Freakonomics: Does Swipegood Lead to More Charitable Giving?

Freakonomics: Does Swipegood Lead to More Charitable Giving?

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Dean Karlan writes on the Freakonomics blog;

Does giving to charity make you feel better about yourself, even if done in tiny amounts? A new website, Swipegood, thinks so. It is modeled almost exactly on Bank of America’s Keep the Change campaign.  For those not familiar with the campaign, here is how Bank of America pitches it:

Saving is a whole lot simpler when you don’t have to think about it. That’s the idea behind Keep the Change. When you enroll, each time you buy something with your Bank of America debit card, we’ll round up your purchase to the nearest dollar amount and transfer the difference from your checking account to your savings account. You get to keep the change – so every cup of coffee, tank of gas, or bag of groceries adds up to more savings for you. What could be easier?

For the rest see here. Follow Dean on Twitter @DeanKarlan.

February 23, 2011