Haiti Earthquake Provokes Wave of Text Donations

From Businessweek:

Red Cross donations made by texting reach $5 million, as the campaign to raise money for Haiti relief efforts goes viral in an always-connected society.

Text donations have hit prime time. In the aftermath of the devastating earthquake that hit Haiti on the evening of Jan. 12, Americans were texting their support big-time. In less than 48 hours, donations to the American Red Cross—made by texting HAITI to 90999—had reached $5 million, and donations were reported to be coming in at a rate of $200,000 per hour. That's more than 12 times the amount that donors had sent by text in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Each HAITI text provides $10 to the organization. The charge is added to the donor's phone bill.

With money still pouring in—and without even accounting for additional funds texted through campaigns by Yéle, Haitian-born musician Wyclef Jean's foundation (text YELE to 501501); Doctors Without Borders (DOB to 90999); the Clinton Foundation's Haiti Relief Fund (HAITI to 20222); and others—those mobile donations had already surpassed texted monies for all causes in all of 2009. Among the likely reasons for the outpouring is the near-ubiquity of text-capable phones and the expansive social networks that have allowed the donation campaign to go viral.

"It is the perfect tool for the Twitter generation," says Lucy Bernholz, president of Blueprint Research & Design, a consulting firm for philanthropic institutions and individuals. After all, text is just about instantaneous and the amount you're sending, typically $5 or $10, is minimal.

Full Article:
Haiti Earthquake Provokes Wave of Text Donations - BusinessWeek


It's nice to see a humanitarian and effecient use of technology.

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Agree totally with Steve – technology is too easily used for marketing so called talent shows or ridiculous competitions.

Nice to see it used for charitable reasons.

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Clive

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