Three E-Tailers with Microdonation Programs
As of November 1, 2020, National Veterans Intermediary (NVI) is called the Local Partner Network. Older content may reference our original name.
Microdonations are predicted to be a huge part of the future of philanthropy. Some online retailers are building philanthropy programs around their ecommerce platforms. The source of the money is sometimes advertising, sometimes profit, but the result is the same: Shoppers shop, retailers donate money.
Here are three of the biggest programs that have programs to benefit nonprofits:
eBay for Charity
eBay for Charity has a couple ways for nonprofits to fundraise:
- Once registered, organizations can invite members of their community to designate a percentage of their sales profits to be donated.
- Organizations can also host their own sales (or even dedicated shops) as fundraisers. When opting to sell directly, nonprofits keep 100% of earnings thanks to eBay waiving fees.
- Nonprofits with celebrity or high-profile champions can use their shop to auction big-ticket items without having to shell over a percentage to eBay or an auction house.
eBay has created a guide for charities to get the most out of the program, and even hosts a community where charities can learn how best to leverage their shops to raise money.
Goodshop
Goodshop (and its partner service, Goodsearch) is another microdonation source for nonprofits. Goodshop partners with popular retailers to refer shoppers, the retailers give Goodshop a referral fee, and Goodshop gives part of the fee to a charity of the shopper’s choice. Shoppers pay no more than they would on the retailers’ websites.
Goodsearch allows internet users to conduct their searches with a Yahoo-powered search engine that generates money for your designated nonprofit. How does it work? Like most search engines, Goodsearch makes money through advertising. Goodsearch donates about $.01 per search, which doesn’t sound like a lot, but can add up. A significant supporter base multiplied by frequent searching (which seems to have become our custom) can build you a nice little stack of cash.
Amazon Smile
Amazon Smile donates .5% of every purchase to the shopper’s nonprofit of choice. It’s so easy to register that you’ll be left thinking, “Wait, that’s it?”
While the nonprofit’s user experience is super simple, an extra step is required of the shopper to ensure their purchases are eligible (and purchases made through the app don’t count).
Despite this, tons of folks use Amazon for their holiday and regular shopping, and Amazon Smile is an easy way for you to capture tiny donations from a huge corporate donor.
