Each Friday, the another jennifer blog shares stories of those who incorporate philanthropy into their everyday lives – personally and professionally – in a creative and unique way. If you have a story you’d like to share, please contact Jennifer. You can view past posts from the series here.
Not too long ago I came across a company called CentUp on Good.is.
CentUp aims to make the internet “a better place” by encouraging people to donate to creators and charities with a simple click of a button.
I was intrigued by the concept of rewarding people for good content while also giving to charity, so I put signing up for an account on my to-do list.
The concept is pretty simple. You read content on the internet as per usual. You enjoy said content, whether it’s a blog post, podcast, photography or music. You show your appreciation for the good content by clicking on the CentUp button, much like you would “like” a Facebook post.
More than just showing that you like something, you are also throwing the creator a few cents (get it?). It’s kind of like a tip. But the tip is split with a charity of the creator’s choice.
Cool, right?
Here’s a fun video that explains how CentUp works.
CentUp from CentUp on Vimeo.
Len Kendell, co-founder of CentUp, tells me the company was started for two reasons. The incredible viral nature of the Kony 2012 video showed that people were willing to invest online, but not at a very high rate. While many people shared the popular video, which aimed to make an obscure war criminal famous so the world would want to stop him, not many people did much to actually help the war in Africa. So, the idea of hitting a like button with a small amount of money attached to it would be easier for people to act upon.
The other reason for CentUp is that Len and his co-founder, Tyler Travitz, simply wanted to help publishing and creative professionals get paid. Most people are used to getting free content. And most content creators don’t want to ask for money for their posts. (Am I right, my fellow bloggers?) Fusing content and charities together makes it easier for creators to ask and for fans to give.
While CentUp is new, having only opened up its full platform to everyone in the last week of June, they were already closing in on 100 publishers when I spoke with Len. What I most love about the platform is that CentUp has to approve publishers. This application process ensures that publishers of CentUp are producing quality content. You know, so people can’t throw money over to hate groups and such. Len tells me they look for unique content and an active reader base when reviewing publisher applications.
If you are a blogger, here are 8 reasons to use CentUp.
Of course, anyone can be a donor or fan on CentUp.
If you enjoy my writing and want to throw me a few cents, I am splitting my earnings with Pencils of Promise who create schools, programs, and global communities around the common goal of education for all.
As a little incentive to get involved, the great (and very responsive!) team at CentUp has offered to give the another jennifer community $10 in free credits to try out the button. But only to 10 lucky readers. Simply sign-up (you can skip the credit card screen if you want to), and then email team@centup.org with the subject line, “AnotherJennifer.” They’ll get the first 10 people squared away. So act now!
