Small Business News

GoDaddy Supporting GoFundMe’s Small Business Relief Initiative with Donation, Widget

With the COVID-19 pandemic requiring most Americans to shelter in place, the majority of small businesses have seen severe impacts. In fact a recent survey found 87% of owners saying that their businesses have been hurt during this time, with 35% warning that they could be forced to close permanently if things didn’t change within the next three months. Given the current situation, the popular crowdfunding site GoFundMe recently launched the Small Business Relief Initiative. Now domain registrar and website hosting service GoDaddy has joined GoFundMe’s efforts by not only adding to the donation pot but also making it easier for business owners to promote their fundraising campaigns.

First, GoDaddy announced that it will be donating $500,000 to the Small Business Relief Initiative. These funds will go toward the matching grants that GoFundMe is offering. In addition to GoDaddy’s donation and the $1.5 million pledged by GoFundMe itself, the review site Yelp and the FinTech Intuit have also each contributed $1.5 million to the initiative. Plus individuals are welcome to give, with the grand total as of this writing reaching $2,182,650. Currently this Small Business Relief Initiative will offer grants of $500 to qualifying businesses that raise at least $500 on their own. These grants will be issued until all funds have been distributed.

In addition to the donation, GoDaddy has introduced a new widget, making it easier for businesses to add GoFundMe campaigns to their websites. Now GoDaddy Websites + Marketing customers can follow the instructions to add the widget and allow customers to make donations. Meanwhile GoDaddy has also added GoFundMe as a partner to the company’s Open We Stand site, which offers articles and resources for businesses facing tough times.

Speaking to the initiative and GoDaddy’s support for it, the company’s CMO Fara Howard said in a statement, “GoDaddy customers are everyday entrepreneurs who serve as the backbone for our national economy and their businesses are facing unprecedented hardship. At the most fundamental level, our goal is to help make small businesses successful. By joining forces with GoFundMe and the Small Business Relief Initiative, we have an opportunity to bring some financial relief their way.” Additionally GoFundMe’s CEO Tim Cadogan highlights his company’s efforts, saying, “With the COVID-19 pandemic affecting all of us, many small businesses are being forced to shut their doors. Our goal with the Small Business Relief Initiative is to help small businesses to remain open. By partnering with companies like GoDaddy we’re able to directly reach entrepreneurs and provide an easy way to get funds to small business owners in need.”

The sad fact is that, while helpful, $500 is unlikely to save some of small businesses that are currently struggling. Nevertheless there’s no doubt that GoFundMe can be a great way for businesses to invite their loyal customers to further support them and help them survive this unprecedented time. Furthermore, for those who do use GoDaddy’s services, it’s nice that it is now easier to promote your campaign on your site, even if you don’t have many technical skills. Hopefully these efforts and others can make a difference and allow more business owners to weather this storm.

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