Toronto Sun - Ryan James - Buy into a GoodDeed

Special Edition of the Equal-I-Zer ENTREPRENEURSHIP

Realm - Janet Bulter - Doing a Good Deed

Buy into a Good Deed

By Ryan James - Toronto Sun

Ever wish you had more time for charity?

Now there's www.gooddeedshopping.com. Choose your favourite of the 16 not-for-profits they support. Then, shop online through the retailers on board - who range from Sam the Record Man to LaSenza. A donation range from 0.5% to 10% of your purchase goes to that charity, at no extra cost to you.

The donation is made by the retailer - a sales commission of sorts. Can you fit that into your schedule?

"It's one less chocolate bar you have to buy," says Angie Anderson, co-founder. "If you were going to buy a book from Chapters anyway, there's no reason not to do it through our site."

Good Deed Shopping receives a portion of that commission as revenue. And for the e-tailers, it inspires customer loyalty.

Anderson founded the company last December, with her partner Sharat Munjal. He's the mentor, with 20 years experience selling wholesale computer parts, software development and designing trade show booths. Munjal also sits on the board of Youth Assisting Youth.

Prior to Good Deed Shopping, Anderson ran a business called Pro Lean - selling frozen meat door to door, for charity.

"I found the conventional method of fundraising to be lacking and saw an opportunity online," she says.

As for their future plans? "To create a habit for people, where they go to our site first before buying anything," says Anderson.

The Equal-I-Zer

Vol. 5, No. 4 Special Edition, 2001

This article was written by Mr. Dan Thompson, R.R.P. who, in 1980 sustained quadriplegia during an automobile accident. Since then, he has dedicated his life to improving the quality of life for other persons with disabilities. He founded the London & District Sports Association, including coaching the Ontario Wheelchair Rugby Team to win the Canadian Championships. He worked within the Provincial Government increasing the representation of persons with disabilities within the OPS' two largest Ministries, MCSS & Health. He was the Cofounder of Kolvox Communications Inc., a publicly held company and Canada's only manufacturer of voice recognition products. He has developed considerable expertise on technical accommodations for persons with disabilities. Mr. Thompson was awarded his R.R.P. Certification by the Canadian Association of Rehabilitation Professionals in 1996. His practice focuses on catastrophic injuries, including vocational counselling and expert testimony.

DeeGee Rehabilitation Technologies Ltd.

2193 Turnberry Road

Burlington, Ontario L7M 4P9

(PH) (905) 319-7652

(FAX)(905) 319-7654

E-mail: dant@globalserve.net

Website: http://www.globalserve.net/~dant

Special Edition of the Equal-I-Zer ENTREPRENEURSHIP

I hope everyone has been enjoying the summer! In August, I will be releasing my summer edition of the Equal-I-Zer, but I came across such a great idea, I had to pass it on to others; and thus, here is a Special Edition of the Equal-I-Zer.

People have become more entrepreneurial today just to maintain a steady income. The days of people like my father staying with the same company for forty-eight years are long gone. Typically, people have become more transient due to downsizing and overall cutbacks.

One of the positives of this change is that the government also became more entrepreneurial. They collect enough taxes, but they used to have a dependable stream of taxes from people's wages. Now, people are working in contract positions, becoming entrepreneurs, and obtaining temporary employment; and consequently, they are not paying as many taxes. One example of the Government becoming more entrepreneurial is the RCMP. The "Proceeds of Crime" Division stipulates that if an individual is charged with drug trafficking, then any assets obtained illegally by that individual were to be ceased by the Government. In turn these assets are sold at a public auction, and proceeds are used to offset any of the program's administrative costs.

This makes tremendous sense, but the down side of this change is that the Government has less money available to underwrite charitable organizations. Most of these organizations used to rely heavily on the Government to offset their costs, but there just not enough money to go around. But do not despair, even charitable organizations are becoming more entrepreneurial. There is a program called, "Support a Need, Shop GoodDeed". GoodDeedShopping.com is a Canadian online shopping mall that assists non-profit organizations. By connecting to http://www.GoodDeedShopping.com, you can register as a shopper, select your favourite cause, and then GO Shopping! There are over thirty Canadian online stores such as: La Senza, Chapters, The Shopping Channel, Hickory Farms, or Sportmart just to name a few. A percentage of your purchase price, ranging from 0.5% to 10% is automatically contributed to your favourite cause, but there are no extra costs as the donation is made by the retailer! Shopping at GoodDeedShopping.com is essential so that your purchase is tracked; and therefore, a percentage goes back to your favourite cause. It should be noted that shopping directly at an e-tailer's site does not provide the mechanism to donate money!

You have the convenience to shop twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, fifty-two weeks a year. Products are the same price as if you purchased them directly through the e-tailer. All thirty stores are Canadian; and therefore sales, there is no duty or exchange rate to worry about. The most stringent security measures are followed to ensure that your credit card information is safe. All e-tailers offer their own security guarantees and individual payment methods such as Visa, Mastercard, and American Express, but you can check the e-tailer's web site for details. Here are a few tips for those of you who are still concerned about purchasing online. All internet websites have an address or Uniform Resource Locator (URL). These addresses usually begin with "http"; however, on GoodDeedShopping.com's payment page the URL starts with "https" which means the page is secure. Additionally, the bottom right hand corner of the screen, has a lock icon confirming the utmost security. Each of the e-tailers use their own security programs such as Web Trust, VeriSign, TRUSTe, and Secure Socket Layer, but rest assured that GoodDeedShopping.com only enters into partnerships with companies that offer safe and secure shopping. Each e-tailer has their own guarantee which are explained on their own sites.

Another benefit of shopping with GoodDeedShopping.com, besides supporting your favourite cause, is the purchaser can ship products to a recipient. Some of the e-tailers provide gift-wrapping which maybe important if you have relatives that live abroad.

As an entrepreneur this concept appealed to me, and as a taxpayer and consciousness citizen, I thought this was a great idea that everyone should know about. So, if you need flowers, sports equipment, books, seafood, a mattress, contact lenses, consumer electronics, CDs, or a thousand other gifts, try GoodDeedShopping.com and support your favourite charity!

Doing a Good Deed

By Janet Butler - Realm

Angie Anderson, foudner of GoodDeedShopping.com, can offer myraid reasons why she loves being an entrepreneur. "First, I'm in charge of my office, second, I am independently creating my own future and third, I have managed to turn my passion into a job," she says. What can be more inspiring? As her resume attests, Angie's passion is fundraising for non-profit organizations. She cities organizational skills, discipline and have a good mentor as important entrepreneurial assets. Those elements - along with an innovative streak - have been the keys to her success. "My online shopping mall is the first of its kind in Canada - I want to be known as the pioneer in my industry,": Angie says. "I woo companies to my portal, and they donate a percentage of their online sales to non-profits. I'm creating new money for chanties, not just shifting it around." In addition to her business, Angie takes the time to get involved in a wide range of activities away from her desk. "I serve as national vice-president and local chapter president of the Young Enterpreneurs Association," she says. "For me, setting my own schedule is a great perk. Wanting to participate in many activities makes me work doubly hard when I am in the office - life is my motivation." Visit GoodDeedShopping.com on the web at [http://www.gooddeedshopping.com].