Talk Host, I am in complete agreement with you. It's difficult to bring something like this up, as there will be people who will strongly disagree, but it's a topic that should be discussed. I have no idea who came up with this kind of tactic to raise money, but I find it uncomfortable and don't like it one bit. Just this week I was asked to donate at K-Mart, at a national chain drug store and at a national chain grocery store. Even my gym asked for donations at the end of the year. Enough is enough. I am a little bit embarrassed to say "no", but I generally do. I am a leadership donor to my hometown United Way and give to my employer's charity fund as well. I regularly send checks to my alma mater's scholarship fund, the SPCA, the local food bank and the Boy Scouts. I shouldn't have to feel uncomfortable about giving to charity when I'm shopping. This isn't just occasionally - it is all over the place where I live. Maybe it's time to start complaining to the store managers. Boomer, everything you say about the need to give is true - it's just that this method puts people on the spot and IMHO, is inappropriate at the checkout counter of a store.

:shrug: I avoid our Winn Dixie store on Saturdays just because of the cardtables set up outside the entrance where people ask for money to send a kids to baseball camp or a band to band camp or sell candy or tins of pop corn.

The very last time I went on a Saturday, after not having given money to a man whose kids ball team was soliciting funds the man made a desparaging remark to me for not donating. I kept on walking without saying anything but would have liked to tell him that i had just wired money from the Western Union counter inside the store to pay my adult childs rent and utilities due to the latest layoff. And that the month previous I had done the same for someone else who was in a bind. Those of us who help others when we can would rather know that our limited funds are going to our loved ones in need.

Having been a professional fundraiser for over 20 years I must say, this is, IMHO, a tacky way for corporate sponsors to raise money for their favorite charity.

Most companies choose a "cause" or charity to support and I applaud this and go out of my way to patronize those who support my favorite charities. However, there are better ways to get their customers involved. Many companys will let their customer know they will match any gift given or more passively offer an opportunity to give through signage, coin collection, etc. What galls me is that corporations who raise money by asking their customer to "add a dollar" often take the publicy for your donation ("XYZ corp gives 1 million to X charity")

My standard line to this question is "no thank you, I prefer to make my gifts directly to the charities of my choice".

No need for embarrassment. Just say no thanks

The requests at the check out counter never bother me. I think it is a wonderful way to raise money for organizations. As a previous poster said...it's a reminder.
No one needs to be embarrassed by saying no...it is by far the least pressure ...unlike someone ringing your doorbell and asking for a donation...that to me is hard to say no to.
I frankly have never even thought about what the person in front of me in line is doing. I am busy emptying my cart, looking at the strategically placed magazines and definately not watching to see if someone is donating to a cause.

Boomer,

I understand completely. I felt the smile in your comments.

I am more mid-Boom range, but I remember a lot about Polio. Two of my husband's brothers are survivors with a good quality of life.

TH - I really do hear your point. When my children were small, there were months that I wouldn't have that extra dollar. Now, I don't like to be asked in so public a way. Like an earlier poster, I say that I already gave. I think these "drive by charity drives" would stop if they were not successful.

Also - before anyone yells at me - I gave to March of Dimes via a handicapped co-worker who walks for them every year. He has raised over $250,000 - and I make sure my employer matches my donation.

K

Publix has so many of these donation type programs that I just say "No Thank You" when they start the spiel.

Not embarrassed and don't really care.

Z

Self-Evident
 

This seems self-evident to me. A primary function of a retail business is to make sure that the customer is satisfied. If the customer is not, then you have a problem. Some of you are not embarrassed, annoyed or feel pressured when asked to make a charitable contribution. But others are. Those not so pleased customers find that their shopping experience was diminished. They might decide to shop somewhere else next time.

One respondent indicated that she avoids shopping at a particular supermarket on Saturday due to the solicitations that take place outside. One solicitor even insulted her. This can't be good new for that supermarket.

Finally consider how McDonalds handles this. They keep a container at the counter with a sign suggesting you give up some of your change to help the Ronald McDonald House Foundation. I gave them my change when I made a purchase this morning. I was not solicited, pressured or embarrassed. This seems like a much smarter way to help while building your business.

TH, as a person who has benefited directly from money collected from United Cerebral Palsy I couldn’t agree more. Making a donation is a private matter and you shouldn’t be bombarded for request every time you leave your home. It should be offered as a silent option. After all how does the person behind you who gives you a tisk-tisk know whether you’re short cash of have just written whatever organization a $1,000.00.

Oh for shame, I think it’s a wonderful way of providing the public a way to donate to a charity. Yes I have my chosen few I prefer to donate to, but I do find it pleasurable to donate to other organizations sometimes.

I have not or have I ever had a problem telling the cashier “no thanks” “not today” or just a simple “no” when asked if I would like to make a charitable donation today. I don’t find it necessary to make excuses or tell some story as to why I don’t want to donate.

I do feel sorry for the cashiers’ that are required to ask everyone and then to listen to the customers stories or anger and berating that they may receive from some, it’s not their fault, they are required to ask you.
:rant-rave:

You make two statemnets here, one berating me and the other supporting me. First you say, "Oh for shame" that I object to this tacky practice. Then you go on to underscore my point by saying you feel sorry for the cashiers for having to ask. Why do you feel sorry for them if you view this as an acceptable practice?

:agree:

Exactly my feelings. No need to feel obliged to give in any way. It's your business, not anyone else's. Like the folks who "can" on street corners, or the HS football team raising money outside of Sams, if you want to give you do, if not you don't. Easy enough. And no one knows your personal situation - maybe you can't give, maybe you just gave, maybe you don't feel strongly about that charity, maybe you don't trust the organization collecting to get a fair amount to the charity, maybe you want to give directly, maybe you're just cranky and not in the mood. Doesn't matter, it's your business and not anyone elses. So just say no thanks.

Sometimes it's the "delivery" and not the "message" that turns you off when it comes to collecting for charities. I remember at work (many years ago) being "strongarmed" about the United Way. Our company strived to be a higher contributor each year than the previous year. Even before I was asked the "question", I had the company employee in my office shaking my hand and handing me a pin before I could respond to how much I was going to give. I did not make much money to begin with, really watched my pennies closely, because I was single living in an apartment. Of course, this was a form of intimidation and I begrudingly gave to the charity because of fear of embarrassment.

I think it's plain to see that not everybody is wired the same. For some, it is not an embarrassment to say "no" to a face to face request to give money. Yet there are others, like me, that are more sensitive to that type of situation. I do squirm, I do think that others are watching for my reply, I do feel that it is people like me upon whom they are preying.

I'm not discussing if one should say "yes" or "no" to such a request, I am saying that the whole practice is out of line.
I still contend that the grocery check out line is not the place to put people on the spot.

I have a very, very dear friend who worked for a bank that had a branch office in a supermarket. (This is a veeerrrry big bank). Part of her job was to approach shoppers in the store and hit them up to open an account. She just couldn't be party to that. It was so upsetting to her that she became almost physically ill.

TH,

I know you did not ask me this question. But earlier today I was going to post the same thing about the cashiers. So please bear with me while I elaborate.

In this thread, we see that there are lots of different opinions on the subject.

I am sure cashiers have opinions on the subject, too, and those opinions will vary.

But the customer has a choice to say, "No thanks."

We all know the cashier has no such choice.

And that is why, no matter what we think about being asked to give, some of us feel sorry for the cashiers caught in this.

Ironically, a friend of mine just took a job as a cashier. She has three degrees and had retired but wanted to work a few hours a week at something completely different from all those years of taking all that work home.

I asked her on the first day, "How did it go?"

Her words to me were, "Be nice to cashiers."

And I told her that I always am. (She has been telling me stuff. I told her she could write a book.)

It's a tough world out there "serving" the public.

Heck, sometimes people even try to bite librarians' heads off.

I guess in the situation of being asked to give in the grocery line, I just don't see it as being about me. Nobody notices or cares. Sometimes I smile and give them a buck. Sometimes I smile and say, "No thanks."

Boomer