Charities Missing Out on Millions from Workplace Giving

Australian charities are missing out on millions of dollars in potential funds from workplace giving, according to a landmark report.

Not for Profit Good2Give released Australia’s most comprehensive study into workplace givers on Tuesday, and CEO Lisa Grinham said the key findings should serve as a wake up call for charities who need to improve their engagement practices.

“Charities need to take the training wheels off when it comes to engaging workplace givers and extend communications to grow their relationship with these passionate supporters,” Grinham said.

“When we discuss the hard times that are emerging for charities amidst our funding backdrop, this workplace giver relationship needs to be prioritised and nurtured.

“Fundamentally, there is a significant gap between what employees are willing to give and their existing donation levels.”

The report, Workplace Givers Revealed, found that donor communication was integral to leveraging goodwill and boosting participation, with 60 per cent of workplace givers valuing stories and progress updates from charities. Four out of five givers also wanted to know about the impact of their donation.

“Workplace givers told us that regular progress reports of the impact their donation makes them feel ‘valued’ and ‘appreciated’. Hard facts and emotional stories are both effective techniques to inspire ongoing support,” Grinham said.

“This guidance is about growing meaningful communication with supporters and working from the assumption that Australians largely want to deepen their relationship to their community.

“If given the opportunity, ease and confidence that they’re supporting charities in a valuable way, workplace givers are wonderfully generous and looking for opportunities to deepen that connection.”   

The report, which surveyed 1,000 workplace givers, showed that almost half were willing to increase their donations, and 26 per cent were open to set this to the requested amount.

The report said that to tap into this goodwill, charities  must communicate the community need and provide clear guidance on recommended support and donation levels.

They should also encourage increases at Christmas, end of the financial year and periodically as the giving relationship deepens.

“While these findings backup common sense, what this research does drive home is that there are essentially millions in funds available to charities if they simply asked,” Grinham said.

“As long as the case is made, workplace givers just need to be reminded that it’s important for them to increase regular donations, annually and at times of heightened need.”

Charities have the opportunity to leverage support from workplace givers through non-financial avenues. Compared to general public givers, they were 20 per cent more likely to support Australian charities.

The results showed that, on average, workplace givers were involved in five different methods of charity support – they volunteer, fundraise, advocate for social justice, support friends putting on charity events, and take part in broader community events.

Workplace givers were also found to be more vocal about communicating their donor activity. They were 16 per cent more willing to share their charity involvement through their networks than the average donor.

The report explained that this was partly because workplace givers represent a younger demographic – 74 per cent of general donors in Australia are between 50 and 74 years of age, but 69 per cent of workplace givers are aged between 18 and 49 years.

“Their use of technology, younger age bracket, and general passion for their charities of choice are likely explanations for the increased willingness to self-promote their charitable support,” the report said.