Redirecting funds to worthy causes from the £1.4bn spent annually in the UK on greeting cards

Web startup DontSendMeACard.com has partnered with the charities Trees for Cities and The Honeypot Children’s Charity, to offer a fundraising platform where users can ask loved ones for donations to be made instead of being sent greeting cards.

The site aims to redirect funds to worthy causes from the £1.4bn spent annually in the UK on greeting cards, whilst still retaining the sentiment by offering a messaging and thank you feature for fundraisers and contributors.

Founder Alex Furness explains that, “It’s a really easy way to do something meaningful on special occasions. Plus you’re not putting loved ones out of pocket as they would have bought you cards anyway.”

A number of online greeting card alternatives have come along over the years, but this is the first that was created to encourage users to actively shift away from any sort of card – printed or electronic – by fundraising the equivalent cost of cards to be donated to charity instead.

“Not everyone loves cards,” says Alex. “From our Facebook page comments there is a clear divide between those who find it unfathomable to not send a card, and those who think they’re a waste of time and paper and agree that the money could be better spent. It may be a generational thing.”

Alex continues “We’re never going to convince everyone to give up cards, and we don’t want to ‘kill’ the greeting card. But with the amount being spent, for those that would be happy to forgo a few cards, the combined amount can really do some good for these charities. You’d be amazed!”

For every £5 raised in lieu of cards Trees for Cities plants a tree in an urban neighbourhood. Meanwhile, £20 raised for The Honeypot Children’s Charity pays for a Christmas present for a vulnerable child that has to act as a caregiver at home.

With the average price of a card including postage costing approximately £2, only a small amount of donations is required to make a measurable difference to a UK charity.

There are different reward level badges available depending on how many donations are made to the fundraiser’s Occasion Page; these rewards badges can then be shared on Facebook to celebrate the achievement with the user’s online network.

Users can sign up with Facebook, and once they have created a page for their special occasion, they can post directly on their wall their request to not receive cards for any given special occasion, and for donations to be made instead.

“If you really care about supporting a cause this is a no-brainer really. You don’t have to run a marathon and harass everyone to dig into his or her pockets. If they were going to buy you a card you’re actually making their life easier by asking for a quick donation via PayPal instead of going out and selecting one, finding a stamp and posting it on time.”

Alex concludes, “Join us in encouraging a cultural shift towards collectively doing something good with the cost of cards”.

DontSendMeACard.com

Sources:
Greeting Card Association
Mintel Report – Greeting Cards – UK
Greeting Card Association – 31 cards sent per person on average in the UK (approximately 2bn)

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