The Lewis Foundation

The Lewis Foundation are like many other charities in the UK, they had been unable to fundraise in the community for the best part of 18 months to 2 years due to the enforced lock downs as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

They were just starting to kick-start their event calendar again following the relaxation of measures and seeking to collect cash donations from members of the public in attendance at these events only to find that cash was not as readily available due to a change in public behaviour surrounding payment method preferences.

Now, couple this with the rise of Apple Pay, Google Pay and contactless cards, suddenly, charities like The Lewis Foundation are reentering a world far different to the one they exited 18 months to two years earlier when the UK was locked down, one that now, by majority, seeks to utilise card and contactless methods of payment over cash due to new behaviours adopted during the pandemic to prevent infection, that have now proven to be more secure, and more convenient for them.

With these factors in mind, and cash use now at an all-time low, I reached out to The Lewis Foundation to find out what measures they had in place to embark on their fundraising mission in this new world, and it was quickly apparent after a brief conversation with Lorraine that there were no contactless fundraising measures in place, but that they were keen to adopt this technology in order to ensure that The Lewis Foundation did not miss out on future donations.

Lorraine informed me that the charity is incredibly active in the community, hosting events at various venues and pop-up shops, amongst other activities, in high traffic, busy areas. It was quickly apparent from our initial conversations that The Lewis Foundation would need a contactless donation device that stood out and attracted attention, something that could not be easily missed by passers-by, offered a quick, easy donation experience for the donor, and still offered cash as an alternative method of donation to contactless should people wish to make cash donations.

The Payter Alpine unit combination was quickly identified as the ideal approach as it would allow them to streamline their approach to fundraising by having both cash and card in the same, easy to transport stand, whilst also giving them greater visibility at events and also, as an unattended solution, allow Lorraine and Lee to focus on engaging members of the public.

After agreeing on a solution and explaining the set-up process to Lorraine and Lee, it was only a short time later that they were equipped to go out into the community, no longer accepting only cash, but with the ability to accept contactless donations via their Payter device and a fresh approach to fundraising that will no doubt bear fruit in the years to come.