Could anything be better than getting paid to shop? Yes, if the payment for each purchase supported a worthy cause. Whether you are looking to support a cause while you shop or you are looking for new fundraising ideas for your organisation, Easy Fundraising is worth investigating.

The concept is sound: Shop online at one of the many participating retailers and the cause you support will receive a percentage of your total spend. One hundred percent of the money you raise goes to your specific cause, and prices are no higher than if you were shopping directly from the retailers’ websites. A quick comparison between shopping through Easy Fundraising and shopping directly through retailers’ websites verified that prices are identical. Additionally, Easy Fundraising is a member of the Institute of Fundraising and is therefore expected to engage in responsible fundraising practices, making your fundraising experience more secure.

Some features of this service deserve special mention:

• The focus of Easy Fundraising is to raise money for causes. You have the option to support a cause already registered with the site, or you can register your own cause. This is an excellent fundraising idea for sports teams, charitable organisations, schools and more.
• Two features of the site allow you to save money while shopping and fundraising. The Compare section allows you to comparison shop for the best price of the item for which you are searching. The Deals section may help you save money by using voucher codes or printable vouchers. This area also shows any applicable sale prices.
• Another section of note, the Raise More section, provides fundraising professionals with ideas and tools to increase donations. This area contains tips, toolbars and video tutorials to make your fundraising efforts more effective. It also contains banners and other tools to help spread awareness about your campaign via email, Facebook and Twitter.

A close review of Easy Fundraising suggests that it is a great tool for unique and fairly passive online fundraising. For those who are not actively fundraising on behalf of a cause, the site also provides the opportunity to have your normal online shopping habits benefit some great causes.