Friday Update: Payment System Notice

Hey guys, hope you’re ready for a great weekend! So here’s the inside scoop…

Our payment system has been down for some time now (in case you haven’t heard). Originally, we were using Paypal to process donations made on our site. However, PayPal didn’t fancy us facilitating money on behalf of third parties. Conclusively, we are no longer able to use PayPal. In an effort to resolve the issue as quickly as possible, we applied to every money processor left, right and center including Google Checkout and PaySimple to name a few. Unfortunately, they closed the door in our face too!

As a temporary solution, we will accept checks made out to The MicroGiving Foundation and issue payouts immediately upon Donor request. We’re are continually working on a resolution, if you’ve got any suggestion feel free to drop us a message to support.

We promise to have this sorted as quickly as possible. Thanks for your understanding =)

Sincerely,

April Jasmine
The MicroGiving Team

Funtastic Friday Updates!

Hello fantastic members,

A few friendly updates! We’re pleased to announce a few exciting initiatives to take place in the coming weeks ahead of us. Firstly, our team has been working on optimizing our website to increase our visibility in search engines. As of right now, we’re not ranking when people search for charities in engines like Google and Yahoo. Our expert team is making improvements to increase our position so that more people will find us. What does that mean exactly? Well, exposure in search engines will bring more traffic to our community!

Also, the development team has improved our internal search system so that all Level 3 Recipients are displayed first.  Previously, when Donors searched for Recipients they came across a good number of blank or incomplete profiles. Many thanks to those of you who have taken the time to complete your profile and send us your supporting documents for verification.

Regarding payouts, we are still issuing checks to those of you who have asked to withdraw your donations. We encourage you to make sure your mailing address is correct. If you have recently changed your address, you can change this information from your account settings. We are still toiling away at getting a new system in place. Please know we are working very hard and our team has put in many late hours to resolve a new system.

Lastly, the MicroGiving team wants you to know…we care about you and our community very much. We’re working hard to improve your experience with MicroGiving. If you ever have any questions or concerns, shoot us an email… we’d love to hear from you =)

Cheers!

The MicroGiving Team

Funtastic Friday Updates

Happy Friday everyone! Just a few updates to finish off the week! First, the development team has been working on a few exciting design changes. In an effort to improve your experience, our team has pinpointed a few areas that will make it easier for you to navigate and use the site. If anyone has any suggestions, we’d love to hear from you. Your voice makes it a heck of a lot easier for us to identify ways we can improve, so don’t be shy!

Some of you have voiced difficulty in posting pictures on their profile. To upload a photo, simply go to the [Profile] tab located in your account, and click on the [My Media] tab. There you will see the option to upload your picture from a folder stored on your computer. Don’t forget to check the box next to each image that is labeled [share] so other can see your pictures.

Also, for those of you who have recently joined our community… don’t forget to send in your supporting documents. In order to verify your request, you need to send us proof that your need is in fact legit! If you have questions about your supporting documents you can always shoot us a message at support! Or check out our helpful FAQ section.

That’s all kids, have a great weekend =)

Funtastic Friday Updates

Happy Friday everyone! Just touching base regarding a few things in our community:

Firstly, we’d like to thank all of you who have responded to our profile tips. We’re noticing that many of you are posting pictures, updating your biographies, changing your headlines and completing your requests! Nice turn around peoples, nice! Our site is slowly coming together with your help. By ensuring that your profile is completed, you help us make our site more appealing to newcomers.

Secondly, you may notice that every month we feature three new members on our home page. We choose these guys specifically because they’ve done an excellent job on their profile and detailing a clear and to-the-point Request. If you’d like to see yourself on the front page of MicroGiving – make sure that you send in your supporting docs, that your documents support the Request you make, upload a nice, smiling mug shot of yourself (or your family if you prefer), include lots of great pictures in your photo album, complete your bios, and be sure to include a catchy headline!

Thirdly, we’d like to congratulate Rayhawk one last time. Rayhawk is our latest addition to the MicroGiving Team. For those of you who didn’t get a chance to read our Newsletter posted last Wednesday – Rayhawk is our Official Community Leader. You can go to Rayhawk with questions, concerns, or any suggestions that you have. We’re very pleased to have her officially aboard =)

Fourthly, we realize some of you are having difficulty knowing what to send us regarding your supporting docs. All we need are items that can prove your need is legit! For example, if you have a medical expense… send us a letter from your doctor verifying your medical need. If your roof is leaking, send us pictures of the damage. Everything you need to know is detailed in our FAQ section, which we encourage you to read. To learn more about the kinds of documents to send us, check out our FAQ!

Last, we’re putting together a testimonials page. If you’d like to be included drop us a message at support and tell us why you love MicroGiving!

That’s it for now… have a smashing weekend, but don’t get too wild and crazy!

Cedar Rapids Area Volunteers Needed!!

Attention MicroGivers! Today and tomorrow, July 15^th and 16^th, MicroGiving will be looking for volunteers in the Cedar Rapids area. The volunteers will be asked to work 3-4 hour shifts from 9am – 6pm on both days. The volunteer’s will be in charge of registering those in need of financial aid at the MicroGiving site. The goal is to link individual families in need with donors willing to give. Most residents are without internet access, so MicroGiving will be bringing computers to them! MicroGiving has decided to match up to $25,000 in donations made towards Cedar Rapids Relief through MicroGiving.com. So whatever you donate, it will actually be doubled! Please do what you can to spread the word about these efforts, the more volunteers and donators, the more people we can help. A Facebook group has been created to keep everyone updated on MicroGiving’s relief efforts. Everybody please stay updated and do what you can to help this cause.

Take a look at MG’s Flickr page so you can better grasp the hardships these people are dealing with.

The Power of Two!

A DOLLAR FOR DOLLAR MATCHING DONATION CAMPAIGN

For a limited period of time, every dollar donation made to a recipient through www.microgiving.com will be multiplied by two as a way to build both awareness of this unique website and to help increase support for those individuals and families who find themselves in financial difficulties, particularly during this time of economic uncertainty when many people find themselves working harder yet still falling further behind.

As the people of a new generation, we inherit an imperfect world and it falls upon us now to use our creativity, our hope and our vision of a better future to help others in our communities, our countries and together we can change the world.

The “Power of Two” is all about helping our online donors experience the truly wonderful feeling of affecting the lives of others in a positive and substantial way” ~Stated the MicroGiving founder, John Ferber.

Join now & your donation will provide twice the charity & twice the impact!