haiti

The mobile giving response to the Haiti earthquake signaled a clear shift in the public's willingness to use their phones as quick donation devices. The number of campaigns, the more than $35 million raised via this method, and the number of people who participated by kicking in $5 or $10 at a time are all impressive and meaningful data points. The ease and immediacy of text donations will surely continue to make it a go-to method for crisis response. But I wonder if it was really all it could have been.

At the time, some wondered if the mobile giving campaigns were a bit of a handicap in disguise because they might give someone the psychological satisfaction of having done their part by donating a quick $5 or $10, when they might have otherwise donated much more online, by mail or in person. It can be argued that it’s simple and small ask might have drawn in many people who might not have given at all.

The work in Haiti is far from done, but with crazy Icelandic volcanoes, a historic healthcare bill and continued concern over the global economy, it’s fading from the headlines already. And the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, for example, continues to actively raise money for long-term rebuilding efforts. But I wonder how many of the people who contributed text donations during the first few days after the earthquake have even considered giving again. It seems none of the organizations employing mobile giving campaigns have figured out how to promote continued engagement.

I’ll offer myself as an example. I made two donations in the days following the earthquake – one to the Red Cross via text and one online to Partners in Health. Partners in Health has sent me three email updates on what my money has been doing and information about opportunities to continue being a part of the recovery effort. So far, I have received nothing from the Red Cross since the day I confirmed my donation via text – even though the terms and conditions of the donation stated I could receive up to four texts from them per month. I asked around a bit and heard of only one organization, based in Canada, that has done any follow up so far via text.

While I understand the constraints of 160 characters, I’m surprised and disappointed. I hoped we would see creative ways, or at least attempts, to continue engaging this mobile audience who sent $35 million to Haiti. Especially with more than 40 percent of Americans on smart phones, it seems these organizations could have sent a photo, a sentence, a link to their website with the promise of an update for those who click through. Had they done so, they probably could have found some repeat donors and advocates for their organizations and additional help for the people of Haiti. In some cases, the nonprofits may not yet be able to obtain the phone numbers of the people who gave or they may not have decided how to walk the line between maintaining engagement and annoying these donors in the relatively uncharted territory of mobile giving. Either way, I hope nonprofits are able to continue to move this ball forward soon. 

With all the capabilities of social media and technology, donors are beginning to feel more and more like empowered consumers and shareholders, who expect follow up. If the thousands of people who donated via text to Haiti aren’t engaged or asked again, they might not send another dollar to Haiti – a country that will need support for some time to come. When another crisis happens and organizations launch mobile giving campaigns in response, I trust that they will still succeed in raising a new record-breaking amount, but I hope to see some additional innovation by these organizations to help mobilize and engage people who want to give more than $10.

Early yesterday evening, the American Red Cross announced it had received more than $5 Million in texts, $10 at a time. That means more than 500,000 people from all over America have texted "HAITI" to 90999. Although they are still raising much more through other forms ($35 million so far in total), this is a record for the organization and for mobile giving. Previously, the Red Cross's most successful mobile giving campaign was in 2008, when they raised $200,000 in response to the hurricane season. Other groups, including Wyclef Jean's Yele Haiti and the Clinton Foundation, are also accepting text donations. It's amazing to see how people are responding to this crisis through various forms of giving, and I wonder what this will mean for future mobile campaigns. In addition, Ushahidi has adapted its mobile mapping technology to assist in the relief efforts. As of this morning, 425 reports have been posted through voice, text and video to help find and map urgent needs, threats, survivor information and response.

We have talked on this blog about how 2010 might be the year of mobile, when adoption and technology catch up with other parts of the world and we begin using our cell phones in new and innovative ways. I wonder if this Haiti response is any indication of what's to come. As we learn more about these efforts and the numbers behind them, the public may have more questions and reactions that could help improve the mobile giving process.

This will lead to increased comfort (and therefore use of) mobile giving, disaster response platforms and other budding technology. I'm sure there are thousands of people who are being compelled to give via text for the first time because of this crisis. People who were unsure about giving at football games or while watching American Idol may have been pushed over the hump by what is happening in Haiti. Odds are, they had a good experience. They received a confirmation text message, it will show up as $10 (and just $10) on their bill, and they will feel even more comfortable doing it again next time.

There will be pressure on the entities involved in mobile giving campaigns. Over the past few days, I've seen people in my Twitter stream pose questions about what the mobile service providers would be donating and how much money actually goes to the beneficiary. As the amount of money given to Haiti through text grows, there could be more questions about who, if anyone, is gaining from this. Through the Mobile Giving Foundation, 100% of donations will go to the organization you choose. Neither the Mobile Giving Foundation nor Verizon, At&T or whoever keeps you connected will take anything off the top. BUT the Mobile Giving website also states that they charge "back costs for short-code costs, reporting and messaging charges directly to the nonprofit organizations or their supporting service providers on a post-donation basis."

I've not been able to find out how much money we are talking about here, but a Seattle Times article last year cited the amount as 10 cents per transaction. If I'm reading this right, 100% of mobile donations may go to the organization, but the organization has to pay mobile marketing companies like mGive to be able to receive these donations. There may be special arrangements made around this campaign for Haiti, but people are going to want to know what these charges are. Undoubtedly, providing this mobile donation service costs money, so mGive and organizations have to charge something to be able to continue providing this service, but this might be the perfect CSR opportunity for a major service provider like Verizon or AT&T. If I were them, I might drop the commercials about the maps for a commercial about how they are funding organizations like mGive and the Mobile Giving Foundation so nonprofits don't have to pay anything to receive mobile donations.

In addition, while service providers are not taking anything off the top of these donations, they are still charging whatever service fee you agreed to when you signed up for your plan. Let's say your plan charges 10 cents per text sent and received. When you consider that you send one text and receive up to three (I did) to confirm your donation, Verizon is making 40 cents on your donation. I think as we realize how much money that adds up to, there will be calls for service providers to either waive all fees on mobile donations or to donate that money.

There also may unfortunately be a little bit of backlash. The fine print says that when you donate $10 by texting "HAITI" to 90999, you are also agreeing to receive up to four texts per month from the Red Cross. While unsubscribing is easy enough (just text "STOP" to 90999), I'm sure the vast majority of people do not know these texts are coming and may get annoyed with text solicitations pretty quickly.

Did you use mobile giving for the first time in response to Haiti? What was your experience and what are your questions?