Offer customers the option of making a micro donation through their online purchase

Cause-related marketing is a mutually beneficial way to impact your brand, consumer behaviour and also drive sales, while enabling Save the Children to reach out and make a real difference to the lives of more children in Australia and around the world.

Research shows that consumers are more likely to purchase goods that are affiliated with charitable giving, including switching from their preferred brand to one that participates in cause-related marketing.

Through our partnership with Footprints Fundraising, we are able to offer your e-business a model whereby your online customers can choose to donate a small amount to Save the Children. The combined effort amongst your consumers can fund a whole project - now that's good business!

The Footprints Network Model

What is Footprints?

The Footprints Network is a non-profit organisation with a highly successful fundraising mechanism that engages consumers to donate to tangible, poverty alleviation projects globally. It raises small ‘micro' donations through an alliance of e-commerce businesses and their customers. It is the ‘glue' between individual donors and charitable projects and uses web technology to economically facilitate these thousands of tiny transactions. Footprints' sophisticated online reporting system covers multiple currencies, time-zones, businesses and projects; it is truly global in its scope.

WorldNomads.com, TravelInsuranceDirect.com.au, Temando.com and RemoGeneralStore.com are all part of the network.

Save the Children is one of Footprints key charity partners and since 2005 has helped to raise over $200,000 for our programs in Bhutan, Bangladesh, Australia, Vanutau and Laos.

Footprints has raised more than $1.3 million for charity by giving customers the opportunity to donate small change ($1, $2 or $5) when they buy products or services online.

There is strong business evidence to support offering micro donating as an option to customers such as:

• 2% increase in conversion rate when Footprints was integrated at Travel Insurance Direct

• 55% of customers say Footprints is the number one tipping point for choosing World Nomads

• Footprints is one of the top 3 reasons why staff join World Nomads Group

More than 520,000 people across 13 e-commerce businesses have fully funded 74 projects all by giving small change. 100% of funds raised by Footprints goes directly to the charities.

How does it work?

• If you sell stuff online, integrate Footprints to your purchase path.

• Your customers then check a box to add their donation to the purchase total.

• Customers can see the donation totals rising in real time and all project outcomes are reported back on the footprintsnetwork.org website.

Why is it so effective?

• It's easy to make a donation: customers already have a credit card in their hands

• The donation is small: less than the price of a cup of coffee

• The outcome is tangible: people understand exactly where their money goes

• 100% goes to the project: $1 in = $1 out

• When projects are tailored to fit the business/customer interests, response improves

• There is financial transparency & project reporting: engendering trust is vital.

What's in it for business?

Online customers are smart and they care about the ethics and values of the companies that they purchase from.

Here's how a business can benefit from integrating Footprints:

A ready-made CSR program

• Simply & easily link your company's values to those of your customers.

• Create a tipping point for customers and build trust. Footprints has been shown to increase the online sales conversion rate by nearly 2%.

• Establish a direct and meaningful connection between your customer, your business and the project they have chosen to donate to. Maintain a dialogue with customers long after the sale.

• Customers who understand what your company stands for are more likely to generate positive word-of-mouth and return sales.

• Each business is different. Customer engagement improves when the project displayed is relevant to the product or service being paid for.

• Join an alliance of companies that share similar ethics and vision.

• Give your staff something to be proud of. It unquestionably makes attracting top quality staff easier and lowers staff turnover.

Contact Sally Roberts at Save the Children on (03) 9938 2040 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to talk about the benefits that micro-donating could bring to your business.