Chances are, you have heard of Ben & Jerry’s, SolarCity, or Warby Parker and understand the concept behind socially responsible companies. These are the companies that make the world a better place by aligning with world causes and social good programs. We celebrate these companies for making meaningful impacts and contributing to positive change. But, have you considered that your golf car business can be a socially responsible company?

Besides the warm, fuzzy feeling that business owners get from contributing to their communities in purposeful ways, there are benefits to the bottom line as well. The Nielsen Global Survey of Corporate Social Responsibility conducted several studies that found that 50% of customers are willing to pay more for products or services that are provided by companies who contribute to a community cause. Over 65% of employees would rather work for a company that contributes regularly to a cause. Transforming your golf car business into a socially responsible one is a win-win. Here are a few ideas about how to get started.

1. Donate a Portion of the Proceeds

The most common way that companies can quickly become socially responsible is to choose a non-profit organization and begin donating a portion of all proceeds. Here are a few examples of how that can work:

• 1% of all service charges are donated to XYZ charity.
• 10% of ABC product will support your local XYZ.
• 3% of all profits help support the XYZ Foundation.

Any variation of “a portion of the proceeds” can be used to contribute regularly to a good cause in exchange for marketing and publicity.

2. BOGO: Buy-One-Give-One

A bit more tricky, a BOGO business agrees to match for each item sold. If your golf car business sells tires on a regular basis, your BOGO program could look like this:

“XYZ company agrees to donate one set of tires to the ABC Charities for use on their fleet of golf cars for every set that we sell.”

The trick to this socially responsible promotion is to partner with an organization that uses golf cars regularly or any of the products that you sell. Another idea is to donate a set of batteries to a region that relies on solar power for every set sold. Get creative.

3. Call-to-Action Match Program

This program works especially well for golf car businesses that have an ecommerce store or an active website. Include a call-to-action button that urges visitors to donate to a selected cause. When a customer donates, your business will match the donation. Partner with a local non-profit organization and coordinate a way that your business can receive advertising in exchange for the match program.

4. Employee Volunteerism

Another way to demonstrate social responsibility while also encouraging employees to become more socially conscious is to offer to pay employees for volunteer hours. Partner with a local organization, like the Boys and Girls Club or Habitat for Humanity and offer to pay employees for a set number of volunteer hours each month. Employee volunteer programs cultivate a healthy work/life balance for employees while earning your business serious cool points in the community.

5. Host a Charitable Event

Establish an annual event that will be sponsored by your business and will raise donation money for a local cause. A few examples are:

• Galas with silent auctions
• Fishing tournaments
• Golf tournaments
• 5K runs

Your business will fund the event and reap the press release and other marketing benefits while raising awareness and money for a local charity. Your business name will forever be associated with the charity and customers will prefer visiting your business over your competitors.

There are limitless ways to position your golf car business as a socially responsible staple in your community. The first step is to pick a charity and then start brainstorming.

Julie Wilson, Owner of WHEELZ Custom Carts & Accessories, was one of the industry’s first online retailers of golf cart parts, when she founded her business in 2008. Julie’s eCommerce store, www.WHEELZLLC.com remains a popular online shopping experience for innovative golf car parts and accessories.

WHEELZ Custom Carts is proud to partner with Valerie’s House of Southwest Florida. Regular contributions are made to the non-profit organization, whose mission is to create a supportive and healing environment for children grieving the loss of a parent or sibling.