Social media is now a fundamental part of charity communications. Whether it’s to draw attention to a cause or a tactic used for fundraising, it has the power to bring the campaign to life and call people to action.
As we dried off from our own completed ice bucket challenges and sifted through our Facebook feeds in search of non-ice related content, the team at Cubo Group got thinking: is social media really making the most out of charitable donations?
Charities are getting many people talking about their cause, but the link from social content to taking action has been less than seamless. Up until now, social media hasn’t been geared towards facilitating donations. If everyone who heard about the ALS ice bucket challenge donated just £1, the entire donation pool would have doubled.
As we enter the world of e-wallets and online payments, charities need to keep up. No one wants donating to a charity to be a hassle; finding a website or tracking down a text number is too much. Imagine if a “like” button made a £1 donation; charities would truly benefit from the viral campaigns they’re creating.
Thankfully, that’s changing. Facebook has introduced a “donate now” button to make raising funds as easy as raising awareness. Making donations hassle-free, seamless across platforms and easy is key for charitable donations.
In order for charities to capitalise on this, it’s about socialising the giving process by creating content, stories and meaning for supporters. The ability to harness social communications for good and the potential for micro-payments will change the face of donations. Millennials in particular are more at ease with donating in this way, having grown up with social media always at their fingertips.
Traditionally, involvement ends at the point of donation. With social it doesn’t; donation becomes part of the communication and social influence as a whole. There has never been a more exciting time for the contribution economy than right now. The opportunities are endless.
Kate Ross is head of digital at Cubo Group
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