Location analytics certainly has its use in marketing, government and various other fields, but charitable giving isn’t immediately associated with the technology. However, Seattle-based tech company Placed thought to put the two together in an application that lets users give to charity in exchange for information on their whereabouts.
The Give 2 Charity app allows users to opt-in to location measurement in exchange for points that can be redeemed for donations to charities of their choice. “Give 2 Charity gives people a way to trade their data for donations via a privacy-centric, opt-in approach to location measurement,” Placed spokeswoman Sarah Radwanick said via e-mail. “Placed sees location as the currency of mobile, so being able to donate that currency to a good cause seems like a worthwhile extension.”
The best part about the app? It’s totally free to users.
The location analytics that Placed collects from the app is used in Placed Panels to give marketers insight into where their customers go, Radwanick said. “This aggregation of location information provides businesses a better understanding of what consumers do in the physical world, helping drive actionable insights,” she said.
Users appreciate Placed’s transparency when it comes to informing them about what data they’re collecting and what they’re going to do with it, Radwanick says. She said all apps the company develops require that users actively opt-in to location measurement at three different times during install, and that they can opt-out by uninstalling the apps. “Our opt-in approach is setting a new privacy standard for the analytics and mobile industry,” she said.
Give 2 Charity was inspired by the company’s Panel App, in which users redeem prizes for racking up location-measurement points. Placed piloted charitable giving on the app after superstorm Sandy, and Radwanick said the donations were successful enough to launch the development of Give 2 Charity.