Can employee engagement and corporate giving go hand-in-hand? Every year around this time fundraising managers plans for a big outcome. They vow that this time it will be different. Employees will not only want to donate to the company’s fundraising efforts, but they will exceed donation expectations. They will even do so with joy and enthusiasm.
This usually ends up being more fantasy than reality. The company-wide pep talks, email reminders, and donation cards results? Ignored, deleted and dropped in the recycle bin. The old way of asking for employee donations offers no real employee engagement. Here are new, more effective ways to engage employees in your donation efforts:
Matching Employee Funds
Matching employee funds with money from the corporate social responsibility fund is a great idea. When the company gives, employees get the message that corporate cares as much as they do about this cause.
Let Employees Decide
Give your employees autonomy to decide where their donation money goes. Staff want to see money do good things in the local community. Ask employees for direction on where to send funds, and allow employees to restrict and dedicate funds to only their chosen causes.
Offer Alternate Sources of Fundraising
Along with payroll deductions, there’s crowdfunding, old-fashioned bake sales, and car washes. Other ideas include carnivals, road races, charity balls, and social media platforms. Corporate social responsibility managers who understand these alternative sources and encourage their proper use increase their fundraising levels.
Ask your staff for feedback and focus on the fundraising options they are most excited about. This will boost engagement and buy-in.
Make Social Responsibility Real
Don’t just tell your employees about why they should donate. Introduce them directly to the charities their money serves. As part of the giving period, host a corporate charity event. Brand your company as a socially responsible charitable partner. Arrange for your employees to visit the foundation’s offices. Alternatively, have the charity’s beneficiaries come by your corporate offices. They can speak to employees directly about what their contributions mean.
Make fundraising a contest
Reward your staff’s generosity and foster some healthy competition with a fundraising contest. Concert or movie tickets and gift cards for local restaurants and services are practical and always appreciated. This is a great way to say “Thanks for helping the effort!”
Keep employees updated
Keep your employees in the loop with regular meetings, emails, and reminders. Set reasonable weekly fundraising goals and announce their achievement. This helps keep momentum going and lets your staff feel fully engaged.
Put Your Staff in Charge of Fundraising
Your corporate social responsibility manager is the point person, but you can give other employees jobs as well. Staff can help create posters, send out mailings, or coordinate party menus and chair committees. It’s usually best to keep this optional so that staff who are already spread too thin don’t become stressed out.
Make Use Of Local Television and Radio Stations
Nonprofits and companies fundraising for them are usually granted free airtime. Why not gather your most energetic and outgoing employees to go on live TV and morning drive-time radio programs? Give them a chance to tell the public what your company is doing for the greater good, in their own words.
Help Your Staff Tell Their Stories
Create a “My Story” tab on your company’s fundraising page: Employees helped by charities have a true tale to tell. Encourage them to do so and personalize the giving. Offer them choices, such as publishing their photo and a blog or an embedded video. Be sure to include a link back to the employee’s personal fundraising page.
Pair the donation campaign with another popular event
The Super Bowl, March Madness, the World Series, and the Olympics are sporting events perfect for matching with your company fundraiser. Decorate the office with a theme, divide into teams and use sports terms to encourage giving. Prizes for the most money raised can include tickets to home teams’ games.
Givinga Provides the Platform For Employee Engagement
Let’s make your corporate charitable efforts as easy as possible. Givinga’s online platform connects employees, their donation account, and the community. The platform provides an intuitive and flexible contribution process. Givinga also offers full accountability and reporting. Employees can adjust donation amounts, create multiple donation accounts and direct the money to specific causes, all through a single site. Have questions about how it works? Contact us anytime for a free demo.
