Yes, we know this is on a Shabbat; we still want to bring it to the attention of our greater New York area readers. Join the ePhilanthropy Foundation as they present a content-packed full day conference at Columbia University on Saturday, June 14th. Registration is filling up. The Conference will feature best techniques for online fundraising and what does and doesn't work for social networking online. General and advanced sessions will be held. For more information and to register, click here. If you still need to get you feet wet in social marketing, here's a suggested starting place: 11 Steps to Success with Social Networking.

The press is full of intriguing bits and pieces that suggest the “new charities” may have something to teach traditional charities. By “new” I mean organizations formed since 2000 and driven largely by new technology. Just consider three examples that offer several powerful lessons: Two “charity aggregators” in the US barely attracted any attention when they started a few years ago. After all, people don’t really go online to shop for charity…do they? But the two “online charity malls,” Network for Good and JustGive.org, have hit their stride, together increasing from US$52 million in 2006 to almost US$80 million in 2007, a growth rate of about 50% annually. Read more of this article by Richard McPherson here.

The blog-o-sphere has been carrying reports for several weeks now about the impending budget revision and upcoming staff cuts at the UJC. Apparently it became 'sort of official' yesterday. We'll stay away from playing the "he said / she said" that will surely continue surrounding this financial crisis and staff upheaval. However, we find one new budget item of the UJC particularly interesting... according to UJC Chair Joe Kanfer, "the UJC will add a $750,000 e-philanthropy initiative to the budget." Maybe, in part, it has to do with this opening, Senior Manager, Ephilanthropy, that the UJC has been trying to fill since before the GA. Among other position responsibilities: to develop, launch and help federations implement strong e-philanthropy initiatives that include data ...

The current economic situation nationwide, combined with higher costs and tighter regulations relating to postal fundraising, will make online marketing even more important in upcoming years. Vinay Bhagat, chief strategy officer for online fundraising firm Convio, maintains that nonprofits will need to invest in effective online marketing programs. He offers 10 best practices for getting started online:

• Ensure your Web site makes the right first impression. Prospective donors are very likely to visit your site before making a gift in any channel.
• Collect email addresses of current donors. Communicating online with donors enhances their value. Few organizations have emails for more than 30 percent of their active donors.
• Optimize your Web site to convert visitors to email subscribers. Target a 3 percent conversion ...
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  Tags: online fundraising, social networking, web 2.0

Taglit Birthright Israel’s latest YouTube video is a fun-filled romp across the country in celebration of Israel’s 60th anniversary on May 8th. Starring Tasha and Dishka, two Israelis from Ramle and early YouTube sensations with their Hey! clip (22 million views!), these two lip synch to the Carsitters “All Eyes on Me” as they make their way across Israel. The lead singer of the Carsitters is none other than Noa Margalit who I met at last year’s ROI120 Summit and this video was produced by Leah Stern, another ROI2007 alum and, well, me. The point of the video was to show an image of a fun and vibrant Israel - said image being more ...

Google Israel - has a new initiative in honor of Israel's 60th birthday! They have decided to dedicate this year to "Our Children and Our Future Generations. " For more information and to join the campaign: Official Website: http://www.google. co.il/israelshel i Google Israel campaign Facebook group: http://www.facebook .com/group. php?gid=12838688 050

MRM Worldwide's digital strategist outlines three key considerations for keeping up with the new online consumer. by By Dr. Augustine Fou Web 2.0 has been described as "lots of video," "cool user interfaces that use javascript," "social networking," "word of mouth." Google, YouTube, MySpace, Facebook, etc. have been used as examples, as have countless other companies and terms, correctly or incorrectly. But what really is the essence of this new wave of websites rising from the ashes of the first web implosion? And what are the implications for advertising and marketing? Web 2.0 versus Web 1.0 Web 1.0 was about the tools which made getting information online easier -- HTML, website creation software, standards, internet connections, etc. This led to an explosion of ...

Yad Vashem, the Holocaust remembrance and education center in Jerusalem, has launched two YouTube channels in advance of today's Holocaust Remembrance Day. The channels, in English and Arabic, went live Tuesday. The English channel contains testimonies from Holocaust survivors, including archival footage, historians’ lectures on key issues related to the Holocaust, footage from visits to Yad Vashem, including those of President George W. Bush in January 2008, and Pope John Paul II in March 2000, as well as human interest stories, such as family reunions. The Arabic channel has testimonies and archival footage about the Holocaust, with Arabic subtitles. “We know that YouTube is one of the most popular websites today. This ...

New York, NY, May 1, 2008. Zeek, an online journal that has helped shape modern Jewish-American culture, today announced that it is joining forces with Jewcy.com, one of the web’s most innovative and rapidly-growing online communities. Beginning today, Zeek's online content will be published at www.jewcy.com/zeek. Zeek joins Jewcy as the first content partner in Jewcy’s initiative to create a publishing network of editorial sites serving the YoCo psychographic – young, culturally omnivorous Americans looking for meaning and community. "We are joining strength with strength," said Jo Ellen Green Kaiser, chief editor of Zeek and formerly the managing editor of Tikkun magazine. "We're a leader in Jewish intellectual, cultural, artistic, and spiritual ...

The American Red Cross spent $10. million to develop their web site; $2. million annually sustains it. While I do not know any organization in our communal world with an expenditure so large, I do suspect more than one are in the same ballpark as a percentage of their operating budgets. So, the question is, you've put all this time, effort and money into the site. Beta-tested new ideas; possibly even held focus groups. And you're still left with the nagging question,

will they come?

You can easily fall into a bottomless pit spending money to market your website. But, there are also many (and important) ways you should be building your brand for free.

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