National Days of Service - Ameriprise Financial and Feeding America
Ameriprise began a philanthropic partnership with Feeding America in 2009 with the intent to create a signature program, engage employees and advisors and demonstrate a national commitment to domestic hunger relief. Hunger was chosen in alignment with the company’s existing giving priority of ‘Meeting Basic Needs’ and provided a cause that employees, financial advisors and clients could rally around and relate to since it remains an issue in nearly every community.
Ameriprise and Feeding America designed several “National Days of Service” leveraging the charity’s nationwide network of member food banks. Originally a single event in November, the partners added a second day in June focused on senior and childhood hunger.
2015 marked the sixth Ameriprise National Day of Service with Feeding America and other hunger-relief organizations as volunteers prepared, sorted and packed more than 1 million meals. The November event earned the status as Feeding America’s largest single-day volunteer event with 14,300 volunteers participating in 700 events in all 50 states and Washington, D.C.
Ameriprise worked with employee volunteer councils to provide step-by-step guides to designated “site leaders” for each volunteer event and provided save the date and invitation emails for clients as well as social media templates and tailored media alerts for local markets.
The event has grown from 2,100 volunteers in 2010 and demonstrates the company’s commitment to domestic hunger- relief, providing a welcome activity to the company’s nationwide network of financial advisors. Participation by advisors is high: 81% have participated two or more years and 80% invited clients to attend. In post-event surveys, 94% of advisors agreed that the event increases pride in the company and 90% stated it enhances reputation. In addition, many cited the opportunity to deepen relationship with clients as well as created opportunities for client acquisition and referrals.
In addition to volunteer hours, Ameriprise made a $500,000 donation to Feeding America that was leveraged into a match campaign which ultimately generated $1.48 million, a 4% increase over prior year. Ameriprise corporate and staff and advisors also contributed an additional $1.18 million to member food banks and other hunger-relief
organizations in 2015.