Often, when discussing companies giving back to their communities or getting involved in philanthropy, the conversation tends to dwell on huge multinational corporations with thousands of employees and millions of dollars at their disposal.
In reality, the vast majority of the businesses in the United States are small businesses, and they employ over 50% of the nation's workers. While smaller businesses may not be able to match the massive amounts donated by huge corporations that certainly doesn't mean they can't have a substantial impact on their local communities in the long run. There are also some very good side benefits for small businesses that engage in giving back.
Giving Generates Positive Publicity
Positive publicity - especially in a social media world where any story can be shared - is invaluable for a small business. And while you may dutifully send announcements out to local publications and TV stations every time you launch a new product or run a promotion, they're simply not going to cover every one of those stories.
If the story to be covered however is good news like when your business gets involved in donating money, product or services and even spends time to volunteer for a cause, you can be sure that every local media entity will be out to cover it. These types of stories often have a higher level of human interest and impact than an article about your new product.
As an example, a small tire franchise in northern Utah received national coverage on Forbes.com recently because they were regular participants in a local annual Coats for Kids community event. If they hadn't earned a well-deserved reputation for giving back in their community, you may never have heard of Burt Brothers Tires. But now the company has the support of a major media outlet. You can't buy that kind of publicity with an ad.
Your Employees Will Appreciate It
To be able to work in a company that cares is a good opportunity. Since your business is small and your employees are mostly "locals," you are likely to find common causes significant for them as well. And so, to give back to the community is a big morale booster and a solid team-building activity for all. There can be several options for your employees to become participative, including:
Create a special volunteer day where instead of reporting to the office, the employees spend the day working toward a specific charitable goal.
Have a sit down session with employees soliciting their personal preferences for causes to support and vote on one which the whole group finds the best. Maybe a simple way of setting up an online philanthropy platform like InstaGive could entice employees to donate financially.
This provides simple and intuitive access for any small business to set up a branded webpage to collect charitable donations via credit card.
Your Customers Appreciate It Too
Remember that when a small business gives back to the community, the people benefiting are not the employees only. Even customers find this a worthwhile effort in that many locals may even decide to buy from you once they find you highly involved in helping the community. With the promotion of goodwill as positively publicized you can bet that existing and prospective customers are likely to be touched by any business no matter how small. Still, this should not be the end of it.
Here are few ways you can directly involve your customers in your giving program:
Maybe you can put donation jars in your counter or you can think of any other simple yet quick ways for your walk-in customers to participate and talking to them about it while they are in your outlet ought to make them more aware.
You can also come up with an InstaGive site you can promote using visual signage or through email and social media as well.
You can always ask customers to join your employees for organized activities. The more work that needs to be accomplished, the more people you will need to partake of all the labor.
Pick a specific time period - say, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. every Wednesday - during which a percentage of every purchase will be given to a charitable cause. Actively promote this event so customers who care can plan their purchases accordingly.
Here you've read about some of the reasons for considering giving back to communities via planned charity or voluntary works though you may be a small business as individual businesses may find something unique to do. Be sure you find time for planning any solid and strategic program so you can start giving back now!
In reality, the vast majority of the businesses in the United States are small businesses, and they employ over 50% of the nation's workers. While smaller businesses may not be able to match the massive amounts donated by huge corporations that certainly doesn't mean they can't have a substantial impact on their local communities in the long run. There are also some very good side benefits for small businesses that engage in giving back.
Giving Generates Positive Publicity
Positive publicity - especially in a social media world where any story can be shared - is invaluable for a small business. And while you may dutifully send announcements out to local publications and TV stations every time you launch a new product or run a promotion, they're simply not going to cover every one of those stories.
If the story to be covered however is good news like when your business gets involved in donating money, product or services and even spends time to volunteer for a cause, you can be sure that every local media entity will be out to cover it. These types of stories often have a higher level of human interest and impact than an article about your new product.
As an example, a small tire franchise in northern Utah received national coverage on Forbes.com recently because they were regular participants in a local annual Coats for Kids community event. If they hadn't earned a well-deserved reputation for giving back in their community, you may never have heard of Burt Brothers Tires. But now the company has the support of a major media outlet. You can't buy that kind of publicity with an ad.
Your Employees Will Appreciate It
To be able to work in a company that cares is a good opportunity. Since your business is small and your employees are mostly "locals," you are likely to find common causes significant for them as well. And so, to give back to the community is a big morale booster and a solid team-building activity for all. There can be several options for your employees to become participative, including:
Create a special volunteer day where instead of reporting to the office, the employees spend the day working toward a specific charitable goal.
Have a sit down session with employees soliciting their personal preferences for causes to support and vote on one which the whole group finds the best. Maybe a simple way of setting up an online philanthropy platform like InstaGive could entice employees to donate financially.
This provides simple and intuitive access for any small business to set up a branded webpage to collect charitable donations via credit card.
Your Customers Appreciate It Too
Remember that when a small business gives back to the community, the people benefiting are not the employees only. Even customers find this a worthwhile effort in that many locals may even decide to buy from you once they find you highly involved in helping the community. With the promotion of goodwill as positively publicized you can bet that existing and prospective customers are likely to be touched by any business no matter how small. Still, this should not be the end of it.
Here are few ways you can directly involve your customers in your giving program:
Maybe you can put donation jars in your counter or you can think of any other simple yet quick ways for your walk-in customers to participate and talking to them about it while they are in your outlet ought to make them more aware.
You can also come up with an InstaGive site you can promote using visual signage or through email and social media as well.
You can always ask customers to join your employees for organized activities. The more work that needs to be accomplished, the more people you will need to partake of all the labor.
Pick a specific time period - say, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. every Wednesday - during which a percentage of every purchase will be given to a charitable cause. Actively promote this event so customers who care can plan their purchases accordingly.
Here you've read about some of the reasons for considering giving back to communities via planned charity or voluntary works though you may be a small business as individual businesses may find something unique to do. Be sure you find time for planning any solid and strategic program so you can start giving back now!
About the Author:
Sebastian Troup likes blogging about philantrophic solutions for businesses and non profit organizations. For more info about the competitive advantage of corporate philanthropy, or to know about setting up employee giving campaigns , please check out the Truist.com website today.
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