Just back from an onsite about emerging trends in giving software. Here’s the evolution: years ago you gave to your church; the money filtered up through the denomination and out to some far corner of the world, of which you were vaguely aware. Then, the world got flatter, and you’d hear a great speaker, like Billy Graham, and you’d give directly to their ministries — the parachurch ministry was born.
But then two things happen: the Internet disaggregates the world, and a few high-profile scandals dismantle trust. Donors want to control the giving themselves, like stocks over eTrade. Sponsorships replace contributions. Compassion International outpaces Focus on the Family. (Sure enough, when we reallocated our family’s giving, churches and parachurches lost out, but we didn’t think to touch our sponsor children….)
It’s hard, though, software-wise, to manage the relationship–not just between donor and the agent, but between donor and agent and beneficiary, especially if lots has to happen for small contributions (like $30/mo) to reach their destination.
Enter our client, whose name I need to keep under wraps for now, a new design architecture, and: poof–there’s a much smarter way for charities to meet this growing demand for seamless sponsorship-based giving. Our client will satisfy that demand because they “get” this, while the traditional donation software folks don’t.
More coming soon…..
