Campaign Planning
Welcome to your guide to running a seamless United Way campaign! As a Campaign Ambassador, your commitment to hosting a workplace campaign makes our community stronger. Whether your campaign is virtual or in person, these tips and resources will help you from start to finish.
Helpful Resources
These links will help provide quick resources to guide you through your campaign.
Ambassador Trainings
Running a Campaign: Step-by-Step
Use these steps to access materials, checklists, and resources to guide you through your campaign.
Before the Campaign
- Start with the Ambassador Guide & Checklist.
- Attend an ambassador training.
- Set up your online giving site. Create a giving site to provide an easy and efficient way for those in your organization to make donations electronically. Learn how to get started.
- Assemble a campaign team. Assemble a campaign team to help engage different departments and expand your reach within your organization.
- Engage leadership. Recruit leaders at your organization to participate in the campaign by being part of campaign videos, emails and/or encouraging their employees to donate to United Way.
- Set a campaign goal. Set a campaign goal that your campaign team and employees can rally behind. Determine your goals based on the previous year’s performance, opportunities, and challenges. Learn how your company can receive recognition.
- Plan activities & prizes. View our list of Fundraising Activities below to get started. Don't limit yourself to those - get creative! Consider also offering prizes (like a day off with pay, flee at 3 coupon, gift cards, or virtual classes) for participating in campaign activities and/or donating.
During the Campaign
- Host a kickoff! Host a company meeting (virtually or in person), announce your goals, and share the “why” of United Way with your colleagues. Welcome a United Way speaker to join your kickoff or play a United Way video to inspire colleagues.
- Communicate daily updates. Connect with the United Way mission by sharing stories, videos, examples of what dollars can do, what nonprofits we fund, and who we help. Send an email every day of your campaign and consider using our templates for running a 10 Day email campaign along with some Daily Facts to spice up your email communications. Check out more resources at the bottom of the page!
- Make the ask. People give to people. Remind your time about the power of even a small gift by using our Impact Calculator. When engaging your CEO in your communication strategy, consider sharing this CEO email template.You can promote United Way’s Leadership Society and Donor Networks. Don't forget, you can also ask retirees - here is a retiree letter template.
- Promote incentives for giving. People love perks! Promote any corporate match, corporate gifts, or other incentives to increase contributions. United Way also has a Give & Win Sweepstakes and matching dollars to encourage your colleagues to give.
- Share on social media. Post the video to your company intranet and encourage leadership to record update videos to share how your campaign is going and if you’ve reached campaign goals. Share ways coworkers can post about the campaign on their social media pages, too. View some Social Tips and Social Media Toolkit.
After the Campaign
- Complete pledges. Collect any paper pledge forms and remind your colleagues to get their pledges in electronically if they haven’t yet! Follow up on corporate contributions or employee matches before calculating the results.
- Report results to United Way. Communicate with your United Way staff member(s) regarding the final totals of your United Way workplace campaign. Use United Way's Report Envelope to submit paper pledge forms, checks, and cash. View a Report Envelope sample.
- Announce your results. Shout from the rooftops! Announce your outstanding results to all employees. Share your success on your social media channels and in other employee communications.
- Thank donors. Send personalized thank you cards or gifts to donors – even better if leadership recognizes donors. Highlight donors of a certain level on a team call or monthly e-newsletter. If possible, host an event for leadership donors ($1,200+).
Order United Way Branded Apparel
Looking to order shirts in bulk? Contact Angeline Day at Will Enterprises via email or call 414.751.7638.
What are other Ambassadors doing?
"We’re a geographically vast organization. Our department champions are invaluable in getting our messages to the frontlines. These volunteers are trusted by their colleagues and are adept at delivering the campaign messaging in a way that will engage the individuals in their respective areas. This is key to reaching the masses."
- Robert Kennedy,
We Energies
"At Johnson Controls, we believe in the power of leadership to drive community engagement through our United Way campaign. Our Executive Committee leads a dynamic competition, collaborating on unique campaign strategies that encourage and empower every member of our team to make a meaningful impact. This approach not only energizes our campaign but also reflects our commitment to leading the way in corporate giving, showcasing our drive to create meaningful change in our community."
- Charmyse White,
Johnson Controls
"Our most effective special event is our daily drawings. The company has been generous in offering available resources (Packers tickets, parking spots, small grants to nonprofit of choice, etc.) for these drawings. Employees know that the sooner they pledge, the more drawings they qualify for. Because of this, we typically will reach 60-65% of our dollar goal during the first two days of the campaign."
- Thomas Rosenthal,
Northwestern Mutual
“Over the years, the CEO and Ambassador have taken the lead on the campaign. This past year, we asked two shareholders to be ‘Campaign Co-Chairs’ to increase the number of people championing our efforts. We thought it was important to diversify the voices leading the campaign and allow firm members to hear multiple perspectives on why it’s important to support United Way. We find that the more leadership buy-in we have, the more others become invested as well.”
- Molly Brauer, Reinhart
“One of Weyco Group’s best practices during our workplace campaign is encouraging employees from all departments to get involved in planning and volunteering. Not only does this help make the campaign more successful, but it also creates opportunities for employees to connect with coworkers they may not work with every day. These shared experiences foster collaboration, strengthen relationships, and help bring our Weyco community together while supporting a great cause.”
- Madison Fiedler, Weyco Group
