It shouldn’t come as a surprise that Johnny and I are big on finding deals. Duh. And we end up finding most of them on the world wide webisphere. We rarely buy anything online without one of two things happening: 1) helping ourselves using a coupon or promotion, or 2) helping a cause as a result of our purchase. And in the last few years, it’s not uncommon to kill both of those beautiful, money-minded birds with one stone. A few awesome recent examples of “philanthropic capitalism” are Warby Parker and Tom’s shoes.
One of the easiest ways to find a deal online is by using a catch-all site that lists current deals and coupons available across the blessed Internets. You type in a store name, and voila, all available coupons and deals for that store pop up. One such site that Johnny and I recently started using is Save1. It offers coupons and online deals, but unlike other sites like it, Save1 also gives back. Every time one of the coupons from their site is used, Save1 provides a meal to a hungry child. It’s awesome knowing that we’re getting a great deal while also helping to feed children in need. Intrigued?
Here’s a little more about Save1:
This family-owned company has already provided close to 100,000 meals to children in need. In other words, they’re already making a pretty big difference. Save1 has coupons and deals from over 5,000 stores (ex. GAP, Staples, Target, Sports Authority), so there’s a good chance that the store you’re buying from has a coupon on their site.
How does it work? Basically, when you use a coupon or deal from their site, Save1 receives a small commission from the purchase. From that commission, they use a portion to buy a meal for a hungry child. And even if the commission is less than the cost of a meal, Save1 still gives a meal to a child in need. So no matter what, your purchase gets a meal to a hungry child. All of it’s spelled out super transparently on their site, and that always goes a long way in our books.
All of the money for meals goes directly from Save1 to one of these four legit nonprofit “Feeding Partners”:
And even if you’re not planning on making an online purchase today, you can head over to their Facebook page and they’ll provide a meal to a child in need just for liking them. That’s an easy “like” to get behind.
Do you have any favorite online sites that support a cause? What do you think of for-profit companies with a social mission? Johnny and I both got our glasses from Warby Parker because we love that when you buy a pair, they give a pair to someone in need (and because their frames are super cool and a smoking deal!).
*While this is a sponsored post, all opinions came straight from our own noggins, not some robot’s. We wouldn’t be sharing this service if we didn’t believe and feel it was fit for our awesome readers. So thank you for being awesome.
18 Comments
My wife is a big fan of TOMS since they do the whole buy a pair of shoes they give a pair to a needy child. I like the idea of doing what you are normally going to do anyways and helping someone out. We will go out of our way to dine at certain restaurants during the events like “dining out for life.”
I just hope that these organizations use the bulk of their profits for good instead of just a small percentage…
Yup, I agree. If you’re planning on eating out anyway and there happens to be a way to also support a cause, it’s a total win-win.
And I think it’s good to be kind of skeptical… that said, I really like that there seems to be a growing trend of companies that are legitimately doing good and making a difference.
I definitely have to look into this further. I always love companies that give back at the same time!
Yeah! It seems to be more common these days. If I have the choice of two similar companies and one of them gives back, I’ll totally go with that one!
Color me slightly cynical, but I think that having a social mission is great if you want to appeal to a certain group of people. But I usually just look at the product if I want to buy something. If I want to help people I would rather go through a charity than a business.
I agree that working directly with charities is the best way to go, like you say. But if you’re already planning on shopping from a store and there’s also a way to give back at the same time, it’s a win-win.
Wow thanks for sharing. I love TOMS because of their give-back philosophy (it also helps that the shoes are insanely comfortable). I’m big into issues of access to food/nutrition, too, so I’m really intrigued by Save1.
I also just finished Half the Sky (which I posted about today) about women in the developing world, so I’m in an especially charitable state of mind these days!
I’d never heard about Half the Sky until I read about it on your post. It sounds like it’s a really good reminder that there are so many people in need of help in our world. Even when we can’t directly help, it’s great that there are charities and companies that make it easy for us to still give back. 🙂
This is a great program that I never knew anything about! Thank you for bringing this to my attention.
Yep! We love hearing of companies that have a cool product or service AND that give back.
I generally pause anytime I think about buying a product because it supports a cause. If it is something I really needed or wanted, then the cause it is attached to makes it that much better. And if I am debating between two similar products then the cause typically wins.
I have, however, bought things I didn’t need or even want because of the cause attached to it before. Now if I feel strongly about something, but I don’t need the product, I just donate directly. This way I don’t spend more than I want to, the cause gets more direct funds, and I don’t accumulate things that clutter up my life.
P.S. I have had the opportunity to meet the guys from Warby several times #lovethem!
I totally agree with your thinking, Lacy… only buy a product that supports a cause if it was something you were already planning on buying!
And that’s awesome to hear the guys behind Warby Parker are a cool as their glasses. Just another reason to keep buying their specs! 🙂
I just heard about this today, so apparently it is getting around. This sounds like an awesome concept that I would like to take a part in. I do a lot of shopping with coupons, so why not feed a hungry child when I click the order button?
My thoughts exactly, Grayson. Makes buying with a coupon feel even better!
Their logo is rather large now that you mention it. I really like the idea of TOMS, and I like that they were one of the first of their kind (trendy company that gives back). But I’ve never bought a pair! So I’m a fraud… perhaps I’ll get a pair for Baby Girl :).
I had not heard of Save 1 until now, so thank you for sharing. Giving back is a big deal in our family, so whenever I can support a great cause I do. This seems like a win-win for everyone.
When I buy books I usually try to buy second-hand (although now I have a kindle, I’m also partial to free e-books 🙂 ). Given the lack of decent second-hand bookshops where I live, I’ve spent quite a bit of time on abebooks over the last few years. A few months ago I wanted to get a book which only seemed to be available in the States and one of the suppliers was Better World Books (http://www.betterworldbooks.com/info.aspx?f=beginning). I had the time to go and check out their website and was very interested in the idea behind the business plan. Anything that saves books from landfill and gets more people reading has to be good, I reckon.
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