The season of giving is not just during the holidays. While we tend to be generous during that time, companies should also think about giving back to their community throughout the year. In the same way that giving gifts is good for our personal well-being, corporate giving is good for business. Businesses that engage […]
The season of giving is not just during the holidays. While we tend to be generous during that time, companies should also think about giving back to their community throughout the year. In the same way that giving gifts is good for our personal well-being, corporate giving is good for business.
Businesses that engage in community programs are able to reap many benefits leading to greater employee engagement, improved business performance, and stronger relationships with clients and customers.
Here are ways that giving back is good for business.
Employees will feel good about where they work
People want to feel good about the places in which they work. Not feeling connected to a job or feeling ambivalent about an employer means employees invest less of themselves in their work. Businesses that focus on giving back to the community can build stronger emotional connections with their employees and help them feel good about where they work. Corporate-giving campaigns show employees that you care about more than just the bottom line.
Employees can learn new skills
Some of the new things employees can learn while giving back include making new social and business connections, organizing and managing resources or people, or building awareness for a cause through marketing and social-media channels.
Your company will gain new perspectives
Giving back will help your business develop a sense of corporate empathy, or recognizing how others feel. Giving and volunteering can help a company see the world through the community’s perspective, which strengthens the understanding of how the business fits into that community.
Your business will connect with the community
Giving back allows your company to connect with your community. As a member of the community, your firm is more likely to find avenues for collaboration with other local businesses or community organizations, both of which are good for business.
You show your true colors
Outside of a corporate mission, companies should believe in a core set of values. Corporate philanthropy programs not only help a company solidify its values but also show the rest of the world your values. Giving not only strengthens these values as your involvement grows, but also can eventually become a part of your daily operations.
Giving back is fun
Learning new skills, engaging with your community, and gaining a new perspective certainly can help your business succeed. Giving back is worth the effort. Giving back is a lot of fun, too. Companies that volunteer or donate to the community rarely have any regrets about it, and once they start, they generally find they enjoy it and want to give more.
Brand Bash
As a consultant, I am exposed to many different companies in many different industries. When something jumps out at me as a great idea, I like to share it with other clients as it might spur some ideas for them.
I recently became involved in just such a creative community program that does just that. ABC Creative Group started a program called the “24 hour Brand Bash” in 2014. It was designed as the ultimate community project and it did not disappoint.
ABC began soliciting nominations in April for local nonprofits to be considered for a full-blown marketing rebrand — free of charge. Everything from a new logo (if needed) to a new website — all delivered within 24 hours. Sound ambitious? It was. And the firm pulled it off.
After receiving more than 50 nominations, ABC selected HOPE for Bereaved as the recipient of this rebrand. All employees of the agency, plus some outsiders (like me), stayed locked in the office from 8 a.m. Thursday until 8 a.m. Friday and created HOPE’s new look and feel. When HOPE officials left the office on Friday morning, they left with a new logo, new website, collateral materials, video, billboard placement and design, radio spots, and posters to promote their fundraising events.
The donation ended up being worth more than $50,000 in services to the organization. I spoke with Travis Bort, ABC’s owner/creative director, about the inspiration behind the Brand Bash.
“We’re very proud of the work we’ve done in cause-related marketing over the years and the 24-hour Brand Bash is an extension of that,” he says. “For us, it’s the perfect blend of supporting a community cause, challenging ourselves creatively and, really, having a lot of fun doing it.
“We are able to give an organization marketing that they would otherwise not be able to get as a nonprofit,” Bort added.
The agency has kicked off this year’s event with open nominations. A lucky recipient will be chosen in early May. I encourage you to nominate any local nonprofit with which you work. Watching the reaction from HOPE for Bereaved last year and seeing the impact it has had on the nonprofit has been an amazing experience for me.
Learn more or nominate your favorite organization at www.24hourbrandbash.com.
Jennifer Cline owns Nordique Consulting Group and is a consultant for The Business Journal News Network.