small business owner

Mar

2017

5 Ways to Leverage your Company’s Philanthropy RIGHT NOW!

Philanthropy: Get involved, get noticed, ASAP

While some companies focus on giving back once or twice a year, many are able to incorporate their philanthropy into their year-round business model. While the work of actually getting started can seem daunting, there are so many simple ways to incorporate your philanthropy into your business model in order to make a big difference in your community and get noticed.

If you are already doing philanthropic work, awesome! Share it with your customers, followers, fans, and friends! If you are not fully incorporating your philanthropy into your business model, here is how you can go about it.

By now, you may or may not have seen our post about how having a philanthropy and sticking to it can improve engagement. If you have not read it, you can do so right HERE.

There are actually so many ways to get involved and do work that suits your company’s philanthropy. Yes, donations help, but have you ever thought of donating your time?

1. Community Service Projects

Stepping out of your office for a few hours is really all it takes! Nonprofits put on events to help support areas of need and seek volunteers just like YOU! Let’s say your philanthropy is to support environmental growth efforts. You can participate in local events that involve planting trees and cleaning up beaches and gardens. Many cities offer local community service projects, and I have found volunteermatch to be a great source for finding local organizations that are seeking volunteers for their events.

2. Pro-Bono Work

Pro-Bono work refers to free services that professionals in a field provide to nonprofit groups, poverty-stricken clients or generally just people in need. For instance, let’s say you are a graphic designer. You could provide your services to a local homeless shelter looking to design a brochure to give to potential donors. You would volunteer your time to creating this for an organization that may not have the funds or the background to be able to successfully do this task on their own. Maybe you are a technology wiz! There are plenty of organizations that are seeking out computer-literate volunteers to help seniors learn basic computer skills. Your skills can go to use in helping others that may not have your unique skillset.

3. Scholarships

There are so many students that lack the funds to pursue higher education. If your company has the funds to support a student in need, why not offer them an opportunity to apply for a scholarship? You can limit it to just students in a certain demographic, students pursuing a specific degree or track of study, or even students that demonstrate a passion for the philanthropy that your organization is also passionate about! The great part about offering a scholarship is that there is no limit to how much funds you offer this student or to how MANY students you provide with scholarships. It is important to tie this opportunity back into the mission of your company and also your marketing plan.

4. Fundraising

Whether you are planning on creating your own fundraiser or participating in one, this can aid the process of fulfilling your philanthropy. Can your company raise funds for a cause? Participate in a charity 5k? One fundraising method that comes to mind is donating a percentage of what you make from selling your products or services to a cause that matters to you. You can even ask your customers if they would like to round their total to the next dollar to support the cause. These small contributions can make a large difference and leave lots of room for you to promote your company and efforts.

5. Product Donations

Product donations are essential to the growth and stability of many organizations. It could be as simple as donating canned goods to a local food pantry or even donating extra supplies you may have around your office to local non-profit/poverty stricken organizations. Your contributions definitely matter to someone.

Now whether you’ve decided to participate in service events, or offer scholarships to deserving students, any of these efforts make for a fantastic philanthropy and marketing opportunity.

“Nothing teaches character better than generosity” – Jim Rohn

Feb

2017

Philanthropy: 6 Winning Reasons to Boost Positive Engagement

Your Philanthropy Legacy is your Marketing Plan

The hustle of running a business is sometimes so time-consuming that we put aside the bigger picture that we started out with in order to perform the day-to-day tasks that must get done. But since you are the person that dreamed up your business and created it to fruition in the first place, you know how important it is to take a step back and reassess your place in the world, your growth, your philanthropy, and ultimately your LEGACY.

Philanthropy offers us a WIN-WIN situation when considering a mode of marketing and where we can leave our stamp of grace on our employees, vendors, communities, and the world.

What is a Company Philanthropy exactly? A philanthropy is defined as a company giving to a cause, whether it be through charitable donations or giving their time and resources. Although many corporations get the credit for doing philanthropic work (Yay to their $$$ P.R. Team), many small businesses don’t have the time or resources to express all that they actually give and are involved in with their community. Fortunately for the businesses that have put time into marketing and fulfilling their philanthropy, the rewards have been fruitful.

So, what is your company already giving to its community? Is a philanthropy program something your company already has in place? Yes? then GREAT!!! You need to create a marketing program to share all the amazing things you do in the world! If not, I’m going to make this clear and simple: you need one.

Here are 6 reasons to start creating and living by that philanthropic legacy you’ve always dreamed of that will actually help boost your earnings.

1. Establishing an Identity and Purpose

For many people, a business that lives within their purpose gives people a reason to choose that company’s brand over another brand. Companies like Lyft, Burt’s Bees, Dove, and Whole Foods have all focused a lot of time and money into fulfilling their purpose and standing by their philanthropy in order to make a valuable contribution to society. In order to establish where you fit in, think to yourself: What are you passionate about? Education? Homelessness? Environmental Conservation? Health? How do you want to help your neighbors? What do you want your legacy to be? There are so many different charities all focused on different causes. Find something that feels right for you and your business, or acknowledge what you’re already doing, and focus on using this to market the identity of your business. By establishing a purpose, people feel a need to help your cause knowing that some of their investment into your company invests in a good cause.

2. Networking Opportunities

Many organizations run events with large numbers of volunteers. I attended an event for an organization called L.A. Works that was focused on building up a local community while working at homeless shelters and schools in need. We painted murals, planted flowers, built benches and put together care packages for the shelter residents and local students. Target was one of the companies that decided to donate to the cause with their time. They sent over a group of volunteers in matching red Target shirts all eager to work on these projects. Not only did this show the 1000+ volunteers how even outside of their store, they were still trying to make a difference in the lives of their neighbors, but they were a united team of givers. Not only was this team talking amongst each other but they were cheering, working, and spending time with other volunteers that were there for the cause. It allowed their team an opportunity to speak to locals outside of the transactional world. Customers are the core of your business, so this is a great way to engage with the people who keep your business running in the first place.

3. Public Relations

My previous example demonstrated how Target made a positive PR move by actively participating in this event with over a thousand people in attendance. Although it was a chance for them to network, it also boosted Target’s visibility within the community as a company that lived by its philanthropy.

4. Employee morale

A recent study of more than 2,000 individuals found that “nearly two-thirds of people between the ages of 18 and 34 were at least somewhat more likely to want to work for a company that gave to charity than one did that not”. Not only do employees feel better about working for a company that is active in making a difference, but especially in this generation, employees are likely to stick around if there are common values and a strong foundation that the company is based on.

5. Respected leadership

Leaders that make a point to improve the lives of their employees and the people around them are likely going to be respected to a higher degree than those leaders who are only focused solely on the profit they are reigning in on.

6. Trust and value of mission statement

Having and sticking to your mission statement establishes trust. It gives your brand a purpose and a REASON for people to trust you. You stand for something other than yourself, and that alone is a respectable trait.

So, decide on your legacy, whether it be through corporate funding, volunteer work, product donations, partnerships, or pro-bono work–every company should reassess their role in the world to make philanthropy a part of their mission and thus grow their business in a sustainable fashion that helps not only themselves but also the world around them.