This holiday season, online shoppers will be able to direct millions of dollars of donations to their favorite charities – at zero cost to them. AidMaker software from aGoodCause.com is a free download that automatically identifies over 850 sites where the retailer will donate a percentage of the sale to a user-selected charity. While I personally don't do a lot of online shopping, consider passing this on to a friend or colleague.

The growing list of participating retailers encompasses purveyors of electronics, travel, apparel, books, software, groceries, services and more. Among the 850+ are Best Buy, Apple, Kodak, Expedia, Hotels.com, Starbucks, Peapod, REI, Tumi and West Marine. The percentage of sales that is donated is pre-established between aGoodCause and the retailer, and averages 7% of the sale. A commission on the donation covers the operating costs for aGoodCause.com.

With AidMaker, online shoppers become the catalyst for retailers’ donations, potentially directing billions of dollars of contributions annually,” explained Mads Ellegaard, co-founder of aGoodCause.com. “It’s a win-win solution. Retailers want to increase customer loyalty and maximize their positive impact on society through corporate social engagement tactics, while consumers are looking for ways to extend their charitable giving beyond what they would ordinarily be able to afford to give, especially during the holidays.”

“The $33 billion that Americans spent online last holiday season [according to a Forrester Research report] could have potentially yielded $2.3 billion of donations with AidMaker,” Co-Founder Jonathan Low added, “and cost the consumer nothing.”