Unless you have a job title of development, fundraising for an organization or cause can be a real pain. However, public relations professionals are often asked to do it for special projects, even if that project is the baby shower of a co-worker.
Web 2.0 has the answer to this problem. I got an e-mail yesterday for a new service that launched today called ChipIn.
ChipIn reminded me of another similar service I ran across last year called Fundable, which essentially does the same thing, but has a larger focus on non-profit fundraining. Fundable also requires that participants set a goal and the money isn’t charged to Paypal accounts until the goal is reached. So, it is more of a matching program.
Fundable itself doesn’t charge fees, though it will cut a check for $10. Otherwise you just pay the standard Paypal transaction fees to transfer money. You can check out PayPal fees here.
ChipIn is a little different since they don’t require you to set and meet goals. They also take major credit cards in addition to Paypal. During the Beta ChipIn isn’t charging fees, but their FAQ says that:
You get your money, just like Fundable, through Paypal, and you are charged the Paypal fees. ChipIn says it will eventually provide more options.
I have a personal interest in such a service.
Every year, my family and I raise money to give my grandparents a gift, usually we “chip in” to pay for a cleaning service to come and take care of the house. And every year it is a pain to collect all the money promised.
One of the innovative ways to use this service would be for vendors to partner with ChipIn and let groups buy gift certificates. So, if you are listening Home Depot, Target, Amazon, etc.…this is a great customer service idea.
