In the wake of the financial turmoil which is expected to impact on charity giving, Rednano wants to help charities, especially the lesser-known ones, raise their online profile to attract donors, said SPH Search chief executive Paul Jansen.

Rednano is run by SPH Search, a joint venture between media group Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) and Norwegian media group Schibsted ASA.

Besides offering charities without a website an online home, Rednano will also promote them in other ways, for example, pop-up online ads when relevant search keywords like 'children' or 'elderly' are entered by users.

Within Rednano's online directory listings, charities will also get a beefed up online presence with a description of what it does, an online map to it, and a 'click-to-call' link. Clicking on this will connect the user to the charity's phone number. Rednano typically charges customers $2,000 per year for such add-ons.

Mr Jansen said Rednano has identified 93 charities that it will start contacting from next week. It will extend the offer to all charities that have been given Institutions of Public Character (IPC) status by the Government over the next three years.

Next year, when Rednano's e-commerce engine is launched, it will also look into the possibility of allowing charities to use the service to collect donations via the Internet, added Mr Jansen.

The entire effort is expected to cost Rednano about $500,000.