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Sometimes, we could all use a helping hand. That’s why non-profit organizations and charities are so important to us at BHN. These organizations rely on our support to continue their work and make a positive impact on the world, but we as individuals can only donate so much time and money to any one cause. One way to make a really big impact on a specific cause is to use the power of your business to band together. With the help of your employees and customers, you could quickly gather a lot of focused attention and resources toward a worthy cause.
Coming up in August and September, there are three special days that could give you an opportunity to make a difference for any great charity that has connections to your brand. They are:
August 17: National Non-Profit Day
August 19: World Humanitarian Day
September 5: International Day of Charity
We all know that charities are worth supporting, but it’s easy to forget when we get caught up in our daily lives. It just takes a little nudge and the right incentives to give people a reason to contribute. Giving back to your community can also provide a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment, knowing that you are making a difference in the world.
As a business, it’s also a way to help you connect with like-minded individuals and build customer relationships with those who share your values. Supporting a non-profit or charity organization can improve your brand image, increase customer loyalty, and boost employee morale.
So how do you get started? Here are five ways to reward customers and employees, donate to charity, and get some good vibes flowing this summer.
1. Donate a portion of your sales
The most direct way to help out a charity or non-profit is by donating the funding they all need to operate. You can turn this into a fundraising event for the charity and a sales event for you by publicizing the donation drive. This means advertising the drive and communicating with your employees about it. Use your brand’s promotional power to organize special offers and drive both sales and donations. For example, you could offer a free $20 gift card to customers who spend more than $100. This kind of promotion can also help drive returning customer traffic. Finally, make sure to accept donations directly in your stores in case a customer or employee wants to make a donation.
2. Volunteer as a team
If your favorite charity has in-person locations where you can volunteer your time, organize a day to bring the team in. Offer a paid day off for anyone who comes to volunteer, and put your time where your mouth is: show up and do the work. Together, an organized team can put a serious dent in some of the logistical or organizational challenges that charities often experience. Plus, doing hands-on work outside of the office is excellent as a team-building exercise for everyone.
3. Employee giving programs
Your employees can also donate their own money toward good causes. Teaming up to all donate to one specific charity together is a great way to funnel a lot of money to a deserving charity all at once. For a good employee giving program to take off, you need to make sure that the charity is something universal—a cause that everyone cares about.
Make sure your employees know their donations are appreciated by setting up a matching gift from the business. You can also offer special rewards or paid days off for the employees who raise the most in donations.
4. Use your voice
Between your in-store signage, your advertisements, your website, and your social media channels, your brand has a significant amount of reach. Use that power for good by publicizing your chosen charity, their mission, their history, and all of the great work they do. You can also highlight some stories from their efforts, which can put faces and names to the people affected.
Engaging your social media is also an opportunity to give back to people for sharing their stories. Send out rewards cards or digital eGifts to anyone who sends in a relevant story, and try to build community awareness of the problem and its solutions.
As Mr. Rogers famously said, “always look for the helpers.” These dates in August and September are a wonderful excuse for your business to highlight the helpers in your community or working in your field—and to do your part to help work with them or fund them.
At BHN, we work with a variety of non-profit organizations, governments and charities. Especially during the pandemic, we worked to help organizations use prepaid and gift card programs to distribute assistance to people in need. We helped them do it quickly, easily, and without the logistical burdens of distributing cash or checks.
For another way to help give back, look into our Giving Good gift cards, which donate a portion of each gift card directly to the charity championed on the card. One of our favorite U.S. charities that benefits from this program is the Wounded Warrior Project.
Ready to learn more? Talk to BHN about how you can get involved in supporting your favorite charities.
