2016年4月14日星期四

How to give smartly?

Canadians are very generous when it comes to charitable giving. According to the article of Charitable Giving by Canadians, 94% of Canadians have made some types of donations to charitable and non-profit organizations in 2010, 86% have donated goods and food while 84% have made financial donations. However, There are more than 85,600 registered charities in Canada, how could you decide which charity to give? For those who are interested in making a charitable donation, this article provides step-by-step guidance and advices for new starters.

·         Investigate before your donation

If you don’t know where to start for your donation journey, the very first thing you should do is to find a charitable cause you have the most compassion for. Ask yourself if you have a special interest in certain social or environmental issues like addressing poverty and stopping climate changes. Meanwhile reflecting on your personal life experiences will help you decide which cause to give, as your particular experience may connect you to a certain group of people in need. In fact, as mentioned by the same article, feeling compassion towards people in need is the main reason for making a financial donation.

Secondly, do a basic research of the charities related to causes you personally believe in. Canada Revenue Agency provides charities listings for you to search, you could also utilize other third party independent websites like Charity Intelligence Canada which offers rich database and gives external evaluations and free ratings about charities.

If you have some interest in one charity, go to its official website to discover more information including its mission statement, organization value and carrying-on projects. If you are browsing a website from a Canadian registered charity, you should be able to view its financial statement and annual report, which shows how much of their income went to administrative costs, whereas how much money were used to support its charitable goals. You could have better knowledge of its program efficiency and financial transparency by digging into those documents.

Another information source shouldn’t be neglected is the social media channels. Joining in the ongoing conversations on these organizations' social media, you will be able to understand their charity value, engage in their giving community, and find people who share the same passion. You could also sign up for their newsletter for their latest news and events.

·         Find new ways to give

Explore more donation options apart from financial donation, such as donating tangible goods to a charity store. If you want to donate unwanted household goods, Charity thrift stores like Goodwills are a good choice. As mentioned previously, not all donated goods are eligible for tax deduction. Usually the thrift store will issue a tax receipt based on the fair market value of your item. Ensure your donated goods are in good condition, and if you donate useless items, the charities won’t be able to benefit from your donations and such item will take extra resource to sort and discard them.

Another option is selling your stuff on charity stores online. Websites like Easy Charity facilitates people to sell their unwanted products for good causes. By registering on its site, you can list all kinds of goods for sale and select certain charities to benefit from the sale. However, they do set a base donation amount and they prefer high value goods. Also you won’t be able to claim a tax deduction until your product has been purchased and the donation dollars has proceeded to the charities. What's more, you could even donate a vehicle via Donate a Car, whom helps you gift the charities you love by handling the car for you.

Last but not least, intangible donation such as donating your time or skills can also benefit the cause you care about. One simple way is to volunteer in the charitable events you like. By joining such events and being actively involving with charities, you can enlarge your network, open up your mind and get a sense of achievement.  You could even donate your hours or talents on fundraising sites like Easy Charity. For instance, Easy Charity allows teachers to donate their teaching hours online, service receivers pay for such service and all revenues generated from the trade proceed to the charity selected by the service donor.

·         Get Tax deduction

Although what ultimately motivates donors is the compassion towards people in need or the charitable causes they believe in, the incentive of getting tax deduction should not be overlooked. According to the article of Charitable Giving by Canadians, income tax credit is considered important by 23% of people.

To claim a tax credit or tax deduction, you need the donation receipt for your donation to a registered charity. Only a registered charity can issue a tax deduction receipt, the receipt will include the charity’s Canada Revenue Agency registration number. Therefore you should make sure the charity has a valid charity registration number or confirm its register status at CIC. Not all types of donations qualify for charitable tax credit, volunteering time or skills is not eligible for tax deduction, neither are donations provided in exchanged for goods, tickets, service or other advantages.

A registered charity is not obligated to issue a tax receipt for your donation, some charities may require a minimum amount of donation for the tax issue. Consult the charity itself about its tax deduction criteria before donating.

·         Become a sustainable giver

Being a sustainable giver to the charity will improve the long-term sustainability of their work. For example, making monthly donations and giving a small amount each time will create sustainable fundraising flows for charities. Similarly, charity stores need regular donation of good quality goods to have enough items at stock. With online charity store, all you need is the frequent updates of your listing items, which maintains a virtual inventory and generates more clicks for the online store.

Another approach is developing advocacy on social media for the charity you support. Many charities offer social media share buttons on their site. By sharing charity pages to your social network, you help them to increase their exposure and reach new audience on social media.

You could even start a fundraising event to support your charity on social media. When creating a fundraising page, it is important to create a sharable call-to-action post to spread your message. Don’t forget share your own story in supporting the charity, and you might want to talk about how your experiences inspired your charity contribution and how you become part of the charity community.


You want to make a difference by donating to a good cause, but there is no need to waste your money and time on an inefficient charity who fails to create any impact. Think twice and do your research before donating to a charity. Make the most of the donation by being a smart and effective giver, so you can maximize your charitable contribution whist benefit the charity you like.

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