Charity is looking for new ways to win our hearts and dollars
It’s December 23 and a good time to write about giving. So, I guess, I have to write about my wife Sarah now, because, first of all, she’s been working with non-profits throughout her career and is the most dedicated and powerful professional “giver” that I know (secondly, more profane, she’s been complaining a lot about not “existing” on my blog, which may herewith no longer be subject of discontentment). Last year, around this time, for example, she was with Give2Asia, a grant making arm of the Asia Foundation, and raised more than four million dollars for the tsunami relief within only a few weeks. Although I didn’t see her often those days, I was very proud of her initiative and commitment. Sarah now works with the “mother” of all relief organizations – CARE USA.
Although no major disaster overshadowed this holidays season, the hurricanes in the US and Latin America, the Pakistani earthquake and many other, less headline-making events this year are still vividly remembered worldwide. Philanthropy and social entrepreneurship have in fact, sadly as it is, turned into such crowded fields that marketers have to become increasingly creative in reaching their clientele and secure donations.
Here are some examples of ventures that seem to have fully grasped Peter Drucker’s credo of “doing the right thing right”:
An organization that’s been around for a while with an interesting and sustainable business model is the Taproot Foundation. Taproot literally makes grants of marketing volunteers to do pro bono work for non-profit community projects. This sounds less groundbreaking than it is but as a matter of fact to date only the legal profession has cultivated a well-defined culture of pro bono service.
Net Impact is a network of business school students who "want to make a difference” and engage in pro bono consulting jobs at companies with charity or corporate citizenship projects. The network comprises of more than 13,000 “new-generation leaders committed to using the power of business to improve the world.” It is probably also one of the most influential networks of MBAs, graduate students, and young professionals in existence today. Net Impact also hosts an annual conference and offers an online knowledge bank.
Relatively new is Give Meaning, which could be described as a, excuse my Web 2.0 lingo, good cause aggregator for those who want to give a little bit or an online social network for good causes, connecting people with other people who care about the same things. "A website for the $5 philanthropist,” as it is tagged by the marketers, it is based on the premise that many of us would gladly give a few minutes of our time and a few dollars if we knew it could actually affect someone or something we care about. It is noteworthy that 100% of every donation processed on the website goes directly to charity. The site states that it recovers its costs by selling sponsorship and advertising opportunities to socially-responsible companies. Give Meaning is a good example of why many think that online charity sites, the second time around, will be healthier and more robust. In the helicon days of 2000, Give Meaning had many predecessors: One example of which was called “4Charity.com” and despite its ambitious slogan “changing the world one click at a time” ultimately went down the drain. Six years later, the “meaning” is new, the business model is more solid, and the slogan seeks to reassure that, this time, it is” Real money to change your world."
The best of the good seems to be GoodStorm, which is a recently launched web service that allows you to set up your own store and sell your items through their platform. GoodStorm’s business model is designed to cater specifically to nonprofits, keeping only 30% of the profits on a sale (giving the rest to the seller) and donating a portion of profits to charity.
Is this “Capitalism Done Right”, as their tagline suggests, or, too good to true? We shall see.
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