Analysis: the problem with e-donations

Financial crises shows no mercy. Charity organizations are also facing the consequences. Unfortunately the first to stop funding charity organizations are the big corporate sponsors. That's why charities have to fall back on the help of individuals: you and me, ordinary people that have a lot of empathy and realize that in difficult times the weakest are always the first victims and need support more then ever.

The old fashioned "door to door"-way of collecting money is still a great tool for charity. Although it requires lots of human resources and its ROI is low, the social mobilization has a very positive effect. Volunteers actually do a very good job in selling their cause and in convincing others that their organization needs support. The emphasis of this collection method lies on local and small money donations.

Nowadays a lot of (larger) organizations offer online credit -card driven donation possibilities.

Although donating online is quite anonymous, it enables the charities to break out of their regional context. However online donations are not really taking off especially for the small and mid-size charities.

The biggest hurtle here is the payment procedure. In order to donate one needs to pull out a credit card and go through an online procedure which isn't always that user-friendly. Pulling out your wallet and giving some change is still way easier than initiating an online donation. The security risks of online payments cannot be ignored.

"Is this site thrust worthy?" is a very imminent question and the main reason why the smaller charities are ruled out from participating in the online donation game.

When you make a donation you want to be involved in the project you support. The follow up after you've made an e-donation is often minimal. In times of online social networking it's time to rethink and come up with integrated social e-donation solutions.

From opportunity to idea

Worldwide mobile internet is on the rise. The booming market of smart phones and mobile computing creates new opportunities for charities. Even in countries with very low internet penetration, mobile internet coverage is about to explode. Up to this date these opportunities have been underused that's why we stepped in with iDonAid.

The iDonAid idea is simple:

Making a donation to a humanitarian organization should be as easy as downloading as song!

Our source of inspiration was the iPhone and iTunes Store. The iTunes Music store and later App store has changed our digital habits. Legal downloading has become a habit. The key success of iTunes is based on the power of small money transactions (99 cent for a song!). Surprisingly this concept of small money transactions has made a the App Store a success story and quite a few developers rich. iTunes is also a trusted worldwide money transaction system. Millions of people have an iTunes account. There are millions of iPhones and iPod touch users worldwide so

basically millions of people have a trusted, activated and ready to use mobile payment system in their pockets today!

So why not flip the game and use iTunes to fund non-profit organizations? The iDonAid system was born…

CONCEPT: the iDonAid system

We at iDonaid designed a fully customizable mobile App that enables humanitarian organizations to publish fully customized charity Apps. These apps act as a viral promotion tool as well as a unique donation channel. Our service includes design and publishing as well as social network integration.

INNOVATION

• iDonAid taps into a massive pool of potential donors that hasn't been explored so far: the millions of iPhone and iPod Touch users worldwide
• Very low entrance level!
• iDonAid Apps focus on small money donations
• Ease of use: By making iTunes take care of the money transactions the security and usability of the system is guaranteed
• “Viral” promotion: To spread the word and create involvement iDonAid plugs into the world of online social networks. iDonAid apps integration with email, blogs, Facebook, Twitter,… By buying an iDonAid App you not only donate but also become a fundraiser!

AWARENESS

iDonAid is a lot more than just "an easy way to donate money".

It's all about creating involvement.

It's all about informing people about these great organizations and projects that need your help and attention. iDonAid provides you with easy and powerful tools to "spread the word" and raise money for the humanitarian organizations of your choice.

INFORMATION CHANNEL

What happens with my money?

that's one of the most imminent questions you have as a donor.

With iDonAid, the humanitarian organizations now can open up a direct information channel and provide the feedback their donors are entitled to. You as a donor now have a tool to follow up if your money is well spend.