The Business of Giving: Five Ways to Ignite the Philanthropic Spirit

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Fact: Your business is sitting on a powder keg of philanthropy. With the right ignition source, it can unleash a wave of giving that benefits both your community and your business.

Of course, it’s not always easy to ignite that altruistic powder keg. As a business owner, you might struggle to find the necessary resources to start a giving program. And the most traditional route – simply signing over a check to a charitable organization – isn’t always the best way to help the community (or your company).

Fortunately, there’s no shortage of ways that small businesses can give of their time, talent, and treasure. And while benefits such as tax breaks and improved brand exposure might help your organization, there are far more inspiring reasons to give back to your community.

By living and breathing the selfless spirit, you can:

• Support and reinforce your organization’s values
• Strengthen your culture
• Inspire your people
• Gain the deep satisfaction that comes from helping others and being a catalyst for positive change

But wait…doesn’t philanthropy belong more in the realm of large corporations, who are flush with cash and other resources? Not a chance! Every day, small businesses across the country make an incredible positive impact on their communities. As this article points out (while busting other common myths about small business philanthropy), no company is too small to give.

So with that in mind, here are five philanthropic thought-starters: potential sparks that could ignite the spirit of altruism within your business and community.

SPARK 1: Leverage social media

Today’s technology offers new ways of giving – a sharp contrast to simply pulling out your checkbook and donating to a charitable foundation. For example, you could invite your customers (and potential customers) to “like” your Facebook page. In exchange for each of those “likes,” you could make a small donation – in their name – to a community cause or charitable foundation. Using a similar approach, you could use Twitter to direct your followers to a website related to your philanthropic program. Be sure to use a #hashtag to “brand” your effort and help it go viral.

SPARK 2: Commit random acts of generosity

Some of the most effective forms of philanthropy can come from an outside-the-box approach. For example, consider “random acts of kindness” – everyday generosity that requires minimal resources. While these random acts (such as a florist sending a bouquet to a Twitter follower who mentioned they were having a bad day) are often associated with marketing, they can also consistently highlight the fact that you genuinely care about your community.

SPARK 3: Donate your products / services

Your product or service adds value for your customers. It could do the same for someone in need. Are there any local schools, churches, or charity organizations that hold auctions? If so, this could be a great philanthropic fit. A travel agency could donate vacations, or a tech company could donate computer hardware. This approach could be particularly helpful during times when your cash flow is tight and money donations aren’t as feasible.

SPARK 4: Create a framework for giving (and getting noticed)

When you get a moment, check out this brief case study about a hardware retailer that turned itself into a powerful engine of community giving. The cliff-notes version is that the company, in its earlier charitable efforts, ran into a problem: it was swamped with donation requests from community groups but didn’t have enough resources to meet everyone’s needs.

The solution was to build a partnership program where the community groups promoted their involvement with the hardware business. This created a true win-win: the hardware store benefited from the boosted exposure and positive word-of-mouth, while the community organizations received much-needed assistance.

While not for everyone, organizations with the necessary time and resources can use a framework to build a more developed philanthropic strategy. If you fall into this category, you might be able to use a similar model to create your own win-win situation.

SPARK 5: Get your team involved

Get your people involved as a group – for example, by doing a team-based philanthropic activity. The potential benefits are threefold: you’re strengthening your team by getting them focused on a higher purpose that’s related to your business; you're showing your people that you care about their community; and you're showing the community-at-large that you care. Also consider combining this approach with one of the other ideas to create exciting, novel philanthropic strategies.

• OK...now that we’ve covered some of the “how-to’s,” it’s up to you to take action! Your challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to fulfill at least one new philanthropic act within 30 days of reading this post. Once you do, tell us about it in the comments section, and also let us know about your own brilliant ideas for giving!

• Here are some additional guiding questions to help you bring your philanthropic efforts in focus:
• How do you or would you give of your time, talents, and/or treasures?
• How does your philanthropy align with your industry?
• How does your philanthropy align with your strategy and your values?
• How can you get your organization involved?