From the category archives:

Planet Points

25 Charities, Causes and Nonprofits REAL Inlu Users Have Supported (BTW, Inlu Users Rock)

by inlu blog patrol on October 20, 2011

Our users have supported MANY charities in several IN LIEU OF contexts, like:

In lieu of gifts, send gift monies (in one sum!) to help a cause.
In lieu of collecting many small checks, pool contributions together for one  easy fundraiser!
In lieu of wasting $ on wrapping paper, they’ve pitched in smaller amounts as a group to give back to the planet.
In lieu of bake sales,  users have simply created an Inlu to support schools, nonprofits and more.

Here’s a list of 25 randomly selected charities, causes and planet-happy ways our users have given back to help others:

  1. Best Friends Animal Society, Utah
  2. Cheetah Conservation Fund
  3. Burlington City Arts
  4. NOFA Farmer Emergency Fund
  5. Donation to the “Church they were married in…” St. Patick’s Cathedral
  6. Autism Speaks
  7. Pancreatic Cancer Action Network
  8. U.S. Luge Association/ I Slide 4 Nodar
  9. Visiting Nurses of Vermont
  10. Dayton Children’s Hospital, OH
  11. Kennedy’s Cord Foundation, KY
  12. Alzheimer’s Association
  13. New England Center For Homeless Veterans
  14. Sutter Aubrurn VNA Hospice
  15. Life Rolls On
  16. Homocide Survivors Fund, AZ
  17. Camp Dudley William J. Schmidt Scholarship Fund
  18. Champion Against Bullying
  19. Children’s Hunger Fund
  20. Teaching Tolerance, AL
  21. Intertribal Friendship House
  22. Pennies For Peace
  23. Ashlee’s Charity for Junior National Young Leaders
  24. Discovery Charter School
  25. Southeast Valley Youth Football, AZ

Want to create an IN LIEU OF charity collection? Visit inlu.com and

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Saddle Up and See Cowboys and Aliens (While Helping a Cause!)

by inlu blog patrol on July 13, 2011

Why not head over to your local theater to celebrate an upcoming birthday, or event….or perhaps just for a good time? Simply create an Inlu Invitation, describe WHEN and WHERE as well as ADD Collection details (see sample for Kevin’s 13th Birthday!).

SOUND AWESOME? DO IT.

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Cool! Celebs Give Back “In Lieu of Gifts”

by inlu blog patrol on March 23, 2011

Photo via Ecorazzi

Hooray for the rising trend that says,  IN LIEU OF GIFTS, GIVE BACK! (BTW, we kinda saw this coming…wink, wink.) Check it out – Justin Bieber, Jessica Biel, Adam Lambert, and Prince William and Kate are just a few of the celebs making our planet happier by giving back for their celebrations.

We LOVE, LOVE this stuff! And happily, we help our users participate in this same kind of feel-good giving experience. You don’t have to be a youtube star or a hollywood hero or part of the royal family to make a difference. Every Inlu user can feel fabulous about giving to a charity on any occasion: birthday, wedding, thank you, etc. Inlu makes it simple for you to get a gift AND give back (in lieu of wrapping paper, multiple gifts, cards, etc) OR simply skip the “stuff” and all the contributions are pooled into one sum and sent on behalf of the honoree. Little efforts add up to a lot of good, including:

  • reduced waste on wrapping, cards etc.
  • less driving and shipping
  • supporting a cause
  • simplified gift giving
  • shopping local
  • giving local
  • giving meaningful gifts, skipping the rest
  • social collaborations

Plus, with each Inlu, users generate points that represent roughly how many tons of CO2 emissions were reduced by group gifting with Inlu. For every 10k points, Inlu donates to plant trees. :) (Read about Inlu’s Planet Points)

Other celebrity “in lieu of” efforts: Rachel Zoe, Will and Jada Smith, and Eat Pray Love‘s Elizabeth Gilbert (in her book, she asks “in lieu of gifts” for her friends to pitch in and purchase a house for her friend in Bali).

This year, you can make a difference (while getting something sweet!) by using Inlu.com.

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Big Lessons from a Little Gift Receipt

by inlu blog patrol on January 20, 2011

Ok, so I’m cleaning out my wallet and find a receipt from a birthday party my 5 year old daughter attended.  We had no idea what to give the birthday girl, but knew she loved princesses.  So, we do the mad dash to Kmart to pick up a grab-and-go gift… my daughter insists on getting a princess Barbie.  (She LOVES princess Barbies and so do her friends.)   Oh, and a gift bag… and a bow, because as usual, I’m running late and have to go from store to party.  Sound familiar?

So, lets have some fun with the math shall we? (This is one wild word problem. Stick with it! You’ll appreciate it, seriously.)
Above is the actual gift receipft from that party.

Check it out:

Gift = $10.99
Gift Bag = $1.89
Bow = $1.99
Total = $14.87

(26% of the expense was for the gift wrap)

Now, that was just our ONE single gift.  But at the party, there were 10 kids there who probably spent about the same.

Gift =  $109.90                        Wrap = $38.80

And that was just one party.  Surely there were at least 10 birthday parties across Vermont that day?

Gift = $1,099.00                        Wrap = $388.00

And surely if there were that many in Vermont, then there would have been that many in all the other 49 states, right?

Gift = $54,950.00                          Wrap = $19,400.00

Oh, and that’s just in one weekend.  Surely there must be just as many birthday parties in the other 51 weekends in the year, right?

Gift = $2,857,400.00                        Wrap =  $1,008,800.00

Oh, and that princess Barbie we bought?  Yeah… she already had that one.

So, we have as many as 260,000 princess Barbies… that yeah… they may already have.

Now picture this.

What if these party hosts use Inlu to let everyone know what’s really wanted? Imagine if everyone pitches in their contribution to a snazzy $100 gift (like maybe the princess Barbie castle to go with? ) in lieu of ten, $10 gifts (that yeah… she probably already has). It would reduce the sheer number of “things” without touching the feel good effects of giving and receiving something awesome.

And gee, in lieu of $1,008,800.00 spent on wrapping paper and bows, maybe they ask guests to pitch in for charities too.   Pretty cool to pitch in for wanted (and not currently owned) gifts, and over one million dollars go to benefit charities across the country, right?

Finally, lets expand this a bit, shall we?  This is not just about kids birthday gifts.  Every week across the US there are adults having celebrations for their special birthdays, baby showers for moms having number 2,3, even 4, and there are wedding showers for folks who don’t need more flatware.  There are all kinds of events happening every week where the old school grab-a-gift occurs.

So for the sake of argument, lets say that for every kid’s birthday party, there are two other gift generating parties every weekend, right?

Gift =  $8,572,200.00                                    Wrap =  $3,026,400.00

Wouldn’t if feel awesome if we (you, your friends and family, and us) all worked together to send over $3million in what would have gone to wrapping so many small gifts, instead to charitable organizations that really need the support? And to know that the gift recipients all got what they really wanted?  Awesome.

Having slight math geek tendencies, we ponder these calculations everyday.  It’s what keeps us going and determined to provide people with a smarter way to be the perfect party host…So that maybe, in lieu of a quarter of a million receipts looking like this… (for gifts they already have…) maybe people will give Inlu a try.

Be a host/hostess hero – make gifting easy for everyone, save the world, and make that special someone very very happy.

Post byMonica, aka Shoulderpads

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6 Ways Inlu is Here for YOU in 2011

by inlu blog patrol on January 7, 2011

It’s one week into 2011, and long after the fizzy drinks have gone flat, our Inlu goals for 2011 beam down from neon notes on the wall. This year, we are committed to a continuing dream that we can help our users:

1. To simplify. In lieu of running around, writing checks and all that jazz, we want to continue hearing, “wow, that was so easy!”when people contribute to a gift or charity collection.

2. To send money where it matters. Imagine, “in lieu of” wrapping paper, a bow and a card, that money (about $5-10), was sent over to a cause? We’re here to help move that mission along.

3. To trim the excess “stuff.” If you’re hosting a birthday party, but your kid only wants a skateboard, by gollie, why not let friends pitch in for it, skip the other 19 gifts and give the extra funds to a cause?

4. To support local business. If your family is divorced or scattered sideways all over the country, why not collect a little from each in a streamlined effort and take those funds, spend them locally? It could be for anything! Yoga, haircolor, massage, dance lessons- whatever!

5. To find great group gifts. This year, we’re gonna find great group gift ideas and share them with our users. Group Gifting = Less mess. More love. Got a cool group gift idea? Contact us.

6. To continue sharing stories of giving and gifting “in lieu of” excess, hassle and waste. Want to tell us about your “in lieu of” experience with Inlu, please, share it on Facebook or email us with some info!

For 2011, the Inlu crew is readier than ever to grow and give more Inlu Luv to its users, friends, fans and allies. Tip o’ the hat to you all!

Please, swing by and see HOW IT WORKS or feel free to set up a few Inlus for later. Once you have an account, you simply login and they’ll be waiting in yer dashboard. GO FOR IT.

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Say What? Happy ONE-YEAR Anniversary!

by inlu blog patrol on September 15, 2010

What a great year! We’d like to take a moment to virtually bust out the megahorn and thank everyone and anyone (including our kids and pets) who supported the Inlu vision.

THANK YOU!

As a small start-up team, we honestly wish we could:

Give a thumbs-up to the trailblazers who coordinated an event or collection. Shake hands with every contributor. High five every person who left a contribution note. And hug everyone who told a friend to check us out (well, everyone except Jamaica, she’s not a hugger).

Anyway, where were we?

We’d say cheers to our artists. Head nod our mentors and of course, throw a party for our fans and professional friends. But, as you can see, that’s just not possible! But please know we’re throwing the thank-you vibes your way.

What we can do, is list some amazing examples of how people have used Inlu to host parties, coordinate events and reduce excess.

In our first year, we’ve seen people coordinate Inlus for:

Together, Inlu users have supported over 90+ favorite causes (many repeats!) and Inlu has donated to plant 50 trees so far (via American Forests).

AND they’ve simplified and streamlined  collections for some awesome gifts, like:

  • Legos & Dollhouses
  • Kid & Mom Bikes
  • iPads & Smart Pens

And we respectfully thank those who memorialized their loved ones with meaningful remembrances.

From all of us at Inlu HQ, we’d like to say HAPPY 1-YEAR TO YOU ALL!

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More trees, please. (Thank You INLU Users!)

June 30, 2010

(Woot! FIVE FIFTY more trees thanks to INLU users!) Why TREES? We figure you’re busy like us. If you are, you’re faced with the everyday challenge: to balance convenience with conscience. It’s like, I don’t single-handedly have time to save the planet, but I don’t want to trash the place either. With all the oil [...]

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