Working With Local Charities to Build Business and Respect in the Community

Many folks have volunteered at a charitable event. Whatever the activity, most of us come away just plain feeling good, and that may be the best reason to involve your restaurant and its staff in charitable work. Along the way, though, you can reap rewards and recognition for your restaurant while you network with customers and potential customers and establish the name of your restaurant.

There are plenty of good reasons to become involved with charitable activities, and giving back to the community is one of the best. Your customers and potential customers will see that you're not just a business taking money, but that you put a portion of that money back into programs that benefit either them or other segments of their community that need a hand.

Becoming involved in charitable work is good business, and there's nothing wrong with using a charity to help promote your restaurant. Charities themselves understand these secondary reasons and, in fact, will work with you to make sure you get the maximum benefit from your efforts. Charities understand that their business benefactors often need recognition, publicity and credit in exchange for time, dollars or goods donated.

. . . Becoming involved in charitable work is good business, and there's nothing wrong with using a charity to help promote your restaurant.

If you have any doubt about the importance of charity in blending you into the life of the community, take a look at the importance restaurant chains place on it. Rather than being thought of as "outsiders," the management of chain restaurants know how important local community involvement is. Take a look at the Web site of nearly any restaurant chain and you'll see their efforts.

For example, through varied, individual store efforts, Perkins® provides vacations to Orlando, Florida, for families with children with terminal illnesses. Eat'nPark® Hospitality Group is in its 15th year of providing educational support -- this year totaling $300,000 -- for its own employees who want to pursue a career in the foodservice industry. Panera Bread® has a program called Operation Dough-Nation® in which the company matches customers' in-store donations with freshly baked bread or cash and distributes them to local nonprofit organizations. And the list goes on.

Chili's Grill & Bar® has this statement on the opening page of its site: "Each of our restaurant management teams and staff identify local charity organizations to which they can donate time and resources. Funds raised with their efforts remain in the local community and serve as both incentives and sources of pride to our staff." That's how important being perceived as part of the community is to chain restaurants.