Are you thinking about donating? You are not alone. Many people worldwide have donated to different charities. Have you stopped and wondered what you should be doing to make a successful donation? Well, here are five ways to make a successful donation.

1. Give to an Organization with Which You’re Familiar

Do your research. A legitimate organization will have a website and social media where you can learn about its mission, history, financials, and finances. You should know who runs the organization and how they use your donation. Where is the organization located? Who do they help?

2. Give to an Organization That’s a Good Steward

Being a good steward of donations means spending money effectively and making every dollar donation count in fighting a cause. When deciding where to donate your money, you should worry about how organizations spend funds and if they’re getting the most out of each donation. You can get a sense of how well charities use their funding by looking at these indicators:

• How much does the charity spend on raising money? A good charity spends no more than 25% of its annual budget on fundraising.
• What percentage goes directly to programs and services? The best charities dedicate 80% or more of their budgets to direct program expenses.

3. Give to a Charity That Will Keep Its Overheads Low

When you donate to a charity, you should make sure that it will use your money in the most responsible way possible. One of the best ways to do this is to determine how much money will be spent on overhead costs versus how much money goes directly to programs. Overhead costs represent the expenses of running an organization: things like rent, salaries, and marketing. 

4. Give to an Organization Whose Values Align With Your Own

While charitable donations can help those in need, donors need to be thoughtful in selecting where their money goes. Donors need to be thoughtful in selecting where their money goes. This means considering the causes and organizations you as a donor believe are most worthy of your time and resources. 

5. Give to Multiple Organizations So You Can Help a Range of Causes

Donating to multiple charities is arguably better than donating to just one. By spreading your money across different organizations, you can help more people and causes. If you only donate to one charity, that organization becomes singularly responsible for effecting change in all the areas it works.

Still, if you donate to multiple charities, each organization is only responsible for effecting change on a narrow range of issues. Donating to multiple charities means that no single group has to tackle everything.

Conclusion

Donating isn’t always as easy as choosing where to send your money. When deciding where to make your donation, many factors include the cause, whether it’s a campaign or a large organization, your personal preferences, and how you want to get involved. Seek more advice in the industry like Stefan Soloviev.