Please give me your opinions: How do you feel about solicitation in conjunction with a normal business transaction? For example, you're in line at Target (pronounced 'Tarjay') and before the cashier rings you up he asks, "Would you like to donate a dollar to Children's Miracle Network/Breast Cancer Research/Save The Whales/Ronald McDonald House/etc, etc, etc?" Do you not give a flip if they ask, or does it annoy you? Please expound; I'm anxious to hear your opinions... 

I just tell them no thank you and don't let it even get to me. 

I just donate.... 

if its a cause I am for-- I already donate to it. My causes might not be what others do and I dont like being put on the spot for donations if I already earmark for causes that are closer to my heart then others.

All causes are worthy for the right person and I feel if they just get the word out those supporters will donate that feel most strongly for whatever it is they side with. I dont care for solicitations at times like that. 

I dont "give a flip". 

If I want to donate I will go out on my own and seek out the charity and donate directly to them. I am not confident these stores will get my donation to the charity. There is too much temptation and people embezzling out there for me to be comfortable with it. I worked in the financial industry for many years and I saw first hand how illegitimate some of these companies can be and there was no seperarion between the donated money they collected and their deposits and profits. My friend is a IRS business tax auditor and we have talked about this a lot and she had told me about some of the issues she has seen. So if I want to donate to St. Jude's I just go to them directly and bypass Wendy's. 

If I want to donate I will go out on my own and seek out the charity and donate directly to them. I am not confident these stores will get my donation to the charity. There is too much temptation and people embezzling out there for me to be comfortable with it. I worked in the financial industry for many years and I saw first hand how illegitimate some of these companies can be and there was no seperarion between the donated money they collected and their deposits and profits. My friend is a IRS business tax auditor and we have talked about this a lot and she had told me about some of the issues she has seen. So if I want to donate to St. Jude's I just go to them directly and bypass Wendy's.

Agreed, agreed, agreed.

For some people, giving is a personal thing; they don't want to do it in front of anyone and they certainly don't like being asked if they'll give while they're in a checkout line.

The reason I asked is because yesterday while I was in line at Wal-Mart, the cashier asked on older gentleman checking out in front of me if he wanted to donate a dollar to St. Jude's Children's Hospital. Normally that isn't an issue but at that moment, the situation struck me as wrong. For one, she was loud; many people feel pressured to say 'Yes' and donate because they don't want to be 'that guy' who won't even give a dollar to sick children. Next, people come into Wal-Mart for one reason--to get what they need, pay, and get out. But what I noticed while waiting in that long, long line is that they wait to total your purchases so they can ask; what about the people who don't even want to be asked? They may not appreciate being placed in a situation where they even want to say 'yes' or 'no'; many of them just want to take their stuff and go, especially after waiting in a long, long line at Wally. Just my two cents.

I guess it just upset me because they're trying to pass an anti-panhandling law here that basically says it will be illegal for the homeless to solicit money. That means that I can't drop change into a styrofoam cup being held by someone quietly sitting on a curb, but it's fine for a cashier to ask for a donation I may or may not want to give. Seems backwards to me. 

As a parent of a cancer survivor and a survivor myself, I'd like to say I think it is great that businesses are involved in donating funds to charity and to benefit cancer research. Whether or not folks want to donate is completely up to them, but in my opinion I'm glad that businesses are offering this to customers.
NO judgements being made on whether you do or don't donate-that's a personal choice for each of us. 

I worked for a company who did a huge campaign for St. Jude every September. The campaign was important as it not only raised needed funds for the hospital, but it also created awareness. It was also a way to build culture of giving back within the organization.... and I think it is so important for large corporations (such as Target) to give back.

I don't mind when people ask. If it's a dollar, I can swing that. For more substantial amounts, of course I am going to go directly to the organization (which I do).

And honestly, I don't feel pressured or looked down on when I say no... 

I don't care about being asked for a donation as long as they aren't being boisterous about it.

What bothers me is when they ask for my phone number and e-mail. 

What bothers me is when they ask for my phone number and e-mail.
I hate going to Radio Shack becuase of that. Clerk- "Phone number?" Me- "No it works like this, I give you cash, you give me the pack of batteies" Its a transaction, not a relationship! 

I'll tell you this (speaking of charitable donation solicitation): Any yahoo with a smile can stand in front of Wally World and ask for charity money; Wal-Mart tried to make it illegal, but they can't stop them.

Today, I saw two people outside of Wally with a picture on a coffee can asking for donations "for the vets"; they had a charitable, non-profit org number on the side of the can, an address, and a phone number for the charity. Even so, something in my gut told me they weren't necessarily on the up-and-up.

As I passed them by and was almost to my car (I parked near to the front), a lady comes running up to them yelling and waving something in her hand around. I couldn't hear what she said, but people started to stare at her and the two people suddenly grabbed the can, jumped up, and started running towards the back of the Wal-Mart parking lot towards the highway. They left the table and chair they were using and everything.

What was the commotion? Well (drumroll) the lady just so happened to use her phone to Google their non-profit number, and it was fake. The phone number was for U-Haul! She also found a couple of websites (with their pictures on them, no less) that said they have traveled all over the Midwest pulling the "cash for troops" scam in various areas. It really is sad, but I knew something wasn't right from the beginning. 

She should have let the police nab them. :( 

JC Penny asked the other day if I wanted to donate. I was worn out by my teenagers and shopping; I gave the teller a quick "no" and finished outprocessing. No sooner did I realize she overcharged me. I smiled and let her know I was pretty darn tired, too; but, she needed to correct her boo-boo. What gets me is tellers frequently contributing to double charging or what not and then having folks wait days for the correction to show up in their bank account. It didn't phase me; but, I know for many, that could have made many a things "bounce". Honestly, that's happened to me at least three times in as many months.