When you give a gift to a friend on Facebook you will now have a new option. This new option will allow you to pay a little more for the gift. The proceeds from the special gift purchase will go to a charity.
In a test starting next week, (RED), Kiva, Toms, and WWF will each offer 1-2 gifts at $5 or $10 each. Facebook users will be able to buy these gifts for friends, and the proceeds will go to the charity associated with the gift. This is essentially an extension of an increasingly popular offline concept – the idea of giving a gift to a recipient’s favorite charity as a present.
This isn’t the first time Facebook () is experimenting with virtual gifts for charity – earlier this year, they launched a similar initiative upon hitting the 200 million member milestone. However, as Facebook moves further into gifts and payments, charity gifts may become a staple of the site.
According a company spokesperson, “this is an alpha initiative and is not available to other charities at this time, but we may open up the program to new partners in the future pending the results. It is our goal to give our users a way to support the causes and issues that are important to them on a global scale.”
This allows you to give a virtual gift to a friend and still let them know that you are thinking about them. The charities also get a boost because you are donating to them when you purchase their gifts. Since this service is so popular in Facebook the charities are looking to get a large stream of revenue.
John Botch
Laserburnmedia.com
