Flash sparks Charitycards.co.uk debate in Guardian
Howard Lake | 28 October 1999 | News
Last week’s letter in The Guardian Online concerning charitycards.co.uk’s use of Flash technology on its Web site has spawned a reply on the supplement’s letters page. Gordon Stevenson retorted that “the original web designer of charitycards was correct to use Flash, since 69.78% of all web browsers now have Flash player installed.”
Mr Stevenson wondered “and what about the other 30.22% of lost customers?” His answer – “why didn’t they simply install the free Flash player?”
So, the customer is wrong and needs to get the right technology to buy a charity card online? That is hardly a customer- or indeed donor-focused approach.
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Mr Stevenson’s argument that the technology is out there so use it is not uncommon. However, charities sticking to it are likely to annoy donors and even more importantly potential donors.
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.