The label on my SKIDLESS yoga towel by Yogitoes stated, “A portion of our proceeds will go to Yogitoes Fund providing programs to bring love & awareness to children.”

From their website, I found more information about Yogitoes Fund:

“A portion of proceeds from the yogitoes ALTRUISM SKIDLESS (DEITY collection & CHINESE ELEMENT collection) will be donated to the following foundations which bring love and awareness to children around the world through the yogitoes fund…

SHECHEN CHARITY ORPHAN SCHOOL - a home and education for the orphans of Tibet.  www.shechen-school.org

M.E.G. (MARY ELLEN GERBER) FOUNDATION - mothering Indian children in need.  www.megfoundation.org

tunaHAKI FOUNDATION - empowering AIDS orphans and street children in Tanzania, Africa.  www.tunahaki.org

CASA de MILAGROS - ”Home of Miracles” – a children’s home near Machu Picchu in Cusco, Peru.  www.chandlersky.org

YOGA AT SCHOOL - helping NYC school children find peace.  www.iyiny.org/yogaatschool”

I like that they had a page on their website highlighting who they support with a photo, a brief description of the activities and a link to the organization.  Do you have such a page?  You should!  Customers want to know how you support the local and global community!

Want ideas on how to gauge how your company volunteer program is doing?   Yesterday I ran across an article summarizing a great study Bea Boccalandro did which was funded by Bank of America on benchmarks for employee volunteering and giving programs for Fortune 500 companies published by the Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship: Mapping Success in Employee Volunteering: The Drivers of Effectiveness for Employee Volunteering and Giving Programs and Fortune 500 Performance.  Years ago I frequently worked with Bea on evaluating social program impact for national service programs.   We also did a presentation at the National Conference on Volunteering and Service on evaluating employee volunteer programs.  Bea has continued to do research on volunteering among the Fortune 500 and this study offers much great food for thought.

The study found the 6 drivers of effectiveness for employee volunteering and giving programs:

1. Cause-effective Configuration – program structured to productively support social causes and nonprofit partners;
2. Strategic Business Positioning – program positioned to contribute toward business success;
3. Sufficient Investment – program receives company resources commensurate with other company efforts similar scope;
4. Culture of Engagement – Company encourages and facilitates employee involvement in the community;
5. Strong Participation – program has involvement from a majority of employees; and
6. Actionable Evaluation – programs tracks its efforts, holds itself accountable to outcome goals, and engages in continuous improvement based on findings.

There is a lot of great additional information on indicators and targets in this study that I will do more work with and pull together a Tip Sheet which I will share shortly.

I ran across this article, Ten Tips for Effective Charitable Giving, on the AllBusiness.com website today so thought I would share it as many of the points made totally resonate with what I tell my clients.  AllBusiness.com has great articles on a variety of business topics, so be sure to check them out.

“Sometimes, the best businesses are ones that give it away — to charity that is. If you make charitable giving a priority, you may find it can benefit your reputation, your soul, and, ultimately, your bottom line.

Goodwill giving is good for business. Donating to charity — either your money or your time — on behalf of your home-based business can improve your financial performance, enhance brand image and reputation, increase sales and customer loyalty, and improve your ability to attract and retain employees.

Here are 10 smart ways to make charitable giving a priority in your home-based business.

1. Set a budget. United States citizens contribute an average of 2.5 percent of their personal income to charitable causes. Some businesses with giving programs set aside up to 5 percent of their pre-tax income for contributions. Decide how much money and time you want to devote to charity.
2. Make a plan. Don’t just donate haphazardly; create an organized plan for charitable contributing. However you decide to allocate your donations, you can’t afford to do it randomly. Make a plan, and stick to it.
3. Look for the right charity. Think strategically when you select a charity to contribute to or work with. Many businesses seek to align community involvement with their strategic business goals. Look for charities that you believe in and with which you have some affinity and that will give you meaningful exposure to a large number of influential people.
4. Perform your due diligence. You probably already get contacted by numerous charities looking for donations. But you can’t afford to start giving money to the next charity that contacts you. Make sure that the time, energy, and financial support you are giving truly makes a difference. Check out charities thoroughly before you send a penny. Your local Better Business Bureau can help you ascertain whether or not the charity is legitimate. You can also consult the American Institute of Philanthropy for more information on specific charities.
5. Question everything. It’s widely known today that some charities, although legitimate, use only a small percentage of donations for their stated goals. These charities “eat up” much of their donations with internal expenses. To make sure that your dollars go where you want them to, request written material that describes precisely how donations are spent, with percentages used for internal operations such as employee and management salaries, overhead expenses, mailings, and solicitations.
6. Partner with your chosen charity. If you partner up with a charity, both organizations will benefit. Charities, like businesses, are interested in building their membership bases. The best way to do this is to market to specific niches that are inclined to develop an affinity with your charity of choice.
7. Spread the good news. Don’t be shy about publicizing your community involvement efforts. Sharing your efforts publicly will help educate and remind others about the charity or cause you support as well as inspire people to get involved. Tell your local media, customers, and employees, and use your customer newsletter or Web site to get the word out.
8. Network. Perhaps the biggest advantage, from a business standpoint, to being involved with a local charity is the opportunity to network with other like-minded professionals. This can turn into a great new source of business for your firm.
9. Reap the PR rewards. Clients and customers like to associate themselves with businesses that support worthy causes. Your involvement with the charity can translate into increased sales and goodwill in the community.
10. Reap the tax benefits. One of the benefits of supporting a worthwhile cause is the ability to take a federal income tax deduction in some cases. Consult with your tax and financial experts to ensure that you get the maximum benefit from your donations.”

I got an email this morning from Jonathan Manske, a speaker I heard first at an IBI/CEO Space Meeting some years back, that caught my attention.  ”Tomorrow, March 12th, I will be getting my head shaved at 6:30 am for St Baldricks.  If you want to watch, I should be on channel 2 news at 6:40ish am.  Or you can come to Salon on the Boulevard at 1485 S. Colorado Blvd.  Don’t want to get up that early but still want to be a part of this – you can donate at www.stbaldricks.org/participants/jonathanmanske.  If you would prefer to use a check, make it payable to St Baldricks and put my shavee ID number 381886 in the memo line and then mail that to me, 5609 Cheetah Chase, Littleton, CO 80124.  I’ll also post the video on my facebook page.

St. Baldrick’s raises money for children’s cancer research.  Last year 33,373 people across the country got their heads shaved for this event and they raised $16,634,962.  I personally raised almost $1000.”

Jonathan Manske “assists individuals and organizations to escape from prison – the prison in their own heads.  He helps them to get out of their own way so that they can succeed.

Jonathan is an author, speaker, trainer and consultant.  The cornerstone of all that he does is:   What is going on inside your head really does matter! Your thoughts, your attitudes and especially your non-conscious programming create your results.  When you change what is going on inside your head, your real world results change as well.”

Jonathan is a great example of how a small business/entrepreneur can give back authentically and build business at the same time.  Some of the things he did well in my opinion include sending out this email to folks like me on his list – I certainly took note, went to his website for the first time, and will be more likely to refer others to him or use him myself because I like his values.

In addition to his charitable work, he also has a Pay it Forward Program in which he offers free teleseminars for clients and potential clients to offer value and build business.  ”I love the “Pay It Forward” concept and I have a solution for a problem that impacts every single person ~ head trash that is in their way of success.  Furthermore, my mission is to make people’s lives and businesses better.   When I put these all together, I came up with The Pay It Forward Program!”

What can you do to build visibility for you and your company through your business philanthropy?  How can you let your customers know about what you are doing?  Get your thinking cap on or give me a call and set up a consultation call – I can definitely help you with doing something like this!

Business philanthropy (also called community involvement) is becoming more widely recognized as an essential component of business strategy for companies of all sizes – not just the Fortune 500.  Americans’ expectations of companies are at an all-time high. Supporting causes is no longer a “nice to do,” it is a “have to do.” There has been a major shift in the value equation: good business used to be primarily about providing quality products/services at a fair value. However, this is no longer sufficient for you to be truly competitive in today’s marketplace.  Your company must develop deep and meaningful emotional connections with your stakeholders by taking a stand on issues that are relevant to both your business and target audiences.  Sharing your resources including time, expertise, products/services, dollars, and networks is one way to be a “good business citizen” and show your commitment to being part of the solution to issues of our time.

In addition to the heartfelt, intrinsic rewards you feel from giving back and making a difference, there are also many business benefits available to any philanthropic company that engages with communities in authentic, meaningful, and strategic ways.  Especially during difficult economic times such as these, the need for doing “double duty” with your scarce resources has never been greater.  You need to be able to “do good” AND “do well.”

My free report offers selected research findings to show you the business case for strategic philanthropy and to provide food for thought to help you strengthen your company’s community involvement efforts moving forward.

To download your FREE copy, please provide your contact information below.

I have been a big Priya Haji and World of Good fan since I heard her speak about five years ago at a (then) Co-op America Green Business Conference in San Francisco.  I loved her company’s concept and was totally in awe of how smart, committed…and young(!!) she was!  I interviewed her in 2007 for my book.

Click here to download a copy of the transcript from that interview from my “Giving Perspective” Series.  If you’d like to listen to the unedited interview, Click here to download…

Today I saw the press release on the World of Good, Inc. website announcing the sale of the brand.

“World of Good Inc. Sells Brand and Related Assets to eBay; Wholesale Division Acquired by GreaterGood/Charity USA

World of Good Brand Continues to Represent Sustainable Shopping and Market Access for Global Artisans Through E-Commerce

EMERYVILLE, Calif. – February 25, 2010 – World of Good Inc., a five-year-old social venture that connects artisans from developing communities with mainstream retail markets, announced today that eBay has fully acquired its brand and related assets. World of Good Inc. also announced that GreaterGood/Charity USA has acquired its wholesale division and line of designer, Fair Trade products which will be re-branded, while existing relationships with retailers and artisan partners will be maintained. The terms of the transactions were not disclosed.

eBay’s acquisition of the brand results from a two-year long collaboration between the two companies that led to the development of WorldofGood.com by eBay, the world’s largest multi-seller marketplace for socially and environmentally responsible shopping. The transaction reflects eBay’s growing commitment to engaging consumers to affect social change through sustainable commerce. It also represents World of Good’s commitment to creating the greatest market opportunity for small, Fair Trade and environmentally responsible producers around the world. The online marketplace hosts hundreds of sellers, with tens of thousands of sustainable products from 85 countries.”

It will be interesting to track the next chapter of Priya’s brain child.

Designing Strategic Partnerships with Businesses
This is Your Personal VIP Invitation
Thursday, March 11, 2010
3:00 – 4:00 pm Eastern

If you are like most nonprofit leaders, you probably are very concerned these days about the impact of a tough economy on your ability to get needed resources for your organization or program. You see the need mushrooming in your community every day…and you see the companies around you starting to tighten their philanthropic belt. So what to do?

No matter how good your program or organization may be, if you can’t clearly make the case for why a business should support YOUR nonprofit organization over all the others also seeking their support, you are bound to fail. You need to know the right formula for approaching businesses to create win-win partnerships to secure the resources you so desperately need.

In this call, Susan Hyatt reveals how to move past the old school “beg for donations” and checkbook philanthropy mentality to present your organization, NOT as needy, but as a valuable partner – offering to share your assets (such as networks, publications, special events, etc.) with companies that choose to partner and share their resources with you. If you want to strengthen your “ask” and improve your success rate, you definitely need to attend this FREE teleseminar to:

• Learn about 4 current trends in the business world that affect giving practices;
• Discover the 4 critical needs of businesses that you can help address through a partnership;
• Learn the 10 biggest mistakes nonprofits make when seeking business support – so you don’t make them!
• And much more!

Get ready for an hour of information and insights that will change the tone and success of your business partnerships forever.

More Information about Susan Hyatt:

Susan Hyatt is the author of The Nonprofit Toolkit: Designing Strategic Partnerships with Businesses. She is a nationally-known consultant, trainer, and speaker and the founder of Business Nonprofit CONNECTIONS, Inc., which is dedicated to helping nonprofits and businesses partner more effectively for real impact on pressing social issues. Working with nonprofit organizations domestically and internationally for more than 20 years, Susan continually pushes the envelope to find NEW ways to address issues of nonprofit sustainability through strategic business partnerships.

Susan has conducted training in 49 states for over 10,000 nonprofit leaders and their board members on such topics as strategic business partnerships, performance measurement and evaluation, and using data effectively to gain stakeholder support. Susan has conducted interviews with more than 50 business leaders as part of the research for her forthcoming book, Strategic Business Philanthropy: How Smart Companies Do Good AND Do Well.” She has been featured in Entrepreneur Magazine, The Akron Times Beacon, and the Denver Business Journal. Her insights and articles regularly appear in her email newsletter, CONNECTIONS, which reaches business and nonprofit leaders worldwide.

REGISTER HERE FOR THIS FREE TELESEMINAR!

You will receive all the call information sent to the email you submitted. Please check your spam box if you do not receive the email within a few minutes.

Check out this video with Bon Jovi – I loved it!!  I heard Bon Jovi speak a couple years ago at the National Conference on Volunteering and Service and he did a great job talking about giving back and honoring those people who do so.  I have worked as a trainer and consultant through JBS International’s Aguirre Division with the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) and the National Service programs it funds – AmeriCorps, VISTA, Senior Corps, and Learn and Serve America – for 15 years.  Much of my work has involved training programs how to evaluate their services to identify clearly the impact they are making so they are able to tweak their program models as well as demonstrate to their communities the value they offer.  I have been so inspired by the dedication, commitment, and true impact these National Service programs are making and the ways they have helped strengthen nonprofit capacity and service delivery.  I am a BIG fan!

National Service programs go through extensive vetting…so when you support one of them, you know your resources are going to be well used.  They are a great investment in making a difference.  To find out what National Service programs are in your area, go to the CNCS website or Serve.gov.