Charity app uses logo recognition for donations

A new app has launched that lets cashless Brits use their mobile phones to snap photos of charity logos to make donations.

Brits give around £1.6 billion in cash to good causes each year, but charities could miss out on a "chunk" of this as people increasingly leave home without notes and coins in their wallets, according to the Charities Aid Foundation and the Payments Council.

The SnapDonate Android and iOS app aims to tackle this "cash timebomb" by making it easy for people to make spontaneous donations. The app uses a "magic lens" to recognise charity logos - users just snap the image and pick how much to give.

The system currently recognises dozens of logos, including those belonging to Age UK and Save the Children, but users can donate to around 13,000 charities by searching within the app. There is no fee and donations are handled by JustGiving.

Nick Georgiadis, head, direct giving, Cancer Research UK, says: “In a society that is increasingly moving away from cash as a way of conducting payments, it's important charities make use of innovative ways for supporters to donate. Any technology solution that makes charity giving easier and straightforward is welcomed."

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Comments: (1)

Ketharaman Swaminathan - GTM360 Marketing Solutions - Pune 29 October, 2014, 11:11

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I remember a time a few years ago when I was moving from UK to India and wanted to donate a lot of household items. The way the donation process worked at the time, I had to find a charity, I had to visit their website, I had to telephone them, I had to list all items, I had to make an appointment, I had to lug everything to their warehouse, etc. Lacking the time or inclination to do all that by myself, I just gave up. It's good to know that charities are waking up to the need for reducing efforts and friction for the donor in the process of donation.