In my first WANT post, I asked people to list the things they want. We all want things, and we might as well be forthcoming about it rather than letting our impulses sneak up on us when we’re in the store with plastic in our wallets.

In my second WANT post, I suggested that an effective way to curb our consumeristic desires is to impose a 100% tax on ourselves - if we want to spend $250 on a new iPod, that purchase should be accompanied by a $250 charitable donation. I get shiny stuff, and the world becomes a better place.

The problem, of course, is that it’s all too easy to spend money we don’t have. The better your credit rating, the easier it is to get financing for just about anything. I’ve purchased two laptops and a car with no money down and no interest, though I’ve been paying dearly for lots of other purchases that were financed at high rates. After a few years of experiencing this, I’ve become terrible at saving money.

Today, I found the final piece of the puzzle - a way to save incrementally for the things I want and the causes I want to support. It’s called ChipIn, and it’s a social network fundraising tool. If you have a group or cause that you want to raise money for, you start a campaign (called a ChipIn), and post a widget on your website. The widget lets people donate to the cause, and shows the campaign’s progress in real time.

The best part? It’s completely free (for campaigns raising less than $10K). Wow.

My laptop is still in good shape, so I shouldn’t need a new one for a while - which is precisely why I should start saving now, so I’m not tempted with easy credit next time I’m struck by the urge to upgrade. I decided to set a budget of $2500, with the 100% tax going to Kiva (see previous posts). You can see my widget in the sidebar, and there are other formats to choose from. You can also customize the text and color, and have multiple widgets for one campaign:

To be clear, I’m not asking others to donate to my campaign - this is simply a savings account for me. If the money were just in my bank account, I’d never save up $5000. Plus, with ChipIn, I can create as many campaigns as I want, for each of the purchases I’m saving for. The bank would not be happy if I opened a dozen savings accounts, but ChipIn doesn’t seem to mind (though by being the only donor, I’m not exactly using the service as intended - though I’m not violating the TOS). ChipIn is clear that they do not see themselves as a bank, nor are they covered by the FDIC:

ChipIn is not a banking institution
ChipIn processes payment transactions for group events on behalf of customers. ChipIn is not a bank or other chartered depository institution. Funds held by ChipIn or its service providers (including any bank service providers) in connection with the processing of payment transactions are not deposit obligations of customers and are not insured for the benefit of customers by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental agency.

So, there is a bit of a risk involved, but the ChipIn blog is reassuring - they are taking security seriously, and they are poised to succeed in this market. I’m not sure what their revenue model is (they don’t even charge you for the credit card processing fees they surely have to pay, so they must be getting money from somewhere - probably their institutional clients with big fundraising budgets), but it looks like they’re going to be around for a while. At any rate, they’re not the only game in town.

Beyond being a way to save, ChipIn adds a social element. You, my readers, know that I’m going to save for my next laptop, since it’s a commitment I’ve made publicly. And If I have a birthday coming up, I can request contributions to my ChipIn campaign rather than presents - and since people know half of their gift is going to Kiva, they may even give more.

I found ChipIn while looking for a graph widget that would let me track my progress in saving money, but ChipIn goes much farther, and lets me actually collect the money. Cool.

What are you saving for? Post a widget on your website.