Givio + Slack For Good

Givio is on a mission to make giving as easy as possible. And to drive unnecessary costs out of the charitable giving equation.  Millions of people already use Slack everyday to communicate, share and perform all sorts of tasks. It’s the easiest communications software on the market, which is why it has such a loyal following. So we thought it would be really smart to add one more thing you can easily do inside of Slack — and that is workplace giving. We call it Slack For Good.

Exciting right? We know you’re eager to get started. But here’s a little more detail.

What’s the big deal, you ask? Is giving really “hard”?

In a nutshell, “yes”. Giving to our favorite cause has become too complicated, for a lot of reasons. Ironically, a big part of the problem is how we use technology. Where most technology innovations are making things easier for consumers and businesses, charitable giving software is making it more difficult.

How? Too many forms, too many registrations and passwords, confusing design, data concerns and let’s not forget everyone’s top pet peeve, too much spam.

So how did it come to this? Well, that’s a topic for another post.

What it all comes down to is that people “just want to give.” It’s a simple, but meaningful action that never should have gotten so complicated in the first place. This is a lesson that Slack reminds us of every day. People at work “just want to get stuff done”. Slack figured that out and revolutionized workplace communication by keeping things super simple.

Givio does the same thing for giving. So, Givio + Slack must really make workplace giving super easy – right? Keep reading.

Slack revolutionized communication

As dramatic as it sounds, it’s true that Slack changed the way millions of us work. By shifting internal communications out of inboxes and into channels, Slack tore down barriers to productivity. People were freed to communicate the way they naturally want to work. A Slack channel is easy to use, transparent, and as inclusive as you want it to be. No wonder Slack was a huge hit among company workers well before software procurement officers knew what was hitting them.

Today, Slack functions like a corporate nerve center, providing the channels of communication up, down, sideways and diagonally throughout an organization. As a result, hundreds of other software platforms are integrating with Slack in order to be where the workers are. Because if your business software does not have the attention of the worker, obsolescence is the next stop on your journey.

And that brings us back to Givio.

Givio goes where the givers are

Givio launched as a mobile charitable giving platform that anyone can use – donors, charities, companies running giving programs, etc. You can find Givio for iPhone and Android in your favorite app store.

Last year, 170 million Americans gave more than $310 Billion to charity, according to Giving USA 2020. A typical donor gave $1800 to anywhere from 6 to 12 charities. Most of these people work for a living.

And since Givio is designed for givers, we think it’s pretty important we go where the givers are. And that includes the workplace. Make sense?

Most businesses – including 9 out of 10 mid-sized companies – take action in support of their communities. So in September, Givio released the first ever workplace giving app specifically for Slack users.

How to Slack For Good

First, the basics. It’s free. It’s easy. It requires no training, software or contracts. And, you can launch your very first Givio + Slack For Good Workplace Giving charitable fundraising campaign in 3 minutes or less. Seriously. It’s as easy as it always should have been.

So without further ado, here’s my Givio-Slack Implementation Guide in under 100 words.

First, you need a Slack account (and preferably the Slack mobile app), plus the Givio app and a membership (both free) installed on your phone. Side note: having Slack installed on your phone is optimal, but not required.

1. In Slack, create a “Slack For Good” channel for your company. You could call it “ABC Company Cares” or “ABC4Good” or whatever makes sense for your teams. Make sure everyone you want to include has access to the channel.
2. Open your Givio app on your phone and make sure you’re logged in. Find for your favorite charity (search by name or EIN). Open their Givio page and tap on the blue rocket icon in the upper right hand corner of their page.
3. Follow the super simple campaign template then hit the “launch” button. It really does take 3 minutes or less.
4. Next, from your Givio campaign page, tap the share icon (it looks like an arrow). You’ll see all your sharing options available on your mobile device. Find your Slack channel and share. You can also Pin it so it’s always front and center for your team.

Right from inside the Slack environment, anyone with access to your channel can link directly to the campaign, see the campaign’s progress and even share the campaign to colleagues, friends and family outside of the channel for even more giving.

And that’s it! This is how you use Slack for Good.

By the way, big companies pay tens of thousands of dollars for enterprise software to do exactly what I am describing here. Imagine if all that wasted money were put to good use for a cause, or to match employee giving?

Is there more?

Yes. There are plenty of ways that you can take advantage of your new Slack Company Cares channel. Check out these tips to get the most out of your fundraising campaign. In addition, invite your co-workers to share stories, promote volunteer opportunities, and share Givio links to favorite charities (we have more than 1.5 million charity pages in Givio.)

Like Slack, Givio is not limited to the “four walls” of a company intranet. Create a Slack Company Cares channel to engage your customers, vendors, partners, retirees and other company stakeholders. With Givio + Slack, you’re only limited by your imagination.

And for the Slack power user, we launched a Givio app in the Slack app store. Check it out – the Slack app gives you additional capabilities (with more still to come).

Bringing it home

Slack changed the way a generation of workers communicate … by breaking down barriers so that we can “just get work done”.

Givio is changing the way a generation of donors give … by breaking down barriers so that we can “just give” — when we want, where we want, to the causes we want to support.

I invite you to launch your own Givio campaign through Slack. Want a walk-through? We’re here to help. We love showing off how easy it is to do something good, with Givio.