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>>; Do any of you know anything about Goodsearch?
http://www.goodsearch.com >>
About two months ago someone in the office asked me my opinion of GoodSearch. From a user perspective, I find it slightly irritating that the charity choice isn't "sticky"-- you have to go through a couple different steps to select your charity, every time you use GoodSearch, even for new searches in the same browser session. Also note that GoodSearch uses Yahoo!, which may not be your search engine of choice (a similar service, GiveSmart.com, uses Ask.com results-- I'm sure there are others). GoodSearch also doesn't provide access to Advanced Search features, just basic search.
GoodSearch appears perfectly legitimate, and it doesn't cost the charity anything to get on the approved list, so it doesn't do any harm to participate. Note that GoodSearch sends a check once a year in December for funds earned thru the prior 12 months ending in September, providing the organization has accrued $100 or more (10,000 searches). Funds <$100 will be carried over to the following year, up to a two year maximum; GoodSearch never pays out less than $100 balance. GoodSearch actually lets you look to see how much money each charity has raised. Two organizations whose marketing of GoodSearch is referred to in the company's FAQ as good examples are Heal The Bay ($28.96 as of June 22 this year) and the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation ($39.83 as of June 22 this year). According to the payment terms mentioned, it's doubtful either of these organizations will get a check from GoodSearch this year. From the charity POV, I didn't want to invest any of our time/
energy in promoting GoodSearch among users, since the staff time and promotional energy would wind up costing more than I could foresee taking in.
Stephanie
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Stephanie L. Johnson
sjohnson
ptgirlscouts.org
Mgr, Database & Web Services
Girl Scouts, Patriots' Trail Council
.