“The greatest reward is in giving back” says James Caan.  James is well known for being passionate about giving his personal input as well as the cheque, whether it’s for the UK or his iconic education institute in Pakistan.

Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou is another extremely successful entrepreneur who is increasingly becoming known for his philanthropy (as well as his sudden exit from the EasyJet board).  The difference is that Stelios has a small circle of critics who believe he should just give quietly rather than making it into major news stories.

Of course there is no right or wrong way to give charitable donations.  Obviously you do your research as to the recipient(s), yet as a PR Expert & Coach, I see only benefits in tastefully letting the local and relevant specialist media know too.  It gives the charity publicity – and may attract more like-minded people to contribute – and is an excellent means to show your face in the media alongside a positive, goodwill story about you and your company.

The most obvious route would be to organise a presentation of a giant cheque, and invite the local media (and specialist media if in a central location), as well as organising your own photographer.  Thus you have a photo you can caption with all the salient details and email to your target media.

If the donation is not big enough to warrant a presentation, consider investing in a charity or cause that  provides an interesting news story as to how the money will be spent and why it is so badly needed, ideally one that can provide interesting photos for press use.  Then you can prepare a press release on the subject – remembering to incorporate the answers  to the who? what? why? when ? how? questions in the first paragraph, and including a pithy quote from yourself as to why  you  wanted to contribute.  It should all be written as if a journalist had written it, which means a minimum of superlative adjectives, and all in the third person eg referring to yourself as he rather than I.

Of course it doesn’t have to be a charity that benefits, sponsorships of local arts and sports projects are also examples of great causes, and if you choose carefully you may be able to find ways to generate publicity at subsequent strategic times of the year, or have an event carry your company name.

If the cause is inextricably linked to your company’s business or your personal situation or interests, so much the better! 

So let’s start following our esteemed founder’s excellent example!

By Diana Jervis Read, our PR Expert for EBA. If you have a question for Diana, send it to experts@the-eba.com