The Rise of Mobile Giving

In the U.S., the Mobile Giving Foundation has negotiated with mobile phone companies and, as a result, directs most, if not all, of the donation dollars to the intended charitable cause. Last year, the Mobile Giving Foundation enabled nearly 150 nonprofits to raise more than $400,000 across all campaigns using a $5 price point, and forecasts 2009 numbers to be significantly higher.

Another and distinct approach to mobile donations leverages the explosion of smartphones. During the last reported period (July through September 2009), 43.3 million smartphones shipped worldwide, up 4.2 percent from 41.5 million in the same period a year ago, and up 3.2 percent from shipments of 41.9 million in the second quarter of this year, according to IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker report. Smartphone shipments soon will out-pace laptop shipments in some markets.

Clearly more and more of us are walking around with devices capable of mobile browsing, like Blackberries and iPhones. We’re reading our e-mail on our smartphones and learning to use our mobile browsers like mini-computers. Some leading-edge fundraisers are paying attention to this trend and are beginning to mobile-enable their secure donation forms, allowing donors to make credit card donations without ever needing to leave their favorite “crack-berry” device.

So this holiday season, keep your eyes open for more and more successful mobile-donation campaigns, both the premium SMS type and the smartphone type, and consider testing mobile donations for your organization.

If you are enjoying this content, I invite you to search for my Digital Fundraising Podcast on iTunes and listen to interviews with rock stars in the world of digital fundraising. Also, if you have any thoughts or comments, I’d love to read them at philip.king@artez.com

(On a personal note: This past Halloween I turned 40. That makes me two days younger than the Internet.)