How to Gamify Giving Season

The year-end giving season is fast approaching. With the charitable sector facing a downward trend in giving, we must adapt and implement effective strategies to incentivize donations. 

Gamifying year-end fundraising is a powerful approach to increase donations. Gamification looks like employing tactics to boost giving such as offering matching gifts and creating urgency through challenges. Once established, gamification requires charities to successfully communicate and promote these opportunities in order to engage donors and secure larger contributions.

Grounded in extensive research, donor insights, and expertise from industry professionals, here are our tips for gamifying your year-end fundraising campaign and making it your most successful one yet. Find all of these tips and more in our new eBook.

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1. Matching Campaigns 💝  

Offering to match gifts is a philanthropic strategy in which companies or major donors pledge to match donations made by other individuals within a specified timeframe.

Matching gifts are known to substantially increase the impact of individual contributions by encouraging donors to give, or to give more, knowing their donation will be matched. For instance, when an employee donates to a charity, their employer may match that donation dollar-for-dollar, effectively doubling the contribution to the charity.

Tips for Securing Matching Gifts:

• Write a list of potential partners who the financial capacity to match donations
• Begin with individual or corporate sponsors who have a history of supporting your charity
• Focus the value your matching campaign will bring to the sponsor
• Draw upon their Corporate Social Responsibility values
• Emphasize how their matching commitment will inspire other donations and make a significant impact
• Use data, statistics and real success stories to illustrate your points and bring your pitch to life

Once your matching gift is secured, ensure you formalize the agreement. Draft a detailed document that clearly outlines the terms of the matching gift. Important aspects of your agreement are: the matching ratio (e.g., 1:1, 2:1), the maximum matching threshold, the campaign’s duration, and expectations around publicly acknowledging the matching gift and in what capacity. 

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2. Time-Limited Challenges ⏳

Time-limited giving challenges are a powerful tactic that will bring intensity and generate a sense of urgency to your fundraising campaign. Time-based challenges work by encouraging donors to act quickly or ‘miss out’ on the opportunity to have a bigger impact.

Tips for Time-Limiting Challenges:

1. Set goals and establish specific targets
2. Clearly announce the start and end times
3. Keep your audiences informed by sharing updates

Expect the most donations to arrive at the end of your time window. It’s crucial to announce the deadline for donors to give. The last chance is the period with the greatest sense of urgency attached to it.  

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3. Set and Track Goals 🌡️

Just in time for Giving Season CanadaHelps unveiled a new game-like fundraising feature. In your charity account you can now set targets, and create and track your fundraising campaign goals. Charities can program in targets for three key fundraising metrics

1. Amount (dollar value) of donations you want to raise
2. Number of donors you want to receive from
3. Number of contributions you hope to receive

Once entered, you have access to metered tracking with a progress bar that showcases how close or far-away you are to achieving targets for funds raised, number of donations or donor goals within your desired timeframe.

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4. Communicate and Promote 📬

Optimizing Giving Season results relies on effectively communicating and highlighting the engaging aspects of your giving campaign at every touchpoint.

A multichannel communication strategy that aligns with your brand’s values and message is recommended. Be mindful of the frequency and timing of donation requests to avoid overwhelming your audience.

Recommended Donor Touchpoints:

• Email: Send personalized emails to your donor list, detailing the matching gift opportunities and challenge specifics. Include clear calls-to-action and links to your donation page.
• Social media: Use platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to share eye-catching graphics, videos, and stories about matching gifts and challenges. Utilize hashtags and encourage supporters to share your posts.
• Website and blog: Feature matching gift information prominently on your homepage and in blog posts. Include banners, pop-ups, and countdown timers to highlight time-limited challenges.
• Direct mail: Send letters or postcards to your donors, explaining the matching gift program and challenge details.
• Phone calls: Especially for high-value donors, picking up the phone and initiating a conversation can go a long way.

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5. Acknowledge and Thank 🙏

Showing appreciation for donor generosity is the cornerstone of building retention and satisfaction. Since relationships are fostered over the long term, the thank you piece is essential for forming lasting relationships. 

As fundraising season draws nearer, set your charity up for success by gamifying your year-end campaign. Implementing fun, incentivizing strategies like matching gifts and time-limited challenges, and effectively communicating them, can be the lynchpin that drives engagement and maximizes fundraising contributions. 

For more information see CanadaHelps’ new ebook on year-end fundraising. It contains practical tools and detailed step-by-step information, designed to take charities through the end-to-end giving process. 

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This is the third installment of our blog series on year-end fundraising. Check out Part 1 for How to Plan and Prepare and Part 2 for How to Craft Messages and Calls to Action.