Skip to main content
CauseMic Work with us

United Way of Greater Cincinnati

Diversifying Human Services Fundraising Beyond Workplace Giving

CauseMic built UWGC a plan to diversify revenue beyond workplace giving, which accounted for more than 90% of its budget.

The Challenge

United Way of Greater Cincinnati (UWGC) helps families flourish by bringing together community voices, data, individuals, and organizations to address challenges across education, financial resilience, and housing stability.

For decades, workplace or employee giving generated more than 90% of UWGC’s annual revenue. But steep declines post-pandemic exposed the need for new revenue streams and more ways for donors to give directly to UWGC.

The organization also wanted to strengthen its relationships with Workplace Corporate Partners (the businesses whose employees participate in workplace giving) but wasn’t sure where to start.

woman handing a child a backpack over a table of backpacks

UWGC reached out to CauseMic with questions like:

  • How can we diversify our revenue streams?
  • How do we develop a unified message to use across our fundraising campaigns?
  • How can we build trust with our existing donor base and inspire them to donate more through annual and monthly giving?
  • How can we improve ties with our Workplace Corporate Partners?

Our Solutions

We analyzed UWGC’s donor data, talked with their philanthropic partners, and helped clarify the story they needed to tell in order to broaden their fundraising base.

Revenue Diversification

  • To identify audiences for annual and monthly giving, we analyzed UWGC’s existing donor base, including giving frequency, gift size, and affiliation.
  • We then identified opportunities to expand direct giving and developed easy-to-understand appeals and plainspoken messaging to connect with individual donors.

Workplace Giving Optimization

  • We interviewed philanthropic partners to identify strategic and tactical gaps in their relationships with UWGC.
  • Those conversations revealed a need to make UWGC’s work easier to understand. To better communicate with Workplace Corporate Partners, we refined UWGC’s value proposition.

Content Strategy

  • We centered the organization’s supporting messaging on UWGC’s holistic approach to helping families thrive across financial, educational, and housing challenges—a true differentiator from similar organizations.
  • For a more cohesive donor experience, we developed a comprehensive content planner and strategy calendar across UWGC’s campaigns.

The Results

An Actionable Path to Diversified Revenue

  • UWGC now has a clear plan to diversify revenue beyond workplace giving, including strategies for expanding annual and monthly giving.
  • CauseMic’s research, analysis, and partner interviews are currently being used to strengthen relationships with existing and prospective Workplace Corporate Partners.