The benefits of corporate giving

Whether you’re a new or growing business, you may be wondering whether a corporate giving strategy is smart for your company. Or, you may already have a thought in mind regarding how you want to spend your dollars and employee energy. If you launched a business without a corporate giving plan in place and have begun to scale, it may be a great time for you to begin planning for evaluating your goals for your business.

In the past several years, companies have contributed billions of dollars to everything from disaster relief, education-related causes, community and economic development programs, and more. There are many communities that rely on this type of giving. On top of that, corporate giving can boost your business in many ways that will benefit the culture and health of your staff, your community, and even your company. Here are just a few of the reasons your company could benefit from a corporate giving plan.

In a survey from the Charities Aid Foundation, nearly 60 percent of people surveyed said charitable giving and volunteerism in the workplace boosted morale. Meanwhile, a study from Berkeley found when businesses are generous in their giving, it inspires employees to pay it forward. Giving back is even good for health. Philanthropy can lower blood pressure, increase self-esteem, and lead to greater happiness in life. Whether it’s donating to causes, volunteering, or finding other ways to give time or money, your employees will literally feel better for having done it.

It brings your team closer together

Philanthropic work is a great way to create a culture of teamwork within the workplace. There are many ways you can encourage your team to participate. Along the way, it will strengthen your culture as employees work together on a common goal. You may want to allow your team to spend company hours volunteering with a charity. Or you could take on pro bono projects that allow employees to come together during work hours. Whether you’re raising funds as a team or doing food or clothing drives, sharing in charity work creates connection and builds stronger relationships.

If you’re choosing to donate time or money locally, it’s going to benefit your community directly. Cash and other forms of financial donations will likely be spent within your local economy, which will help other businesses. Whether it’s donations to food banks and pantries, domestic violence organizations, Habitat for Humanity, pet shelters, or any other number of charities, you’ll be supporting causes for people (or pets) in need. You may even be helping lift someone out of poverty. And it can give you insights into the community where you reside when you get to experience a side you may not otherwise see.

Charity work increases brand loyalty with your customers. In fact, research from Harvard Business School shows that consumers are highly informed of the amount of charity work that’s done by the brands they follow. When customers know their money is being used judiciously to support charities, people are willing to spend more money on the brand. That’s because they feel their spending has an actual impact, and it’s something they feel good about. When you’re authentic and sharing what you’re doing in your community, your customers will notice and reward you for it.

While charity should never be done with a “what’s in it for me” mentality, giving financially can provide businesses with great tax benefits that make a more feasible option, particularly for small businesses. As you’re investing in your community, it’s nice to know that the work you do could help save you dollars during tax season. Keep in mind that you should also be sharing the things your business is doing when it comes to charity work. It can help you find a like-minded audience of potential employees, partners, and customers who will support your company and vice versa.

If you’re interested in giving back in any way, the best way to start is to sit down and brainstorm. Look at your mission and values to guide you, then find the charities that resonate with you and your team the most. From there, all it takes is the time and effort to ensure your team is empowered, and that they have the tools they need to spend their time and energy giving back. It’s well worth it.

Jim Allen is a business leader and entrepreneur who has built one of the top-producing real estate groups in the Triangle. He is President of The Jim Allen Group, which is consistently named one of the top real estate teams in North Carolina and even North America.