Business As Mission is the idea that we create businesses to fund philanthropic enterprises. This means the organization is a “For Profit” entity. But rather than placing the profits in the owners' pockets, profits are sent to a cause or project for the greater good.
The Christian Music Archive is one such entity. Any profits from our website, podcast, or album sales are sent to Mercy, inc. We have expenses that must be covered. But we keep those expenses as low as possible to maximize the profits generated.
So, you might be asking yourself, what profits do you make? Our income comes from three sources.
Album Sales
You’ll notice “buy now” buttons throughout the artist pages from Amazon and MusicStack. Anytime you purchase an album from one of these entities, we get a small commission through an affiliate link.
Advertising
You’ll see on our website that we have advertisements. Google’s AdSense places these ads and takes the cookies from your computer to serve advertisements they think you’ll click on. Every time you click on an ad, the advertiser pays us a cent or two.
Profit First
I was introduced to the idea of Profit First through a book by Mike Michalowicz. He suggests that profit is the first part of every dollar a business earns. Not the remaining dollars after paying bills, like most business leaders were trained. Christian Music Archive operates on this principle in a modified way. We tithe the first part of the dollar and then take the profit out of the second part. After that, the leftovers run our business. So the first part of every dollar received through Patreon, album sales, or advertising is given to Mercy, inc. Then, once everything is paid for, the remaining funds available are also given to Mercy, inc.
Mercy, inc. transforms communities’ sustainability, one family at a time. They do this through acts of compassion and the power of the Gospel as they impart hope, dignity, and self-worth.
Mercy, inc. works with local organizations to provide clean water, agriculture training, literacy, crisis relief, and vocational training. And through all of these partnerships, the goal is to provide for physical needs. Because when physical needs are covered, people are open to hearing about the transformational power of Jesus and the Gospel.
Mercy, Inc. works worldwide in Latin America, Africa, and South Asia with over 11 locally run organizations.
In 2020, 85% of all contributions to Mercy, inc. were directed to specific work on the field worldwide. Fifteen cents of every dollar were then used to cover overhead and operating expenses. Their ultimate goal is to reduce operating expenses to 0%. To achieve this goal, they have created the Greater Impact Campaign. This fund will cover overhead costs so that all donors’ contributions can go to compassionate care programs.
Our operating budget is about $260 per month. This covers website hosting, development, and marketing tools.
- Our income comes from the following sources:
- 52% from Donors
- 38% from advertising
- 9% from album sales
So any income over $260 per month goes directly to Mercy, inc. and their Greater Impact Fund.