Emoji for the Jews

Food organization Latet, which offers healthy food and meals to more than half a million needy families in Israel, was looking for a new method of attracting donations and attention.

With the help of Baumann Ber Rivnay, Latet’s pro bono advertising firm, they settled on creating Emojew, a takeoff of emoji, the tiny, clever icons that are easily downloaded and added to messages on WhatsApp, Twitter, Facebook and email.

“We went to cellphones because everyone’s on their cellphones and working on cellphones,” said Dikla Barak from Latet. “We could have just asked for donations online, but we wanted to offer another incentive to give, to offer added value.”

The Emojews include hamsas and challahs, pomegranates, apples and honey, holiday greetings and fish heads, all images familiar to the Israeli public. In order to drum up more interest, there are celebrity Emojews, icons of local celebs that Latt hopes will be used by the celebrities on Twitter and Instagram.

The app is free, but before downloading, a window pops up, offering an opportunity to donate a holiday meal through Latet, starting from NIS 18.

The app opens a window similar to that available on Twitter, with letter and Emojew keyboards featuring dozens of emojii, including one of Israeli President Ruby Rivlin, a barbecue grill (often used for holiday lunches), matzah and a ten-shekel coin.

Latet created the Emojews on Passover, but didn’t complete the app in time to launch it for the holiday.

The group also considered charging for the app download, but decided it would rather receive all of the donation, rather than just a portion.

By waiting until the high holiday season, said Barak, Latet was able to add soldiers and the celebrities, both Emojews that she thinks will prove popular.

“It’s starting to catch on,” she said. “But it’s hard to say yet how much we’ll make.”