a technologically inclined audience is much more likely to give if you send them online giving opportunities as opposed to sending direct mail appeals.

• Offer other engagement opportunities. What other activities have your donors participated in? For instance, maybe they regularly attend events or volunteer. Knowing this, your team can invite them to your next event or share an upcoming volunteer opportunity. That way, they can become more involved with other activities in addition to donating.

When you leverage your segments in smart ways, you can truly connect with donors and drive them to give. Each donor will receive appeals, invitations, and other opportunities that adhere to their specific interests.

3. Promote corporate philanthropy to the right donors.

After donors’ data flows into your nonprofit CRM, you can group them based on their corporate philanthropy eligibility. All sorts of businesses have a corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategy. Frequently, these include matching gift programs that can dramatically boost your organization’s fundraising potential. Here’s how this corporate social responsibility guide defines matching gifts:

“Matching gifts are a type of corporate philanthropy in which companies match donations that their employees make to nonprofit organizations.

When an employee makes a donation, they’ll request the matching gift from their employer, who then makes their own donation. Companies usually match donations at a 1:1 ratio, but some will match at a 2:1, 3:1, or even a 4:1 ratio.”

Some sources estimate that these opportunities generate $4-$7 billion for the nonprofit sector each year. Understanding your donors’ eligibility allows you to market the opportunity to the right individuals and secure any unclaimed fundraising dollars.

Be sure to capture employer data during the giving process. Your team can go into your CRM and flag everyone’s eligibility by searching a database like Double the Donation. Alternatively, use an integrated prospect research tool to automatically flag certain corporate affiliations.

Access a discount on Double the Donation’s employee matching gift tools, exclusively for America’s Charities nonprofit members! Learn more here.  

As we saw with the pandemic, the fundraising landscape can change drastically and without warning. As such, nonprofits should revisit their segmentation strategies to account for gaps and address evolving priorities. Regularly assess which segments you use and why. Doing so allows you to evaluate your segments’ performance and make adjustments.

When leveraged effectively, your donor segments can improve your fundraising tremendously. With all this in mind, how will you use your segments to strengthen your fundraising efforts and donor relationships?

About the author: 

Gerard Tonti is the Senior Creative Developer at Salsa Labs, the premier fundraising software company for growth-focused nonprofits. Gerard’s marketing focus on content creation, conversion optimization and modern marketing technology helps him coach nonprofit development teams on digital fundraising best practices.

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Increasingly, consumers around the world are looking for the phrase “cruelty-free” on cosmetics and other personal care products, keen to ensure that the shampoo, makeup or cream they are buying was produced without animal suffering.

Forty countries, nine Brazilian states and five U.S. states have already passed laws to end animal testing for cosmetics, so we’re well on our way toward reaching our goal of banning it in all major beauty markets worldwide by the end of 2023. We believe that consumers should be able to pick up a cosmetic product anywhere in the world and be confident that it is safe to use and free from any new animal testing.

Our #BeCrueltyFree campaign was instrumental in driving the European Union to become the world’s largest cruelty-free cosmetics market, and in securing similar victories in India, Taiwan, South Korea, New Zealand, Australia, Guatemala, Switzerland, and many more countries.

Today, we are leading 17 simultaneous legislative efforts in Brazil, Canada, Chile, Mexico, South Africa, Southeast Asia (ASEAN), Sri Lanka and the United States, where more than 335 cosmetics companies have independently endorsed the Humane Cosmetics Act—supported last Congress by 23 U.S. senators and 183 representatives—along with the nearly 600 member companies of the Personal Care Products Council. We are also leading efforts in states to prohibit the sale of animal-tested cosmetics including in Maryland, New Jersey, and Rhode Island.

In China—the last major market still to require animal testing for cosmetics—HSI is the only animal protection organization with a sustained effort to support training for local cosmetic companies, authorities and other stakeholders to achieve acceptance and widespread use of animal testing alternatives.

You can help us build a cruelty-free world with a gift to support our work. Below, we’ve detailed the challenges ahead, our record to date, the goals we can achieve and the financial resources we need to end this cruelty to animals.

Our Challenge

Despite the many achievements of our #BeCrueltyFree campaign, hundreds of thousands of rabbits, guinea pigs, mice and rats are still being used each year worldwide to test the safety of cosmetic products and ingredients.

These animals suffer terribly—when a cosmetic product or ingredient is rubbed onto the shaved skin or dripped into the eyes of restrained rabbits without any pain relief; in repeated force-feeding studies lasting weeks or months to look for signs of general illness or specific toxic effects; and even “lethal dose” tests in which animals are forced to swallow large amounts of a test chemical to determine the amount that causes death. At the end of these tests, animals who have survived are killed, normally by asphyxiation, neck- breaking, or decapitation.

Beyond their obvious cruelty, animal tests have scientific limitations, because different species can be more or less sensitive to the effects of chemicals or products—even closely related species such as rats and mice can differ greatly in their response to the same substance.

Consequently, results from animal tests have been shown to have limited relevance to humans. In addition, results from animal tests can be quite variable and difficult to interpret. Unreliable and ineffective animal tests mean consumer safety cannot be guaranteed.

In contrast, modern non-animal approaches to testing and safety assessment combine human cell-based models (e.g. 3-dimensional skin or corneas grown in the lab) and sophisticated computer predictions to deliver human-relevant results in hours or days, unlike some animal tests that can take months or years. To produce new cosmetics the cruelty-free way, many companies choose from among thousands of existing ingredients with long histories of safe use, together with modern non-animal testing methods. This has allowed more than 1,000 socially conscious companies to turn their backs on animal testing once and for all.

Our Support

The HSI/HSUS campaign to end cosmetic testing on animals differs from the efforts of other animal protection organizations in two significant ways: the depth and breadth of our work, and our impact. We have a pragmatic, long view approach, building partnerships with key stakeholders to achieve meaningful and lasting change.

This has allowed us to nurture long-term, fruitful relationships with leading global brands. (see below) In the U.S., the HSUS reached an agreement with the Personal Care Products Council, a trade group representing 90% of the cosmetics industry in the country, to work together to end animal testing for cosmetics through passage of the Humane Cosmetics Act.

This unprecedented base of support gives us the credibility and credentials to attract additional partners, and successfully engage with national industry associations, elected officials, health regulators, and other stakeholders to bring about a lasting transformation.

Reaching our public policy goals also requires us to support smaller companies and government health authorities to understand and become comfortable with modern, non-animal approaches to testing and safety assessment. For years HSI has supported hands-on training workshops in China, Brazil and elsewhere. Now, in partnership with global industry leaders under the Animal-Free Safety Assessment (AFSA) Collaboration, we are developing a comprehensive, multilingual curriculum that will be delivered through videos, webinars, in-person lectures and other means, to ensure that all stakeholders who will have to comply with new #BeCrueltyFree laws we are passing are fully equipped to do so.

Thank you for considering supporting our fight to end cosmetics testing on animals. Together, we can do this.

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Unfortunately some pet stores still choose to source their puppies from commercial dog breeding operations known as “puppy mills.” Behind the cute, fluffy puppies you see in those store windows is a very shady, cruel industry where dogs are treated horrifically.

Corporate America can be a good and an important ally to animal welfare leaders like the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) in the fight against all forms of animal cruelty – like puppy mills. In this article, we share some background and facts about puppy mills; highlight the positive results that have come from the HSUS’ work, and outline ways that businesses and their employees can join together to help the HSUS end the cruel treatment of dogs in mass breeding operations.

What Makes Puppy Mills and the Associated Pet Stores Bad

Every year, some 1 million adoptable dogs are euthanized in shelters in the US while puppy mills churn out an estimated 2 million puppies – and there are thousands of puppy mills currently operating across the United States. Life inside these intense breeding operations—which can see dogs crowded into someone’s basement, barn or shed, stacked in outdoor cages exposed to the elements, or hidden in a windowless concrete building. Mother and father dogs often spend their entire lives in the dark and in misery, deprived of basic needs like adequate food and water, medical care, fresh air or room to move freely. Mill owners treat them as breeding machines and the litters of puppies they produce as units of production. They hide the noise, smell and squalor by operating in rural areas. And they use deceptive advertising to hide the grim reality of where pet store puppies come from.

Although all 50 states have anti-cruelty laws, they are seldom applied to puppy mills if the dogs in question have the rudimentary basics of shelter, food and water. Mill dogs are often treated as agricultural “crops” and not as pets, with little concern for their health and well-being.

Puppy mill dogs are often sold to unsuspecting families despite having serious and even fatal health and hereditary conditions such as seizures, neurological conditions, liver disease, parvovirus, distemper, parasites, pneumonia, or skin and ear infections.

The Humane Society of the United States receives complaints from buyers of sick puppies on a daily basis—more than 5,300 in the last 10 years via our online complaint form, email and our puppy mill tip line. We have published the results of 10 years of complaints and stories from consumers who purchased puppy mill dogs. The accounts are heartbreaking and hard to read. And they are far too common.

It’s not unusual for puppies to seem healthy at the time of purchase— deadly diseases and conditions can have weeks-long incubation periods— only to become sick or even die within a few days of arriving in their new home. Some buyers report spending thousands of dollars trying to save the life of a sick puppy, with a few spending more than $10,000 on veterinary care to save the life or ease the suffering of a beloved pet.

What the HSUS is doing to Stop Puppy Mills:

The Humane Society of the United States is leading the fight to end retail sales of puppies, drive inhumane puppy mills out of business, strengthen care standards and oversight of mass breeding operations, and move consumers away from purchasing a pet and toward adoption. More than 35,000 homeless pets have been saved as a result of our Puppy Friendly Pet Stores conversion program, which encourages pet stores to help with homeless pet adoptions rather than selling commercially-raised puppies.

Our Animal Rescue Team has rescued more than 10,000 dogs;

• The Animal Rescue Team deploys to scenes of suspected cruelty and neglect at puppy mills and launches a rescue as soon as law enforcement gives the green light.
• Use the courts to hold retailers and mill operators accountable: Our findings and investigations have triggered multiple consumer lawsuits against retailers and mill owners and shut down dozens of mills and pet stores.
• Change bad federal policy: We got the US Department of Agriculture to crack down on the import of puppies from foreign mills, saving thousands of dogs from transport before they were fully weaned and vaccinated.
• Move customers toward adoption instead of purchases: Our Puppy Friendly Pet Stores program has helped more than 3,000 pet stores pledge not to sell puppies, and led to adoptions of more than 35,000 local shelter pets instead.

Our work on puppy mills has changed the landscape for dogs used in the breeding industry. We have helped pass 380 local ordinances and three state laws that end sales of commercially raised puppies (and other animals) in retail pet stores, carried out multiple undercover investigations that led to the closure of stores and mills, publicized violations and abuses by mill owners from inspection records and data, and run national campaigns that educate consumers about how and why to adopt their next family member from their local shelter or rescue group. In May 2020, the USDA finalized a new rule requiring commercial dog breeders to obtain regular veterinary care and vaccinations for dogs, provide continual fresh water, and to demonstrate compliance with the Animal Welfare Act before obtaining a new license. The rule encompasses several standards that HSUS requested in a 2015 legal petition to the agency and had been pressing the agency to adopt ever since.

How Businesses and Employees Can Help:

Our Stop Puppy Mills campaign exposes inhumane breeding operations and sales in states with high numbers of mills. We investigate suspected cruelty and neglect at pet stores that sell puppies from mills. We collaborate with and assist law enforcement authorities to enforce laws and prosecute offenders, and provide ongoing law enforcement training, tip lines, rewards, and investigations.

We’ve made great progress but much more needs to be done. And a large percentage of your employees and consumers care about what we are doing.

With your support, we will continue to:

• Expose cruel conditions at mills and animal neglect at pet stores
• Reduce the market for puppy mill dogs by restricting or banning retail sales, creating partnerships between pet stores and shelters and moving consumers toward adoption and responsible breeders.
• Enact strong standards of care and higher penalties for violations in the biggest puppy-producing states, reform US Department of Agriculture regulations for commercial dog breeding and ensure vigorous enforcement of oversight laws.
• Save dogs trapped in puppy mills through direct rescues and assistance to law enforcement and other rescue groups

As an employer, you can help us do this through multiple methods:

1. Campaign: Hold a workplace giving drive focused on this cause. Many people simply aren’t aware of the cruelty of puppy mills and pet stores that sell dogs. By featuring The Humane Society of the United States in your campaign, you can help the HSUS raise awareness about this growing problem, while providing employees with an easy, secure way to take action. While there are different ways employees can donate through workplace giving, the most popular method is via payroll deduction, which allows employees to have a small amount of money deducted from each paycheck each pay period for a year. For example, a gift of $130 total (just $5 per paycheck for 26 pay periods) will help the HSUS rescue one animal from a puppy mill. This is a perfect example of how an employee can make a larger contribution – and life-saving impact – and pay for it in small, more feasible installments, without losing the tax benefits of charitable giving. And because of this year-round sustained gift, organizations like the HSUS can more strategically use that donation to help protect and save animals. This article highlights a few more ways employee payroll donations can make an impact and help the HSUS protect animals.
2. Offer Employees Paid Time Off to Volunteer or Feature Current HSUS Volunteer Opportunities: The importance of workplace volunteering is accelerating –America’s Charities research has shown it is the second most important component of employee engagement programs, and the #1 motivation for workplace donors. As more companies have prioritized corporate volunteering and brought this spirit of innovation to their employee giving programs, they have seen the results: improvements in recruiting and retention, employee satisfaction, leadership and skill development, brand value, innovation, community relationships, employee health, and more. One way your employees can support the HSUS through volunteerism to give them paid time off to be Humane Policy Volunteer Leaders, to get involved with animal protection issues in your state through the HSUS’ ally program, or to feature current volunteer events on your employee volunteer platform by referencing this listing which helps you find opportunities based on location and virtual/at home opportunities.
3. Matching gifts and/or volunteer grants: An effective way to further demonstrate your company’s commitment to supporting its employees and amplifying their gifts to the HSUS is to match employee donations or offer to make grants to the HSUS based on how many volunteer hours employees give (known as Dollar for Doers service grants). Matching gifts is one of the top five motivations for workplace donors. In fact, 84% of donors say they’re more likely to donate if a match is offered, and 1 in 3 say they would give a larger gift if matching is applied to their donation. 
4. In-kind Gifts and Supply Drives: Hold a drive encouraging employees to donate items. The HSUS’ Animal Rescue Team has a hefty list of supply needs that varies based on the deployment. Some common supplies on that list (which is kept updated here) include, crates (airline and metal), pet beds, slip leads, food and treats, medical and preventative supplies, and toys.
5. Direct Donation Corporate Grants and Sponsorship: Making a direct donation via grant can help ensure the HSUS’ most urgent needs are meant and sponsoring an HSUS event helps underwrite the costs of the events so that all of the funds raised can go directly to our work. When you sponsor an event, your company will be affiliated with the leader in the fight for all animals. It’s an exciting way to connect with new and current customers in their daily lives and demonstrate your commitment to animal welfare.

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Alongside this shift, employee attitudes about philanthropy are changing, too. Research shows workers are willing to donate to charitable causes or give their time through volunteering— in fact, they’re excited to do so. So what does this mean for you?

If you’re an employer, this means better opportunities to foster employee engagement. If you’re a nonprofit fundraising professional, this means greater support for your cause. Whatever your perspective, you must first fully understand employee motivations to take advantage of growing charitable sentiments.

With this in mind, America’s Charities released a study exploring attitudes of American workers toward workplace giving, volunteering, and corporate social responsibility (CSR). The study found these top five motivations for employee giving:

1. Paid time off to volunteer
2. Employer matching gift programs
3. Easy-to-use online giving platforms
4. Volunteer grant opportunities
5. Ability to connect with colleagues and causes of their choosing

Here at Aly Sterling Philanthropy, our fundraising consultants have seen firsthand the benefits of strong bonds between nonprofits and the for-profit world. We’ll dive into this issue by first explaining why you should pay attention to trends in employee giving and what they mean for you. Then, we’ll describe the top five employee-giving motivations and provide additional tips for nonprofit professionals looking to steward donors to create long-lasting relationships. Let’s get started!

Why is employee giving so important?

Brands and nonprofits receive different benefits from employee giving, but they must work together to maximize these benefits. For nonprofit professionals, employee giving and corporate relationships can:

Expand your mission’s reach and build sustainable revenue

Nonprofits benefit from employee giving and corporate partnerships because of the fundraising boosts they provide. A central feature of these programs is payroll giving, enabling nonprofits to access recurring revenue all year long. In fact, workplace giving is considered one of the most cost-effective ways to support charities — because giving is aggregated, nonprofits save precious time and money processing a handful of larger donations throughout the year rather than thousands of individual payments along the way.

But these relationships are much more than just a funding stream. They also introduce your mission to a new audience that can bring novel ideas and a fresh perspective. Through consistent and deliberate stewardship efforts, these new audience members have the potential to become long-term supporters of your nonprofit — and even major gift donors.

Therefore, as a nonprofit professional, it’s important to analyze employee giving trends. Once you understand what drives donors, you can use your marketing platforms to encourage and empower your corporate partners to provide these enticing incentives. You’ll gain a revenue boost through increased fundraising and a community of new supporters along the way!

From the employer perspective, employee giving and community involvement can:

Enhance employee engagement and improve your brand image

By promoting employee giving and providing opportunities for community involvement, you can augment employee wellness and decrease burnout. People derive personal fulfillment and a sense of accomplishment from volunteering and donating, and leaning into this sentiment boosts employee morale.

These types of programs have also increasingly become an expectation. Research shows that 71 percent of employees want their employers to provide opportunities for them to help make a positive impact on the company’s social and environmental commitments, and community commitment is a factor when deciding where to work. CSR programs have gone from a “nice to have” job perk to a “need to have” program to retain employees.

Ultimately, emphasizing employee giving helps enhance your image as a socially-responsible business operation, which is particularly important now, as the world watches how brands respond to the pandemic.

With these benefits in mind, here are the top five employee motivations for getting involved with nonprofit causes, and how employers can respond to these desires:

Paid time off to volunteer

In its study, America’s Charities found that employees listed having paid time off to volunteer as the number one motivating factor for getting involved in charitable causes.

After working all day, taking care of kids or other family members, doing household chores, and running errands, many people find it hard to find free time to devote to volunteering. However, by receiving paid time off to get involved in a local organization, employees can contribute their time and energy without worrying about the million other things on their to-do lists.

In the study, employees expressed gratitude for employers who offer paid volunteering time, saying they appreciate employer investment in their personal growth and development outside of work.

A year after the COVID-19 pandemic first hit, virtual volunteer opportunities have become the norm. Much of the volunteering is skills-based, which not only helps workers support their communities but also develops their leadership skills and broader skill sets.

Next steps: As an employer, you likely provide other opportunities for paid time off, such as vacation time, sick time, and time to take care of personal needs. By adding paid time off for volunteering, you can invest in your employee’s overall wellbeing and promote greater community development in the process. Click here for five key steps to starting an employee volunteer and skills-giving program.

Employer matching gift programs

The existence of employer matching gift programs is another top motivating factor for employees to get involved in charitable giving. According to America’s Charities’ Definitive Matching Gifts Guide for Employers, these initiatives involve employers matching contributions made by their employees to eligible nonprofits, usually dollar for dollar up to a certain amount.

These programs are so exciting to charitable-minded employees because they can double, triple, or even quadruple the impact of their singular contributions. Employees respect corporations that put their money where their mouth is and actively support nonprofits that are close to their hearts. And 84 percent of donors are more likely to give – and another one in three would give more – if their gift is matched, meaning it’s an incredibly useful tool for nonprofits. Double the Donation offers nonprofits a widget to add to their website which makes it easy for donors to find out if their employer matches contributions.

Next steps: Be sure to investigate the process of starting up a matching gift program to get this initiative started within your organization. Or, if you already have a matching gift program, remind your employees of the opportunity and encourage them to submit their forms to capitalize on their donations.

Easy-to-use online giving platforms

People don’t want to waste time figuring out how to donate to an organization. On the corporate side, consider what matters most to you. Do you want a giving platform that integrates with your other human resources, CSR, or business processes? Do you want to do something quickly — say, help provide support after a natural disaster? Do you want a giving-only campaign or do you want to include aspects such as volunteering, gift matching, corporate grants management, and so on? What kind of reporting do you need, and how do you want to visualize the data and share it? Do you want to use your workplace giving platform to help define your corporate goals, or do you already have a clear set of goals, such as the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and your site needs to incorporate and reflect those goals?

On the nonprofit side, if a donation page or form is too confusing, many people will abandon it entirely rather than continue deciphering the various steps. Therefore, making sure donors can easily give to you, through a variety of mechanisms – including employee giving – is essential.

Next steps: Companies, check out this article that outlines four kinds of giving and engagement platforms available based on your goals and preferences. Nonprofits, if you’re creating your website or online donation page for your employees to support a specific organization, be sure to reference this guide for a few best practices. You must make your page easily accessible from your main site, responsive to all devices, and able to process multiple payment methods. You should also ensure your form fields are simple, perhaps by adding pre-filled gift suggestions, to make the donation process as smooth as possible.

Volunteer grant opportunities

Much like matching gift programs, volunteer grants also offer employees the opportunity to get more out of their contributions than they originally thought. However, rather than matching monetary donations, companies reward employees who volunteer a certain amount by donating a set amount of money to that charity where the employee volunteered. This maximizes the impact of their employees’ contributions, helps brands engage and support their employees, and burnishes a brand’s reputation. 

These grants, which are sometimes also known as Dollars for Doers grants, encourage employee volunteerism by empowering them to make an outsized contribution to important causes. Along with offering paid time off for volunteering and a matching gift program, volunteer grant opportunities enhance your standing as an altruistic organization dedicated to investing in causes that improve the world. Double the Donation has a comprehensive list of top volunteer grant programs.

Next steps: Show your employees you care about the causes and organizations that matter to them by implementing a Dollars for Doers program.

Ability to connect with coworkers

Employees emphasized having the opportunity to engage with colleagues as a top motivator for getting involved in charitable workplace giving. Employees often form groups to volunteer together, which creates deeper connections and friendships among coworkers. These improved relationships can contribute to smoother teamwork and better collaboration back at the office, too.

During this era of social distancing, staying connected with coworkers is essential, especially for employees who joined the team after the start of the pandemic. Virtual volunteering can be a great way for these new employees to meet the team and start forming relationships, and it can help old colleagues connect again in a new way. In many ways, workplace giving has become even more important during the pandemic — namely because these are digital programs that bring people together. 

Next steps: Learn the facts of employee giving and how you can make a difference while keeping your distance. Encourage employees to team up to participate in virtual volunteering tasks or socially-distanced volunteer opportunities. Consider sending out emails about upcoming volunteer opportunities or noting them on your shared calendar.

Tips for ongoing engagement

By now, employers likely have a good idea of how they can take employee motivations into account to promote giving and volunteerism for improved office culture. But how can nonprofit professionals make the most of increased employee altruism?

As this nonprofit consultant guide explains, access to diverse revenue streams helps nonprofits become more resilient. Utilizing multiple fundraising channels helps your organization weather crises and maintain consistent funding despite any disruptions. Your corporate partnerships are one of the many fundraising channels you must optimize to improve your long-term fundraising strategy.

For example, you might be carrying out a capital campaign that requires a significant amount of fundraising, and your corporate partners will be one of the key funding sources in that effort. The key to maximizing employee giving and corporate partnerships is improving your donor stewardship approach.

As a fundraising professional, your engagement with employee donors shouldn’t end when you receive a donation from them. It’s imperative that you follow-up with individual givers to thank them for their contributions and keep them engaged in your mission by providing frequent updates on your projects and programs. Through donor recognition efforts, you can transform these one-time or infrequent donors into long-term supporters of your organization.

Be sure to also check in regularly with your corporate partners to thank them for their support, highlight the benefits of matching gift and volunteer grant programs for your cause and ensure they’re promoting these initiatives to employees.

Whether you’re an employer or a nonprofit professional, you should now have a clear understanding of what drives employees to get involved in nonprofit causes and how their engagement benefits your organization. Use this knowledge to your advantage by actively incorporating employee motivations into your strategy moving forward. Good luck!

About the author: Long before Aly Sterling founded her eponymous consulting firm, she was solving the unique yet similar problems encountered by nonprofit organizations.

Her decision to start her own business in 2007 was driven by her belief in leadership as the single most important factor in organizational success, and her determination to work with multiple causes at one time to scale societal change.

Aly’s expertise includes fundraising, strategic planning, search consultation, and board leadership development for the well-positioned nonprofit. She is regularly sought for comment by trade and mainstream media, including the Chronicle of Philanthropy and U.S. News & World Report. She has contributed to publications of BoardSource and The Governance Institute, as well as the Toledo Chamber of Commerce and The Giving Institute.

The post What Motivates Employees to Give? Exploring Top Incentives appeared first on America's Charities.