And it's the large, international nonprofits who benefit the most. It's a case of: you'll let me use it if I don't really need it. Use of this technology is like going to a bank and asking for a loan; they'll give you one if you don't really need one. But walk into a bank and really need a loan - you can't get one."

"We're out to change all that," Bryant said.

A vast majority of nonprofits - one article estimates 83% - do not qualify for text to give services due to restrictions set down by a vague, amorphous "wireless community". These outdated "wireless community standards" involve high revenue requirements, exclusion of certain business entity types, requiring certain IRS paperwork which not all nonprofits even use, and a host of other hindering regulations.

However, Bryant does not believe that these current "standards of the wireless community" are fair to all nonprofits - or are even fully agreed upon, for that matter, as this 2010 Business Journal article suggests. He has decided that his firm will determine whether a nonprofit is worthy enough to use its mobile-carrier-billing text to give option - regardless of the nonprofit's size, revenues or 501(c) status.

"We will consult the guidelines used by organizations like mGive and Mobile Giving Foundation - when they make sense," Bryant said. "But we're not going to turn away a legitimate, credible nonprofit, just because they don't make a half million dollars a year. That's ridiculous. Guidelines are made to be revisited and amended over time."

Now, you might be wondering: Why all the regulations? Where did they come from? Are they federal mandates, or something else? The answer is: these requirements are neither federal, state nor local law. They are, according to mGive, MGF and the other behemoths, requirements of the mobile carriers.

However, the Business Journal article cited above makes a different claim. Quoting from the article, "... one of the nation's largest wireless carriers is not concerned about who can use text donations. A spokesman for Bellevue-based T-Mobile, which works with both Mobile Accord and Mobile Giving, said carriers incur no cost by allowing text-donation fundraising, and therefore have no issue with how effectively nonprofits use the tool.
'I don't think it makes much of a difference at all for us,' said Glenn Zaccara , T-Mobile spokesman." (see http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2010/09/27/story3.html?page=all)
Oh really?

"We are challenging authority and status quo in this area because we want to truly help nonprofits improve our communities," Bryant said. "We expect there to be some pushback from the 'approved service providers' and the mobile giving providers. But that's what disruptive innovation is all about. We're here to serve nonprofits and the communities they serve, not a few bureaucrats of the 'wireless community'," Bryant explained.

About Gnosis Media Group:
Gnosis Media Group is an experiential communications consultancy. In addition to text-to-give services, Gnosis provides public relations services including press release distribution and syndication, media relations and customized PR consulting.