Giving to charity is a great way to get a tax deduction, but did you know that it can also help you to promote and advertise your business as well? From your public image which will affect sales, to knowledge of your business or services, you can use a charity for advertisement through either donated products and services, or money. If you’ve considered donating your time or money to a charity, you might want to go for it for these reasons.
Many Charities Offer Banners in Exchange for Donations
If you want a simple, one time, involvement with the charity, many charities offer a banner or ad placement to businesses. This process is similar to purchasing an advertisement except the added bonus is that the money will all go towards your favourite charity instead of to an investor. Sounds great right? If you choose the correct charity, you could even attract similar customers to your business. For example, you sell toys and you choose a charity that is helping to donate toys to needy kids, offer a small discount to people who have a code from the charity and you might just find some of them buying toys from you as a donation. Another example, you recycle all of your waste and you choose to advertise at an eco-friendly charity, you will attract attention by mentioning that you to are conscious of the earth’s well-being. Targeting your ads is important because it could draw a bigger audience than you know.
A Donated Item Could be a Great Way to Find New Customers
Did you know that you can donate your time, services, or items to a charity as well? Donating services such as web building could get you a permanent spot on their website. Photographers can check out items such as calendar printing and showcase some of their photos in a calendar to be sold to profit the charity. Other ideas include donating items such as food, money, or coupons and gift certificates that can benefit the charity and draw attention to your business. Many charities hold regular fundraisers so making sure that you have a presence (or an item) at that fundraiser could do a lot for your brand awareness.
If you sell items, donating those can help to draw interested customers to your business. For example, if the charity is holding an auction, you could donate one or two pieces and then have people who lost the action coming to your establishment to purchase what they missed.
Improve Your Public Image
There’s nothing quite like donating or giving to charity to raise your public image, so it never hurts to give. No matter what charity you plan on donating to you can do so knowing that it’s going to a good cause and helping your business. Some charities will allow you to post their name or logo on your website to claim that you donate to them, especially if you do so each year. In addition, you can create a press release about the charity to attract interest and tie their name to yours, and you could also offer a portion of the proceeds of sales during a month or week to that charity. Each of these options can be advertised and can raise your public image.
Whether you chose to donate items or go with calendar printing, donating to a charity can help your business promotion. Try searching in your area for local charities or choosing national scale charities with branches in your area. No matter what you do, you’re promoting your business and helping a cause so you win both ways!
Aimee Coppock is a photographer and avid animal lover. She uses calendar printing to donate sellable items to charities and promote her business.