Think Local

We are finding that most of our merchant clients are choosing to support local charities and nonprofits through our program, we feel it really makes sense on many levels.

While there is nothing inherently wrong with large national and international nonprofits – the work many of them do is phenomenal – sometimes the larger organizations have high overhead costs and therefore less of the donation dollars go to wok on the actual Cause than the administration of the NGO itself.

By supporting smaller local and regional organizations, quite often much more of the dollar donated goes to work on the Cause, and, the impact of the those dollars donated is felt very close to home. There is a clear and tangible benefit to being able to see the impact an organization is making when it is right in your own community, the “feel good factor”, something we all love to experience, is very palpable when you can see the impact your contributions are making first hand.

Untimely we need a balance of support going to local, regional and international charities and non profits. Here at Ethix we support whatever charity or nonprofit our clients chose, we feel it is our role to support the idea and energy behind philanthropy, not to decide that a particular way in which that desire to give back shows up is better or worse than some other way.

There are as many ways to do good work on the planet as there are people who wish to do that good work, and we support all of it.

Gross vs Net profit as it relates to our donation program

givingtreeEthix donates 25% of our Gross revenue to the nonprofit or charity of your choice. The term gross revenue has caused some confusion so we put this article together to clarify. 

Revenue is described in two primary forms, GROSS and NET. Gross revenue is the total top-line revenue before any expenses are deducted while net revenue is the total revenue after costs and expenses have been deducted.  

We wanted our donation program to be clear, simple and effective so we chose to donate 25% of the revenue before we pay our expenses. This means your donation comes first, then our expenses and finally, if there is anything left, profit. We feel this is the only way to truly stand behind the program as we envisioned it, a situation that puts money back into your community where you decide it will be most effective.

We would like to thanks our patrons for their support in us but more importantly to helping show that when we work together, there truly is enough to give back and create a stronger community around us.

Ethix Partners with the LA Dental Society

LA-Dental-EthixEthix has recently entered into a fundraising partnership with the Los Angeles Dental Society to support its doctor members with great merchant services and rates, and create a new donation revenue stream for the Society to benefit its members and the communities they serve.

The Los Angeles Dental Society is a component of the California and American Dental Associations. They are dedicated to helping people in the Los Angeles area find dental care that’s right for them. LADS offers a comprehensive search engine that will help you find dental care by geographical area, area of specialty, and more.

The Los Angeles Dental Society serves the City of Los Angeles and the cities of Bell, Bell Gardens, Beverly Hills, Cudahy, Downey, Hollywood, Huntington Park, Leimert Park, Lynwood, Maywood, South Gate, Watts, West Hollywood, and City of Commerce with over 1,200 Dentist members.

The Los Angeles Dental Society Foundation exists to provide public benefit programs for the Society. It is a separate, 501(c)(3), charitable nonprofit that provides funds for a spectrum of programs and services that promote the oral health of the dental profession and the local Los Angeles community. Programs include scholarships for USC dental students, grants to oral health community clinics, and in-kind donations to oral health organizations.

Often when we think of non-profits we think of service organizations which do make up the bulk of non-profits organizations. There are however a significant number of Trade Association non-profits that serve both businesses and consumers in numerous ways. LADS is a great example of one such organization.

If you are part of a trade organization and would like to learn more about our nonprofit residual fundraising program, please contact us here.

Non-Profit Fundraising

donation jarMost fundraising done by non-profits involves some kind of an event such as an auction, dinner gala, golf tournament, casino night, etc. These events are productive and do raise money most of the time, they do however require a tremendous amount of work and often significant costs that cut into the profit from the event. Another issue is that these events are typical a one-time influx of cash – once the event is over and the funds are received, that’s the end of the revenue for all of that work that was done.

An attractive option for non-profits to add to their fundraising efforts is to raise funds that are residual in nature. Receiving a payment every month, for years into the future, is an attractive proposition to most non-profits vs. the one time hit traditional fundraisers produce. Knowing that you will be receiving these funds every month allows for more accurate and consistent budgeting for programs and expenses.

The Ethix fundraising program provides non-profits with a reliable monthly residual income stream they can count on for years into the future. In addition, the amount of effort required to implement the program is minimal.

A good mix of event based fundraising and residual income fundraising makes sense for many non profit organizations and the Ethix program is a good fit form many organizations that have business and business owner supporters.

Leonard Nimoy had it right

What did Leonard Nimoy have to do credit card processing? Likely very little, but he was once quoted as saying:

 

“The miracle is this: the more we share, the more we have.”

Leonard was a man that truly understood what is at the core of the Ethix philosophy.

There is enough for all of us on the planet; for those of us with abundance it is our responsibility to share it with those less fortunate. By doing so, we all grow and it just keeps expanding.

To Leonard, rest in peace, you will be missed. To all of you that support Ethix, help us spread the word and the change.

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Who can we donate to?

yepWe are often asked by our new and prospective merchant partners if they can chose any non-profit to receive the Ethix 25% donation – the simple answer is Yes!

Any non-profit or charitable organization is eligible; in fact they do not need to be an official IRS registered non-profit like a 501c3 or even located in the United States. We define eligibility as “any organization doing good work on the planet”.

Our philosophy on this is simple: we believe that there are as many ways to do good work on this planet as there are people wanting to do it. We are not here to decide which projects or groups are worthy and which are not, our goal is to support the intention to affect positive change and steer our donation funds in whichever direction our merchant partners desire to that end.

Do you have a charitable cause you like to support? We support schools, PTA’s, churches, community groups and industry associations as well as the many traditional cause specific types of non-profits. Introduce Ethix and we will work with them to create a new passive residual income stream to support the good work that they do.

Is Ethix the change you want to see in the world?

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“One of the most important vehicles for advancing social change is business,” says Ben Rattray, founder and CEO of Change.org, “It’s not that money doesn’t matter, It’s that it’s in service of something much bigger.”

Now imagine what we can do with the BILLIONS of dollars up for grabs in the credit card processing arena. Putting 25% of those fees towards making this world a better place. This is the change we want to see in this world and Ethix is making it happen one client at a time. Join us, help us create the change you want to see as well!
Careers at Ethix

What is Social Enterprise

Social enterprise is the broadening of the purpose of a private enterprise to include supporting the interests of its   local and/or global community.  It really means going beyond a purely private profit motivation in the way we do business.  It has grown steadily in the US and private companies have been eager to forge social enterprise relationships or evolve their own models in order to reap the rewards associated with social responsibility in today’s marketplace.  The next step is to really light a match under the explosive power of consumer spending and allow consumers to make knowledgeable and responsible decision about how they spend.  We at Ethix like to imagine a world where a tiny fraction of every dollar swiped finds it way into health, education, sustainability and all manner of public interests.   And remember, when you are out and about spending money, think about how and where you do that.  It makes all the difference in the world!

The Man With A Vision- Steve Patzkowski CEO

We’re all here because of our Chief Executive Officer’s vision and purpose. He envisioned the very financial institution that he has worked for many years, the merchant services industry evolving into an ethical solution to the economy. This was an unbelievable thought at first when the large banks were crumbling our US economy and making headlines doing so. He believed that we could remove the greed and run a business with good intentions and transparency. This would gain the trust back from the people and with our fair, low rates save them money and help the success of America’s small businesses. On top of it all, we give 25% of our revenues to non-profits of the merchant’s choice. Talk about power to the people!

Steve has great ideas no doubt, but is also a spiritual man that leads us in our business and social purpose. He is welcoming and a real leader with an abundance of knowledge and positive energy to share. He welcomes each new sales representative and make himself available to the entire Ethix team with weekly live broadcasts, forums and more. Follow Ethix and the team on our website blog, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest to see how we are helping communities and broadening our social impact.

 

If You Could Give To Charity……?

If you could give to charity, where would you send your generous donation? What if you could help that charitable organization raise money just by spreading the word in you daily conversations? What if all of this could be done without costing you or the other donors any money out-of-pocket?

Ethix Merchant Services makes this possible to anyone that processes credit cards for their business.  We donate 25% of the revenue we make from each merchant account to your choice of charitable organizations. Even if you don’t own a business yourself, you can help spread the word and our community outreach materials to raise funds for your cause. Once businesses know that this is something they can do to help their communities, they will make an easy switch of credit card processors joining the socially responsible movement and feel great knowing a check will be sent monthly to their cause in their behalf.

“Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.” ― Maya Angelou