Cashless giving added to traditional charity collection boxes and buckets
Howard Lake | 20 April 2017 | News
Charity collecting boxes can now be used to accept contactless donations thanks to a partnership between charity collection box manufacturers Angal® and cashless transaction provider Thyngs®.
Angal’s collecting boxes and buckets will now transform the range of giving options available to charities, whether using them at static locations such as shop counters or at events such as street collections.
Thyngs‘ cashless donation solutions allow charities to turn physical objects like collection boxes, signage, and shop windows – and even staff and volunteers – into instant donation points and new opportunities for supporter engagement.
The collecting boxes feature labels with embedded QR/NFC technology which to make cashless payments possible.
They feature a message saying “No cash? Donate with your phone”.
Donors choose how much to give via smartphone
Traditional collecting buckets will be able to accept donations in the following ways:
- coins and banknotes (of course)
- credit/debit card
- Apple Pay
Donations via Android Pay and PayPal will be available later this year.
Donors will be able to choose any amount they wish to give using their smartphones. A Gift Aid declaration is built into the process on the smartphone, as is the option to share their contact details with the charity.
Charities will be able to monitor remotely the performance of each collecting box.
How much?
Thyngs states that this enhancement to the traditional collecting box is an “affordable solution that pays for itself with the first £1 donation”.
Larger volume orders could reduce the additional cost per box/bucket to 60p.
In terms of processing donations there is a 2.5% fee on each cashless donation made, plus card processing costs which will vary depending on whether charities already have a Payment Services Provider or choose to use Thyng’s (currently Stripe).
Using Stripe (the more expensive option), a £5 Gift-Aided donation would therefore cost a maximum of 39.5p, which is easily covered by the additional £1.25 Gift Aid that can be reclaimed.
Angal managing director Lee Woodford said: “The Thyngs technology allows Angal to pioneer a safe and secure way for our clients to accept cashless donations. Supporters simply scan or tap their mobile phone on our collecting boxes and can donate in less than 15 seconds. This ease of use was one of the key reasons we joined up with Thyngs. Any boxes with the old FRSB tick logo will need replacing soon, so now is the perfect time to upgrade.”
Thyngs chief executive Neil Garner added: “Our partnership with Angal means that more charities will be able to benefit from the rise of contactless payments and cashless giving.”
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Which collecting boxes?
The Thyngs technology is available immediately for the Polybox Handbox®, Polydrum Wedge®, and Collectors Buckets. It will be added across the rest of Angal’s product range over the coming months.
Charities simply order boxes and buckets via Angal as normal, and they will arrive with the cashless donation labels affixed.
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.