Workplace Giving for Small Businesses: 3 Best Practices

Workplace giving is soaring in popularity. According to Double the Donation, 65% of Fortune 500 companies have a matching gift program, and 94% of major U.S. corporations plan to maintain or expand their giving over the next few years.

However, you don’t have to be a major enterprise to participate in and see the benefits of workplace giving. There are plenty of ways your small business can give back, strengthen ties with its community, and make a lasting impact on the world.

Let’s walk through three best practices to help your business stand out from the crowd and engage employees in a culture of giving.

1. Use technology to streamline your program.

Thanks to modern technology, your small business can implement various workplace giving initiatives without worrying about the administrative workload. There are plenty of corporate social responsibility (CSR) tools that will automate your giving and volunteering processes.

Some of the most helpful features to look for include:

Matching gifts: Automatically approve or deny requests to match employee donations to nonprofits by setting minimum and maximum amounts, ineligible causes, and more.

Volunteering: Make it easy for employees to search for volunteer opportunities in their local areas and log their hours to determine their eligibility for volunteer grants.

Event management: Plan, promote, and organize dedicated volunteering events for your employees to support specific causes and boost team building.

Reporting: Access real-time reports on your impact and employee participation to refine your strategies over time.

Once you’ve pinpointed a few potential platforms that fit your needs, Uncommon Giving’s CSR software guide recommends requesting demos to see the specific features in action and then training users on your chosen solution to maximize participation from the start.

2. Focus on your local impact.

As a small business owner, you know the importance of prioritizing your time and resources. The same principle applies to workplace giving. Instead of spreading yourself too thin across global causes, focus your energy and resources on local organizations where you can make a stronger, longer-lasting impact.

Partner with nonprofits in your area to:

Contribute in-kind gifts that support their missions, from canned food to computers.

Sponsor fundraising events by covering venue, marketing, and other related costs.

Donate a percentage of sales during certain times of the year, such as holidays or major giving days.

Plan employee volunteering days to lend skills and time to these organizations.

When researching potential partners for your small business, look for those that align with your mission and values. For example, let’s say you run a bookstore dedicated to enriching your community with stories and cultural events. You might provide reading materials and volunteers to a local nonprofit that organizes after-school reading programs for students or one that hosts writing workshops to empower people who are incarcerated.

3. Gamify employee participation.

The more employees get involved, the more your workplace giving program thrives. Build excitement by incorporating gamification elements that make participation enjoyable—not stressful.

For example, your small business can set up:

Leaderboards: Award points to employees when they complete certain activities, such as donating or signing up to volunteer, and use a leaderboard to track participation. Allow them to redeem rewards, such as a gift card or a branded t-shirt, when they meet certain thresholds.

Team competitions: Spark a little friendly competition by encouraging teams or departments to pick a cause and donate as much money or volunteer as many hours as they can during a certain week or month. Award the winner a free lunch or match the total amount of their donations to the nonprofit.

Matching gift challenges: Arrange a matching gift challenge with one of your nonprofit partners, where you set a specific challenge amount (e.g., $1,000 or $5,000). If employee donations reach that amount by a predetermined deadline, your company will contribute twice that amount to the nonprofit.

Test out one or two gamification strategies at a time to identify which are most effective in boosting employee giving participation at your small business.

Once your workplace giving program is up and running, maintain momentum by recognizing employees for participating. Shout out your most engaged employees on your website and social media pages, highlighting how they’ve made a difference. Send out surveys once or twice a year to learn more about their experiences and seek feedback on improvements you can make to your program.

By taking an improvement-focused approach, you’ll turn your budding workplace giving program into flourishing opportunities for employee engagement and lasting impact.