Would you like to add a $2, $5 or $10 donation alongside your purchase? I have spent a fair bit of time at the LCBO since March 2020, so I get asked this frequently and my usual response is a polite no thanks. Why? Simply because I prefer to pick the charities I donate to.
Don’t get me wrong, I support retailers like the LCBO driving both commerce and social change. In June 2020, the LCBO raised $3.3m for Feed Ontario, Community Food Centres Canada and Second Harvest in support of essential food relief programs across Ontario…great to see the power of giving in action when needed most. With approximately 50% of Canadian charities still facing pandemic challenges and declines in revenue, and 25% of Canadians planning to give less this year than last (Ipsos Poll 2022), more of these commerce-cause initiatives are essential to generate giving when shopping.
More and more businesses are choosing to support causes through everyday purchases. Personally, I’d be more inclined to give at checkout if I was empowered to choose the organization my funds were going to. I don’t think I’m alone. 85% of Canadians are motivated to donate because they personally believe in a cause and want to help (Imagine Canada’s Sector Source Report). If their cause was connected to everyday shopping, perhaps they’d be more inclined to give when asked at checkout. The fact that only one in five customers donated when asked in LCBO’s 3-week campaign raised this giving opportunity in my mind.
Values-based shopping and giving
As I have gotten older, my shopping habits have changed, especially over the last two years. I believe in supporting independent businesses, especially in my neighbourhood, I love products that intersect with my values, and I appreciate brands that show “skin in the game” by giving back a portion of every purchase to charity. This is why my wardrobe features many Happiness Is t-shirts and sweats. My “Happiness Is My Dog” is my fave, as it truly makes me feel happy, thankful, and inspired. Best of all, through an innovative new technology called Trureal, Happiness Is gives back 1.5% of every purchase I make to the charity of my choice.
The pandemic has greatly impacted how businesses sell, how people shop and how businesses and people give. “People are more willing than ever to buy from brands that resonate with them because of geography, company values, or sustainability.” (Shopify’s The Future of Commerce 2022 report), and "As the world climbs out of the pandemic, brand awareness is no longer the currency of business - consumer trust is the priority. There is a need for companies to rethink how they are driving positive societal change." (2021 Gustavson Brand Trust Index). Adapting to changing shopping habits through new technologies, like Trureal, drives the pursuit of a better way to buy and give.
Charities always appreciate new opportunities that give their supporters simple ways to continue showing their support. Trureal, a Toronto start-up, has created a unique shopping cashback redemption program that will drive donations to 86,000 Canadian charities. Through a partnership with CanadaHelps, all 86,000 Canadian charities are already integrated on the Trureal platform – no work is needed on their end - so if a charity’s supporters sign up (which is free), they can start making donations (without taking any money out-of-pocket) to said charity through their everyday shopping.
What is truly exciting about the Trureal technology is that shoppers also have the option to re-direct existing bank-funded cashback/rewards directly to their charity as well. What does this mean? As an example, I’m an RBC Avion cardholder, so I can convert my RBC Rewards points to cash (as I normally would through RBC online banking) and donate the converted cash directly to my charity through Trureal (through RBC directly, I can only do this to one of their four charity choices).
Over the past decade, the number of Canadian donors and donations has been on the decline, and COVID-19 deepened the downward trend. With social impact growing as a major driver of purchasing habits, the act of shopping through a platform like Trureal can be a completely new revenue channel that creates a sustainable stream of donations for all Canadian charities, while at the same time, empowering consumers to make a real and measurable social impact. It’s a way forward for sustainable shopping and giving in this new age!
Entrepreneurial at heart, Ira Grossman is an independent fundraiser, raising funds for a number of Canadian charities through online auctions. Living and breathing his late father’s values - hard work, honesty, integrity, and giving back – Ira also runs 2 of his own events: the annual "Squash Dementia” squash tournament (in memory of his dad), with proceeds to The Gerry & Nancy Pencer Brain Tumor Centre at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, and annual Playoff Hockey Challenge + Auction for Wishes, now in its 28th year for Make-A-Wish Canada. http://ca.linkedin.com/in/iragrossman
Home page photo by Erik Mclean on Unsplash
