ChipIn Version 2.0: A Guide to the New Features and Web Widget

The islands of Hawaii are not usually thought of as a hotbed for innovation in the high tech and philanthropic sectors. And yet, over the weekend, a Honolulu-based company called ChipIn, Inc. launched the second generation of its unique social e-commerce website.

Olin Lagon, the company’s Chief Operating Officer, defines social e-commerce as a "many-to-many" process, in which "communication and dialogue are layered onto the money side of making payments." ChipIn version 2.0 builds on the company's original concept of using the internet and social networks to raise money.

In March 2006, the company launched the first version of its website. Within a few weeks, it was clear that internet users would quickly adopt a robust platform for collecting money from friends, family and activists. In the weeks following the initial launch, hundreds of internet users created accounts on ChipIn and raised thousands of dollars.

ChipIn enthusiasts also sent more than a few suggestions to the company for added features and flexibility. During the hot summer months in Hawaii, the company's founders decided to rebuild their platform from scratch in order to incorporate the valuable feedback from users. In a recent interview, Lagon highlighted several new features of ChipIn 2.0.

With the relaunch of the website, fundraisers now have the option to set a fundraising goal up to 12 months in advance. The older version of ChipIn required that all group fundraising campaigns expire within 30 days. The new ChipIn also expands the number of payment options. Previously, the company depended on PayPal for processing all fundraising campaigns.

Despite Paypal’s dominance of the market for online payments, ChipIn users wanted an option for bypassing PayPal (and the corresponding fees) and depositing money directly into a checking account or mailing a check directly to the recipient's address. ChipIn 2.0 provides all three options to the organizer of a fundraising campaign: (1) realtime money transfers into a paypal account, (2) direct deposit into a checking account, and (3) snail mail delivery of a conventional check.

The new platform allows donors to contribute without creating a ChipIn account. The company had received requests to lift the mandatory registration of donors. To accommodate this suggestion, the company had to significantly upgrade its fraud protection system. ChipIn's new and improved technology for processing payments can now authenticate donor identities and credit cards without requiring a time consuming registration process.

"Chipping in" with the new platform is as easy and fast as throwing change into a hat. Moreover, donors can give to a ChipIn campaign using internationally recognized credits cards from over 60 countries. In addition the streamlined donation and payment process, ChipIn 2.0 comes with advanced tools for personal blogging and a snazzy "web widget." Campaign organizers are able upload text, pictures, and video clips to the homepage of their ChipIn campaign.

Anyone is free to download these materials as well as a web widget that displays a Flash barometer of progress made toward a fundraising goal. The widget can then be placed on other websites and blogs. Wikipedia defines a web widget as a small piece of code that can be easily embedded on any website or blog in order to deliver interactive features without advanced technical knowledge.

The features in ChipIn’s web widget are so unique that the company’s founders have applied for a U.S. patent. With all these features, the new ChipIn offers a low cost and very powerful tool for non-profit fundraisers and individual activists. The boost to online grassroots fundraising is not difficult to imagine. Individuals and organizations can now launch sophisticated campaigns using web 2.0 technologies in a matter of minutes.

Although ChipIn is helping good people raise money for important causes, the firm makes no claim to doing so for purely altruistic reasons. The fact is that ChipIn’s founders are pioneering the field of collaborative payments. Issue-based fundraising networks represent one niche community among many that ChipIn is aiming to break into.

In a recent Hawaii Business article, Lagon says, "Our vision is to be like a Visa or Master Card or Paypal—it’s just another type of payment option. So if you go online to buy anything, one of your choices could be, 'Do you want to chip in with more than one person to buy this product?' We want to be the standard. So if someone's doing collaborative transactions, they're going to be using our engine."

The market for online collaborate payments could easily become a billion dollar industry, with ChipIn leading the way. In the coming months, non-profit organizations, individuals, and activists will benefit tremendously from ChipIn 2.0. Looking ahead five years, huge financial benefits may also extend to the investors who backed this unlikely start-up from Hawaii.