BBB Wise Giving Alliance Urges Donors to Research before Giving

Arlington, VA – Each year, American charities receive one-third of their annual donations during the holiday giving season. With Dec. 1 marking this year’s #GivingTuesday, BBB Wise Giving Alliance (BBB WGA) urges donors to research charities before giving to ensure their generous contributions are going to trustworthy organizations. 

“The evaluations we provide give donors insight into charity trustworthiness, helping them make wiser giving decisions,” remarks Art Taylor, president and CEO of BBB WGA. ”Holiday donations can make a real impact. Therefore, it’s critical that donors’ hard-earned dollars go to charities that operate ethically.”

BBB WGA is sharing five tips to help donors give wisely and make the most of their generosity this holiday season. 

1. Watch out for name similarities. When charities seek support for the same cause, their names are often similar. Before you give, be sure you have the exact name of the charity to avoid a case of mistaken identity.
2. Avoid on-the-spot donation decisions from unfamiliar organizations. The holidays bring a higher frequency of donation requests outside public locations. Don’t succumb to pressure to make an immediate giving decision. Responsible organizations will welcome your gift tomorrow as much as they do today.
3. Be wary of emotional appeals. Marketers have been known to exploit the holidays to make emotional pleas to donors. Always research to verify that your selected charity operates ethically.
4. Avoid charities that don’t disclose. Although participation is voluntary, charities that don’t disclose any of the requested information to BBB WGA raise a critical red flag for donors. Visit Give.org to find out if your selected charity is nondisclosure.
5. Rely on standards-based evaluations. Charities can demonstrate they are trustworthy by agreeing to in-depth evaluations such as the 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability. Get free access to charity reports at Give.org.

“#GivingTuesday celebrates the generosity of people around the world during the holiday season,” says Henry Timms, co-founder of #GivingTuesday and executive director of 92nd Street Y, where the movement was born.  “To make sure this generosity has the greatest impact, we hope donors take time to evaluate charities before donating.”

ABOUT BBB WISE GIVING ALLIANCE
BBB Wise Giving Alliance (BBB WGA) is a standards-based charity evaluator that seeks to verify the trustworthiness of nationally-soliciting charities by completing rigorous evaluations based on 20 holistic standards that address charity governance, effectiveness reporting, finances, fundraising, appeal accuracy, and other issues. National charity reports are produced by the BBB WGA and local charity reports are produced by local Better Business Bureaus – all reports are available at Give.org.