The Wall Street Journal offers a nice piece on web based tools to help make the world a better place:
Young donors and volunteers, snubbing traditional appeals such as direct mail and phone calls, are satisfying their philanthropic urges on the Internet. They’re increasingly turning to blogs and social-networking Web sites, such as MySpace and Facebook, to spread the word about — and raise funds for — their favorite nonprofits and causes. They’re sending Web-based fund-raising pitches to their friends and families, encouraging them, in turn, to forward the appeals to their own contacts.
At the same time, a growing number of charities — ranging from start-ups to established names such as the Salvation Army — are launching profiles on popular social-networking sites, hoping that young people will link up to the pages. Some are also encouraging bloggers to mention the causes on their sites, raising thousands of dollars in small donations from readers.
Some of the charitable online organizations profiled include: Causes on Facebook, Change.org, DoSomething.org, Firstgiving.com, GiveMeaning.com, Impact.MySpace.com, Kiva.org, and SixDegrees.org.
If the article is walled, give me a shout and I’ll get you a more detailed review.
Recently my 26-year old daughter insisted that I find out about blogs. I can now see that the implications for both donors and non-profits are obviously important. The challenge I find is that so many staffers in the smaller non profits I work with/for are totally overwhelmed and it is a challenge to introduce a new modality….