19 November 2015

SHOP ONLINE AND MAKE A DIFFERENCE THIS CHRISTMAS WITH EASYFUNDRAISING

#morethanagift raising money for charity with easyfundraisingAs we all know Christmas can be an expensive affair that stretches the purse strings of most families, and while our attention turn to jingle bells, gingerbread lattes and brown paper parcels tied up with string, I always try to keep in mind the real spirit of Christmas, the spirit of giving. Not just presents but love; a time of unity, spreading peace and goodwill. OK I know I sound like a hallmark gift card but I love the warmth that fills the air in December, and the hope and kindness it seems to bring.

As much as I want to give presents that will bring a smile to loved ones eyes, I often wish I could make my money stretch further and help those that need it the most. So when I was introduced to easyfundraising.org.uk and their #morethanagift campaign I was thrilled to get involved and raise money for charity while filling up the stocking.

Shop online with Easyfundraising #morethanagift

If you haven’t heard of easyfundraising.org.uk, they are a free, nationwide service, giving charities and good causes the opportunity to raise free donations when their supporters shop online. They have over 55,000 causes registered with the site and by simply shopping with any of their 2,700 registered retailers, including John Lewis, ASOS and Next, you can raise money for your chosen charity – you can find out just how easy it is here. To date, they have raised over £10 million for charities in the UK which is incredible considering it's from our spending sprees.

Shop online this Christmas

The hardest part was choosing which amazing charity to raise funds for! After thinking carefully I chose The Julian Trust, a local charity run by volunteers that provide shelter for homeless people in Bristol. Seeing people sleeping on the streets is heart breaking and even more so at Christmas when it's traditionally time for families and friends to come together. As I look at F tucked up in bed all cosy and safe, I think of these unseen people who have fallen through the gaps, spending their nights cold and alone on the streets. Knowing I can make a difference no matter how small gives me hope for change.

Shop online and donate with EasyFundraising

Joining was oh so simple, within minutes I had signed up my email address, chosen my charity and installed the EasyFundraising button to my tool bar, allowing prompts to activate a donation while shopping. The next bit was easy, just shop online as normal. I was amazed at how many stores are signed up to donate and as I picked up these pieces from: Oliver Bonas, Urban Outfitter, Marks & Spencers, John Lewis, Asos, Amazon and some of my other faves, I felt happy knowing a percentage of my spend was going straight to the people that need it.

Email alerts tell you what you've raised from each online shop and although I've only raised a small amount from my Christmas shopping, I know that every time I shop online I will be continuing to support The Julian Trust.

Are you thinking about Christmas already? Do you prefer online shopping. I really hope you sign up to this free service and you can share your donations by using the #morethanagift hashtag to help spread the good word. I'd love to hear about the charities close to your heart and see what's in your Christmas stocking.

*This is a collaborative post. All words & opinions are 100% my own.
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20 comments

  1. This is a such a good idea and for little or no effort if you shop online, thank you for sharing x

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  2. This is such a great initiative, thanks for sharing. I've done most of my Christmas shopping (yay!) and I got most of it online.

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  3. what a wonderful initiative. I always do my Christmas shopping online as its so much easier!

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  4. What a fab idea. Love that it is free and your can look for local charities. Great

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  5. What a great idea and it looks so easy! I do all my Christmas shopping online and am nearly done now but I'll look into it for the rest of it x

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  6. I used to work for charities that used easyfundraising as a way of increasing funds, you'd be surprised how quickly those extra pennies can add up! So important, especially for smaller charities who are struggling financially at the moment x

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  7. Great idea to support charities whilst getting a job done!

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  8. ooh off to look into this, I've heard of things like this before but never really bothered to look into it but I shop online so much nowadays someone should really benefit from it ;)

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  9. This is such a positive a great idea!

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  10. I did sign up but had to remove notifications after a while as I was getting flooded with reminders! But the idea is great and I do hope they manage to raise loads of money this Christmas for all those amazing charities and social programs!xx

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  11. I really love this idea - so easy to contribute towards some amazing charities

    Laura x

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  12. What a fab idea and a great charity you've chosen to support too. It breaks my heart to see homeless people on the streets, I see so many young guys at the moment and we always give them money because I just can't walk past and ignore them. It's so sad x

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  13. I use easy fundraising to raise money for our school

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  14. This is such a great idea, I've read about it before but never given it a try

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  15. I do already always use Easyfundraising; it's so easy to set up and I like that you can choose pretty much any charity!

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  16. What a great idea, thanks for letting us know about it.

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  17. What a great idea - I have to admit I've not even started thinking about Christmas yet - eek! x

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  18. Brilliant! I really need to make a dent in my online xmas shopping too xx

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  19. This is such a great idea and I must look into Easyfundraising, I've heard about them before. This time of year is always especially hectic for us as POD's birthday is Christmas Day. I can't believe she will be five!!! I should probably get myself in gear really LOL :)

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  20. Such a brilliant idea...will definitely sign up, thank you for sharing xx

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