Daily deal shopping has notoriously focused on giving the consumer the best bang for his buck. Thanks to daily deals you can eat dinner out, get a manicure and pedicure, take flying lessons and enjoy a weekend getaway at rates that would be agreeable with even the most frugal-minded among us. Did you know that you can also give to charities quickly and easily with many daily deal sites? You can, and here’s how to get started today with Groupon and G-Team.

Groupon Featured Good Cause

Groupon has been funding and supporting non-profit and charitable organizations since their 2008 launch. On a regular basis, Groupon’s sidebar features an advertisement for the Featured Good Cause, where consumers can give a donation to those in need with the click of a mouse. This month’s Featured Good Cause is World Food Program USA (WFP USA).

WFP USA is a non-profit organization that works to curb world hunger around the globe by shaping new policies and generating resources for hunger relief organizations. Funded entirely by donations, WFP USA helps to get food and resources to the near one billion who struggle with hunger each day.

How can you help?  Join G-Team at Groupon and your gift of $5, $10, or $25 will provide meals to schoolchildren in drought-stricken regions of Africa. A mere $1,000 can provide 8,000 nutritious meals to those in need. All donations up to $50,000 will be matched this year by anonymous donors.

You can share the warmth this season and gift the gift of hope today for as little as $5.

Invest in Experience and Stop Buying Junk

It seems that each year we spend more and more money on gifts. A recent Gallop poll shows that American shoppers are predicted to spend $764 on presents in 2011, a figure that’s up $50 from last year.  

Canadians, on the other hand, are predicted to spend $1,397 between now and the end of December, but they’ll be investing more money on entertaining friends and family and spending quality time with loved ones, as opposed to wrapping and unwrapping presents from under the tree.

Of course, these are just guesses and predictions, which often fall short of our actual shopping habits. In reality, last minute shoppers and those charging the holidays away will more than likely be paying off gifts well into the 2012 holiday shopping season, and spending far more than their budgets allows. More...