There seems to be no end when it comes to the kinds of things people can do with a cell phone these days.
Now count donating money to nonprofits as one of the many ways cell phones have expanded their scope. A report from the Seattle Times has highlighted the efforts of Jim Manis, the CEO and co-founder of the Mobile Giving Foundation.
The nonprofit foundation – which is based in Bellevue, Washington – was established to give other nonprofits a way to use cell phones in order to raise awareness and money for their causes.
The foundation and Manis have helped developed a way for cell phone users to use text messages in order to donate to nonprofits in need. By texting a single word, a person can initiate a donation to one of their favorite charities.
"Giving should be easy, it should be fun and it should be rewarding," Manis told the Seattle Times.
According to the Times, Manis helped develop the type of parameters needed in order to do mobile donating in response to Hurricane Katrina and a tsunami that affected Asia. He eventually took that knowledge further by working with co-founder Jenifer Snyder to create the foundation.
According to the foundation, one of the benefits of mobile giving is that it appeals to a younger demographic, which can give nonprofits the chance to expand their donation base.
Donations are generally given in $5 amounts, though a number of carriers allow for $10 donations. In order to donate more, a texter can make multiple donations, all of which will appear as a charge on their cell phone bill.
The money then goes to the foundation, which then hands all of it over to the benefiting charity. According to the Times, the foundation has helped give around $1 million in donations.