Nowadays, it’s not just enough for businesses to offer a quality product or service at a fair price to earn customers. Now, consumers expect the businesses that they purchase from to have a focus on corporate social responsibility.
Multiple studies have found that the majority of adults want to spend their money with businesses that share their values.
It’s especially critical to Gen Z — 90% of adults born between 1997 and 2012 believe that companies must act to help social and environmental issues, and the majority of those consumers will spend time researching to ensure that support is authentic, according to Porter Novelli/Cone.
Partnering with a charity is an effective and powerful way to demonstrate your business’s corporate social responsibility. Here’s how.
Why Should My Business Partner With a Charity?
Making a charity your partner involves more than a one-time volunteer session or a donation at the end of the year. Partnering means you’ll be contributing money and volunteer time on a consistent basis. It’s all about aligning the values of your business with those of the charity of your choice and finding the good that comes with doing that.
Build Brand Awareness
The link between you and your chosen charity creates buzz around both of your names – more buzz than if you were both doing business individually. To make the most of this publicity, highlight the donations you’ve made on your website and ask the charity to put a spotlight on your business on their site (and other marketing materials) as well.
Resonate With Customer Values
Your chosen charity speaks to your corporate values, and people with those values will align with your brand. So, when you choose who to partner with, choose a well-known charity that most people support.
Tax Deductions
The main motivation behind partnering with a charity isn’t for your own personal gain, but a few tax deductions never hurt! If you partner with an IRS registered organization, the tax savings will cover most (if not all) of your expenses when donating. Just make sure that you’re working with a tax expert to cross your Ts and dot your Is.
Cause Marketing
If you decide that some of your products or services will go to charity, it’s very likely that your charity will help you market those products and services. They’ll amplify what products or services you donated to them to their members and, by doing that, help you generate more revenue. Taking advantage of their existing infrastructure is a powerful way to get your name out there!
Team Building
It’s important not just to donate money, products or services to a charity — your team can also donate time. Your team will have the chance to come together by working on something outside the office – removing the corporate hierarchy does wonders to strengthen relationships that translate into good work back at the office, too. A team that volunteers together learns how to work like a well-oiled machine.
Community Outreach
There’s no doubt that bolstered charities make for a healthy and prosperous community. And, beyond that, if your community understands the role that your business plays in giving back, they’re more likely to identify with you and your mission.
What Charity Will You Choose?
Partnering with a charity won’t just be good for your business, it’ll also have a major impact on other people’s lives – whether that’s your employees or those who benefit from the charity itself.
At Federated Media, we’ve partnered with a number of charities, including St. Jude Research Hospital, the American Cancer Society, and the Food Bank of Northern Indiana. To learn more about all that your business can do by teaming up with a charity of your choice, reach out to us today.
