Software/Technology

Constant Contact®, Inc. (Nasdaq: CTCT) today introduced the Constant Contact MarketPlace⁹, an online resource to connect small organizations with tools and services to grow their businesses. As a complement to its leading email marketing¹⁰, event marketing, social media marketing, and online survey tools, the Constant Contact MarketPlace¹¹ is the only free, online resource of its kind exclusively focused on small businesses and nonprofits looking for marketing tools and services.

The MarketPlace offers members of the Constant Contact Partner Program, including professional services and solution providers, a channel to promote their small business-focused applications and services. Developers, application partners and independent software vendors (ISVs) are also invited to use Constant Contact's AppConnect APIs to develop or integrate their applications with Constant Contact and to offer these solutions in the MarketPlace.

Sage North America today announced the general availability of the Sage Peachtree 2011 industry-specific products, including Sage Peachtree Premium Accounting for Nonprofits, following the company’s announcement last week of Sage Peachtree Quantum 2011 and the rest of the standard Sage Peachtree 2011 lineup. “Many organizations are struggling to do more with less. With fewer employees on staff and fewer financial resources, nonprofits must maximize both, all while carefully maintaining accountability to donors,” said Connie Certusi, general manager, small business accounting solutions, Sage North America. "Peachtree 2011 is easier to use than ever, enabling nonprofits to get the critical information that they need and complete key tasks quickly, so they can focus instead on serving the communities and organizations that rely on them for support.”

Charleston, S.C. (May 18, 2010) – Blackbaud, Inc. (Nasdaq: BLKB) today announced the launch of Altru™ for general admissions arts and cultural organizations. Organizations including the Gibbes Museum of Art, South Florida Museum and Bishop Planetarium, and Tallahassee Museum have recently selected and will use Altru to gain a complete view of their organization, data, and visitors; streamline operations; and better engage and cultivate visitors and supporters.

ARMONK, N.Y. — IBM Corp. plans to increase its donations of technology to schools and nonprofit groups by nearly one-third over the next three years.

The increase - to $175 million per year from $135 million per year currently - represents a small fraction of IBM's overall revenue. But the company says its "Trailblazer" grants are vital for small organizations that otherwise might not be able to afford its products.

EMERYVILLE, CA. – May 11, 2010 – Lyris, Inc., the online marketing expert, today announced that GuideStar USA, Inc., the leading source of nonprofit information, has deployed Lyris HQ to manage its online marketing campaigns. Leveraging Lyris HQ, GuideStar has completely revamped its email marketing program to better segment and engage its audience. Since launching Lyris earlier this year, the company has increased email deliverability by 12 percent.

The key to a winning Internet appeal is pretty simple—it has to grab the reader or viewer quickly.

The Web is what  Jakob Nielsen, a prominent Web design experts, calls a "lean-forward" medium.

People lean forward when content hooks them. They do not relax. And if you fail to grab them with your video or words, they'll move on to something else.

That is why the most popular videos on YouTube are short and why Twitter succeeds despite its 140-character limit.

Apple's new iPad changes that dynamic.

Charleston, S.C. (May 4, 2010) – Blackbaud, Inc (Nasdaq: BLKB), the leading global provider of nonprofit software and services, today announced the launch of a new Nonprofit Leadership Circle, a group of employees who serve on nonprofit boards of directors, and several other employee-related philanthropic initiatives. Blackbaud is dedicated to its mission of making the world a better place both as a corporate citizen and as a catalyst for individual employees through a dedicated focus on philanthropy.