Charity site traffic rises in response to tsunami appeal

by Staff,, Brand Republic 05-Jan-05, 08:00

LONDON - Charity websites experienced a rise in traffic following the catastrophic tsunami on Boxing Day, as people rushed to give their support to the victims of the disaster.

The Disasters Emergency Committee took more than one-third of all the traffic to charity websites in the week following the disaster. Overall, the sector saw traffic rise more than five-fold, representing 0.29% of all visits made online for the period.

Donations have now topped more than £60m from members of the public, but the overwhelming response to the DEC website made it difficult for people to donate online, with visitors being advised to make a donation by telephone.

Other sites to see a surge in traffic were Oxfam GB, with 11.6% of visits in the charity sector; and British Red Cross and its associated British Red Cross Blue Peter Welcome Home Appeal website, with 6% and 7.4% of visits respectively.

The figures were compiled by Hitwise, the online competitive intelligence service.

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