Red Cross' Texting Campaign to Aid Haiti has Already Raised $5 Million

For Andrea Lahouze making a $10 Red Cross contribution by texting the word "haiti" to 90999 was the most natural thing in the world.

The Hopkins 24-year-old, like many other young adults, is well-acquainted with digital methods for doing good. She has helped feed wild chimpanzees and save endangered rainforests at redjellyfish.com. More clicks at thehungersite.com helped feed the needy.
So when word went out to mobile-phone users that they could assist earthquake-ravaged Haiti with just a few taps, the public-affairs account executive was among the first to do so. She urged her Facebook friends — and her mother — to do likewise.
Lahouze has company. The American Red Cross, one of several organizations behind the texting-for-Haiti campaign, has tried texting-based charity drives in the past, with mediocre results. This time, something clicked.

The Red Cross is not sure what. Maybe it was that the agency put the word out early, and loudly. Maybe the devastation struck a nerve stateside. Maybe the fact that the federal government supported the texting campaign made a difference. Maybe "viral" publicity on Twitter and other social networks was the key.

Regardless, the Red Cross texting campaign — conceived with help from "mobile giving" technology firm mGive.com and "cause marketing" firm Mobile Accord — had far surpassed
expectations with more than $5 million in contributions as of late Thursday. "This instance is far more successful than any we've tried," said Gloria Huang, social-media specialist with the Red Cross. "We're definitely going to keep this in mind for the future."
Most wireless carriers have waived the usual fees for texts, which means money charged to users' credit cards goes to Red Cross emergency work. The Red Cross texting-for-charity push wasn't the only such campaign aimed at assisting desperate Haitians.

Singer Wyclef Jean, one of Haiti's most famous sons, launched his own texting push, with $5 contributions going to grass-roots group Yéle Haiti. To donate, cell-phone users texted "yele" to 501501. As of Thursday afternoon, the word "yele" was one of the leading "trending topics" on Twitter. "The wonderful thing about raising funds via texting is the ubiquity of cell phones — everyone has one," said Douglas Naegele, owner of mobile-communications firm Infield Communications in Washington, D.C. "And everyone has 30 seconds to stop, send a text and give."
Minnesota's Lahouze said these kinds of charity drives soon will filter from large national organizations to smaller local ones, such as the Edina-based secondhandhounds.org dog-rescue group dear to her heart. "If we could generate donations via texting, I think it could be huge for the rescue," she said. "The easier we make it for potential donors, the more likely it will be that they will donate to our cause."

There were other tech-flavored ways to help Haitians.

Apple's iTunes Store displayed a prominent "Haiti Earthquake Relief" button. Clicking it gave visitors the option to donate from $5 to $200, all charged to their iTunes accounts.

Google set up a donation page, accessible via its home page, and added updated satellite images of Haiti to Google Maps.

Amazon.com also added a donation link to its home page. Internet users short on cash can show their support for Haiti by embedding an image of the country's flag on their social-network avatars, via the twibbon.com site. And T-Mobile said it would waive long-distance charges on phone calls to Haiti, retroactive to when the quake hit.

It's time to take action and help these desperate people located in Haiti. It's a simple donation of $10 that will help the relief efforts in Haiti. Again, it's simple! All you need to do is text from your cell phone the word "haiti" to 90999. Your cell phone bill will automatically be charged once you send in your text message.
 
                                 Lets help these people who desperately need our assistance!

Please feel free to pass along this information to friends, family, co-workers, etc...lets get the word out about this easy and simple way to donate in order to help in the relief efforts in this devastated region.