Comments on: The Rise of Smart Giving http://www.tacticalphilanthropy.com/2010/01/the-rise-of-smart-giving Fri, 09 Dec 2011 20:42:38 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Sean Stannard-Stockton http://www.tacticalphilanthropy.com/2010/01/the-rise-of-smart-giving/comment-page-1#comment-8488 Sean Stannard-Stockton Tue, 26 Jan 2010 20:25:18 +0000 http://tacticalphilanthropy.com/2010/01/the-rise-of-smart-giving#comment-8488 Both trends are definitely coincident indicators of the maturing of the philanthropic sector as an important element of mainstream American culture. Both trends are definitely coincident indicators of the maturing of the philanthropic sector as an important element of mainstream American culture.

]]> By: Emily Gerth http://www.tacticalphilanthropy.com/2010/01/the-rise-of-smart-giving/comment-page-1#comment-8487 Emily Gerth Tue, 26 Jan 2010 20:19:44 +0000 http://tacticalphilanthropy.com/2010/01/the-rise-of-smart-giving#comment-8487 There is a part of me that wonders if these two trends (giving smart and increased corporate tie-ins with giving) are somewhat linked. I feel like I've been bombarded with messages about opportunities to give in a way I didn't used to be. I can give at the grocery store (Safeway is channeling donations through the Safeway Foundation). I can give on the website for the database I use at work (Salesforce.com matched $500,000 in donations). I can give while watching TV on a Friday night. I can give while on Facebook with my friends recommending causes related to Haiti and while on an I-phone on the bus. With options for donating quite literally everywhere you turn, I think the average donor might be more inclined to say, "how do I pick?" That said, a lot of the focus in the media seems to be coming more from nonprofits saying what they do/don't want (cash versus in-kind) rather than from donors asking what they should do. So the two trends aren't necessarily linked, but there might be a connection. There is a part of me that wonders if these two trends (giving smart and increased corporate tie-ins with giving) are somewhat linked.

I feel like I’ve been bombarded with messages about opportunities to give in a way I didn’t used to be. I can give at the grocery store (Safeway is channeling donations through the Safeway Foundation). I can give on the website for the database I use at work (Salesforce.com matched $500,000 in donations). I can give while watching TV on a Friday night. I can give while on Facebook with my friends recommending causes related to Haiti and while on an I-phone on the bus. With options for donating quite literally everywhere you turn, I think the average donor might be more inclined to say, “how do I pick?”

That said, a lot of the focus in the media seems to be coming more from nonprofits saying what they do/don’t want (cash versus in-kind) rather than from donors asking what they should do. So the two trends aren’t necessarily linked, but there might be a connection.

]]> By: Sara http://www.tacticalphilanthropy.com/2010/01/the-rise-of-smart-giving/comment-page-1#comment-8485 Sara Mon, 25 Jan 2010 23:02:33 +0000 http://tacticalphilanthropy.com/2010/01/the-rise-of-smart-giving#comment-8485 Rich, I agree as well - it's refreshing to see solutions proposed instead of finger pointing. It is also refreshing to see a culture of people who are taking an interest in where their money goes and the kind of impact it can have. Rich, I agree as well – it’s refreshing to see solutions proposed instead of finger pointing. It is also refreshing to see a culture of people who are taking an interest in where their money goes and the kind of impact it can have.

]]> By: Sean Stannard-Stockton http://www.tacticalphilanthropy.com/2010/01/the-rise-of-smart-giving/comment-page-1#comment-8484 Sean Stannard-Stockton Mon, 25 Jan 2010 21:37:04 +0000 http://tacticalphilanthropy.com/2010/01/the-rise-of-smart-giving#comment-8484 Interesting point Patricia. I guess your point is another example of the increasing sophistication around charitable giving, but maybe not an outcome that we should celebrate, Interesting point Patricia. I guess your point is another example of the increasing sophistication around charitable giving, but maybe not an outcome that we should celebrate,

]]> By: Patricia Angus http://www.tacticalphilanthropy.com/2010/01/the-rise-of-smart-giving/comment-page-1#comment-8483 Patricia Angus Mon, 25 Jan 2010 20:09:24 +0000 http://tacticalphilanthropy.com/2010/01/the-rise-of-smart-giving#comment-8483 Sean, I've been reading your blog for a while and appreciate your identification of key trends. I would add to the "give smart" trend another perhaps more powerful trend that I have observed during the Haiti crisis. The for-profit business sector has turned this situation into a marketing opportunity more quickly than any other disaster in the past. That is, they are using the Haiti situation to draw potential donors to their products, services and websites to a degree and at a speed that is quicker than for any prior disaster. While some good giving will come from this, the line between philanthropy/ charity and commercial marketing/ sales for the business sector are now blurred more than ever. Patricia Angus Angus Advisory Group LLC Philanthropy and Family Governance Consulting Sean, I’ve been reading your blog for a while and appreciate your identification of key trends. I would add to the “give smart” trend another perhaps more powerful trend that I have observed during the Haiti crisis. The for-profit business sector has turned this situation into a marketing opportunity more quickly than any other disaster in the past. That is, they are using the Haiti situation to draw potential donors to their products, services and websites to a degree and at a speed that is quicker than for any prior disaster. While some good giving will come from this, the line between philanthropy/ charity and commercial marketing/ sales for the business sector are now blurred more than ever.
Patricia Angus
Angus Advisory Group LLC
Philanthropy and Family Governance Consulting

]]> By: Sean Stannard-Stockton http://www.tacticalphilanthropy.com/2010/01/the-rise-of-smart-giving/comment-page-1#comment-8482 Sean Stannard-Stockton Mon, 25 Jan 2010 19:01:23 +0000 http://tacticalphilanthropy.com/2010/01/the-rise-of-smart-giving#comment-8482 I think that's right Rich. What is promising to me is that the media message is direct at what donors can do rather than simply the problems that government/nonprofits have. I think that’s right Rich. What is promising to me is that the media message is direct at what donors can do rather than simply the problems that government/nonprofits have.

]]> By: Rich Polt http://www.tacticalphilanthropy.com/2010/01/the-rise-of-smart-giving/comment-page-1#comment-8481 Rich Polt Mon, 25 Jan 2010 18:36:17 +0000 http://tacticalphilanthropy.com/2010/01/the-rise-of-smart-giving#comment-8481 For better or worse, a spate of recent global catastrophes have helped Americans develop their “best practices guide” for emergency relief funding. This guide has been honed by way of the various publicly bungled relief efforts of the last decade (most notably Katrina). Everyone wants to get it right this time. And it seems that – for a change – the media is not just pointing fingers, but actively helping to advance the relief effort itself (whether by design or not). It’s a refreshing dynamic. For better or worse, a spate of recent global catastrophes have helped Americans develop their “best practices guide” for emergency relief funding. This guide has been honed by way of the various publicly bungled relief efforts of the last decade (most notably Katrina). Everyone wants to get it right this time. And it seems that – for a change – the media is not just pointing fingers, but actively helping to advance the relief effort itself (whether by design or not). It’s a refreshing dynamic.

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