The business of giving

By Indira Kennedy

Good business today is not only about offering great customer service. Your business can also be a powerful vehicle for helping those who don't have the power to help themselves.

Most of us give to charity in some way, but how conscious are you of your giving? Do you actually build it into the structure of your business goals and finances and review it along with your other business strategies? Every one of us has the ability to make a substantial difference simply by making 'giving' a valued focus in business.

Promote your business and support a cause

Corporations already know the value of the 'good citizen' image and are willing to sponsor many major events at great expense. But when it comes down to it, sponsorships are business arrangements and rarely true altruism. Isn't it better to give a gift freely to help a cause you care about?

There might be a charity you can support through your product or service that brings synergy with it. Choose something that grabs your heart, will carry the potency of your intention, something you can feel aligned with and inspired by.

Fundraising as customer service

Good customer service shouldn't have any 'hooks'. I was reading an article recently titled 'Who's winning and how in the battle for customers'. The 'life is a battle' mentality bothered me. You don't want your customers sensing you have a cynical hidden agenda. And they do pick up on it! We all have great antennas that have been finely attuned through the barrage of advertising we encounter.

Reframe your thinking

When I stopped seeing fundraising as asking for money, the stress of my job faded away. I realised one day that my purpose was to give people or businesses the opportunity to do something extraordinary that might not be possible for one person alone. They are able participate by giving some of their money.

The way I spoke to potential clients about funding changed from what must have at times sounded like 'grasping' to a tone of 'offering'. I changed my perspective and began to think, 'Who will really benefit from my service? Who can I assist in their own business today?'.

I work with charitable institutions to create long-term plans for achieving growth, conducting research and producing better service for their clientele. The supporters of their causes become involved with a successful business rather than a charitable institution.

You too can reap substantial benefits for your business by giving to a cause you believe in.

Ways to build giving into your business:

• Offer a percentage of your profit as a monthly donation.
• Set up a fund into which you make regular contributions and donate a percentage of the interest at tax time.
• Focus your giving and decide who you relate to. What are you passionate about? What do you hate and want to change? Who or what do you support from the heart?
• Look at what you want to support locally, nationally and internationally.
• Think about what you can support through your product or service that is synergistic with your marketing goals.
• Offer your business profile as a public advocate for the organisation/s you support.
• Hold an event to support your cause.
• Use your newsletter to inform staff and clients about the latest news from the causes you and they support.
• Buy cause-related products and use them as gifts for your staff and customers.
• Rather than exchange gifts at Christmas time, ask your staff to donate to your selected charity.

Financial freedom comes from the choices we make on a daily basis according to the priorities we give to our own life and our values. Begin with giving and all else will flow from there.

Indira Kennedy has her own consulting business, Perfect Medium, specialising in development strategies for not-for-profit organisations, as well as communications and editorial services, advertising and promotions for graphics houses and commercial businesses. You can contact Indira on (03) 9787 7650 or 0412 464548, or email: indira@alphalink.com.au

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