Give For Life

[AndyD]

I'm not an MLM fundi but it looks to me like they realised they might be a little shy in the pants when it came to tangible product and have gone back to the drawing board to avoid being classed as a pyramid scheme. At least insurance cover and financial planning software are real products but the charity pitch still doesn't sit too well with me. There's still too little percentage of the money (15.5%) going to charity considering the 'give for life' name of the scheme and the heavily benevolent marketing pitch.

[Hane]

I think Give For Life is named as is because it is a branch of the Giving Organisation here is a link to their website www.thegivingorganisation.org/

The Giving Organisation is an independent Trust, owned and managed by its beneficiaries, audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers and is honoured to have Archbishop Desmond Tutu as its Patron. The Giving Organisation is about good cause organisations working together. It’s about companies, suppliers and customers uniting to make an ongoing difference! This organisation has the exclusive aim of uniting charities in South Africa and developing innovative ways of creating a sustainable source of income for them. All funds raised are paid directly into The Giving Organisation Trust Account and distributed based on simplistic models to be agreed with each employer. (Payroll Giving)

The Beneficiaries

1. CHOC
2. Red Cross
3. Cotlands
4. Reach for a dream
5. Ithemba Trust
6. WWF
7. SPCA
8. CANSA
9. ACFS

[desA]

To be honest, the whole scheme seems to have no heart (core focus). As a money-making scheme intended to line the pockets of the promoters, it seems to be running thin on salable products.

A bit like a sparsely-stocked supermarket (think of a scheme in Zimbabwe, for instance).

With SA looking the way it currently does, I really don't blame you blokes for trying. You probably need every cent.

[Hane]

Maybe I'm conveying the information wrong? Did you take a look at the organizations? Not just Give For Life but the organisation behind them?

* Give For Life is the end result of an innovative project embarked upon by 10 of South Africa’s top charities. These organisations should be applauded for the co-operative manner in which they operate to generate income for their worthy causes.
* Nine years ago, the South African Children’s Charity Trust (SACCT) was formed with the exclusive goal to raise funds for charities on commercial terms. The SACCT benefited Reach For A Dream, Cotlands, CHOC, The South African Red Cross and the Ithemba Trust.
* During 2005, the SACCT was expanded to form The Giving Organisation Trust (TGO), currently benefiting the initial 5 beneficiaries of SACCT as well as CANSA, WWF South Africa, NSPCA, ACFS African Feeding Scheme and the Desmond Tutu HIV Aids Foundation. Together these 10 charities promote the Give For Life program, supported by a strong management team with extensive experience in the field of social entrepreneurship.
* When TGO was formed, Archbishop Desmond Tutu accepted appointment as our patron and has to date continued to fulfill this honorable position.

[Dave A]

Here's what I see:

R106.00 incentive scheme
R45.00 charity
R138.00 admin portion

OK - that admin portion still has to pay for the Amadwala Family Life cover and Accident plan, but by any chance is that cost more than R45.00?

It is looking more like a valid MLM setup, but I'm still having a hard time buying the lead tag line of "this is for charity."

[Hane]

Remember there are 4 benefits that they have to pay for.

1. Visa Cash back Card - Don't know what the charges are but it wont be free
2. Business Optimizer Software - R99 per month prices can be seen on their website http://www.busnessoptimizer.net
3. Pre-Paid airtime - Don't know what the charges are but it wont be free
4. Amdwala Cover - Don't know what the charges are but lets make it R45

Then there are the salaries for the staff and what ever is left over from the R138 goes right back into the Giving Organisation Trust that uses that money for other fundraising initiatives.