Building Community Engagement Initiatives for Small Businesses

Investing in employee volunteer opportunities and community outreach may seem like a financial burden for a small business. However, putting community service first can be a powerful growth strategy for your company.

Now more than ever, customers seriously consider the moral integrity of a business before making a purchase. 86% of American consumers say they evaluate a company's commitment to corporate social responsibility (CSR) when deciding where to buy. And for a small business, engaging with the local community shows your customers that you care.

So, how does a young business with limited means become active in its community? Here are three ideas.

Get Your Staff Involved in Volunteer Work

71% of employees say it is imperative or very important to have a workplace culture that supports giving and volunteering. Employers can empower staff members to get involved in a cause they care about without losing pay by creating a volunteer time off policy.?

Our comprehensive CSR management platform allows your employees to search for participating community partners, select a day or time they'd like to volunteer and ask for time off. The system will then automatically notify the reporting manager, who can approve or deny the request.

Offer Giving Opportunities and Matching Donations

Donate to a local organization and encourage team members to do the same with individual and group fundraising campaigns and gift matching.

GivePulse integrates with your payroll processing system, allowing employees to automatically deduct from their payroll to donate to approved 501c(3) nonprofit organizations. Your business can get involved, too, by automatically matching gifts up to a certain amount.?

Set Up Mini-Grants

Think a company foundation has to be handing out millions of dollars in donations each year? Think again! Mini-grants typically range from $500 to $5,000 and are an excellent way for small businesses to fund community programs and organizations.?

Using GivePulse, companies can leverage our grant management tools to set up simple, intuitive workflows that allow partners to apply for grants.?

The Bottom Line

If you own a small business, getting involved in your local community can help you expand your audience, enhance brand recognition and build customer loyalty with the people who matter most.?

If you're just starting out, CSR doesn't have to break the bank. By selecting a few simple ideas and committing a realistic amount of resources, you can build a robust program that you can scale as you grow.

Ready to empower your employees to participate in and understand the impact of positive social change? Schedule a demo with GivePulse today.

A longer version of this article originally appeared on the GivePulse blog. To read the full article, visit https://learn.givepulse.com/blog/how-can-small-businesses-build-community-engagement-initiatives.