Geschenk mit Herz – Interactive donating for a good cause through an app

The app revolves around the aid project Geschenk mit Herz by the bavarian NGO humedica e.V.. The campaign returns every Christmas to donate gifts to children in need of help. The donors all over Bavaria pack shoe boxes full of necessary items for the less fortunate children. The gifts then go to facilities mainly in eastern european countries, but also Germany or overseas.

The main feature is to give the people who are donating something in return. The app enables the donator to track his present through the different stages. He will get notifications about the whereabouts of his package and will be rewarded eventually with a picture of the child holding the gift in his hands. This project had some complex tasks which had to be held in mind. The app should not create additional work for the volunteers of humedica e.V. during the crucial month before Christmas. Equally the usability of the app had to be very simple and intuitional considering that all age groups would use the product. On that note there was not only one interface developed but two. Children can use the app in a simplified and also more playful mode.

The application also provides additional features. The users can get information about various issues around the project and its initiators. They get hints while preparing the gift on how to pack it correctly, what to pack and further insight for which gender and age group a gift should be send. Ultimately it’s also possible to donate money directly or to get the newest information about ‘Geschenk mit Herz’ or humedica e.V. through the facebook link. In summary the usage of the product should ensure a deeper commitment of the donators to the organisation humedica e.V. and also generate new long-term contributors.

All in all three applications were developed to meet this complex project. There is one main app for the donators. One, to assist the volunteers handling the different stages of the gifts. And one, to provide an interface for the administrator at the humedica e.V. offices to access and alter the database.