The season for giving, gifting and getting is quickly approaching once again. Now that Americans seem to be bouncing back from a rough 2009, it seems the perfect time to bounce some of that money into charitable causes as well.

Giving back not only gives you the “warm and fuzzies” from helping someone but it can also give back to your bottom line. Consider the following reasons why your company should reconsider cutting back on charity-work and give back instead.

Image: In a time when many may still be struggling financially, it would bode well for a company to reach out to the heart of their consumers and help ease their financial pain. Not only does it help others, it will also build a trust and goodwill between businesses and consumers. Doing so, tells consumers that your business cares about more than just the bottom line.

While image is not everything, having a positive public image can go a long way in swaying the decisions of consumers.

For example, Company X could offer a 40 percent discount on one of their products in order to promote the sales going to a designated charity. The promotion reaches both pocket books and heart strings. The consumer can get a good deal while doing a good thing. Meanwhile, Company X’s sales soar as does their public image.

Don’t Need Money to Give Back: Consider alternative non-monetary ways of giving back to the community. After all, they’re responsible for building your business into the success it is today. Such donations could be considered “informal donations” such as mentoring or helping young, up-and-coming business professionals in the area. Doing so will not only help build partnership opportunities for the future of your business, but also give back to the civic and entrepreneurial future of your community.

While we’d love to give to every charitable cause, it’s important to keep a balance between philanthropic endeavors and our business strategies. It’s important to understand our financial limits as well as our time commitments. It’s important to stop, take a breath, and give back to ourselves occasionally and recharge our own batteries. We know without a doubt, that whatever we are able to give, we will be blessed tenfold.

“Philanthropy is an easy thing for corporations to cut when revenue drops. But it’s also unwise. Would businesses like to see government cut funding for education – the lifeblood of our economic competitiveness – in an economic downtown? We need to look at charitable giving in the same way that we view education – as an investment.” Ted MacLean, Boston Business Journal.