From: Proairhead@aol.com
Date: Mon, 21 Aug 2000 14:50:34 EDT
Subject: Re: Donation form....
To: Adelaida.Sy@gxs.ge.com

Hello Balloon Friends-
  In response to donations, we have found one way to always stay polite and 
refuse no one...yet we donate very few FREE balloons. 
  When the nice well meaning person calls to ask for a free donation of 
balloons for whatever event it may be ... we always say this:

    "Balloons Balloons Balloons believes strongly in donating to good causes. 
Because of the high volume of calls for donations that we receive, we have 
started a new way of processing these requests..... Here's what you need to 
do.... 
  1) Please put your request in writing, we limit the number of FREE balloons 
to 50, but, tell us what you need, we offer a great discount on volume. 
  2) Please put the date of the event and the person who would be responsible 
for picking them up and a phone number in the request.
  3)Address it to : BBB  1212 Boogie Boogie Ave (fill in your address ) 
  4) Please put ATTN.: DONATION REQUEST in the left corner. We have a staff 
meeting once a month and go over the requests...so hurry and get it in here 
!!  Thanks for calling and have a great party!" 

   Now, guess how many written requests we get.....? In three years we have 
received 4.  Only 4 made the effort...I donated 50 balloons and sold more at 
a great rate (my over 100 latex rate). Everyone who calls is happy...cause we 
said YES and they were not rejected .... I hang up happy because I did not 
ruin anyone's day and wonder if this one actually wants them bad enough to go 
that extra step and request it in writing with the specifics I have laid out. 
 
    I have also found...and don't kill me for saying it...Large charitable 
companies (American Cancer, Diabetes, MDA and others) have much bigger 
budgets than they are willing to admit...offer a discount, but don't do the 
WHOLE JOB for free or in exchange for an ad in the program...that ad tells 
everyone who did it for FREE  and you will be called quickly for more free 
work and once that cycle begins it is hard to dig out of it !!
  Why pay a printer to set up a donation form that makes it easy to give your 
profits away...when if they REALLY want the donation bad enough they can put 
it in writing to you.

Just my opinion....
Good Luck!
Joyce


 Joyce Stephens
 Balloons*Balloons*Balloons
Award Winning Balloon Artistry
Serving Central Pennsylvania