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NetSquared enables social benefit organizations to leverage the tools of the social web.
Cauzoo
What's Your Favorite Innovation in this Process?
Hey all- it's been so exciting to read all your blog entries, see your slates, and (of course) check out your proposals (it has also been a lot of reading!).
I was struck by this earlier comment:
"Typically these project evaluation processes are ceded over to a small committee of evaluators chosen because of their individual qualifications and expertise. And usually there is another layer of administrative evaluation, assessing the legal status and financial competence of the institution."
- Cauzoo's blog
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How Do You Use Social Networks to Build One?
Supporting organization:
Cauzoo
URL:
http://www.cauzoo.com
Location:
Los Angeles
Project Description:
If you're building a social network, mailing list, or other social tool, how do you break through a crowded market? With MySpace, Facebook, and a host of new niche social sites popping up, how can you beat the competition?
Simple- you don't. You work with them to go places you never could before.
Cauzoo.com had a problem that most new sites had- gaining traction in a crowded field. For us, the challenge is making clear that we don't want to supplant MySpace or Facebook, but supplement the social experience by adding a new angle. Undoubtedly, most of your non-profit sites are the same. You aren't asking for all a person's time, just a bit of their attention. But how can you do this without scaring them away? In addition, how can you make a better site from it?
Our answer was simple- instead of fighting the competition, we promoted it.
If you look at the bottom left corner of a sample profile page, you can see "Social Me", an exciting example of our tool. We know that people have countless different social identities- so why not use them? It helps our users recognize that Cauzoo is a place to show part of yourself, not all of yourself. That lowers the barrier to entry and clarifies our concept. Secondly, it simply makes for a better site. Our pages have more utility if users know more places where they can reach their friends.
The great thing about "Social Me" is that it's not our idea- we used code from the Open Source site here- http://dbachrach.com/showyourself/. It wouldn't be tough to figure out anyway, but this is a good reference point for some of the social networks out there that your users might have. Naturally, we're not sure how many sites/non-profits this will help, but we'd love to definitely take a step to say one thing: you are on Social Networks for a reason- promoting them!
Cauzoo- Give. Together.
Challenges Entered:
Cauzoo is MySpace for charities and users, mixing viral and grassroots marketing to connect folks around common charitable interests. Uniquely, Cauzoo will give charities 100% of the money generated from user donations and affiliate shops.
Location
Los Angeles, CA
United States
See map: Google Maps
Bells and Whistles- Do they Help You Get Heard?
Last night, Matt showed me the build for our autocomplete search. When a user wants to find a charity, the form will suggest what they're looking for. Now, for any veteran programmer, this would qualify as Ajax 101. Still, it was nice to see some of the tools we enjoy on other sites making a cameo on our own.
It made me think though- how much do these Web 2.0 Bells and Whistles help non-profits and for-profit businesses get heard? Now, I know that programming tricks definitely help usability- anything that makes a webpage more like a desktop is a great functionality to have. But do the aesthetic details (the bells and whistles) drive people to your cause?
Take, for example, a site called Dogster. Found at Dogster.com, it's got "Web 2.0" functionality, but the look of the site is more 1.0. There's no tag clouds, typical fonts, or tiny flourishes. Yet the site is a huge success.
I'd love to find out what you think- do the little things help a site reach its audience (profit or non-profit)? Does it matter if a site uses an autocomplete form instead of a simple list?
Heating Up NonProfits in the Arctic
Browsing the web for news, I came across this story about charities in the UK:
http://www.itpro.co.uk/news/108014/charities-told-to-use-web-better.html
It comes from a conference sponsored by British non-profiteers. Notable quotes include:
"We are entering an age of participative media where anybody with access to a computer has the potential to contribute in a unique and valuable way," Dame Suzi Leather, chair of the Charity Commission. "The challenge for charities is to harness this potential and channel it into genuine social change and community action on the ground."
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