What’s not to love about a match package?

If you don’t know what I’m talking about you are missing a classic in your direct marketing program. As traditional as grandmother’s pearls, yes. But you can make it modern and effective with a few simple twists.

So what’s a match package? Simple. You tell your donors that every dollar they give will be matched by someone else – usually a major or corporate donor. That’s it. Read a little later about how to find your matching gift donor. But first, let’s dust off this old gem and make it shine.

Three things I love about match packages:

1. Brilliantly simple. No complicated offer, no intricate reply form. You give and it will be matched. Your gift gets doubled. You give once and help twice. As you can see, brilliantly simple…and a copywriter’s dream. So many good ways to turn the phrase! And it’s also fun for the creative types. Check out what we did to make the matching gift offer be part of the copy and the letter layout for UNICEF Canada. Note the ink strike-outs in the middle of the page, and the gift array treatment on the coupon. We also got to explore the personality of the major donor who initiated the match by using a lift note.

2. Shockingly effective. Your average gift? Goes up. Your response rate? Goes up. Your total revenue? Goes up. Enough said.

3. Your donors get it. They immediately understand that this is a rockin’ offer, and that they should get on board. You make it even stronger by adding a deadline into the call to action. Here’s what we did for The Hearing Foundation of Canada: we had fun with the “double Santa arm” to make a visual representation of the match offer, and also included the deadline. We echoed the deadline on the reply envelope to give another push to return.

One…two…three…That’s the fundraising trifecta!!

As to making it modern – a dedicated URL so that donors can give online, access more information about the campaign, profile of the matching donor. You can also create an involvement device where donors add a “make it double” sticker to the reply card, for instance.

Yes, I promised a word on finding your matching gift donor. Two approaches. One, you have a major or corporate donor who is itching for a different way to be recognized. Enter: matching gift offer. They get some love, your donors get a fresh ask and you get more money. Another trifecta!

Second approach. The cheater approach. I believe in crafty cheating, so I love this version. You take an existing donor in a multi-year pledge and ask them if they’ll use their gift to inspire others. They feel good, You look good. You raise more money. Another trifecta!

See, what’s not to love? A trifecta of trifectas!