Trust

Trust is something so valuable.  Within the personal relationships we share, trust is a foundational component on which the relationship is built. It shapes how we relate, explains why we relate, and fosters growth.

In contrast to how trust functions in personal relationships it is noteworthy how technology has eroded our ability to trust.  I recently learned that it would take an estimated 180 hours per year or roughly one month per year for a person to read all the usage agreements for the software and devices we use. Think about it, when was the last time (or first for that matter) when you read every single sentence in a usage agreement?  A vendor creates these to trust the consumer will use the product as specified and similarly, the consumer has to trust the vendor to safeguard their usage or personal information.  Now, the next question - how much spam do you deal with?  You see, it's all related.

Here's where HowGiving is different.

With HowGiving we intentionally created a software we wanted to use, something that would respect the user, protecting their information and not abusing the relationship in any way.  We painstakingly spent hundreds of hours ensuring the highest security was intact throughout the entire software design.  In our current form we've also gone the extra mile to not capture any user financial information, placing the burden of PCI compliance with each vendor or storefront. When you actually shop in one of our storefronts such as Amazon, Cardstore, or ProFlowers, you are shopping in their store using their ecommerce site. Similarly, when you donate to any of the charities links we provide, you are donating within the charity itself once again, using their ecommerce site.

A frequent question or concern has been the necessitation of Facebook credentials.  Here's what happens when we make this request; each user that fully engages in the HowGiving app likely has a circle of friends, contacts, co-workers already gathered within Facebook or LinkedIn.  Our usage of your Facebook credentials is to only aggregate these contacts within the HowGiving software format, saving you immeasurable amount of time and energy loading in your contacts one at a time. With one click all your friends are pulled into our app, allowing you to further sort by favorite and then providing you with a single click to start shopping for them.  The information we gather from your Facebook credentials is never shared with any 3rd party nor is it ever promoted on your Facebook page that you have even used the HowGiving app.  That was hard for us but we are committed to your privacy. You'll never get spammed by us.  These considerations are purposeful to further help underscore trust.  Any information you provide us is yours and despite what our mothers said when we were kids, we're not sharing. Ever.  

HowGiving is simple, easy to use, and safe. You can count on this. We're building our future on a foundation of trust with you, our friend and user, and hopefully inspiring the same care and concern within the software development community.

HowGiving...your automated thoughtfulness.