I recently read in the women’s magazine More about the common practice of allowing employees to take home beauty product samples sent in by manufacturers hoping for free publicity. Editor Lesley Jane Seymour decided to ask her staff for $1 for item, with all proceeds going to WIN (Women in Need).  This simple idea has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars, one at a time.

What could you do to contribute to a good cause in this way?  Is there an activity or product that you are giving away now that you could ask your employees or customers to pay a dollar or two for?  This would not only help the non-profit that you contribute to, but would also enhance your store’s status in your community.  Statistics have shown that knowing you contribute to good causes make shoppers much more enthusiastic about supporting your business. (Don’t forget to mention your good deeds in your social media communication.)

If you offer coffee or ice tea to your customers, a donation jar by the refreshment center would be certain to receive a steady stream of donations if you made it clear that the money went to a local non-profit.  You could change the beneficiary periodically, and ask for staff input in choosing the charity of the month.

At Orange Tree Imports we charge $1 for gift wrapping, and we could easily make it $2, with $1 going to a non-profit.  Or perhaps instead of giving a chocolate gold coin to shoppers who bring their own bag, we could say that 50¢ will go to an environmental group.

Our staff is allowed to help themselves to samples and slightly damaged items that end up in our “free box.”  We should consider borrowing an idea from More magazine and ask that employees contribute $1 to a good cause whenever they take something home for free.

We are already making a “dollar at a time” contribution to a local food pantry.  Twice a year we do a knife sharpening for customers, with proceeds going to Second Harvest. Thanks to our sales reps from Wusthof and Edgecraft generously donating their time,  the three or four dollars suggested donation per knife has now totaled over $10,000. 

I would love to hear your ideas for making slow but steady contributions through small donations.  You may not reach the $2 billion pledged by Walmart for hunger relief through the year 2015 — but even $1 goes a long way towards buying one meal for a hungry child.

Happy Retailing,

Carol “Orange” Schroeder