By Lee Vikre | @LeeVikre
GoDaddy’s vision and mission involve radically shifting the global economy toward life-fulfilling independent ventures – in other words, helping their customers kick ass. GoDaddy has integrated good corporate citizenship into its business model. This is just one of the reasons they are one of Arizona’s Most Admired Companies for 2016 and the Social Responsibility Spotlight Award Winner.
Social responsibility isn’t just a volunteer program for GoDaddy. It involves making a real difference in the community, engaging employees, and in the process providing tangible benefits for the company. Yes, there are tangible business benefits from giving back. Take a look at the numbers:
- 93% of Americans say they have a more positive image of a company when that company supports a cause.
- 90% of Americans say they are more likely to trust and would be more loyal to companies that give back.
- 60% of a decision to buy a product or service, work for a company or invest in a company is driven by the company’s reputation.
GoDaddy Cares is the company’s philanthropic arm, driving corporate social responsibility programs and financial support to nonprofit partners. Here’s how they do it.
Inspiring employees. GoDaddy employees (called GoGetters) can donate talent and time, up to two paid-volunteer days per year, to charities of their choice through the GoDaddy Inspires program. Each person has the opportunity to earn $1,000 to award a charity by volunteering 30 hours or more with one nonprofit each year. Additionally, GoDaddy will match donations dollar for dollar up to $500 per employee per year.
Donations. GoDaddy supported 65 nonprofits through sponsorships and grants in 2015, donating close to $800,000 to organizations that foster STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math), computer science education and entrepreneurship. Over the years, GoDaddy has donated more than $15 million to charitable organizations.
Team volunteering. Large volunteer activities encourage teams to get out and join together for causes such as the International Science and Engineering Fair, Junior Achievement, Boys and Girls Clubs and local science fairs.
Community partnerships. GoDaddy has developed close relationships with key partners in the community who are aligned with their social-responsibility vision. Some of those partnerships include Code.org, Hack the Hood, Society for Science, Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship, Anita Borg Institute, and Girls in Tech.
Look at the impact GoDaddy has had in Arizona and beyond:
- 16,958 volunteer hours logged for Arizona charities
- Over 1,000 charities positively impacted
- Over 200 charities received GoDaddy products in-kind
- $109,000 in matched donations
- $78,000 in volunteer grant donations
- $1 Million through the Round Up for Charity program nationally
- $84,000 loaned by employees to small businesses around the world
- More than 18,000 pounds of food donated through the annual food drive
- 5,000 toiletry items donated to Arizona nonprofits
- 1500+ toys donated for the annual toy drive campaign
As GoDaddy continues to transform their brand, they have shown that great strides can be made in a relatively short period of time by focusing in the right areas. By giving back, GoDaddy is likely encouraging customers to do the same, since nearly 80% of consumers say that they would donate to a charity supported by a company they trust. Now that’s kick-ass.
About the Author
Lee Vikre – Hiring Jedi
A workplace culture maven, writer, and speaker, Lee Vikre has helped numerous companies develop “best company” cultures, gaining recognition at the local and national level. Lee has been called the Jedi Master of hiring because of her exceptional recruiting abilities and friendships with people who love Star Wars. Her favorite activities involve matching people with their dream jobs at award-winning best companies. Lee coaches CEOs but still hasn’t been able to train her three dogs not to bark during conference calls.
