Capitalize On Your Company’s Charitable Efforts

By Jeff Hilton, Integrated Marketing Group

Whatever your level of involvement in the business environment, you most likely adhere to some form of corporate social responsibility policy. Enron and Tyco have taught important lessons to corporate America about conscience. In today’s “evolved” corporate culture, you are expected to act morally, participate in ethical business practices and participate at some level in charitable activities. Strategically speaking, corporations can use their charitable efforts to improve the quality of their business environment while supporting long-term social and economic business goals.

Before I get into details on specific strategies and tactics, let’s review what constitutes “charitable efforts.” According to the American Association of Fundraising Counsel, charitable efforts consist of aid given to those in need. Total charitable giving reached an estimated $240.92 billion for 2002, a historic level, lifted by growth in giving from corporations and estates, according to a report released by the AAFRC Trust for Philanthropy. This report stated that in 2002, giving by individuals represented 76.3 percent of all giving, grant making by foundations represented 11.2 percent, giving by corporations was 5.1 percent and gifts through bequests represented 7.5 percent of total estimated giving. With those statistics in mind, here’s how you, as an individual or through your company, can conduct and capitalize on charitable activities.

The easiest and most common way to participate in charitable efforts is to donate tangible items, specifically products or cash. Two recent industry examples worked well to garner attention and publicity. The first one involves Wisdom Natural Brands, manufacturers and marketers of SweetLeaf® brand stevia products, as well as other natural products. An active company in the greater Phoenix business community, they became aware of several local charities’ needs and felt they could offer assistance. As a company that is committed to making a difference in their community, they pulled together $140,000 of product and donated it to three local charities: 3,500 bottles of Wisdom of the Ancients Instant Yerba Maté tea to the Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio (which equals 630,000 servings of maté), 7,400 bottles of Fiber Wisdom™ Chewable Wafers to the United Food Bank of Arizona and 425 bottles of Stevia Extract Powder to St. Anthony’s Greek Orthodox Monastery.

Another charitable effort was originated by OrderDog™, Inc., a technology services company that provides secure Web-based third party business-to-business solutions to the natural products industry. In a joint effort with Tree of Life, Inc. to further support the natural products industry, they donated $25 to the NNFA (National Nutritional Foods Association) for each new retailer that signed up for the OrderDog system over a designated five-month period. At the end of the challenge, these two companies presented a check to the industry for $25,000. This “win-win” situation enhanced the visibility of both businesses as well as directly supported their joint interest in the industry.

Both of these case studies are good examples of companies capitalizing on honorable activities because in addition to their charitable efforts, their results showed they clearly executed a well-defined publicity plan. Let’s review key tactics both companies used.

Initially, before you can capitalize on your company’s charitable efforts, it is vital that your donation is genuine and not done solely for the sake of garnering publicity. Anyone can immediately see the transparent motives of a self-serving charitable effort, which doesn’t reflect well on any company. Both Wisdom Natural Brands and OrderDog embraced their community and industry efforts as an extension of their values, not as just a policy or practice.

Obviously, these two companies developed a plan. In the Wisdom case, they had several charities approach them. As a company thinking with the brand’s best interest in mind, they decided how much they could donate and who would benefit the most from what they had to offer. OrderDog, on the other hand, knew they wanted to contribute back to the industry they were directly involved in. They decided how much they were able to donate, met with industry leaders and determined the best way to achieve their goal was to put the challenge back into the hands of the industry members.

Clearly, Wisdom and OrderDog executed their plans. Wisdom developed a press release stating exactly what they donated and to whom. The release was distributed to the Arizona media outlets and immediate industry contacts. Because the beneficiaries were well recognized in the Arizona community, the local television, radio and newspaper outlets covered the story. In OrderDog’s case, they distributed a press release within the industry stating their challenge to raise the funds with the intent to give back to the industry. They chose a large industry tradeshow to present the final contribution and worked with the beneficiary to host a highly visible check presentation ceremony. The check presentation allowed for photo opportunities as well as additional exposure at the conference.

These are two basic examples of what a company can do to capitalize on publicity opportunities relating to charitable giving. There are many other successful charitable strategies that your company can execute, as well as publicity tactics, to let people know of your goodwill initiatives.

SPEAKING PRESENTATIONS
Giving presentations at universities, conferences and tradeshows is an excellent way to utilize your valuable time. Speaking opportunities additionally allow you to indirectly promote your company and product. Most of these opportunities are unpaid; however, the amount of exposure you can garner can be well worth the time spent. Depending on the venue, distribute a news release announcing the event and your topic. Or, send invitations personally inviting the media to your presentation. If the opportunity presents itself, make sure to have your logo included in program material and on the presenters Web site.

SCHOLARSHIPS
One of the most pressing needs in higher education is funding for scholarships. Scholarships allow deserving students to attain their educational goals, meet their professional objectives and succeed to their fullest ability. Scholarships are an effective tool to promote your company and improve recruitment. For example, in conjunction with the local university, a public relations firm developed a scholarship called “PR Student of the Year.” Each year the agency evaluated the nominations and awarded one student who demonstrated superior skills in communications and public relations. This win-win situation benefited both parties. The recipient was able to use this scholarship to further their education, bolster a resume and was locally recognized by a progressive company as an excellent student. The public relations agency gained the support of the local university, attention from those in the field and well-deserved publicity for their efforts in furthering the educational process.

ENCOURAGE EMPLOYEE INVOLVEMENT
More than ever, companies are being asked to play a larger role in the communities in which they operate. Many companies are developing sophisticated employee involvement programs that provide benefits to the bottom line and beyond. Encouraging employees to volunteer has benefits for both the employee and the employer. It is a valuable business strategy that improves employee moral, enhances the company’s image and develops employee skills. The United Way of America has several programs where employees can volunteer time with projects relating to specific interests as well as corporate programs that will automatically deduct a donated authorized amount from an employee’s paycheck. These company efforts, as well as specific employees, should be rewarded through recognition in company meetings, newsletters and Web sites.

DEVELOP A PLAN AND GET STARTED
Research shows that people would rather buy from companies that are “doing good.” If you are interested in stepping up your level of corporate social responsibility, make sure your motives are sincere and your organizational heart is in the right place. Then establish a budget, find an organization that matches your needs, develop a strategic plan and execute knowing that all parties will benefit.