Why Businesses Should Consider Charitable Giving

During the holidays, we often feel compelled to be generous, both with our time and money. There are many reasons why a business should consider charitable giving during the holidays and all year long. 

If you’re a business owner wondering why you should consider charitable giving this holiday season, I’ll share both the intrinsic and extrinsic reasons why you should.

Reasons Why Businesses Should Consider Charitable Giving

Because You Care

The number one reason you should give is that you feel called to do so. 

I recently read a book called “The Soul of Money” by Lynne Twist. In her book, Lyne tells stories of her discoveries about people’s relationships with money during her tenure as chief fundraising officer for The Hunger Project. Here, she raised hundreds of millions of dollars to end poverty around the world. 

One day, she met with a CEO of a company who gave her a check for a very large sum of money, but he didn’t know anything about their cause and didn’t really care. The company just wanted to throw money at something for a public relations campaign to cover up some bad press. 

That same day she met with a group of women in a poor neighborhood who each donated $10, or whatever pocket change they could spare. They knew what it was like to be hungry and they gave what they could with generosity in their hearts.

Twist wrote “Money carries our intention. If we use it with integrity, then it carries integrity forward.” 

Even though it seemed counter-productive to her mission, she later sent that large check back to the CEO and encouraged him to find a cause he really believed in. The $10 donations were more valuable to her cause because money has an energy, and the intent with which it is given expands.

Choose a cause you and your company care about and give wholeheartedly, because you want to do so. 

Twist also wrote, “Money moving in the direction of our highest commitments nourishes our world and ourselves.” 

The money, time, and other resources you give have a way of finding their way back to you. Giving benefits everyone.

Publicity

As mentioned above, giving only to bolster your image is perhaps a gift given for the wrong reason. But, giving in the right spirit, can be an opportunity to share the values, causes and personality of your company with the community. 

You don’t necessarily have to call the newspaper to come out and write a story about your charitable giving. Maybe you post on social media about the time your team spends volunteering at the food bank, or spread the word about a fundraiser you’re sponsoring. 

These kinds of activities are a win, win. Publicity for you and support for a cause close to your heart.

Tax Benefits

I am not an accountant, so don’t quote me on this, but there may be some tax benefits to giving monetary donations to not-for-profit organizations. Let’s face it, as businesses, we need all the help we can get to keep the hard-earned money we make. 

At the end of the year, many choose to give extra profits to a cause they care about rather than handing it over to the IRS. Check with your accountant to see what would most benefit you.

Strengthen the Community

Non-profit organizations fill gaps in our communities and provide support for some of the most vulnerable. 

When we give our time or money to better the community around us, it has a compounding effect that benefits everyone. Healthy, thriving citizens become contributors. 

A strong community is good for business and an investment in the future of your community can have a great impact.

Team Building

Volunteering together as a team can be a wonderful opportunity to bond, and feel invested in the community and the company. When considering team-building activities, bonuses, or trips, perhaps you’ll earmark some of your time and funds to serve others instead. 

Many companies include impacting communities and serving others as a core value and therefore attract employees, and even clients, with similar values. Who wouldn’t want to work with people who have giving hearts?

Employee Enrichment

My kids and I attended a family weekend at Camp Korey, a Paul Newman Foundation camp for families of kids with rare disabilities, a few years ago. 

I was surprised to learn several of the volunteers were employees of a corporation in Seattle that gave them a certain amount of paid time off to dedicate to volunteering at a charity of their choice. 

Studies show volunteering can bolster self-esteem, fend off depression, increase empathy, build a feeling of community, give people a sense of purpose, and more.

If you are really invested in helping your employees with their personal development and giving back to the community, offering them paid volunteer hours is a fantastic idea.

You could also organize team volunteer days a few times per year during regular work hours. If this isn’t possible for your company, you could organize volunteer opportunities and invite your employees to give freely of their time.

Networking

Joining the board of a service organization, or becoming a member of a club that focuses on community service, like Rotary Club, can be a fantastic way to meet new people and expand your network. 

Take a listen to Trending Northwest’s interview with Rotary member Amy Higgins:

Again, if you’re joining just to drum up business, your heart may not be in the work, and you’ll probably be miserable. 

Choose an organization that speaks to you. The more heavily involved you are in the cause, the more connections you’ll make, which is always good for business.

How to Find a Cause to Support

There are so many opportunities to give in the Pacific Northwest, I couldn’t list them all. 

Here are a few resources to get you started finding the right one for you:

• Search justserve.org to find an opportunity in your local area. You can also list your service project for free if you’re looking for volunteers!

• Contact your local hospital, food bank, YMCA, shelter or outreach center and ask about volunteer opportunities.

• Search online for “charitable organizations” in your area and do a little research to see which one resonates with you.

• Find camps, fundraisers or programs that support a trial you or a loved one has faced. There are programs for people facing diabetes, cancer, mental illness, homelessness, addiction and more.

• Search for programs that support underfunded opportunities for youth. The arts, sports, theater or afterschool programs are great, too. 

• Ask a friend. What causes do they support? It’s more fun to serve with others.

I’d love to hear how you connect with your community through service and charitable giving. Let us know where you volunteer or what you support below!