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How Does Philanthropy Pay?

Companies in retail and financial services saw increases of $6 in sales for every $1 donated through corporate charity.

How Does My Company Benefit From Corporate Giving?

1. Consumer satisfaction is key to the success of corporate donations.

A study of 251 firms on the Taft Corporate Giving Directory showed those in consumer-focused industries performed best financially following their donations.

2. Donate to maintain competitive edge in a dynamic or unstable industry.

In a study of 817 companies on the Taft Corporate Giving Directory, firms in dynamic environments who donated benefited most financially due to greater stakeholder support.

3. Give generously, or not at all.

A study of 1, 214 firms showed the relationship between financial and social performance is U-shaped: firms that either gave nothing or gave generouslyhad higher net income and ROA than those in the middle.

4. Don’t dabble in corporate philanthropy.

In a study of 537 large UK firms, those who performed the worst financially had average levels of corporate giving.

5. Know How Much is Too Much.

Data from Taft Corporate Giving Directories showed donations stopped “paying off” past a certain point: eventually direct costs of philanthropy outweighed financial return.

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Author

  • Lauren Turner
    Senior Sustainability Specialist
    Centre for Building Sustainable Value, Ivey Business School
    Master's in Environment and Sustainability, Western University

    Lauren completed a Bachelor of Health Sciences and a Master’s in Environment and Sustainability at Western University. She interned with the Network for Business Sustainability as part of the MES program, and continued to edit and contribute content to the network in the years following. She later completed a Master’s in Insurance and Risk Management from the MIB School of Management in Italy, where she focused on environmental risk mitigation strategies in the face of changing market sentiments towards low carbon. Lauren has worked primarily in the non-profit and higher-ed sectors in Toronto and London over the past decade. Her work has revolved around corporate social responsibility in mining and minerals governance, stakeholder engagement, project and program management, and writing/editing for corporate audiences. Her writing has focused on the intersection of sustainability and finance, access to capital, investor risk, consumer behaviour, and sustainable marketing. She is interested in conversations around how industry can hedge against risk and benefit financially from improving the sustainability of their operations.

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