Maximising your charitable impact with Invest2Donate.

Being able to donate money to a charity is a privileged position to be in – and one that can have a significant impact on those less fortunate. But, of course, with more than 55,000 registered charities and more than 600,000 non-profits, there are many worthy causes to choose from.

Change the way you donate

Requests from charities are hard to ignore. From being approached in the middle of a shopping centre to finding yourself targeted by a Facebook Ad – requests for donations are everywhere.

It’s so hard to say no. We then find ourselves happily reaching into our wallets and departing with our cash, thinking it’s headed to a worthy cause.

It’s a noble thing to do, but not necessarily having the impact you might have hoped.

While the intention is to help those worse off than us, there are plenty of other expenses that chip away at those dollars you donated before it even has a chance to reach its final destination.

According to the PFRA, a professional body representing large charities and fundraising groups, an average of 40% of your donation is going towards covering the cost of their campaign to get you to donate. So the current system is failing both us – the donors – and the charities working so hard to stretch each dollar as far as possible.

If this were a proposed business model in the financial world, it wouldn’t make it far.

At IMFG we fully support helping those in need, and we’re also about making smarter financial decisions. Of course, this extends to donations as well. So, how exactly can you maximise your charitable contributions?

Things to consider when choosing charities

You need to remember that you can’t help everyone. You may want to help that little sick child. You might want to save that starving family. But, despite having the best of intentions, you can’t do it all. Just the same way, you can invest in every business opportunity that comes your way.

While it’s helpful to have a diverse portfolio, if you diversify it too much, then you don’t have a chance to make much of an impact.

The same goes when it comes to giving to charity.

The best advice is to take your emotions out of it and buckle down and do your research. Find a few charities or worthy causes that are of interest to you and focus on them.

Make regular payments

When you’ve decided who you want to support, the next step is to make regular payments to these charities. Decide how much you can offer each month, and set up an automatic payment.

If you have budgeted correctly, you won’t even have to think about it.

Instead of only giving when someone approaches you or LinkedIn catches you in a generous moment, you make a regular contribution to a few charities, which can help you make a more significant difference over time.

Getting something out of it

The final thing to consider is what you’re hoping to get out of your regular donations.

Consider the charities you have chosen. What causes are they helping? Why do they exist?

Once you know this, you’ll be able to focus on your own long-term goal for the charity. So whether you’re hoping your donations go to helping X amount of children each year or towards research to helping cure cancer – this is your long-term goal.

Just as you would never enter into an investment without a long-term goal on hand, you should treat your charitable donations in the same manner.

Getting the right help with Invest2Donate

If you’re looking for help with these key decisions, then consider checking out a new non-profit called Invest2Donate, which has put together a simple tool you can download, where all donations flow through to the charity.

The idea is to cut out that middleman and get rid of that 40% buffer going straight into getting your donations in the first place. It’s ensuring your donation has the biggest impact it possibly can.

Here are some things the tool can help with:

• Identifying your giving budget.
• Finding top charities in your area.
• Setting up regular payments directly to the charity’s own website.
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Invest2Donate also puts you in control of changing or stopping regular donations to charities. The tool allows you to contribute regularly which saves the charity the cost of continually asking and receiving predictable donations that allow them to continue their good work.

By investing just a little time to donate, you can get organise and stretch your dollar even further. Instead of waiting to be asked, you can plan ahead.

Want to understand more? Head over to invest2donate.org.au

General Advice Warning

Any advice or information in this publication is of a general nature only and has not taken into account your personal objectives, financial situation and needs. Because of that, before acting on the advice, you should consider its appropriateness to you, having regard to your personal objectives, financial situation and needs.  Before making a decision to acquire a financial product, you should obtain and read the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) relating to that product, it is important for you to consider these matters and to seek appropriate advice. Past performance is not a reliable guide to future returns. The information in this document reflects our understanding of existing legislation, proposed legislation, rulings etc as at the date of issue. In some cases, the information has been provided to us by third parties. While it is believed the information is accurate and reliable, this is not guaranteed in any way. Opinions constitute our judgement at the time of issue and are subject to change. Neither we nor our employees give any warranty of accuracy, nor accept any responsibility for errors or omissions in this document.  Identity McIntyre Pty Limited and Specialist Advice Pty Limited are Authorised Representative(s) of IMFG Pty Limited Limited ABN 18646084666, AFSL number 527657, an Australian Financial Services Licensee, Registered office at Level 8, 171 Clarence Street, Sydney NSW 2000.