Match Designation Settings: Follow the Fund Matches

Matching gifts are an incredible way to motivate additional support from your community. When establishing a matching gift, you can decide how the matching dollars are designated based on your strategy and the preference of the matching donor.

Follow the Fund matches provide enhanced flexibility for offline matches around the designation(s) of the matching dollars.

Match designation options

Option 1: Single designation

All match dollars are credited to one fund, even if the triggering gift supports another fund.

Example:

• A match is $1 per $1 up to $10,000, designated to Scholarships.

• A donor gives $10 to Financial Aid.

• $10 is matched to Scholarships.

• Campaign totals increase by $20 ($10 donor + $10 match).

• Financial Aid leaderboard increases by $10. Scholarships leaderboard increases by $10.

• When completed, the full $10,000 match is designated to Scholarships.

Option 2: Follow the Fund

Matched dollars follow the donor’s actual gift designations, distributing proportionally if more than one designation is selected.

Example:

• A match is $1 per $1 up to $10,000, set to Follow the Fund.

• Donor 1 gives $10 to Financial Aid. $10 is matched to Financial Aid.

• Donor 2 splits $25 to Soccer and $50 to Business. They are matched with $25 to Soccer and $50 to Business.

• Campaign totals increase by $150 ($75 donor + $75 match).

• Soccer leaderboards increase by $50. Business School leaderboards increase by $100.

• When completed, the $10,000 match may be spread across many funds.

Follow the Fund reporting

• Go to your Campaign Settings > Motivation & Sharing > Matches & Challenges tab of your campaign settings.

• Click the Download arrow next to the match.

• Report shows each gift that triggered the match and the “Matched Amount.”

• Donors who split gifts appear as multiple rows (one row per designation).

Example:

• $100 per donor match: Donor gives $10 to Soccer → matched $100 to Soccer.

• $1 per $1 match: Donor gives $10 to Soccer and $50 to Baseball → report shows 2 rows ($10 Soccer, $50 Baseball).

Follow the Fund scenarios

1. Split gifts

Match dollars are divided across designations in the same ratio as the donor’s gift.

• $ per $ match: Donor gives $10 to Soccer + $25 to Annual Fund. Match releases $10 to Soccer + $25 to Annual Fund.

• $ per donor match: Donor gives $10 to Soccer + $25 to Annual Fund. Soccer is 29% of the total, Annual Fund is 71%. Match releases $29 to Soccer + $71 to Annual Fund.

2. Split gifts with restricted matches

If a match only applies to certain designations, Follow the Fund dollars are distributed only across eligible designations.

• $ per $ match: $1 per $1, only Athletics. Donor gives $10 to Soccer (eligible) + $25 to Annual Fund (not eligible). Match releases $10 to Soccer, $0 to Annual Fund.

• $ per donor match: $100 per donor, only Athletics. Donor gives $10 to Soccer (eligible), $50 to Baseball (eligible), $25 to Annual Fund (not eligible). Match releases $17 to Soccer + $83 to Baseball.

3. Recurring gifts

Recurring gifts follow the same rules, with time-bound and indefinite gifts treated differently.

• Time-bound recurring: Donor gives $10/month for 1 year → Match releases $120 to Annual Fund.

• Indefinite recurring: Donor gives $10/month ongoing → Match releases only the first installment ($10).

4. Joint gifts

Joint gifts count both donors for per-donor matches.

• $ per $ match: No change. Donor gives $10 to Soccer with joint donor → Match releases $10.

• $ per donor match: $100 per donor. Donor gives $10 to Soccer with joint donor → Match releases $200 ($100 for each donor).

5. Max amount matched per donor

When matches cap the amount per donor, Follow the Fund splits the capped amount by gift ratio.

• Example: $1 per $1 Follow the Fund match, up to $100 per donor. Donor gives $100 to Soccer + $50 to Annual Fund. Only $100 can be matched. Match releases $67 to Soccer + $33 to Annual Fund.

Offline gifts and Follow the Fund

• Offline gifts count the same way as online gifts if entered during the match.

• They are included in Follow the Fund reports.

• Adjusting designations later does not change how match dollars were distributed.

Need help?

If you have questions about Follow the Fund matches, reach out to support@givecampus.com. Please include your campaign link and the name of the match.