Kiva.org, the San Francisco charity that helps provide small loans to entrepreneurs in developing countries, has been getting significant attention recently because it has been unable to find enough entrepreneurs to keep up with its pool of lenders.

That mismatch has prompted some observers to suggest solutions to this problem.

But one overlooked solution comes from an unwillingness to raise money to pay for operational support.

So says Jeff Brooks, the creative director for Merkle, a Seattle marketing consulting firm.

Mr. Brooks, writing on the Donor Power Blog, says Kiva would probably satisfy its donors if it approached them asking for money to help underwrite its operations. In turn, it would have more resources to find entrepreneurs who needed loans.

He suggests Kiva needs to ask two questions as it determines how to deal with its supply-demand gap:

• Would Kiva accomplish more good in the world if it spent more on administration?

• Would donors rather see Kiva accomplish more, or would they rather maximize the efficiency of their giving?

Mr. Brooks concludes the organization would more than satisfy its donors if it stated the case that it needed additional money to cover its administrative costs.

To read Kiva co-founder Matt Flannery’s thoughts on this issue, see this transcript of the Chronicle’s recent live discussion.