Bianca Saunders
Journal Staff
Imagine trying to collect $4,200 from 14 people spread across the United States to rent a beach house and supply food and beer for a bachelor party in Florida. Try waiting around for checks to come in…
In 2008, Rich Aberman, a Boston College class of 2007 graduate, tried as his friend and fellow graduate, Bill Clerico, raised money for a ski trip. After years of having to manually collect money for the various clubs and activities in which they were involved, this was the final straw. Thus, they set out to create a simple website that would enable people to collect payments, accept donations, and sell tickets in a way that is quick, easy, and trustworthy; it is now a young website known as WePay.com.
The WePay process is simple. Both those collecting and paying money sign up for free accounts, then those organizing can immediately send bills. WePay does the dirty work from there, such as processing payments, updating the administrators on who has paid, and sending out reminders to those who still haven’t. There is a 3.5 percent or 50 cent processing fee, depending on the method of payment (credit card or bank account) those involved are planning on using. The site also makes it easy to spend the money earned- with WePay one has the option a direct bank account deposit, loading a debit card, or receiving paper checks.
“This isn’t just a website. It’s really a tool that’s going to be next PayPal,” said Sara Choi, who works in public relations for the site. “They’re hoping it will change people lives because so many people can use it no matter who they are.”
There is no doubt about it; these two college grads are definitely giving PayPal a run for its money. WePay features lacked by PayPal include automatic payment reminders, the selling of tickets, group accounts, and spending transparency. In addition, WePay allows its customers to hold different accounts under the same name, whereas PayPal does not allow multiple accounts. Both men have even sacrificed great things to continue improving the company; Aberman deferred his acceptance to law school and Clerico quit his job. They have taken the essence of online payment managing and catered it towards everyday people, such as college students managing a sorority or a non-profit organization.
“[WePay] is a good idea because it’s more organized and it would make fundraising less of a hassle,” said Suffolk freshman Chris Dreyer.
According to Choi, these “young, cool guys”, enjoy helping out. They often waive the processing fees for nonprofit organizations and other struggling groups. This month in particular, Aberman and Clerico waived all of the fees for any groups raising money for breast cancer awareness. In addition, the duo hands out free T-shirts and donates money to schools that persuade others to join.
“It provides a variety of people to contribute to one common cause,” said Evan Schwender, a freshman at Suffolk. “I think it’s a great way to fundraise efficiently.”
Most recently, the duo teamed up with CampusLive, a website for college students, to run a sweepstakes in which WePay would pay an entire month’s rent for a group of college students living at the same residence.
With WePay paying for that $4,200, a bachelor party would certainly be easy as a click of a mouse.
