Giving is a life principle that will always bear fruit. If you have some extra money, you can choose to be a responsible member of the community by donating to a charity of your choice. This will mean sharing your fortunes with others by offering your support to their causes. Nevertheless, choosing the right group can prove challenging. There are certain pitfalls that need to be avoided when choosing a charitable organization. The factors to consider when giving for charity include:
· Personal experience
Donors choose a charity based on their past and present personal experiences. An illness or other traumatic events that may have arisen may have caused you to go out looking for assistance from a charity. The time arises when you wish to give back to the charity.
· Personal interest
The charitable organization that you get to choose is usually based on your likes and preferences. Therefore, a lover of dogs will usually donate to animal shelters for dogs within their locality while a religious person chooses to donate to their local church.
· Find out about the expenses
A charity may be good as far as you know. However, you might feel cheated if you find out later that most of the donations go out to pay for salaries for top officers and the personnel who called you up to make your contribution. According to expert advice, efficient groups will normally spend a minimum of 65% of the donations to support the causes. The percentage may be lower for charities that are known to support controversial causes including abortion rights. This is attributed to the fact that such groups experience troubles raising money.
· Volunteer
One of the ways of getting information about a charitable organization is to consider volunteering before submitting your donations. Hands-on experience will give you important information pertaining to how well an organization is managed. Furthermore, you get an opportunity to find out how effectively the group is accomplishing its mission. You find out whether the organization's advocacy, services or programs are making a difference. By volunteering your time, participate in a fundraiser or working in the committee you get to find out how effective the organization is.
· Protect yourself
Make sure to protect yourself by avoiding to give out personal or credit card information that is in response to door-to-door, e-mail or phone appeals. The group may be fraudulent. Furthermore, avoid giving cash- it is advisable to mail a cheque to the group.
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