Checkout Donations
As cash and loose change disappear from pockets, they are also disappearing from charity boxes. But the needy can't wait out the recession, and retailers are doing their bit to try and achieve a reasonable level of charitable donations. One simple approach is to program card machines at checkout to invite shoppers to "round up" their payments.
The Daily Telegraph describes technology that can be used at bricks & mortar checkouts as well as those on websites. Rounding up means donations "will never exceed more than 99 pence."
Pioneered by The Pennies Foundation, whose own administration costs are currently being paid by various other charities, it will ensure "every donation in full to the nominated charity."
Although the program is new, Pennies "estimates that just eight pence a week from half the UK's cardholders would generate up to £89m for charities every year." Its representative, Hilary McVitty, reportedly said, "Many retailers had stopped placing coin collecting tins by their tills because the majority of their customers now used debit or credit cards to pay ... research suggested consumers would not find it annoying to be asked if they wanted to donate."
Ms. McVitty told the Telegraph, "It is not an opt out option; no shopkeeper will ask you any questions. It is simply a little message that flashes up on the screen and if you ignore it, it will disappear without you needing to press a button."
A note of caution, perhaps, comes from a story in The New York Times about a similar Safeway project. Following a request from the card machine, which was declined, one customer cited a repeat by the cashier who explained, "We're required to ask." Brian Dowling, the company's vice president of public affairs, later said this was against company policy. "We don't want to bug anybody." He also claimed they have had few complaints.
Although Safeway's most recent efforts raised $16.1 million in just one month for breast cancer research and "a survey by Cone Inc. earlier this year showed that 85 percent of American consumers had a more positive image of companies that support worthy causes," the Times still managed to find and quote a number of disgruntled customers.
Discussion Questions: Do you think consumers will find an opt-out donation method such as the one described acceptable? What do think about requests for charity donations at checkout stations in general? Do such efforts help retailers' images or irritate customers?