Buzzword 2010.5 - Charitywashing

Charitywashing. Verb. Gaining the trust, good faith, or simply the business of customers by aligning your product with a charity. Often takes the form of statements that claim "...x% of sales of this object will be given to charity." See also embedded giving.

The most egregious charitywashing practices include, but are by no means limited to,

  • not naming any specific charity,
  • not stating whether the percentage is of the retail price, total profit, or total sales, and
  • not including any kind of contact information that would allow anyone to follow up and see if you kept your word.

HT to @nathalierose of www.givealittle.co.nz

Tags: , ,