1/12/2001

Simchas in Cyberspace

A short time ago, a college student and his wife, simply for posterity's sake, took some pictures with their digital camera at a friend's engagement party. The couple then decided to post the photos on a website in order to allow friends and family from all over the world, many of whom were unable to attend the simcha, access to the shots.

The reasoning behind their decision was so obvious and at first seemed inconsequential; all that had transpired was the sharing some pictures of a recent simcha. But what then transpired for Shira and Dov Katz, the founders of OnlySimchas.com, was far from inconsequential or expected.

Simply on the strength of word of mouth, the website founders were flooded with a plethora of requests to construct similar internet arrangements for other simchas. Outsiders who had visited the Katz's personal website had seen their pictures online and liked what they saw. They too wanted friends and family who were unable to attend in person to retain some sort of connection to the simcha. Calls came into the Katz's small Columbia University apartment with requests to post pictures from weddings, births, Bar and Bat Mitzvahs, and anniversaries. It seemed as if anyone and everyone wanted, in this new age of the Internet and technology, to have their own personal photo album online, to shared with all their loved ones.

As a result of all these requests, the Katz couple, along with three friends, launched OnlySimchas.com on Sept 1st. Following the launch of the website, Doron Katz, a fourth year medical student at Albert Einstein School pf Medicine, was appointed Head of Business Operations for the Company, propelling OnlySimchas to expand it's largest target audience. Since then, OnlySimchas has experienced tremendous growth, with thousands of page views daily and a targeted 300,000 by October.

Some 148 simchas are currently listed online, ranging from weddings to births. Katz had subsequently developed new software, making the process easier than ever, allowing anyone with digital images the ability to upload them onto the site. The site itself has both an extremely appealing design and a level of user-friendliness that is on par with some of the web's more popular and well-designed sites. Katz and one of his partners, Michael Novich, have also designed many professional sites under the aegis of The Morningside Internet Development Group, Inc., a website company they founded in 1998.

The founders of OnlySimchas have ambitious plans for the future of the company. Short-term goals include developing an online registry, creating resource pages, and providing a reverse auction for guests to the site. Furthermore, some new features have already been implemented and have met overwhelming support and enthusiasm. New alliances with eFrames, Artscroll publishing and other online Judaism related sites have made it easy for site visitors to purchase gifts and other items without ever leaving their homes. Currently registered users can also take advantage of a program called WeddingWare, which enables affair planners to create guest lists, arrange tables, monitor thank-you cards, and print labels. Another feature that has received a lot of support is the Service Directory, a constantly growing list of caterers, halls, bands, and florists.

The Katzes and their partners estimate that every new simcha that appears on the site adds roughly four hundred visitors, which results in a minimum of five thousand page views. Thus far, most of the visitors to the site are out of towners who were unable to attend family simchas.

Like most other successful ventures, OnlySimchas has resulted, according to its founders, from the recognition, a need, albeit a coincidental recognition of that void, and a successful effort to fill it. The company promises to provide the most up-to-date technology in a field that is constantly evolving. After the tremendous growth the company has witnessed in its first four months, the prospects and future projections are extremely high, with the number of simchas, page views, and advertisements on the site increasing daily.

-MARK SRULOWITZ