How Does Meet The Need Work?

For example, when it comes to how needs get in the Meet the Need database, we do not allow families to post their own needs. Instead each family must be “activated” by a local church or charity so that someone is qualifying and assessing the legitimacy of their needs. Some organizations even conduct background checks on those families. In addition, we review and “approve” each church and ministry before they can post volunteer or resource needs on the Meet The Need database.

You decide what you want to contribute, whether it’s giving a used item to a local family who needs it or spending time volunteering to help a ministry on a weekend. There are literally hundreds of categories of needs to choose from based on your skills, interests or belongings. Simply use our search engine to select the category and subcategory of the type of need you want to meet, as well as a location and search radius and then proceed through the typical online shopping “checkout” process for the specific need you selected.

The organization who posted the need will get a confirmation e-mail as well. You will also see the need you agreed to meet and all details related to that need on your personal My Account page on www.meetheneed.org. The e-mail will ask you to contact the organization within 48 hours to introduce yourself and discuss logistics related to meeting that need. By the way, if you happen to be registered and confirmed as a member of an organization that is using Meet The Need, then if the need you selected is for a local family, you will be given the option of connecting directly with that family to deliver the item or service you want to contribute.

Click on “My Pending Commitments” and complete the commitment process by entering the estimated value of the item or service you donated, and providing a brief testimonial describing your experience meeting that need. Should you decide not to meet a need for any reason, you may cancel the commitment by going to “My Pending Commitments” and clicking on the Cancel button. It’s important to cancel commitments soon after deciding not to meet a need because others who may have been able to meet the need will not be able to see it in their searches until it is cancelled.

You can change your profile, set communication preferences, view your current and past giving activities, and see the needs of your favorite local charities if they are users of Meet The Need. A big reason why we provide you a complete history of your past commitments is so you can stay in touch with families and ministries you’ve helped. We hope Meet The Need will do more than meet one-time needs, but create lasting relationships that impact the giver as much as the receiver. Keep in mind that if your church or favorite local charitable organizations are registered with Meet The Need, you can let them know that you are interested in hearing about new needs as they post them – just opt-in to receive e-mail alerts or login to your account and select the organization from your drop-down list.

Churches and charities have limited budgets and staffs, yet running outreach programs takes a good deal of time and effort, so they are limited in the number of needy families they can help. That’s why Meet The Need designed software and services that take much of the workload off of them, letting them outsource the administrative stuff to us. It’s a dedicated solution to bring their outreach activities into the 21st century! To get them started, all you need to do is refer them to this web site, where they can read about how to register and begin using Meet The Need. The good news for you is that once your church or favorite charity is registered and approved, you’ll be able to see the needs they post instantly on your own Meet The Need account.