2020 benefit report

GiveMore® helps individuals and organizations raise funds more effectively. We do this by providing tools and services that enable charitable giving, matching donations, and the socialization of causes.

From the very beginning when GiveMore® was just an idea that had been quickly sketched out on a scrap piece of paper, I knew I had to do things right. To me doing it the right way meant being in line with the triple bottom line: People, Planet, and Profit. Doing it the right way meant trying to craft a business where everyone involved benefits from the process. This is no easy feat but is vitally important.

While our operating agreement had provisions to be a benefit company from day one, it wasn’t until several years later, in 2019, that we officially became certified through Benefit Corporations for Good.

Our Mission

Our mission is to encourage you and your community to give more.

We aim to do this by developing innovative tools and marketing practices that will help our causes attract and engage donors ultimately leading to greater levels of giving. We also aim to operate in a way that is inclusive and develops a diverse culture.

2020 Year in Review

The focus over the past year has been to continue to run trial campaigns and to improve the platform while exploring what marketing will look like.

2020 was a disruptive year during which a global pandemic took its toll and continues to do so as I write this report.  Covid19 wasn’t the only major event that affected us, Global Warming is starting to give us glimpses of what our warmer (and for some, colder) future looks like. Weather patterns have become more extreme and erratic. Our forests burn at a rate and scale never before seen. Winter storms are showing up out of season and are more severe.  

What absolutely astounds me though is that these effects shouldn’t come as a surprise - in fact, growing up, I remember seeing timelines and reports suggesting what is now happening would come to pass if we did not act in time. The only thing these scientists seem to have missed is that it is worse than they had predicted and is happening on a more condensed timeline.

In the past year, fascism and nationalism waged war against America and faced a significant blow when Trump failed to get re-elected.  He continues to spread lies but has been deplatformed - it should have happened sooner.  His rhetoric and lies stoked white nationalism and racism.  The silver lining is that this helped fuel a counter movement.  

Black Lives Matter has become stronger and millions joined in protest, outdoors and with masks.  As a result police reform is starting to happen but still has a very long way to go. Corrupt officers are finally starting to be prosecuted for murder yet still too many are getting away with betraying their oaths to server and protect and abusing the power they hold.

Earlier this year, I created two new initiatives.  The first program was a donation funded free sticker program and the second was to fund books for little free libraries.  

In total, 21 donors contributed $675, funding 773 stickers on topics such as black lives matter and protesting.  Towards the end of 2020, I paused the program for logistical reasons and funded an additional $200 or so to cover shipping for the remaining sticker inventory.  All in all, I consider the program a success.

GiveMore is currently in an experimental phase of being a startup.  Each year I run a few campaigns to test out new functionality and to determine where my resources should be focused.  I keep things very lean and continue to move the project forward. I believe that in time, the impact of this platform will be immense. At times this process is slow, sometimes a bit too slow for my liking, but it is allowing me to self fund this venture with the help of donor tips and the occasional direct donation - for which I am immensely grateful! 

This past year’s main technological adjustment was to allow donors to cover the credit card processing fee and it was embraced by most donors. I consider this a big win for the causes who are raising funds on the platform.  In addition to that adjustment, we overhauled the site’s branding and appearance which is something I am very proud of - it wouldn’t have been possible without the help from some dear friends.

Looking Ahead

As a company, the past few years have been about building a flexible platform, testing that it resonated with donors and organizers alike and finally exploring marketing options. Everything we do is looked at as an experiment. In the year ahead, I have new marketing initiatives to test and am very excited to see how they are embraced.

At the time of writing, I am in the process of integrating with Mailchimp to allow causes to connect their mailchimp accounts and allow donors and followers to easily join their mailing lists. Furthermore, I have expanded how I can offer grants through the pledge fund and can now offer goal based grants in which the recipient unlocks the grant if they raise over the goal amount.

The next experiment that I have in the works is a grant program where I will be giving out $500-$2500 goal based grants.  I am hoping to launch this prior to the end of 2021 or early 2022.  If you are interested in participating in the trial, please reach out and share what you are raising funds for and how you would benefit from the grant.  

Over the past year we have been validating our process and making adjustments. We have been planning and exploring how to move forward.

The world needs all of us to GiveMore® 

...and get vaccinated...