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kids give back

The Better Way To Birthday… For Kids

by Inlu Blog Patrol on April 24, 2012

 

 

Question:
Is it tacky to organize a group gift for your child’s birthday?

Answer:
No, as long as it’s done in an etiquette-friendly way.

Here’s  the deal…
Inlu web invitations are designed to handle the gift giving of our favorite personal celebrations with the greatest etiquette and care.  As a result, we’ve seen guests, friends, family, and honorees absolutely LOVE Inlu for birthdays.  Here’s why…

1. Honorees receive something that they would not have otherwise been given because the item is either too expensive or no one knows what the person wants in the first place. Take my son, for example. He started saving for an iPad, but my husband and I knew that he wouldn’t be able to save enough in time for his birthday. It was all he really wanted. He was willing to not only work toward it, but to give up other gifts to have it.  If he used traditional birthday invitations he certainly wouldn’t have seen kids showing up with iPads for him!  Through such experiences, kids learn the value of saving to reach a goal.  And man, are they happy when that special gift is finally in their hands.

HINT:  Remember – Inlu is cash collection tool so if you have a child who has a few gifts on their wish list, you can use the funds to buy more than one gift!

2. Guests love Inlu too.  It just makes the birthday process soooooo much easier.  No shopping.  No guessing what someone wants.  No arriving late because they had to stop at the shop on the way – oh, and had to pick up wrapping paper and a card too.  (See our past blog: “Big Lesson From A Little Receipt”)  Sounds crazy, but we actually have Inlu users who contact us – to vent really – when they are invited to non-Inlu birthday parties and have to go through the grab-a-gift routine.  “Why doesn’t everyone just do an inlu?!” (We wish everyone would too!)

HINT: Creating an Inlu enables you to give people the option of whether or not to participate in the group gift.  If someone really wants to bring their own gift, they can RSVP without pitching in.  Language like this can help:  “Joey has been wishing for a new bike.  If in lieu of a gift you’d rather pitch in toward it he would be thrilled!”

INTERESTING FACT:  We love that guests really do use all of the options every Inlu offers:  When both a gift and a charity are offered, some give to just the gift, some to just the charity, and some give to both.  Some opt to keep their donation amount private, others do not.  Some add the credit card and transaction fee, some opt to subtract it.  (In fact we’ve heard from numerous guests how thankful they are that our system is so transparent and they are in control of where their money is going.)  The point is, Inlu invitations give your guests the information, options, and control they want when invited to participate.

3. Organizers’ lives are easier too.  We’ve seen it over and over again. Just like ‘getting into’ Facebook that first time, organizers can have a fear of the unknown.  However, once a person creates an Inlu for the first time, and sees the RSVPs, contributions, messages from their guests, they are delighted – and amazed at how easy it all is. (Not to mention they also receive great praise from guests for making their lives so much easier!)  Check out this former blog post with TESTIMONIALS.

HINT:  People like to use Inlu as a birthday reminder to family and loved ones too. This way birthdays aren’t forgotten and everyone gets to participate in a meaningful way. Your family will come to rely on you sending out that Inlu for each birthday and other special occasions.  They will, in fact, demand your Inlu!  “When are you doing Susie’s Inlu?! I don’t want to be left out!”  (We love family.)

4. The Planet loves when people use Inlu.  We just have to reiterate it.  When people pitch in for something that is truly wanted, less waste will go to the landfill.  Think about this stat from one of our favorite eco-friendly sources www.storyofstuff.org,  for every 1 can of trash you bring to the curb,  7 (seven) more cans of trash are used in the production process before you even bring your stuff home with you in the first place.

Reducing waste while giving what’s truly wanted is a win win for everyone.

5. Charities are happy too.  With every Inlu you have the choice to support a charity – either in lieu of a gift, in addition to a gift, or as the “overflow” option once your gift cap has been met.  Our users have supported over 100 charities of across the U.S.  Even small contributions matter and Inlu makes it simple and easy for you to make a difference.   (Check out these Inlu kids in action supporting the charities they care about.)

Here are some samples:
1. A birthday invitation with both a gift and a charity.
2. A birthday reminder announcement to family for a gift only.

For more information about how Inlu helps parents in general check this out:

 

 

 

 

 

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Inlu This! Burton Chopper Star Wars™ Board

by inlu blog patrol on November 3, 2011


Welcome to the AWESOME side. Your kiddo’s got plenty of plastic toys. He’s got enough “stuff” to fill up a walk-in closet. This year, use the FORCE of Inlu to coordinate contributions to cover the cost of the most badass, radical, excellent group gift, like, EVER.

This $189 ride-on galaxy blaster will take you from the living room to the white fields of that planet with the hairy white creature that captures what’s-his-face in that cave…nevermind.

This is a perfect group gift for the Holiday season. Your kid will LOVE it, the grandparents will be happy to pitch-in and the favorite aunt in Oregon is pumped to put some $ in the pool, leave a note and know there’s not going to be an 11th hour mad dash. You’ll be PSYCHED because you know that, AFTER the new year, when the snow starts to pile, this gift will be  put to good use!

Here’s how you’d use Inlu to make this Chopper happen (see SAMPLE):

1. You login (free account!) and create an Inlu announcement

2. Write some details about the gift your kiddo really wants

3. Opt to set a collection cap, have excess funds go toward a charity (I set this one at $189- again, optional)

4. Send to friends and family members you know would like to pitch in for this super gift

5 . You track and view contributions and notes from your dashboard, where you can easily send a thank you when the collection closes.

6. Then you get the $ in one check to go and buy the gift. Easy, that was, hmmn? (say in cute Yoda voice).

Sound good? Get started now, send it to yourself. Add recipients when you’re ready. Go easy on everyone, easier on the planet (less wrapping, shipping and “stuff” when you group gift).

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Sweet Birthday Party Idea for Kids! Group Gift. Give Back. Chill Out.

by inlu blog patrol on February 14, 2011

Kids + in lieu of gifts in lieu of TOO MANY gifts = AWESOME

Times are a changing. In an era when TV shows are showcasing over the top parties, there’s another trend happening more quietly:  lieu of gifts…for kids. We’ve seen bring-a-book parties, no gift parties, bring a canned item parties, in lieu of gifts charity parties and that’s why we’re excited for parents to know all about Inlu. Inlu is the “in lieu of too much-stuff-that-will-end-up-in-a-landfill”  meets “give-back-and-feel-good-about-helping-a-cause” option. Kids definitely know the perils of environmental destruction– they see the nature shows, the headlines and the cute polar bears on TV. They also like gifts. Which is totally fair. We had gifts growing up. So why not bring balance? Get something you love, give back to cause. Skip the mess. Done.

Inlu a perfect option for kids parties. It’s easy- as the organizer, you create an invitation with event details. You write a blurb about what your child would REALLY like and then, if you want, you can add any charity to go along with the gift. So for example, let’s say your child wants a new Nerf Gun™, you write that down and all the guests pitch in when they RSVP. At the same time, let’s say you know your child loves dolphins. You add a charity that saves dolphins and your guests can pitch in for the gift, charity or both when they RSVP. The idea is that in lieu of wrapping paper and a card, you can give that money to a cause that matters.

In the end, your kid get a cool gift AND you gave back. There’s no mess from a pile of “stuff” but you didn’t have to skip the gift altogether! It’s all about the balance.

Good idea? Let us know! Want to create your own? It’s free to create and send so give it a shot. OR view a sample.

P.S. The gift part is really flexible. You can set a gift collection limit so excess funds will go to the cause. :) (For example, if  you only need $50, you can set the option to cover the gift, anything over that will be put to the charity fund). Or, if you want a traditional “in lieu of gifts” party, Inlu makes that easy too. Simply check the “no gift” box and all the guests can RSVP and contribute to the charity in one step.

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Thanksgiving: Do Good in Your ‘Hood!

by inlu blog patrol on November 2, 2010

It’s  already November! Thanksgiving is well on its way. This year, Inlu would like to suggest inviting local kids to collect food from neighbors. We’ve outlined an easy, fun way to rally support for your local food shelf in three easy steps:

Step 1: Create an Inlu. Call it something like “Our Neighborhood Food Drive” (see live sample) and indicate when the collection will end, when the “can collection” will occur and where the funds will go. You (as the organizer), can opt to have Inlu send funds DIRECTLY to any local food shelf, OR you can collect contributions from everyone  and purchase goods at the grocery store on behalf of the neighborhood. Kids can help with the shopping and delivering the items to the food shelf.  In the Inlu message, be sure to ask neighbors to put cans in bags and leave them on their doorsteps.

Step 2: Print the Inlu (go to your dashboard and hit “print Inlu”). Ask your local neighborhood kids (with parent supervision:) to drop the printed Inlu flyers 1 WEEK PRIOR to the date of your food drive. On the date indicated in the Inlu, send the kids with their wagons around the hood to collect the non-perishables – canned food, toothpaste, pasta, diapers, etc.

Here’s PRINTABLE Inlu flyer sample:

Click to see a LIVE sample.

Step 3: Ask the kids to draw thank you cards that you can copy and leave on the door steps of folks who left food!  You can also thank everyone who contributed online to your food drive from your Inlu dashboard.

Food drives really make kids feel empowered to help others by offering a great lesson about community and appreciation for the Thanksgiving meal that will be served later this month. Be sure to share the Inlu online and get people chatting! Team Inlu is always here if you have question.  We’d love to help.  And PLEASE…. if you do a food drive Inlu, we’d love to hear back from you about your neighborhood experience!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

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