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by Alison Walsh
In an effort to start the week off right, Green Buzz Agency is offering a little bit of education – call it a piece of “flair” – each Monday.  We’ll tackle a different part of PR each week.  Think we’ve missed one? Let us know and we’ll write one or post yours as a guest blog!

Since you only get what you give, we’ll start with Corporate Social Responsibility and the 8 questions you should ask when selecting a partner charity.

Muhammad Ali once wrote, “Community service is the rent we pay for our room here on earth.”  In the spirit of “every little bit helps,”  Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is important, regardless of the size of your business.  You may have a charity in mind, but your PR team can help you get the most out of what you give through presence and alignment.  Furthermore, they may have worked with these charities in the past or know their past work well from a media audit or similar connection.

Sure, every charity is a worthy cause, but there are questions you should answer before choosing one (or more) charity.  We also recommend using Charity Navigator, as you vet out your options.

To start:

• Do I want to spread my donations to many different charities throughout the year or focus on a sole partner?
• Is their cause something around which my company and employees can rally?
• Does this charity’s donor base match my target customer base?
• Is this charity like my company: a well-oiled machine?
• Do they keep their web site fresh?
• Are they willing to include links and logos for my company in charity promotional materials online and in print?
• Do they hold events and fundraisers in which my company can get involved?
• Are they fairly well-known or on a growth spurt?

Here’s hoping your Monday’s productive and you don’t have to take a bat to your printer anytime soon, a la Office Space (the movie we’ve been referencing throughout this post).

The PR Specialist behind this post is Alison Walsh. Email Alison: alisonhope.walsh@gmail.com

Learn more about GBA and our video production prowess!