Software/Technology

This year the Whitney Museum of American Art offers devotees a respite from licking envelopes and stamps. The non-profit museum’s new donation videogame, Clickistan, asks online visitors to score points and advance levels—before asking their appreciation.

Clickistan is a witty and sometimes biting respite from instant-gratification Flash and Facebook games. On the last screen, players can choose to donate as little as $5 and as much as $10,000. (The more goal-oriented can also skip all of the levels to make their online donation.)

Virtually all of the nation’s nonprofit organizations consider information technology important or critical to their operations, a new study shows, but sizable numbers still rely on outdated equipment and need more computers. The survey, conducted by the Johns Hopkins Nonprofit Listening Post Project, found that nearly all of the 443 organizations that responded said that information technology was “moderately important” or “critical” to carrying out their business activities, including accounting, finance, fund raising, and delivering services.

When she arrived at St. John’s Bread and Life, Ms. Ruiz was given a swipe card. She sat at a computer and used a touch screen to select her own menu. As she made her choices, the system subtracted points from an allotment of 200 for the month (healthy items count for fewer points). A volunteer said she could pick everything up within a few minutes.

That's precisely what Anthony Butler, executive director of St. John’s Bread and Life, was thinking when he put the system into effect in 2008.

The Salvation Army is tapping into the power of the mobile device this holiday season with the launch of a new iPhone® application to help strengthen fundraising for the organization’s iconic Red Kettle Campaign. Developed by Charity Dynamics, the Online Red Kettle iPhone app empowers individuals to conduct personal fundraising campaigns on behalf of The Salvation Army, all from the convenience of their mobile devices.  

Blackbaud announced that Princess Margaret Hospital Foundation selected Blackbaud Friends Asking Friends® as the online and offline event management solution for its newest fundraising event, Road Hockey to Conquer Cancer. The Foundation, which supports Canada’s leading cancer research institution, Princess Margaret Hospital, is using Friends Asking Friends combined with an innovative social media campaign to expand its supporter base and raise money for cancer research.

Blackbaud has furthered its dedication to the local and nonprofit communities with its new focus on corporate citizenship. Blackbaud will continue to deliver on its corporate value "service to others makes the world a better place” with a team dedicated to the growth of its corporate citizenship commitment.

Now Mr. Breslin, the head of Water for People, a global water and sanitation group in Denver, is trying to do something to reverse the track record of failure. His group is seeking to rewire its relationship with donors by sharing information on failures as well as successes, developing technology that provides real-time information on the status of projects, and persuading philanthropists to pay less attention to simple measures like how many people have been reached by a project and more on whether it will still work a decade from now.

Causes, which helps donors link up with charities online, has teamed up with gift card marketer Blackhawk Network to sell $25 and $50 prepaid gift cards in 800 Safeway and Vons supermarkets in California. Givers get a tax write-off. Recipients log on to Causes.com/giftcard to choose from more than 1 million nonprofits.

Convio announced the winners of its fifth annual Innovator Awards as revealed at a ceremony today at the Convio Summit, the company’s annual conference where more than 1000 nonprofit clients, partners and industry thought leaders gather as a community to share common experiences and effective strategies for nonprofits. The Innovator Awards recognize clients who have shown innovation and achievement through the use of Convio’s online software and services to better engage supporters to help fulfill their missions.

Blackbaud announced that its flagship fundraising solution, The Raiser’s Edge®, has been honored with its third User Satisfaction Award in the 2010 Donor and Member Management Solution Software Survey conducted by Campbell Rinker. During June and July, more than 2,800 users of nonprofit software and online solutions for donor and member management, mass communications, and fundraising were surveyed online. The survey gathers information on user satisfaction, pricing preferences, purchasing habits, and organizational scope.