If there’s one sector in which technology has yet to penetrate, it’s not-for-profits. Despite the considerable digital advances of the last decade, many of the 1.5 million registered 501(c)(3)s remain woefully behind the times when it comes to their technology. And as a generation of new givers grow up in an increasingly tech-forward way, this disparity threatens to create a sort of disconnect between some of the country’s great causes and their prospective donors. But that’s where Epic Foundation comes in — meet the non-profit looking to introduce more technology and data to the nonprofit universe, starting with a new app that actually lets donors see where and how their charitable donations are being used.
Known as the Impact app, Epic Foundation’s mobile and web-friendly tool allows givers to stay updated on nonprofit progress without digging through lengthy and cumbersome end of year reports. The organization’s mission statement is to “Give Better, Give Smarter, Give More,” and seeks to do so by “developing new tools focused on enhancing how donors select, monitor and experience their impact. Our vision is to disrupt the philanthropic industry by combining passion and expertise with game-changing technology and partnerships,” the Foundation’s website reads.
With the Impact app, founder and CEO Alexandre Mars says that donors will be able to treat non-profits like publicly traded companies in their stock portfolios, seeing how much you’ve donated, the impact of those donations, and their real-world implications. With apps like this, Mars told TechCrunch, “We want to drive [potential donors] to do more.”
Ultimately, Mars believes, more transparency could do wonders for the not for profit community. According to anecdotal reports, the serial entrepreneur says, many individuals are uncomfortable giving large sums of money because the sector as a whole seems like something of a black hole — money seems to go in, but it’s unclear to what end.
But just maybe, Impact will be able to shed a bit of light on the issue.
