Facebook just made fundraising on its site a lot easier now that the fundraiser feature has been made available to all.
However, some restrictions still apply. For instance, the feature is only available to those in the US, and that too for just about 1 percent of its citizens. Facebook said that’s temporary as it is still in the process of ironing out all glitches based on the feedback it receives.
The feature will be opened to all Facebook users in the US.
So far, the fundraiser tool was available only to non-profit organizations in the US that have a valid 501(c)3 status, conforms to Facebook’s terms besides of course having a Facebook page as well.
Now with the expanded scope of the feature, even individuals can raise funds for causes they feel close to their heart.
All that they need to do is create a page for that and invite friends and followers to make their contributions. Those eager to donate to the cause can do so from right within Facebook itself and won’t be redirected to an external site for that.
Facebook sources said the phenomenal response that the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge generated in 2014 prompted them to try out some fundraising feature that would allow people to contribute to social causes. Right now the feature might only be available to individuals in the US, but people worldwide will be able to donate.
Facebook also stated its Social Good team that developed the fundraiser feature has incorporated enough security checks within the tool to rule out chances of fraud or misappropriation of the funds thus collected.
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However, its 95 percent of the money raised that will eventually get into the hands of the fundraisers. Of the remaining 5 percent, 2 percent goes for security checks and fraud prevention means while the remaining 3 percent as processing fees.
With the massive scale that Facebook has achieved so far along with the connections it has established the world over, it makes entirely appropriate for the company to get into something that requires the active participation of the people at large.
Facebook already presents itself as just the ideal platform, and the chances are that the general populace is more acquainted with the social media company than the plethora of such fundraising sites currently operating. That provides Facebook with sort of an instant head start for such endeavors like raising funds for a social cause.
