Three Big Developments for Kiva!

[Guest]

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[JohnAtKiva]

There are a couple of exciting developments for Kiva today!

1. We're trying out some minor tweaks to the frontpage:
http://www.kiva.org

There are some holiday decorations on the logo, a banner promoting our new gift cards, and a link to a video in the sidebar.  These tweaks are all just for the holidays — and we will be swapping in different banners and videos over the course of the next two months!

2. Groupon and some other sponsors are funding discounted Kiva credits today and over the weekend!
http://www.groupon.com/deals/kiva-national

We're very excited, and also humbled by the incredible generosity of our sponsors.

3. This third development is the most exciting news of all!  But I can't post about it until later today...

Let us know what you think of the above!!

John

[Phoenix42]

Looks like the groupon page isn't up yet, though there is a link to it from their front page to it...

Edit - working now....

Edit2 - only one per person.

[carien]

http://www.groupon.com/deals/kiva-national


Does this not work for europeans it seems I have to fill in a state or city

And you know John we Dutch are always looking for deals

[Diane R]

More details about the Groupon deal here:  http://www.kivafriends.org/index.php/topic,5550.msg84354.html#msg84354
Carien, no, it is US-only.

As of this writing, over 600 deals were purchased.  As a regular Groupon user, I can say that this purchase was unusual, in that there were frequent drop-outs and "Oops!" pages and very very slow server response, requiring much reloading of pages, so they probably are being hit hard on this one.  As for limits, the fine print reads:

"Groupon and supporting sponsors will add $10 to every $15 purchase, up to $500,000."

which would work out to 50,000 Groupon offers available.  Gosh, that's a lot of new Kiva credit!

--Diane.

[JohnR]

3. This third development is the most exciting news of all!  But I can't post about it until later today...

You are SUCH a tease.   

As of this writing, over 600 deals were purchased.  As a regular Groupon user, I can say that this purchase was unusual, in that there were frequent drop-outs and "Oops!" pages and very very slow server response, requiring much reloading of pages, so they probably are being hit hard on this one.

Up to 931 now; you're right about the delays - I can't get through.  Guess I'll have to wait "until later today" on this one, too.   

[greg3912]

You are SUCH a tease.   

Are we waiting for someone on the west coast to go to (and come back from) lunch before we get this news!
 

Greg

[Peter S]

[ . . . ]
you're right about the delays - I can't get through.  Guess I'll have to wait "until later today" on this one, too.  

The Groupon Kiva offer page is right now displaying a big red clue as to the likely reason the Groupon site is struggling today.  That banner wasn't there when I looked at the offer earlier, so I reckon they changed it after today's Oprah show aired in Chicago at 9am there.  Checking around, it seems to air much earlier in Chicago than on the coasts, where it's shown at 4pm both PST and EST - so it's likely to get even busier at those times.

The Huffington Post has a piece now with the headline Oprah Ups Groupon's Kiva Deal, Overwhelms Website

A kind word from Oprah Winfrey temporarily brought the Internet's fastest-growing company ever to its knees on Friday morning.

The talk show demigod mentioned Groupon on her show this morning, specifically touting its current partnership with Kiva, a microfinancing company that offers small loans to low-income entrepreneurs around the world. She chose Kiva as one of her "Favorite Things" of 2010, and mentioned that $10 buys a $25 Kiva loan right now.

This, apparently, was too much for Groupon to bear.

[ . . . ]

($15 buys a $25 Kiva loan, rather than $10, of course.)


Here's the image that includes the big red clue, in case anyone can't get through to the Groupon offer page.



Exposure on Oprah is of course great news for Kiva, as it was in 2007, bringing in thousands of new lenders.  If you're looking to fund a loan, it might be an idea to pick one soon, before the 2010 Oprah rush starts.


~Peter

edit: Matt Flannery just tweeted with a link to that same HuffPo piece: Never knew philanthropy could overwhelm a major site like this, the power of generosity? http://huff.to/b7kekV
7 minutes ago via web

and a couple of hours ago Amazed at the power of oprah to crash the groupon website for so long.

[Skimmis]

There are a couple of exciting developments for Kiva today!

1. We're trying out some minor tweaks to the frontpage:
http://www.kiva.org

There are some holiday decorations on the logo, a banner promoting our new gift cards, and a link to a video in the sidebar.  These tweaks are all just for the holidays — and we will be swapping in different banners and videos over the course of the next two months!

2. Groupon and some other sponsors are funding discounted Kiva credits today and over the weekend!
http://www.groupon.com/deals/kiva-national

We're very excited, and also humbled by the incredible generosity of our sponsors.

3. This third development is the most exciting news of all!  But I can't post about it until later today...

Let us know what you think of the above!!

John

 

[JohnAtKiva]

Hey guys - as several of you noted, our third bit of news it that Kiva was chosen as one of Oprah's Favorite Things of 2010!

Kiva chosen as one of Oprah's Favorite Things of 2010!

Today's an exciting day for Kiva: we were chosen as one of Oprah's Favorite Things of 2010!!!

Not only is Oprah honoring us by including us in this year's list — her final one ever — but she is also helping us launch a very exciting deal!

This weekend, new Kiva users can go to Groupon.com/kiva to buy $25 of Kiva credit for $15. If you've never made a loan on Kiva, and are interested in figuring out what all the fuss is about, this is the perfect deal for you. If you're trying to figure out what the perfect gift is this Holiday season... then this gift is for you. If you need to bring something to Thanksgiving to impress your in-laws, then this gift is definitely for you.

Groupon and friends of Kiva have agreed to match your $15 with an additional $10 more, giving you the chance to nearly double the impact you'll make with your first loan. Check out the deal here: http://www.groupon.com/kiva

We're super excited to be featured on Oprah and to have this offer sponsored by Groupon and friends of Kiva. We'll keep you posted with further developments!

http://www.kiva.org/blog/2010/11/19/kiva-chosen-as-one-of-oprahs-favorite.html

Unfortunately, the Groupon site is slow.  So for now, they're just redirecting to Kiva:
http://www.groupon.com/kiva

Hopefully the Groupon site will be fast again soon, so we can make the deal available again!

Best,
John

[Diane R]

What a very cool promotion. It's going to expose Kiva to so many more people (and obviously people are interested in it, since that part of Groupon has been on its knees for hours now... and the show hasn't even aired on the west coast yet!).



Here's the page from Oprah's website about the Kiva/Groupon offer:
http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Oprahs-Ultimate-Favorite-Things-2010/10


--Diane.