Eric Mower + Associates is proud to be announcing today that Centscere is the 2014 winner of the Market Ready Award. Centscere is the start-up company that lets social media users turn tweets and likes in to donations to causes they care about.
Like our first Market Ready winner, Rosie, Centscere is just the kind of company we had in mind two years ago when we created the Market Ready Award as part of StartUp Labs Syracuse. It’s a breakthrough idea that’s far along in development. It’s been created by people who are open to innovative marketing ideas. How can we not be excited?
There are three big things I like about Centscere:
Centscere breaks the mold for charitable giving. It’s an entirely different way of making a donation – a digital version of collecting small change outside of a retail store. But instead of charities chasing down donors with their hands out, caring people can select the causes they care about. And then every time the donor does something he or she enjoys – engaging in social connections – they make a micro donation.
Centscere makes it easy for non-profits to connect with donors in new ways. For most charities, implementing digital fund-raising channels is either daunting or impossible. They don’t have the knowledge, technical expertise or experience to build it themselves. And many platforms that enable digital transactions can have high base fees. Centscere eliminates those barriers. As the platform launches, there is no cost for charities to become Centscere partners. And for signing on, they get access to a fully built, tested and secure platform for online giving. Centscere gets a small share of the money donated. And, of course, non-profits need to do their own work of promoting the Centscere channel, but that’s a requirement in any fundraising model. It couldn’t be easier.
Celebrating the 2014 Market Ready Award with the Centscere team. From left: Frank Taylor, me, Ian Dickerson and Mike Smith
And most important, Centscere turns social in to something good. People of all ages spend hours of every day on social media and most of that time can feel like it is wasted. But not when every post triggers a small donation to a good cause. Centscere lines up perfectly with purpose-driven Millennials who passionately want their activities to contribute to a better world. So instead of being made to feel guilty about engaging in social media, now users can feel good about tweets and comments. And given how much social is woven through every aspect of our lives today – news, entertainment, shopping, and even friendships – why not make it a part of the way in which we give?
The small individual contributions that Centscere creates won’t meet the full fundraising requirements of non-profits today. As the platform grows in scale, however, don’t underestimate its potential to generate significant dollars. And for charitable organizations trying to engage with the next generation of donors they will rely on in the future, Centscere is an appropriate and natural way to build relationships and start a habit of giving that will create even bigger returns in the future. That’s good for Centscere. And the whole world, too.
Greg Loh is the managing partner of public relations and public affairs at Eric Mower + Associates, one of the nation’s leading independent marketing communications agencies. Views expressed here are his own and do not reflect the opinions of EMA.
Reblogged this on Common Wealth and commented:
Former EMA colleague Greg Loh today reported on Centscere, the winner of a start-up event based in Central New York. The company’s solution is designed to help non-profits connect with donors in new ways while maximizing existing social media activity. Loh cites several important caveats to consider, including:
1. Non-profits will need their own resources to promote the Centscere channel
2. Centscere won’t meet all fundraising challenges facing today’s average non-profit
Despite these potential barriers, Loh applauds the winning concept for its simplicity and alignment with the product’s target audience, which he refers to as “purpose-driven Millennials.” Let’s examine these caveats and draw some conclusions.
First, Centscere is in fact another media channel. This may create a challenge for some organizations. Many non-profits, including well-established ones, struggle to manage their existing assets, programs and activities. Adding yet another channel may sound simple, but breaking through the noise of social media is still an equation many small non-profits (as well as major businesses) struggle to crack. As an unintended result, well-established organizations with larger marketing budgets and teams might edge out smaller non-profits without the resources to spread the word and attract the pool of micro-donations. For example, this phenomenon occurs during the ROC the Day, an existing initiative in Western New York where thousands of organizations compete for online donations during a 24-hour promotion facilitated by the United Way of Greater Rochester. Many of the less-established non-profits in Rochester lack general awareness to attract donations. As Centscere gains traction, hopefully it can begin to provide all participating organizations with best practices based on data analysis derived from its platform. In short, Centscere has the potential to be used for listening as well as amplification and engagement.
And listening is what many non-profits of all sizes vitally need to solve their larger fundraising and awareness issues. Beyond the Internet and technology as a whole, many non-profits must confront an institutional dilemma: Is the organization still serving the relevant needs of its intended constituents, or has it become consumed in the protection and preservation of an identity and legacy, which may very well be outdated?
Using Centscere as a listening platform and drawing from the analysis of real-time social media activity (especially what triggers a consumer’s donation) may very well help to provide a wealth of intelligence worth far more than a nickel- or quarters-worth spent on the original Tweet or Like. In that way, Centscere may actually hold the potential to solve the larger fundraising needs of a 21st century non-profit.