Insights

A charitable impulse doesn't last long. The feeling that makes someone want to give arrives fast during a TV appeal, an event, a moment on stage, and it fades just as fast if anything is standing between that feeling and actually giving. Text donations were built for exactly that gap. Built for the moment, not around it A TV appeal, a radio ad, a poster on a train platform, a moment on stage at an event: the ask has always been the same. Text a keyword to a shortcode, and the donation is taken instantly, there and then. No link to follow, no card details to type, no website to find, not even on a first-time donation. It's easy to overlook precisely because it's so familiar. Text-to-donate has been part of the UK charity landscape for so long that it can feel like old news, sitting quietly in the background while newer channels get the attention. But familiarity isn't the same as obsolescence. SMS has a 98% open rate, and messages are three times more likely to be read than an email, which is exactly why the format still converts as well as it does: the ask reaches someone at the moment they're already primed to act. Nothing stands between that moment and a completed gift. What's actually happening behind that text The simplicity on the donor's side hides a genuinely capable platform underneath. A charity can set up and launch a text-to-donate campaign in seconds, choosing the donation amount and writing a custom thank-you message without needing technical support. Income can be tracked in real time, so a fundraising team mid-campaign, whether that's during a live broadcast appeal or a fundraising gala, can see donations landing as they happen rather than waiting for a report days later, and adjust messaging or amplify a channel that's working while the campaign is still live. From single gift to regular giving, without losing the donor It's tempting to treat a text donation as a single, self-contained moment: someone gives, a thank-you goes out, and that's the end of it. But every text donation also does something beyond the gift itself: it captures a phone number, and with it, a contact a charity didn't have access to before that moment. That's not a footnote. It's the start of a relationship, not the end of one. A one-off donor from a TV appeal or an event becomes someone a charity can thank properly, follow up with an impact update, or invite back for the next campaign, rather than a transaction that leaves no trace behind it. The thank-you message doesn't have to be the last word. It can be the first message in an ongoing conversation with someone who's already shown they care enough to act. The donation builds the list at the same time as the income. Text-to-donate isn't limited to one-off gifts, either. Supporters can set up a regular text giving subscription just as easily as a single donation, and manage that ongoing commitment by text too. One detail worth highlighting: donors can skip a month rather than cancelling outright. That single option, giving a supporter a pause instead of forcing an all-or-nothing decision, meaningfully reduces cancellations. A donor going through a tight month doesn't have to end the relationship. They just pause it. This is the same principle explored in our piece on the subscription mindset : today's donors already think in monthly increments, the same way they think about every other subscription in their life. Text donations, done well, meet that expectation rather than fighting it. The Gift Aid problem most charities don't know is solved For years, Gift Aid on text donations sat in an awkward gap. Charities couldn't reliably claim it, because HMRC's audit requirements needed every declaration tied back to the original donation, and mobile networks simply didn't provide that level of detailed reporting. A 25p-per-pound uplift that charities could claim easily on a cheque or a card payment was effectively unavailable on a text donation. Cymba closed that gap by building a Gift Aid declaration service that sends supporters a unique, secure link by text after their donation. Capturing the declaration and updates communication preferences in a way that satisfies HMRC's requirements. Charities using Cymba have been able to claim Gift Aid on text donations with confidence for several years now. And charities are recovering an income stream that used to simply go unclaimed. A 25p uplift that used to be unclaimable on every text donation is now just part of how the channel works. Why this still deserves the spotlight None of this is new technology dressed up to look exciting. It's a genuinely mature, reliable channel that UK charities have trusted for a long time, doing exactly the job it was built for: turning a moment of impulse into a completed, Gift Aid-eligible donation, with real-time visibility and a subscription model that respects a donor's circumstances rather than punishing them for a tight month. It's also worth remembering how well text donations work alongside everything else in a charity's mobile toolkit. A QR code on an event poster can drop a supporter straight into a text donation journey. RCS and WhatsApp can carry the same mechanic inside a richer message. Text-to-donate isn't a channel charities need to choose instead of the others. It's very often the mechanic doing the actual work underneath them. See it for your charity Curious what this could look like for your next campaign? Click below to find out more, or get in touch, and we'll talk it through with you directly.

Asking people for money is hard. Inviting them to win something is easy. Text-to-Win is a simple idea with a surprisingly powerful impact, and for charities looking to generate revenue and engage with a new supporter base without the hard sell, it might be exactly what’s been missing. WHAT IS IT An invitation, not an ask Most fundraising campaigns put the ask front and centre. Give now. Donate today. Support our cause. And for donors who are already committed, that works. But for everyone else, the people who haven’t decided yet, who don’t know you well enough, who need a gentler way in, it can feel like a lot. Text-to-Win does something different. It leads with a prize draw. Supporters text a keyword to enter, no apps, no websites, no forms. Just a text. A donation is included by default, but they can opt out with a simple reply if they’d rather not. Either way, they’re in the draw, and you’ve made a connection. Think of it less as a one-off campaign and more as the start of something. You’re finding out who your future donors are, the people who cared enough to engage, before you’ve even asked them to give. The barrier to giving isn’t generosity. It’s the moment when giving feels like too much to ask. Text-to-Win removes that moment entirely. How it works Six Simple Steps. Nothing complicated. The whole thing happens by text. No links to click before they’re ready, no pages to load, no decisions to make under pressure. Here’s how it flows: 1. They text to enter A supporter texts a keyword, HOPE, for example, to a shortcode. That’s the whole entry process. It works on any phone, even without a smartphone or data connection → As easy as it gets 2. They get a confirmation - with a choice An automated reply arrives in seconds. It confirms they’re in the draw, lets them know a donation will be taken, and tells them they can reply CANCEL if they’d prefer not to give. They stay entered either way. No pressure. No penalty → Honest, transparent, and genuinely optional 3. The donation goes through For everyone who doesn’t cancel, the donation is processed, and a confirmation text is sent. That’s it. No extra steps, no pages to visit, no drop-off → Smooth for your supporters, simple for you 4. Gift Aid is captured - without the awkwardness Donors who are eligible for Gift Aid receive a secure link by text. It takes them to a simple page where they complete their declaration and set their communication preferences. The 25p-per-£1 uplift goes straight to your cause - nothing lost, nothing chased → More for your cause, less effort for everyone 5. Winners are drawn CAP Compliant Draw(s) scheduled and automatically completed. Fair, transparent, and managed within the platform, no spreadsheets required → The fun bit, handled for you 6. You follow up - warmly Every entrant who opts in for future contact gets a friendly follow-up. An invitation to give again, share the campaign, sign up for more. You already have their consent. You know they’re interested. Now you can build something with them → The real value starts here Why it works What charities actually get out of it Text-to-Win isn’t just a clever campaign format. For charities that use it well, it delivers four things that are genuinely hard to get from a standard donation appeal:

QR codes were declared dead. Then COVID arrived, and overnight, the technology everyone had written off became the most scanned thing on the planet. For charities, the story is only just getting interesting. In 2018, a marketing student sat down to write his dissertation. His subject? QR codes, and specifically, why nobody was using them anymore. His conclusion, backed by evidence and entirely reasonable at the time, was that QR codes were old news. A curio. Technology that had had its moment and missed it. Two years later, the world changed overnight. And those little black and white squares were suddenly on every restaurant table, every shop window, every government health notice in the country. That student was James , now part of the Cymba team, and one of the reasons we think so much about how technology and fundraising intersect. His story is a good one. But it’s also a useful lens for understanding why QR codes matter for charities right now. Born in a car factory. Ignored for decades. The QR code was invented in 1994 by Masahiro Hara, an engineer at Japanese company Denso Wave. The goal was practical and unglamorous: a better way to track car parts on a manufacturing line. Traditional barcodes could only hold a small amount of data; the new Quick Response code could hold significantly more, and could be scanned from any angle. For years, it stayed that way. When smartphones arrived, there was a brief moment of excitement. Surely QR codes would take off? They didn’t. The problem was friction. To scan a QR code, you needed a separate app, find it, download it, open it, and then scan. By which point, most people had given up and typed the URL instead. The quiet revolution nobody noticed Here’s what actually changed, and this is the part of the story that tends to get overlooked. In 2017, Apple quietly built native QR code scanning directly into the iPhone camera app. No separate app required. Point, scan, done. Android followed in 2018 with Google Lens. The single biggest barrier to QR adoption had been removed, and almost nobody noticed. The technology was ready. The phones were ready. The friction was gone. What was missing was a reason to use it. Then, on 11th March 2020, the World Health Organisation declared a global pandemic. Within weeks, restaurants had ditched paper menus. NHS Test and Trace was built around QR codes. Every sector that needed to move people through spaces without physical contact turned to the same solution. Usage grew by more than 750% in the 18 months that followed. And crucially, the behaviour stuck. Unlike so many pandemic habits that faded when restrictions lifted, QR codes didn’t disappear. The phoenix had risen, and it wasn’t going back. What this means for charities For fundraisers, the QR code revival is genuinely exciting. Think about the moments when someone feels moved to give. A powerful speaker at an event. A charity collection point in a church or community hall. A street fundraiser who makes a genuine connection. These are the moments of impulse and emotion that drive donations, and historically, they’ve been the hardest to convert. Cash is declining. Card readers require infrastructure. Websites require someone to remember a URL later, when the feeling has passed. A QR code solves all of that. Point a phone camera, no app needed, and within seconds, a donor is on a giving page, on their own device. The moment of generosity doesn’t get lost. It gets captured. The best fundraising tools are the ones that get out of the way. A QR code asks almost nothing of a donor, and gives a charity everything The places charities aren’t using them yet Events are the obvious application, and many charities are already there. But the opportunity goes further. Collection tins and buckets with a QR code alongside them, for people who don’t carry cash. Thank-you letters with a code that takes a donor straight to an impact update. Church service sheets. Community noticeboards. Charity shop windows. Street posters. Anywhere a person might pause, feel something, and be ready to act. There’s also something worth saying about accessibility. A QR code doesn’t require someone to remember a URL, spell a charity’s name correctly, or navigate from a homepage. It takes them exactly where you want them to go, in one step. For older donors who may not be confident online, simplicity matters enormously. The little square didn’t die. It was just waiting for its moment James was right in 2018. QR codes were old tech, overlooked and underused. What he couldn’t have known was that the smartphone was about to make them effortless, and the world was about to make them essential. The charities best placed to take advantage are the ones that have already built digital giving infrastructure into everything they do. A QR code on every piece of print. A mobile giving journey that works the moment someone scans. Not a nice-to-have, a standard part of how they operate. Because when the moment comes, planned or otherwise, you want to be ready. Want to see how QR codes can start a dialogue with new or existing supporters? At Cymba, we build mobile giving journeys that use QR codes, SMS, WhatsApp and RCS to capture donations at exactly the right moment. If you’d like to see what that looks like for your cause, we’d love to show you.

Micro-payments, RCS messaging, and clean data - how charities can meet the next generation of donors exactly where they are. Introduction: A Generation That Already Subscribes There is a generation of potential donors who have never paid for a DVD, never bought a CD, and never visited a bank branch. They subscribe to everything - Netflix, Spotify, gym apps, meal kits, and cloud storage. They think in monthly increments. The barrier to giving is not cost. It is friction. And yet many charities are still reaching them with one-off asks, clunky donation pages, and emails that go unread. The opportunity is not to convince this generation to give differently. They already give to causes that make it easy, habitual, and meaningful. The opportunity is to show up in the right format, on the right channel, with the right level of personalisation. That is what this article is about. Micro-payments, RCS messaging, and clean data are not three separate topics. Together, they are the architecture of a modern donor engagement model - one that turns a first-time supporter into a lifetime advocate. The barrier isn't generosity – it’s making it effortless 1. The Micro-Payment Opportunity Why small is powerful The psychology of regular giving is well understood. WaterAid's reframing of a monthly gift as 'the cost of a coffee' was not just a clever tagline - it was a fundamental shift in how giving was positioned: habitual, affordable, and tangible. Once a donation is normalised as part of a monthly rhythm, it stops feeling like a sacrifice and starts feeling like a choice renewed. The same principle that built Spotify's subscriber base - small, regular, automatic - is the one that builds resilient charity income. The barrier to continuing is almost nothing. The lifetime value is extraordinary. What this means for your charity The micro-payment model democratises giving. A £5-a-month donor is not a small donor - they are a committed one. And a committed donor, engaged thoughtfully, can grow their giving over time, recruit friends and family, and become one of your most powerful advocates. The lifetime value of a regular micro-donor far exceeds a single gift - even a generous one - if the relationship is nurtured well. A donor giving £10 a month for ten years, with Gift Aid, is worth over £1,500 to your cause. Multiply that across hundreds of supporters, and the numbers become transformative. The practical implication: make regular giving the default, not the afterthought. If a donor lands on your giving page and has to hunt for the monthly option, you are already losing them. A £5-a-month donor is not a small donor. They are a committed one, and commitment, carefully nurtured, grows. 2. RCS: The Channel Your Donors Are Already Using Beyond email Email open rates in charity fundraising average around 20-25%. Often lower. Meanwhile, RCS - Rich Communication Services, the natural evolution of SMS built natively into Android and increasingly iOS - is seeing read rates above 90% in early pilots. That gap is not incremental. It is a fundamentally different category of attention. RCS allows charities to send branded, interactive messages directly into a supporter's native messaging app. No app to download. No inbox algorithm standing in the way. No link to navigate. Just a message, on the screen, your donors check most often within minutes of receiving it. What RCS can do Unlike SMS, RCS supports branded sender identities, rich media, image carousels, suggested replies, and - critically - in-message action buttons. The entire interaction, from impact update to donation, can happen without a supporter ever leaving their messages app. Practical examples of what this looks like in practice: 'Last month, your gift helped fund 3 clean water pumps in Kenya. Want to see where your impact landed?' - with a 'Watch the video' and 'Increase my gift' button, all in one message. 'It's been three months since your last gift. Your community still needs you.' - with a one-tap option to restart regular giving. 'Thank you for signing up to our sponsored walk. Here's everything you need to know.' - with a branded event guide, donation link, and fundraising page, all accessible without leaving the message. 'Your direct debit renews next week. Want to increase your monthly gift by just £2?' - a single tap, a meaningful uplift. In every case, the action is one tap. No page to load, no login screen, no drop-off between intention and action. This is what frictionless donor engagement looks like. The timing question RCS adoption is still rolling out, and charities need to plan for a mixed-channel environment - some supporters will receive rich RCS messages, others a standard SMS fallback. This is entirely manageable with the right platform, but it requires clean, well-segmented donor data to ensure the right message reaches the right person at the right moment. 3. Clean Data: The Foundation Everything Else Depends On Why donor data quality is a fundraising issue, not a technical one Regular giving and RCS messaging both depend on the same thing: knowing who your donors are. A failed direct debit because a bank account detail has not been updated is not an admin error - it is a relationship at risk. A personalised message sent to the wrong number, or addressed with an old name, destroys the trust that personalisation is designed to build. Research indicates that charities that prioritise data quality see 30% higher ROI on fundraising campaigns. The reason is straightforward: every downstream action - segmentation, personalisation, timing, channel selection - is only as good as the data it is built on. Clean data is not a compliance exercise. It is the difference between a donor who stays and one who quietly drifts away. What poor data costs charities A failed direct debit that could have been caught with a simple prompt will often result in a lapsed donor, and lapsed donors rarely return unprompted. A communication addressed with an old surname following a bereavement can end a relationship that took years to build. A reactivation campaign sent to outdated contact details is not just wasted spend - it is a missed opportunity that may never come again. The investment in clean, accurate donor data is not an IT project. It is a donor retention strategy. Every pound spent on data quality protects the income that depends on it. Clean data also enables compliance. GDPR requires charities to hold accurate, up-to-date records with clear consent histories. The regulatory risk of poor data is real. So is the reputational risk when a supporter receives a communication that makes clear you do not actually know them. Conclusion The charities winning the next decade of donor relationships are not doing something fundamentally new. They are doing what has always worked - building habits, demonstrating impact, and communicating relevantly - but doing it in the format and on the channel that the supporters they want to reach already use every day. Renewing a Netflix subscription requires no conscious thought. That is the standard donors are now used to - not in terms of entertainment value, but in terms of how effortless and natural an ongoing commitment can feel. Charities that understand this and build their giving journeys accordingly will be the ones with the most resilient income over the years ahead. Micro-payments make the financial commitment habitual. RCS messaging makes the communication feel immediate and personal. Clean data makes both possible at scale. Small payments. The right channel. Accurate data. A donor relationship that feels like a choice renewed, not a transaction repeated. Small payments. Right channel. Clean data. The architecture of donor relationships that last

Direct debit donors don't make headlines. They don't run marathons or shave their heads. They just give - every month, without fail. It's time we talked about why that matters more than ever. Think about the last time someone set up a direct debit. It probably wasn't spontaneous. They thought about it, weighed it up, and made a decision. Then they acted on it. That's not a casual gesture - that's a commitment. And for charities across the UK, those quiet, steady commitments are quite literally keeping the lights on. The latest CAF UK Giving Report makes difficult reading. Total donations fell from £15.4 billion in 2024 to £14 billion in 2025 - the first drop in overall giving since 2021. Fewer people are giving than at any point in the last decade. But here's what's easy to miss in those headline numbers: the people who are still giving regularly, month after month, are shouldering more of the burden than ever before. And the majority of them are doing it by direct debit. 47% of people who donated in any given month did so by direct debit or standing order - making it the single most popular way to give in the UK. The donors’ other strategies can't replace There's a lot of energy in the charity sector right now around digital giving - text-to-donate, mobile payments, social media fundraising. And rightly so. These channels are brilliant for reaching new audiences, particularly younger donors who engage with causes on their phones. But there's a different donor who rarely gets talked about. Older, often retired, financially stable, and deeply loyal. They don't give impulsively. They give deliberately. They set up a direct debit five, ten, sometimes twenty years ago because they believed in what a charity was doing - and they've been giving ever since. They're not checking your Instagram. They're not scanning a QR code at a fun run. They're quietly, consistently, reliably there. These donors represent something that no campaign, however clever, can easily replicate: trust built over years. And that trust has a value that goes far beyond the monthly sum leaving their account. The numbers that tell the real story Regular direct debit donors give more over time than almost any other type of supporter. Once someone is set up, the barrier to continuing is almost nothing - it just happens. Which means their lifetime value to a charity can be extraordinary. A donor giving £15 a month doesn't sound dramatic. Over ten years, with Gift Aid, that's over £2,250. From one person. Who you might never have met. Gift Aid alone is worth dwelling on. For every £1 donated by an eligible taxpayer, the charity can claim an additional 25p from HMRC. For a charity with a healthy direct debit base, that's a significant income stream that costs virtually nothing to administer. It's one of the most efficient sources of revenue in the sector - and it's sitting there, attached to every eligible DD donation. Then there's the question of what else these donors might do. Research consistently shows that regular givers - particularly those who have maintained their commitment over many years - are far more likely to consider leaving a gift in their will. Legacy giving is one of the most transformative things that can happen to a charity's finances, and the path to it often begins with a direct debit set up decades earlier. The donor who has been giving by direct debit for fifteen years is not just a supporter. They may be one of the most important relationships your charity will ever have. Why 2025 is a moment to pay attention The CAF report revealed something that should focus minds: 2.8 million people cancelled their direct debits or standing orders to charities in 2025. That's not a rounding error. That's a significant erosion of the regular giving base that so many charities depend on. There are real reasons behind those cancellations - cost of living pressures, economic uncertainty, and changing personal circumstances. Many of those donors would give again if they could. But some won't come back unless a charity actively reaches out. And some will never set up a direct debit again unless the experience of doing so is made simple, trustworthy, and well-supported. At the same time, many direct debit providers are raising their fees. Which means charities are facing double pressure: more cancellations and higher costs to manage the donors who remain. In that environment, having the right infrastructure in place isn't a nice-to-have. It's a strategic necessity. What good looks like The charities that protect and grow their regular giving base share a few things in common. They make it easy to set up a direct debit in the first place - whether that's through a form on their website, a text message, or a conversation at an event. They communicate well with their donors, not just asking for money but showing what that money does. And they use tools that make the administration of direct debit collection simple, compliant, and cost-effective. Bacs compliance matters here. The UK's direct debit system is built on strict rules - about how mandates are managed, how payments are processed, and how donors are notified. Getting this wrong doesn't just create admin headaches; it can damage donor trust at exactly the moment you need it most. Working with a provider that is Bacs-accredited isn't just good practice. For a charity serious about its regular giving programme, it's non-negotiable. The good news is that the technology available to charities has never been better. Mobile engagement tools can bring a donor in through a text message and move them into a direct debit journey. Smart collection platforms can manage mandates, flag issues before they become problems, and keep costs low. The dots are there to be connected - and the charities that connect them well will be the ones best placed to weather whatever the next few years bring. The donors who give quietly every month are the ones who keep charities going when everything else is uncertain. They deserve the very best we can give them in return. A final thought It's easy to get excited about the new - new channels, new technologies, new audiences. And there's real value in all of that. But the foundation of a resilient charity income isn't novelty. It's loyalty. It's the person who set up their direct debit years ago and has never once thought to cancel it, because they believe in what you do and they trust you to keep doing it. Protecting that relationship - making it easy, making it reliable, making it worthwhile - is one of the most important things a charity can do. Not just for next month's income. But for the legacy that might follow. Want to learn more? Join us for our free webinar - Is Your Direct Debit Costing You More Than It Should? In this free 45-minute session, we're bringing together two specialists - Cymba and ClearDebit , both part of the ClearCourse Group - to talk honestly about the state of regular giving, what good Direct Debit infrastructure looks like, and what you could save by making a change.

From marketing lights to £1 million in SMS donations - meet James Tell us a little about where you started? You might not expect a spotlight on mobile fundraising to begin in the world of lighting - but bear with me. After graduating in Business Management with a specialism in Marketing, I started at a lighting company and worked my way up to Marketing Manager. Things were going well. Then COVID hit, and like so many businesses, logistics problems brought the curtain down. But as one door closed, another opened. In 2020, I joined a large UK animal charity as a Marketing Executive. I went to the office exactly once - for my interview - and that was that. Not that it mattered. The charity sector was buzzing. With the nation at home and looking outward, people were searching for causes to connect with, and fundraising was having a genuine moment. I threw myself into it. Regular giving, direct debits, raffles, lottery, direct mail appeals, email campaigns - you name it, I was across it. But it was SMS where something really clicked. It was a period of real learning and growth that, looking back, shaped everything that came next. How did the move to Cymba come about? At the charity, I worked with two separate companies to run SMS campaigns, one of which was Cymba. I got on with the platform so well that I made the case internally to consolidate everything into one place. Simpler, cleaner, and - crucially - a significant cost saving. Job done. With everything under one roof, I got my head down. By 2023, I’d grown the charity’s SMS fundraising revenue to over £1 million. That kind of result doesn’t go unnoticed. Cymba came calling, and as they say, the rest is history. What excites you about your current role? “I really like the opportunity Cymba gives me to apply my creativity and fundraising knowledge to come up with innovative campaigns - not just for one charity, but for many.” My marketing background, combined with hands-on experience across every type of campaign, puts me in a great position to see what fundraising styles could work for different causes. Whether it’s animals, the environment, health or faith - every charity needs a vehicle to raise money, and I love finding the right one for them. I also brought something of a surprise to the team: a rather deep knowledge of QR codes. Deep enough that I actually wrote my dissertation on them. Back then, they were considered niche - even a bit forgotten. Post-COVID? They’re very much alive and well, and a brilliantly frictionless way for people to donate on the spot. And then there’s what’s coming next: WhatsApp. RCS - the evolution of SMS that brings it squarely into the modern smartphone era. The real opportunity now is omnichannel campaigns that reach donors across every mobile touchpoint they already use - SMS, WhatsApp, RCS, QR codes - all in one joined-up, seamless experience. People are on their phones constantly, and meeting them where they are is exactly where fundraising is heading. It’s a space I’m really excited to be working in. How are you enjoying your new team? We’re a tight-knit group - like family, really. Everyone brings their own layer of expertise to the table, and some of the team have been helping charities raise money for over twenty years. Everyone has their strengths, and together it just works. There’s always someone at the end of the line for a chat, a second opinion, or a bit of encouragement. The kind of team where you’ve got each other’s backs - and that’s not something you take for granted. So, outside of SMS and mobiles - what does life look like beyond the screen? Football and the gym have always been my go-to outlets, though a couple of recent injuries have temporarily benched me on both fronts. I’m philosophical about it - as soon as I’m healed, I’ll be back! In the meantime, I’ve been channelling my energy into the kitchen, rustling up something good to enjoy over a film. And when the travel bug bites - which it does often - America tends to call. I’ve got friends dotted all across the States, so over the years I’ve had the chance to explore a good chunk of it. There’s still plenty more to tick off, though. Oh, and one more thing - I'm currently working on a screenplay. Based on a true story, though I couldn't possibly reveal more than that. It's taken nearly ten years, but it's getting there. Given the title of this piece, it felt only right to mention it.

A Milestone Moment April brought a milestone for Cymba as we celebrated Les Beech’s retirement after more than a decade with us. It’s hard to imagine the office without him - his energy, humour, and support were part of the fabric of our days. We’ll miss him deeply, not just for the incredible work he did, but for the laughter and lightness he brought to the team. He will, however, continue to inspire both the wider community and us. Where it all began His journey with Cymba started back at St John Ambulance. With a budget to try something new, he teamed up with DTV on a campaign that caught everyone’s attention. That advert eventually became a text‑to‑donate initiative - with Cymba right at the heart of it - and, well, the rest is history. When he officially joined the team, Regular Giving by SMS was on the verge of launching. He brought with him a wealth of experience from regular giving campaigns, and under his guidance, the initiative grew into a powerful platform that made life easier for clients. He had a knack for spotting what would make things better and then making it happen - and usually making us laugh along the way. More than just work, cats, wine and music His absence is already felt, but Les wasn’t just the “campaign guru.” His warmth and personality shone through in everyday moments. Who else could make a complex two‑step campaign sound simple, or turn a chat about bounce‑back messaging into a mini masterclass? And of course, we’ll never forget Katja and Rasamus, his beloved cats, who became honorary team members, often stealing the spotlight on calls and reminding us who really ran the show. It feels fitting that many of the charities he worked with shared his love of animals - Battersea Cats and Dogs, Cats Protection, and The Brooke. His efforts with them raised vital funds, but they also reflected his personal passions, which made his contributions all the more meaningful. We’ll miss his support more than words can say. He was never too busy to explain something, lend a hand, or share a story. From his time studying in Japan to living in the US with his parents, he was always entertaining, making you stop and listen. And there were never any half measures - whether it was work, wine, or music - from rock to jazz, he threw himself in wholeheartedly and gave it his all. Life beyond Cymba So, what’s next? For now, he is taking some well‑earned time to focus on himself - tennis, cycling, pilates, and enjoying his beautiful new kitchen are high on his new agenda. We can already picture him, glass of wine in hand, music playing, and a smile on his face. We know he’ll throw himself into this next chapter with the same enthusiasm he brought to work. Thank you, Les, for everything - from your friends at Cymba and the charities you've helped along the way. We'll miss you, but we'll carry your energy forward with pride. Here's to you: colleague, mentor, and friend. We'll raise a glass (and maybe sneak in a toast to Katja and Rasamus too).

The Sea of Messages People haven’t just moved to mobile - they live there. Phones buzz constantly with notifications, alerts, and updates. In that crowded space, silence from an organisation isn’t neutral. It feels like an absence. And absence costs more than missed opportunities; it costs trust, loyalty, and connection. Email still has its place. It’s where longer updates and formal communications belong. But the phone is now king. Mobile messaging has moved to the forefront of engagement, offering immediacy and intimacy that other channels can’t match. The question isn’t whether to use mobile - it’s how to use it in a way that stands out. The Stakeholder’s Perspective For customers, members, employees, or donors, every message is a reminder of why they chose to connect with you. When those reminders don’t arrive in the space they use most - their phone - the relationship weakens. People want immediacy, recognition, and impact stories in real time. A message that shows gratitude, shares a quick update, or delivers useful information can make them feel valued and connected. Without it, they risk feeling forgotten. Partners and investors also expect visibility and engagement. They want to see their support acknowledged and celebrated. Mobile messaging offers a direct way to highlight contributions and ensure they feel part of the story. A branded message that thanks stakeholders while showcasing partnership involvement is far more powerful than a logo buried in an email footer Beyond Transactions: Building Relationships Mobile messaging isn’t only about asking for action. It’s about creating a sense of belonging. Organisations can use mobile to invite feedback, share behind‑the‑scenes updates, or celebrate milestones together. These moments make people feel like insiders, not just recipients. They transform interactions from transactions into shared journeys. When stakeholders feel part of a community, they don’t just engage - they advocate. They share stories, invite friends, and become champions for the brand or cause. Mobile messaging is the bridge that turns supporters into ambassadors. The Evolution of Mobile Messaging The journey from SMS to push notifications to RCS shows how mobile has matured. SMS was functional but limited. Push notifications added immediacy but often felt intrusive. RCS brings richness and interactivity, allowing organisations to deliver branded, visual, and interactive experiences directly in the native messaging app. This evolution isn’t about technology for technology’s sake. It’s about meeting people where they are, in the way they want to be engaged. RCS is the natural next step for organisations that want to stay relevant in a crowded digital landscape. Practical Examples A retailer sends a personalised offer with a one‑tap purchase option. A university shares an interactive reminder about an upcoming class. A healthcare provider confirms an appointment with easy reschedule options. A charity delivers a photo update from the field to donors. These aren’t marketing tactics; they’re moments of connection. They show stakeholders that their involvement matters and make every interaction feel personal. The Cost of Not Adapting Failing to adapt to modern mobile messaging means fading into the background. Customers expect immediacy. Employees expect clarity. Partners expect visibility. Without meaningful mobile touchpoints, relationships drift. The cost isn’t just financial; it’s emotional. Every missed message is a missed opportunity to remind people why they matter. M is for Mobile messaging that counts Organisations don’t lose people because they stop caring. They lose them because they stop hearing. In a world of endless notifications, those that thrive are the ones that choose to adapt - to meet stakeholders in the space they already inhabit, and to speak in a way that feels immediate and human.  Mobile messaging isn’t about marketing blasts. It’s about presence. It’s about gratitude in real time, impact shared as it happens, and making every stakeholder feel part of the journey. That’s why M is no longer for marketing - it’s for mobile messaging that counts. And for every organisation, the future depends on making every message count. Ready for RCS? Contact our team today, and start creating lasting connections.