A sizable portion of mobile giving is “impulse buying.”
It’s in response to an ad regarding emergency relief for a disaster. Or it’s an ad on TV or on the screen at a sporting event. And then usually means a “text-to-give” in the amount of $5 or $10.
Times are a changin’!
An article in PC Advisor titled, “Mobile giving grows up” cites some interesting examples of how donating by mobile is evolving.
And these innovative methods show how a charity of ANY size can collect donations via mobile and in amounts other than $5 or $10.
Yes, technology continues to advance and there are new tools available where donors can make more generous donations via an SMS message (text message) or a smartphone app linked to a credit card or other account.
Examples:
1 – The Salvation Army is testing smartphones that accept a credit card swipe using technology from mobile payment startup Square. Donors will have the choice of dropping coins in the red kettle or making a gift via credit card in multiple locations in the cities of Dallas, San Francisco, Chicago and New York.
2 – Churches in Los Angeles and parts of Arizona allow members of the congregation to use cellphones to make their Sunday-morning offerings instead of dropping coins, bills or envelopes in a plate passed down the pew.
“People forget to bring their checkbooks, so using the phone makes sense. The ministries that have tested it see a 10% to 15% bump in giving when they do it.”
The article goes on to say that a variety of nonprofit organizations are using mobile with the greatest interest coming from the arts and religious groups as well as those in healthcare and education.
And I want to add that charities using mobile have found that you raise more money AFTER you have been cultivating via mobile … and when you ask for support of something specific like a special project.
Mobile giving continues to get better and I believe you ought to look into it. But fundraising is NOT the sole way to use mobile. Read this to see what I mean.
