What’s the easiest, most convenient way to make a small payment?

Nope, the answer’s not “credit card” — especially when you have to give that long number, then your billing address, then your “secret” code…

You might suggest PayPal or Google Checkouts. They’re easier, but they still require some setup work before you can make a payment.

What’s the one thing that nearly every person in America carries in a pocket or purse — besides chapstick and pocket lint?

A cellphone!!

While Americans have been familiar with “premium SMS messaging” for a long time (think voting for your favorite on American Idol), making charitable contributions using a mobile phone is a relatively new concept for most people. But it’s just about the easiest way out there to give a small, impulse contribution.

Here’s how it works:

1. The user sees an advertisement or something that prompts him/her to make a contribution. S/he texts a “keyword”, like “GiveFLHW” to a “short code”, like 20222.
2. The user receives a confirmation text message — just to make sure the phone owner really wants to make the contribution.
3. The user confirms the contribution (usually by texting back “yes” or something similarly easy).
4. The amount contributed is added to the user’s phone bill — and the nonprofit organization gets the money!

It’s super-easy, and the method is growing exponentially. Here’s a news story about how the NY Philharmonic is using it to support summer concerts.

Photo from mGive.com

Once you’ve established the ability to accept contributions this way, you have a lot of flexibility about where you ask for impulse contributions. Just integrate it into your normal advertising strategy — brochures, billboards, magazine ads, on your Facebook page and your website, in your email signature or in a Tweet, or even in your own iPhone mobile application.

In fact, the Keep A Child Alive foundation recently raised more than $130,000 during the BET awards ceremony, after Alicia Keys made an unscripted comment asking people to donate! Imagine that — an off-the-cuff remark nets $130,000 for an organization!

For more articles about nonprofits benefiting from SMS giving, visit this blog or just search for “SMS Donation”.