Innovative Fundraising Site Helps Local Charities Raise Money

More than 70 local nonprofits ranging from large national organizations like the American Red Cross to local animal clinics, museums and schools have joined GoodSearch.com and GoodShop.com to provide supporters with free, easy ways to support their missions.  Through these sites, supporters have raised nearly $8 million for their favorite nonprofits and schools!

It today’s economy, many people are searching for creative ways to give back to local charities without the money coming directly from their checkbooks.    The GoodSearch and GoodShop team has revolutionized online philanthropy so that no one is denied the opportunity to support the causes most important to them.

GoodShop.com is an online shopping mall which donates up to 30% of each purchase to your designated cause.  The shopping experience and prices are the same as going to the retailer directly, but each time you shop at a participating store via GoodShop, a percentage of what you spend goes back to your favorite charity or school.  It also provides over 100,000 coupons and deals – so not only are you ‘doing good’, but you’re saving money while doing so!

Similarly, with every search conducted on Yahoo!-powered GoodSearch.com, approximately one penny is donated to your favorite charity.  It’s used exactly like any other search engine and the pennies add up quickly!

To give you a sense of how this has worked, below are a few local charities and the money they have received through GoodSearch and GoodShop:

William Holden Wildlife Foundation – more than $1,660 – offers visitors a unique opportunity to experience the outdoors in a rare communication with nature often unavailable to them in their own environment.

SPCA – Los Angeles – more than $1,250 –  dedicated to the prevention of cruelty to animals through Education, Law Enforcement, Intervention & Advocacy.

Free Arts for Abused Children – over $860 – inspire hope in the lives of abused, homeless and at-risk children through innovative creative arts programs and positive interactions with caring adult volunteers.

Los Angeles County High School for the Arts – nearly $850 – Students at the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts, through powerful learning experiences, will embrace and excel in the arts and academics while working towards their visions of the future.

Orange County Conservation Corps – over $300 – serves young, at-risk adults through employment, training and educational programs that build self-sufficiency and benefit the community through conservation-related projects.

Foster Care Auxiliary of Orange County – nearly $250 – enhances the lives of all Orange County foster children, to help support and retain Orange County licensed foster families and those who are providing a permanent home for a minor from the Orange County foster care system.

These are just a few examples from the more than 100,000 charities and schools currently benefitting from GoodSearch and GoodShop.

“We have taken simple everyday actions, like searching and shopping, and turned them into ways people can do good with just a click of the mouse,” says Scott Garell, CEO of GoodSearch (and former President of Ask.com).  “Plus, with over 100,000 coupons daily which deliver $2MM in savings, GoodShop helps our users save money—which is important in the current economy — while doing good at the same time.

Here is how the sites work:

GoodShop:

1. Go to www.goodshop.com
2. Designate your favorite charity or school (you only have to do this the first time)
3. Click through to your favorite store and shop as you normally would – a percentage of what you spend will go to your favorite cause!  (and, you’ll find more than 100,000 coupons on GoodShop too!)

GoodSearch:

1. Go to www.goodsearch.com
2. Designate your favorite charity or school (you only have to do this the first time)
3. Search the web in the Yahoo!-powered search box as you usually would – each time you search, a donation is made to your cause!