November 4, 1999 | Read Time: 2 minutes
Two new Web sites — one commercial and one non-profit —
ALSO SEE:
are using the Internet to match donors and non-profit organizations.
GrantMatch.com, a company founded by lawyer Lawrence M. Elkus in Southfield, Mich., allows charities to post appeals for either general operating costs or for specific programs. Grant makers and individual donors can, in turn, list their giving interests and issue calls for proposals.
The Web site acts only as a clearinghouse. Donors are responsible for contacting the organizations and making the gift. Until the end of the year, the service is free, but starting in January, there will be fees for charities, foundations, and donors to post information.
The Tides Foundation, in San Francisco, is calling its new Web site, eGrants.org, an “Internet foundation” to raise money for social-change organizations.
The site’s first project was to create GiveForChange.com (http://www.giveforchange.com), an on-line giving catalogue of progressive organizations. eGrants.org processes the donations — 10 per cent of which will be used to cover administrative expenses. Working Assets, the San Francisco long-distance and credit-card company, will match contributions that come in by the end of the year, up to a total of $1-million.
In coming weeks, individual non-profit organizations will be able to apply for a “Donate Now” link to put on their Web site. The link will allow the groups to accept on-line donations through the eGrants.org site.
To get there: Go to http://www.grantmatch.com and http://www.egrants.org.
The fee structure for GrantMatch.com was not fully explained when this article was originally published. Through the end of the year, charities and foundations can register with the service and post proposals free. Those registrations and proposals will remain on the site free for one year. As of January 1, the registration fee will be $120 per year, and the cost to post each proposal for one year will be $120.
