New technology is increasingly allowing donors to track exactly where their money goes after they have donated it.
Charity sites like DonorsChoose.org are providing donors with the opportunity to track the positive impact their money has had after they have donated it.
DonorsChoose.org has found the technology has inspired people to donate for the first time, with 70 per cent of the 73,000 who have given money to the charity never having done so before.
Charles Best, chief executive of the site, told the Wall Street Journal: ‘Until recently, you had to be a millionaire if you wanted to choose a project that you were going to bring to life.’ Sites such as this allow web users to pick specifically what their donation will be going towards, with the site then providing online updates showing the benefits of the user’s charity.
The youth-orientated charity SpunOut.ie has recently re-launched its website, which now includes social networking tools and direct emailed access to the Samaritans.