Q1-2009 has come....and Q1-2009 is now gone....sooo to recap where Jack's been:
In Q1 - we had some fun on Facebook, under the user name "Jack Thedonkey"....we accumulated 750+ friends and created a group where more than $1,001 of Jack's hard earned dollars were donated to various charities across North America. How? Members of "Jackthedonkey.com's group. The group for those who give a poop," voted for a list of charities I felt were doing good things and needed to be recognized for their work...my way of a bailout for the charities... (Plug In America was particuarly rabid and earned more than half of the pot).
Sadly, Jack was recently euthanized by the Facebook staff for violating the terms of service (a fake username. It happens. But why Jack? Why not the other fake accounts set up on Facebook? Why Mark why? Why does my first fake Facebook account, the one I was in an open relationship with for years on your site, "His Hand," why does he continue to live on facebook?). It was a good run, and a good learning experience. In retrospect, maybe it was my twitter name that got Jack the boot: twitter.com/inyourfacebook or maybe it was my press release the day before: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2009/04/prweb2290634.htm
Whatever. But anyway, even I can see I digressed too far with that last thought.
So, back to Q1, we finally got JackTheDonkey.com live, albeit in beta status mid February. On that note, thanks to all who helped test during the beta phase. And a special thanks to Mac users for your patience....Jack is now fully Mac compatible! An even bigger thanks to those who have started uploading your pictures....let's see some more (and tell your friends....afterall, the Donkey Show will be that much more fun for giving a poop regularly, when more of your friends join).
The beta staus was removed early March, at about the same time we added the "up to the click" tracker at the bottom of the screen.
Net-net, according to the up to the click tracker, $354 was to be donated to the following charities (based on 55% of advertising revenue earned by Jack...going to the charities of your choice).
However, given that I am Canadian, this amount was actually a little higher. Why? A) given that donations to the charities are paid out at par with their currency and the weakening Canadian dollar...and B) Given that I am Canadian...and am stereotypically extra nice, I was in a giving mood...I rounded up the donations to each of the charities.
So here's what was donated (dollars amounts paid out at par based on the organization's local):
- Virunga National Park - $40
- Ontario Special Olympics - $36
- Pencils For Kids - $36
- Sheri Katz MS Walk 2009 - $36
- Chron's and Colitis US - $36
- Plug In America - $33
- Best Friends - $25
- Stanley's Dream - $25
- United Way US - $25
- Cystic Fibrosis Foundation of Canada - $20
- Lilah's Fund - $18
- Alex's Lemonade Stand - $18
- Simon Wiesenthal - $18
- New Orleans Area Habitat For Humanity - $16
- The Malibu Foundation - $15
- Ronald McDonald House Charities of Canada - $15
- DFSA - $15
- Sustainable Laos - $15
- Surfers Healing - $15
Total $457 (+US conversions...also...note that not all of the charities listed above are still listed on http://www.jackthedonkey.com/Organization.aspx - I have been unable to get a hold of a few...and until I do...now that the beta status is off....I can only list charities who are onboard.....a further NOTE TO ALL - THIS DOES NOT COST THE CHARITIES ANYTHING....JUST ME AND THE ADVERTISERS....AND A FEW MINUTES OF YOUR TIME WHENEVER YOU FEEL THE URGE TO GIVE A POOP).
Annnnd to recap for you in the back of the class....how was that raised? Just by people registering, choosing a charity, uploading pics, and playing around....do you see how easy it is to raise funds online for your favorite charities....without spending a dime? Just a bit of your time (I will stop the rhyme). Oh yes...when registering...there is an activation email that is sent to you ASAP...just to make sure all's legit on your end. In the event that you don't get it within a few minutes...please check your spam filter - it should be in there....sorrrrrrrry!
Needless to say, I have met some really great people the past few months....and am more than a little excited about where this is going. Everything about JackTheDonkey.com is designed to help achieve the real world things I know we can all achieve together (and hey....if I meet Natalie Portman in the process....I just consider that part of good Karma...Natalie - I heart you, but not in that creepy, "I'm calling from inside the house", kind of way).
So a couple months in, we also realized that there are things working well with the site...but there are a few things to make the site that much better (and more fun/easy to give a poop regularly).
So coming in the near future:
- revised registration page (less fields of info to complete...and just a prettier overall look and feel to it....it's niiiice...it's coming soooon
- public profile pages (like on the other sites you frequent)....like the others, you will have the option to share what elements of WHO YOU ARE on this site with the public...we think it's intuitive and easy to control...let us know what you think
- option to receive email notifications
- option to "be remembered" (one less step in giving a poop regularly)
- user search options (for registered users)
- don't even start me on the forthcoming estore....it's good stuff (for good causes...or did you not get that by now?)
- annnnnd we are still working through a revamped volunteer and community board http://www.jackthedonkey.com/Forum.aspx
Needless to say, everything is evolving quickly...it's kind of fun!
Sooooo for now....thanks for giving a poop regularly...and thanks in advance to those who have yet to register...who have yet to upload a pic or two....and have yet to learn to give a poop. regularly.
Thanks,
David