Is Twitter’s New Charitable Offering Worth it for Nonprofits?

Supporting and giving time and money to Nonprofit organizations is a wonderful privilege for both Individuals and Companies alike. Google Giving, Salesforce Foundation, Vertical Response, and other companies are changing the world by giving nonprofits the ability to build awareness and increasing volunteering and funding. Furthermore, with all that these companies are giving back to society, they are also looking for ways to get tax breaks, especially at the local level. According to a recent article by CNBC entitled “Twitter May Get Tax Break for Giving Away Promoted Tweets“, writer by Cadie Thompson states: “Twitter, along with other tech companies in San Francisco, may receive local tax breaks for agreeing to give “charitable contributions” that in Twitter’s case includes giving away promoted tweets to local organizations and volunteering.”

So What is Twitter Giving Away for Tax breaks?

According to the contract, Twitter will offer the following

• $60,000 worth of credit in the form of promoted tweets to nonprofits in the neighborhood
• Committed to purchasing a minimum of $200,000 worth of goods and services from local businesses.
• Donate no less than $50,000 worth of computers and other IT equipment to local schools and nonprofits
• Offer pro bono legal assistance neighborhood residents
• Participate in other local volunteer programs.

Can Nonprofits Really Benefit from Twitter?

Typically speaking, donating resources is always a terrific thing. However, from my PPC Marketing perspective, this offer from Twitter sounds promising, but it could be a tough sale for Nonprofits. Let’s take Google Grants/Giving for example: Google gives away at least $10,000/month of free advertising to qualified Nonprofits. However, for this to be successful, it requires someone to manage it and optimize it so they can get both recurring and increased monthly funding from Google. 501(c)(3) Organization, who are often under-staffed, must also have Analytics Tracking, Online Payment Solutions and constant Marketing Strategies to keep the interest flowing. Finding Donors and Volunteers can be a very exhaustive process in the online world, especially through outlets such as Twitter.

In Conclusion:

Tech Companies who are giving back to Nonprofits deserve to be congratulated because not all Companies are willing to do so. As someone who has helped Nonprofits in the past with Online Marketing and managing all of these great services from Google & Salesforce, I often see a breakdown in Nonprofits who are not getting the most out of them. This is mostly due to the limited staffing, lack of knowledge and, frankly, cost. The best thing PPC Marketing and Online Marketers can do is to “Give back” to nonprofits and educate the teams on what is available to them.  For example, the great people at Seer Interactive, based in Philadelphia, PA have made an enormous impact in their community.