How would you mashup the Network for Good donation processing service with other services to make it easier for nonprofits to raise money online? We’re working with Network for Good, the Case Foundation, and the NetSquared community to enhance the online donation process.

The DonateNow Mashup Challenge:

There are two categories to enter:

1. Build a mashup using Network for Good’s donation API, with a particular focus on enhancing the donor experience.
2. Build a mashup using Network for Good’s donation API,with a particular focus on improving or revolutionizing a nonprofit organization’s ability to fundraise.

Winners in the each category will be awarded a $10,000 prize by a panel of judges present at the N2Y3 Conference.

In addition, each winner will be granted a one-year license for the Network for Good API to be donated to an organization of their choice (if the winner is an organization, it can choose to donate the API to itself).

Network for Good’s donation API allows developers to integrate NFG's donation-processing functionality into their website or web application. Developers using the API should have a familiarity with SOAP Web Services.

Participants in the DonateNow Mashup Challenge will receive a developer license to the Network for Good Donation Web service. This free license is valid until June 30, 2008. Organizations interested in purchasing a developer license for use beyond this date should contact customerservice@networkforgood.org.

This week, Jessica Biel and her father, Jon Biel, have launched Make the Difference Network (MTDN) at www.MTDN.com. Social entrepreneur Jon Biel, in collaboration with cause marketing evangelist Kent McBride, co-founded MTDN to create a cause-oriented social network that connects nonprofit organizations with caring individuals and businesses. MTDN increases the visibility of nonprofit organizations by empowering potential donors to search, select and fund these organizations’ specific “Wishes” and then see the results of their giving. Nonprofits can join MTDN for free and they get to keep 100 percent of all donations collected through MTDN.

The MTDN online community has already attracted more than 150 nonprofit organizations working toward fulfilling more than 250 “Wishes.” When a nonprofit registers for free, MTDN gives them the ability to easily promote their story through a powerful, eye-catching multi-media profile including pictures, videos and blogs, and then build specific “Wishes” for free. MTDN then acts as an easy-to-use, fun online hub for people to locate and show their support for social causes that touch them the most. MTDN is also a powerful cause marketing tool for businesses to connect with and support their favorite nonprofits.

“We built MTDN to connect people who share the same passions for making a difference and to educate, motivate and inspire greater social entrepreneurism through stronger life-changing communities,” said Jon Biel, CEO and co-founder of MTDN. “We believe we can all do more than is currently being done to improve the quality of life on our planet and we’ve witnessed –firsthand – that people and organizations that do good, feel good. We’re honored to be of service in helping others find and fund their passions.”

If your nonprofit is looking to jump-start or expand your online donation program and leverage the power of a cause-oriented social network to connect with existing and potential supporters, then Make The Difference Network may be just right for you.

MTDN offers a FREE Basic Membership to all qualified US based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations.

Benefits for Your Nonprofit

• Use our powerful Web 2.0 technology to build capacity and better serve your existing supporters and members.
• Receive more exposure to new potential donors and supporters.
• Generate more direct donations to support specific projects or "Wishes."
• Build a powerful, interactive, "Cause-Oriented" social network of donors and supporters.
• Attract more visitors to your organization's Web site.

Free Basic Membership Includes:

1. A Nonprofit Organization Page
2. 5 Wish Pages
3. The MTDN Direct Donation System (MTDN Does NOT take a percentage of any donation)
4. A Complete Social Network
5. The MTDN Video System
6. Access to MTDN Technology Training

About Make The Difference Network
Make The Difference Network, co-founded by actress Jessica Biel, her father, Jon Biel, Kent McBride and a team of social entrepreneurs, is a cause-oriented, online social network designed to help nonprofit organizations increase donations, increase awareness and extend their reach to a vast community of caring individuals. MTDN empowers individuals to search, select and fund causes that touch their hearts. For more information, please visit www.mtdn.com

You are changing the world. We want to help.

Visit Google for Non-profits to learn how to use free Google tools to promote your work, raise money, and operate more efficiently.
Includes information on:

Gmail
Save time and resources with free Google-hosted email, customized for your domain

Checkout
Collect donations online and process them for free, with no monthly, setup, or gateway fees

Docs
Create and edit documents online and collaborate in real time with staff and volunteers

Calendar
Organize schedules and publicize events with shared calendars

Analytics
Understand how people find and interact with information on your website

Google Grants
Reach and engage your supporters through free online advertising

YouTube
Broadcast your cause to the world's largest online video community

Blogger
Publish instantly and keep your supporters informed and engaged

Maps & Earth
Give life to your cause by illustrating its global context

Gadgets
Drive traffic to your website and interact with your supporters more often

Groups
Communicate easily to staff or volunteers and encourage discussions among supporters

The International Fundraising Congress (IFC) is the world's leading education and training conference on fundraising. Established since 1981, the event regularly attracts around 900 participants from over 55 countries, and is renowned for its outstanding training and networking opportunities. Click here to find out who should attend.

The 28th IFC will be held 14-17 October 2008 in Noordwijkerhout, the Netherlands - register now!

The 4-day programme begins on Tuesday afternoon with a choice of 16 Masterclasses, each lasting 6.5 hours. (Sign up early to get your first choice.) The core 3-day core programme starts Wednesday afternoon with over 100 workshops and sessions covering new media, communications, direct marketing, legacies, high level giving, management and leadership, corporate and foundations and many more.

Hands-on Masterclasses are experiential, 'learning-through-doing' sessions whereby delegates have the opportunity to have real-time, hands-on experience of working on a topic.

1. Hands-on learning - social media tools to support fundraising. Speaker: Beth Kanter
(Beth’s Blog- www.beth.typepad.com, USA)

2. Sure fire major gift "asking & closing" - a hands-on, personal coaching workshop
Speaker: Karen Osborne (The Osborne Group, Inc, USA)

3. Raising funds successfully from institutional sources
Speakers: Finlay Craig (www.factsinternational.com, UK) and Orla Quinlan (Oxfam, UK)

4. Data segmentation - learning through doing
Speakers: Jan Chisholm (Pareto Fundraising, Australia) and Sean Triner (Pareto Fundraising, Australia)

Laboratory Masterclasses are sessions wherein the topic is driven as much by the audience as by the speaker. Very interactive, these will be looking at visioning and scenario planning around a given topic.

5. The copywriter's clinic - crafting brilliant letters, emails and telemarketing scripts for breakthrough fundraising results
Speaker: Mal Warwick (Mal Warwick Associates, USA)

6. Strategy laboratory - making your organisation future-proof
Speaker: Paul Farthing (Cancer Research, UK)

7. The competitive edge - developing a high achieving fundraising culture
Speakers: Bernard Ross (The Management Centre, UK) and Jo Swinhoe (Alzheimer's Society, UK)

8. The integration laboratory
Speakers: Norma Galafassi (in2action, Argentina) and Alfredo Botti (Greenpeace, Argentina)

Click to see standard Masterclasses, with a mix of traditional lecture-style teaching by the trainer and interaction between the delegates.

The 28th IFC will be held at the NH Leeuwenhorst Hotel situated approximately 30 minutes drive from Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport.  

A complimentary shuttle bus will operate from the airport to the Congress venue and nearby satellite hotels at specific times throughout the week.

Tis the season to make a difference in someone’s life. Yahoo! is celebrating the spirit of Cyber Giving Week. Until December 19th, you are invited to share a story about someone’s good deeds related to a nonprofit. Your nonprofit could receive up to $50,000 in matching funds and have the chance to be featured on Yahoo!

 
Tell your inspirational story, vote for your favorite local hero, and encourage your friends and family to join your good cause! Simply submit your story to Bix, where the community will vote to choose the five most inspiring stories.

During the week of December 25, the five finalists will be featured on Yahoo! to inspire others to give to a good cause too. The featured nonprofit that gets the greatest number of unique donations that week on Yahoo! will get a matching donation of up to $50,000 from Yahoo!.

Vote now, enter a 501c3 nonprofit, or learn more about the history of CyberGiving Week at Yahoo! for Good.