Let’s meet two innovative online networks -- one designed to help you improve your lot in life, the other designed to help you help others. Both made their debut last week at Network World’s DEMO 08.

It shouldn’t shock anyone that the first company, NotchUp -- the one that promises that you can get paid hundreds of dollars just for going to a job interview -- created the louder buzz.

But the second, Good2gether, which aims to let nonprofit organizations tap into the vast audiences of major media sites for volunteers and donations, has already built significant momentum toward success.

NotchUp founders Jim Ambras and Rob Ellis tell me that 15,000 people a day are signing up for the pilot test of their new eBay-like employment service -- based solely on word of mouth prior to last week’s DEMO debut. The founders are convinced employers will pay hundreds of dollars directly to job applicants who they would like to interview, in particular to those premium candidates who are not actively in the job market.

They’re also convinced that once job seekers start getting paid for interviewing that they’ll never go back to giving away their time. Almost 100,000 have signed up for the pilot, says Ellis, including "10,000 or so software engineers working mostly for top companies." Some 1,000 companies have registered, he says, including "about a dozen Fortune 500 companies plus essentially every large technology company."

The viral deluge initially overwhelmed the NotchUp site.

"We were prepared for 1,000 people, not 100,000," says Ambras, adding that they’ve subsequently beefed up their back end.

Here’s how NotchUp works: Register, create a profile and set an initial interview price (Notchup recommends $200 to $500). "Once you’ve created your profile, companies will search it and make you paid offers to interview if you have the skills and experience they’re looking for," says the company’s site. "Accept the offers you’re interested in, go to the interviews, and we’ll collect the money and transfer it to you."

Haggling over price is allowed.

Ambras and Ellis swear they’re prepared to protect the privacy of job seekers -- although they caught some initial heat at DEMO on that score -- and protect employers against "professional interviewers." An eBay-like reputation service will help weed out those who are looking for a quick buck rather than career advancement.