It's been a while

Since my last blog posting, a few things have happened that are noteworthy.

First, my daughter's college graduation, magna cum laude from Tufts. My college son is home too and between the two of them, they are on the Hawaiian time zone, asleep at 4 am and up again at 12 noon.

Second, a number of new clients in the for-profit and the nonprofit spheres, which is always a good sign. Perhaps the economy is reawakening?

Third, new products virtually for free: a wireless credit card terminal for merchants who go to the client, rather than the traditional vice-versa way, and an IP-capable desktop terminal for retailers with the latest in VOIP telecommunications.

Finally, LinkedIn is kicking! Many new contacts and new ways of gaining exposure which is crucial in this industry. I am presenting in New York City to a group of accountants early this week; one of a number of presentations I am asked to make, which is outside my normal area of expertise, but helps me meet new people.

It's always been the networking that I really enjoy at the end of the day. People helping people. Til the next installment...

The Proper Care and Feeding of LinkedIn

All living organisms, and some electronic things, need proper care and feeding. The seeds I sprouted in March in the windowsill are mostly surviving, despite my too-constant watering and transplanting. Some would say compulsive...

I have lost a few seedlings, and more tragically, some friends this past month. John was 53 and Jerry was 84. Both will be sadly missed.

The 84-year old came up with the name "The Proper Care and Feeding of LinkedIn" for a session I did for Jewish Family Services to help some folks in between jobs learn a few techniques for job searching using LinkedIn. Unfortunately he was in the hospital when I gave the session,. but would have been asking lots of questions as his mind was always clicking away...That's how I want to be at his age!

I am beginning to collect tips and ideas for an upcoming white paper for my clients, fellow consultants, friends and fellow bloggers, LinkedIn buddies called "The Proper Care and Feeding of LinkedIn."

If you have a great story, an smart tip, a savvy use of LinkedIn, a piece of business you won directly from LinkedIn, etc., please send it to me and I will pull together the top 50 (or 100) ideas and distribute to you. Insert the anecdotes into comments to this posting.

Adoption Adaption

This week's spotlight is on Jewish Family Service. one of whose programs is a full-service domestic or international child adoption service.

The staff at JFS could not be more sincere in their desire to help couples adopt children. The experience was so favorable that a friend who used the JFS adoption services became a Board Member and cannot say enough about how well it all went.

Experienced, consultative, supportive and professional, JFS guides couples along the way, making a vulnerable emotional time much more enjoyable.

They remain engaged as the new parents adapt, the child flourishes and the agency has performed its mitzvah (good deed) for couples of all faiths and backgrounds.

What could be better? Encourage friends and family members thinking of adopting to contact JFS by phone at 203.366.5438 or via the website. Adoption and adaption all under one roof.

Female Soldiers: Forgotten Heroes

Until I came in contact with Homes for the Brave in Bridgeport, CT I didn't know that:
1) that an estimated 7,000 – 8,000 female veterans are homeless in the U.S., the most in the nation’s history.
2) their numbers are expected to increase as more women return home.
3) women make up about 5% of homeless veterans, up from 3% 10 years ago.
4) a woman who has served in the military is up to four times more likely to be homeless than a nonveteran woman.
5) female veterans are more likely to experience severe housing cost burden than male veterans. They represent only 7% of veterans but 13.5% of veterans with severe housing cost burden.
6) lack of affordable housing is a primary catalyst for homelessness amongst all veterans.

Of the 8,000 soldiers from Connecticut who are deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, 25 percent of them are women. With more veterans due to return stateside, there is an extreme shortage of transitional housing for female vets in CT. “Female Soldiers: Forgotten Heroes” would be the first transitional living facility for homeless female veterans in the state.

The urgency for supporting these homeless female veterans is extreme and your financial support is needed. Please contact Amanda LeClair at aleclair@homesforthebrave.org or 203.338.0669.

At a theatre near us

The Community Theatre Foundation in Fairfield, a gem of a cultural attraction in the midst of Fairfield, CT is this week’s featured nonprofit client. It is a foundation, supported solely by movie ticket sales at well-below market prices, and donations from the people who love it. Unfortunately its expenses exceed its donors’ generosity and in these rough economic times, its needs have ballooned. Operations and maintenance expenses are sapping its stability.

Folks, this is a different kind of place. The seats are comfortable, the moviegoers are your neighbors, and the operation is staffed by high school volunteers who are getting great work experience.

For these reasons, I really don’t think it gets any better than this; they give back to the community and now need our help.

Donations can go to https://secure.modpay.com/vterm/vterm1.cfm?an&nan&ae=1&clientcode=1C65A547.
Please help.

Moooooove your kosher meat buying online

Jewish meat eaters who relish glatt kosher meat know that the periodic trip to the kosher butcher as much as 2 hours away is a major pain in the rumproast.

Now you can order glatt kosher meat online while your salivary glands start into hyperdrive just looking at the online photos; a few days later you have the meat delivered to your door. It's the low-carbon footprint way of getting your glatt kosher meat.

Passover starts the evening of 08Ap09. That's soon.
Don't delay-tell your friends who buy kosher meat to have a look at The Golden West Cattle Company, this week's featured client. Special prices are on the website ahead of the holiday. And the website is fun to read as well.
Hag sameach (happy holiday in Hebrew)

What if they don't come back?

The hard part of receiving online donations is getting the donors to come to your website. If you tell your story well, they will feel compelled to give online. You worked so hard to tell your story, but do you make changes to the website and in your marketing to keep it fresh?

An article in today's New York Times shows how nonprofits miss a great opportunity to keep their donors continuously interested and driven back to the website, where a fresh story, anecdote, video, etc. can make them feel the need to come back and contribute.

Couple a fresh face on the website with an email blast, a paper mail campaign, phone-a-thon, anything to get them to revisit the website...and you are using efficient marketing methods that businesses use all the time. It's all part of making your nonprofit act more like a business.

We love creating online donation pages, but it's up to our nonprofit clients to urge the donors to come back again and again.

We have some tools and experience in how others have made this successful. Please ask us.