AFE Interview with Drew McManus
We had the opportunity to interview Drew McManus, one of the co-founders of Bring Light, a site that we talked about earlier this week. After talking to drew, it became even more clear that Bring Light is truly a innovator in the online charity space. While you might be inclined to dismiss them as just another social networking site, they’re clearly more than that and they’re making a big difference in people’s lives.
Who are you and what do you do for Bring Light?
My name is Drew McManus, and I am one of the co-founders of Bring Light. Before this, I spent twelve years at Adobe Systems, most recently responsible for Corporate Product Management.
What was the initial inspiration for Bring Light?
My business partner and I wanted to do something different. Melissa had been the head of marketing at Adobe, and one of the groups she was responsible for was Corporate Philanthropy and Community Affairs. Based on our experiences with nonprofits, we wondered whether there was a way to use our marketing and technology backgrounds to help them be more successful.
Are you exclusively internet-based?
We are entirely internet based. Bring Light is a website where donors and charities build communities to fund specific charitable projects. For donors, it is a fun, interactive and secure place where they can see where their contributions are going, and multiply the impact by building Giving Groups around the causes they care about. For charities, it is a quick, simple and inexpensive way to fundraise and build relationships with new donors on the Web.
One of the things that we try to do at Action For Everyone is encourage people to get involved by showing them that it doesn’t take a lot of effort to make a difference. How do you think Bring Light contributes to this idea?
Really, this is one of the core ideas on which Bring Light is based. A young donor may only have $20 to give to a cause, but she probably also has twenty friends. Using Bring Light, they can form a Giving Group around the causes that are important to them, and make a bigger difference.
Why would someone donate money through Bring Light as opposed to going directly to a charity? What are the advantages?
There are several. First, on Bring Light you donate to specific projects. For donors, this means you know where your money is going. Rather than donating to a big general fund, you get to see the projected results of your donation. Second, one key advantage of using Bring Light is the Giving Account feature. This brings the advantages of a Donor Advised Fund to those who might not otherwise qualify. In simple terms, it is a parking place for charitable donations. You can put money into your giving account, get the immediate tax benefit, and decide later what charities get the money.
Can you talk about the diversity of the charities that you feature and what the commonality is between them?
Well, there are already over 50 charities on the site, and we are adding more everyday. If you click through the various categories, you’ll see we have lots of different causes to support. The thing that is common among them–and this is unique to Bring Light–is that they are all ‘present.’ We did not just import some giant database of a million charities. Every charity you see on Bring Light is there because they have chosen to be there. They are present, and ready to engage and interact directly with donors.
What kind of charities have you seen people respond most to?
There has been a great response to a lot of things. We have seen a lot of support for the animal-related causes on the site, and this seems to be because these donors are prolific inviters of friends–so they kind of have a head start. That said, there is a lot of support for other charities. If you go to the home page, you will see a listing of projects sorted by popularity. It’s a dynamic list (kind of a Digg-like algorithm), so you can get a sense of what is hot at the moment.
How do you measure the success of Bring Light?
When the charities are successful in raising funds and reaching new donors, we are successful. When donors can witness the results of their actions–whether that is donating or getting others involved–then we are successful.
If someone wanted to get involved with Bring Light, how would they do that?
Come to the site and sign up! Find a cause that is important to you. Make a donation. And then…make a bigger difference! Invite friends, fill out your profile, form a Giving Group, engage with the charities. You’ll see it feels good to do good.
If you could pick a single charity to encourage people to support, what would it be?
Wow. That is hard. If you look at my profile on Bring Light (I am not hard to find), you’ll see some of the causes I have personally supported. But I would encourage everyone to browse for the cause that touches them in some way. There are many to choose from, and they are all very worthy causes!
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