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Contactless comes of age – Vauxhall City Farm
Vauxhall City Farm
On Its Way to Cashless and Contactless
The UK is on its way to becoming a cashless (or nearly cashless) society. A report by UKFinance[i], published earlier this year, pointed out that while cash accounted for 60% of payments in 2008, this percentage has now fallen significantly. Last year, only 28% of transactions in the country were through cash.
With an increasing number of people stepping out of their houses with little or no cash in their wallets, fundraising is getting increasingly challenging for charities which rely heavily on cash donations.
Vauxhall City Farm, an urban farm in London, had noticed something similar; cash donations from their visitors were on the decline.
As Vauxhall City Farm weighed up their options, they realised they should try contactless donations to stay up to speed with the pace of change in technology. Recognising that for most charities, going from cashless to contactless can be a daunting change Vauxhall City Farm decided to trial contactless giving at their off-site fundraising event at Lambeth Country Fair in July this year.
How DONATETM was used
Vauxhall City Farm had previously signed up to DONATE’s text donation service. Closer to the Lambeth Country Fair, they decided to add DONATE’s contactless donation services hoping to boost their donations at the Fair. Time was against them with so much else to organise but DONATE’s team was always just a phone call away to answer any question they had and provide any support required. Talking about DONATE’s support Michelle Frank, Marketing Co-ordinator at Vauxhall City Farm said:
“We had very little time to get everything ordered and set up, and the DONATETM team were incredibly helpful at ensuring we got the contactless donate unit in time for our event and were always available for a quick phone call, with any setup hiccups we ran into.”
The contactless unit by DONATETM worked beyond expectation at the fair. Vauxhall City Farm was able to encourage donations from people who weren’t carrying cash. At the end of the two-day fair, Vauxhall City Farm had raised £400 through DONATE’s tap+DONATETM contactless box and £200 through their text donation service.
Experiencing the huge difference contactless donations made to their fundraising, Vauxhall City Farm is now encouraging contactless donations to its visitors at the farm throughout the year.
Michelle went on to say
“The true difference has been using the contactless box back at the farm, after the event. We have been astonished by the difference it has made in visitors donating to Vauxhall City Farm and can honestly say that we did not expect it to have such a big impact.”
[i] https://www.ukfinance.org.uk/sites/default/files/uploads/pdf/UK-Finance-UK-Payment-Markets-Report-2019-SUMMARY.pdf
