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How To: Put Technology to Use (September 2008)
Your guide to the resources that will help you put technology to work for your cause.
Craft a Fundraising Appeal
In Cordoba, Spain, one enterprising itinerant was in the habit of setting out 3 hats, with a sign next to each: "Money for food"; "Money for beer"; and "Money for drugs". His multi-channel appeal did better than average, as different audiences donated based on their own proclivities. (An NTEN staffer merely recorded the anecdote, for eventual use as an example of how to connect with those who may not be predisposed to give you money. Besides, his beer money had already been spent.)
When you start to think about your next fundraising letter, you should follow the example of Marc Pitman: print out and analyze your past appeals. Who is your message targeting? Are you talking about yourself, or connecting to your potential donors? (Just, please, don't ask yourself, "What would happen if the author of The Da Vinci Code wrote your next fundraising appeal?" Other than that, Alan Sharpe's advice is pretty decent.)
Ask the Expert: CiviCRM Q&A with Dave Greenberg
Flickr Photo: Darwin BellOK, NTEN Members: this is your chance to step up to the mic and ask those burning CiviCRM questions!
Join us Tuesday, July 15, at 11am PT/ 2pm ET for a live conference call and online chat with Dave Greenberg, from the CiviCRM Team.
How To: Put Technology to Use (May 2008)
Your guide to the resources that will help you put technology to work for your cause.
Become a Free and Open Source (FOSS) Expert
> Before you can advocate for free and open source software, you need to know what you're talking about. As much as any argument that begins, "The dictionary defines <insert hopefully obscure term here> as..." displeases us, you'd probably be remiss if you didn't start with WikiPedia's definition -- and not just because it runs on top of open source code. FOSS, F/OSS, or FLOSS? Choose for yourself!
> Groklaw has just started an interesting series on the history of Free and Open Source by historian Peter H. Salus. If you want to understand the difference between "Free Software" and "Open Source", take a glance at "Why 'Open Source' Misses the Point of Free Software", by Richard Stallman (who, it's generally agreed, is to FOSS what Neil Young is to grunge).
> For the latest on FOSS, turn to the Nonprofit Open Source Initiative, which maintains a news feed. The Free Software Foundation tans the hides of proprietary programs -- DefectiveByDesign.org? BadVista.org? -- while simultaneously advocating for FOSS, and the Open Source Initiative and even UNESCO maintain FOSS sites. Oh, and FOSSBazaar has a decent blog in addition to a cool logo.
Earn Executive Buy-in for FOSS
> It's not enough to understand the benefits of FOSS if you can't convince anybody else. You need numbers -- and David Wheeler has them. Oh, boy, does he. Market share, reliability, performance, security, the ability of FOSS to walk your dog and keep your ice cream from melting in the sun: Mr. Wheeler seems to have collected every study ever done on Free and Open Source Software in one place.
> If that isn't quite enough for you -- or you just really like numbers -- take a look at a couple of European offerings: Infonomics and the stiffly named, "Economic impact of open source software on innovation and the competitiveness of the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) sector in the EU" (PDF). It reads much better than its title -- and you get to learn such things as "[the] existing base of FLOSS software represents a lower bound of about 131 000 real person-years of effort that has been devoted exclusively by programmers".
> For a final brush-up on your internal marketing skills, check out CIO Magazine's "IT Governance Tips: Help to Improve Executive Buy-in".
Determine Which FOSS to USe
> You've convinced your organization that it doesn't need to use proprietary software. The next step is determining which FOSS software to use. The best read is "The Top 50 Proprietary Programs that Drive You Crazy -- and Their Open Source Alternatives". Who knew there was a FOSS replacement for PhotoShop?
> More straight up -- and less subjective -- lists can be found at the Free Software Foundation and SourceForge; the former is more user friendly, the latter, impossibly comprehensive.
> To help you make your final decision, turn to Michelle Murrain and the fine people at NOSI. Their primer, "Choosing and Using Free and Open Source Software" is indispensable reading for nonprofits. In addition to her article in this month's NTEN Connect, Michelle has been generous enough to write for us before on the subject -- and for those of you who don't like to read, she's even offered her wisdom in webinar form. In fact, it's not to late to catch some of her upcoming FOSS webinars, including takes on open source blogging tools and CMS systems Drupal, Joomla, and Plone.
How To: Put Technology To Use: April 2008
Your guide to the resources that will help you put technology to work for your cause, this month with an environmental focus. Earth Day may have passed, but that's no reason not to try a little harder every day. Think of what will happen when everybody does.
Determine Your Impact
> It seems that if you run an environmental website, you need to offer a calculator of some sort. For overall carbon footprint, we liked the offering from Redefining Progress best -- and not just because it said we would need only 2.2 Earths if everybody lived like us, as opposed to the 2.7 reported by Earth Day Network. That's half an Earth! If you're short on time, Zerofootprint.net wants to organize the like-minded, social network style, but you can just use their One Minute Calculator.
> Then there are the more specific calculators. The Sierra Club lets you determine not only how much fuel, but how much money you would save if your current car met proposed new standards. There's even a Call to Action after you use it, so it's a good model, as well. And if you're concerned about your diet, you can score it for Health, Environmental Impact, and Animal Welfare. Just be warned that, apparently, eating anything at all is bad for the environment.
> Need more environmental calculations in your life? Suite101.com has a long list.
Use Less Energy
> After using those calculators, you may be a little concerned -- that's the sensation they're supposed to inspire, after all. 2.2 Earths? That's at least 1.2 Earths too many -- and even then, Shanghai, Houston, and Mexico City will still be smoggy.
> So, let's do something. Greener Choices breaks down household energy use by function. The Department of Energy has a list of ways to cut those numbers down, while Energy Star's site helps you find new, more efficient products.
> One of the hobgoblins of energy waste is Phantom Power Drain (which even sounds like a hobgoblin's name). If you walk into your living room at night and see blinking lights or the steady glow of LEDs, you're losing power, up to 15% of your total bill. Belkin's new Conserve power strip -- it comes with a remote control! -- can help stop PPD.
Make Every Day Earth Day
> Getting a new computer at work? Congratulations! Now, recycle that old one. Earth 911 and the Environmental Protection Agency both have information on how to keep your old compy from being dumped on India like a tech support phone call.
> You should also check out GreenPrint. Their software promises to eliminate "unwanted pages saving paper, ink, money, and millions of trees." 2.2 Earths worth of trees, we hope.
> Closer to home, you can get ready to ride your bike to work with these tips. Going out for sushi (on your bike)? Don't forget this wallet-sized list of seafood you should avoid. Oh, and: pack a lunch! Take-out litter generates 1.8 million tons of trash every year in the U.S.
How To: Put Technology to Use: March 2008
Your guide to resources that will help you put technology to work for your cause.
Contribute to the Rebuilding Effort
> Probably the biggest mental barrier to donating online is wondering whether or not your money will be put to good use. During the NTC, we worked with people from both the Community Center of St. Bernard Parish and the Lower 9th Ward Neighborhood Empowerment Network Association (NENA). Both groups are doing good work at ground level.
> Since it just wouldn't be right for us not to mention a social networking site at least once, check out the Facebook Cause set up for the Community Center.
> You can learn about more Louisiana nonprofits at LouisianaRebuilds.info, an aggregator of local resources and stories, and the Lousiana Association of Nonprofits (LANO), whose name pretty much speaks for itself.
Volunteer in New Orleans
> Patricia Jones, Executive Director of NENA, told NTC attendees, "We are grateful for infusions of volunteers and support to help us catch our next wind... If you people know how to help us, bring it on." Dozens of NPTechies donated their time before the NTC at the Day of Service, and we thank them all for their commitment and passion.
> If you'd like to volunteer your time, you might want to take a look at Volunteer New Orleans, the Greater New Orleans Volunteer Connection, or, for a more specific project, the St. Bernard Project. You can find more resources on LouisianaRebuilds.info.
Connect with New Orleanians
> We're pretty convinced that you can't fake being from New Orleans -- where the four seasons "are crawfish, shrimp, crab and erster" -- but it can't hurt to pick up a little of the local dialect. There's even a documentary film about it!
> While we like to think of social networks in terms of Facebook and Twitter these days, it's helpful to remember the term's origins: NPR reports on social clubs in New Orleans. In fact, you might want to explore the entire "Katrina & Recovery" section of NPR.org.
> And, while it might be a little low-tech for some, you should consider -- or encourage your children to consider -- becoming a pen pal.
How To: Put Technology to Use (February 2008)
Your guide to resources that will help you put technology to work for your cause.
Get the Most Out of Your Online Campaign
> While more Americans are learning about this year's electioneering from their daily newspaper than the Internet, social media tools have gained traction. Wired recently took a look at one campaign's use of new technologies in "The Tech of Obamamania". You can get the NPTech slant on the election from Care2's Election Blog.
> Of course, most nonprofits aren't trying to win an election, but many of the fundraising and organizational principals remain the same. And while there's been a lot of buzz about the death of social networking -- be sure the check out Slate's "The Facebook Philanthropos" -- Beth Kanter assures us that the reports are overblown. We just need to think more strategically about how we're using all the new toys.
> In that spirit, you may want to take a look at the online campaigning overview on CNN -- yes, CNN! (Sometimes, sound bites are helpful.) -- before checking out two posts on the Wild Apricot blog: "7 Tips to Make Your Charity Badge a Success" and "Online Fundraising 101". Network for Good's study on "The Wired Fundraiser" is also an excellent resource.
Organize Volunteers Online
> Having trouble keeping your supporters' version of your message in line? Beth's got you covered: "My Organization's Fundraiser Was Abducted by Aliens!"
> And while you could just start your own social networking site, with your own rules, wouldn't be easier just to get the recording of Peter Deitz's excellent webinar, "Sharing the Message: How to Work Effectively with Your Organization's Wired Fundraisers". (Might this be a good use of NTEN's new webinar MultiPasses? Yes, it might.)
> Wait, what's that you say? You have to organize real, live people? Oh, boy. Fortunately, NTEN Members enjoy a discount on Mission Research's GiftWorks, which has a Volunteer Management component. The World Cares Center offers trainings for working with volunteers in disaster situations. And Coyote Communications has a good section on volunteer management, including an overview of available software options.
> If you just want to volunteer yourself, you've got a lot of options, like Network for Good, VolunteerMatch, and the unfortunately named Nabuur.com.
Rock YouTube
> So, you want to rock YouTube harder than the dueling 1984 parody ads created by rogue supporters of the Clinton and Obama campaigns? First, get your organization signed up for YouTube's nonprofit program. Then, follow Holly Ross's advice and check out Project for Awesome.
> This guy's got an oh-so-meta series on gaining YouTube subscribers. You can also dress up your video using one of the many tools available or by following some tongue-in-cheek advice from across the pond. Just take care: as NPR reports, somebody may put the "anti" in "social media" by critiquing your video.
Twitter, KickApps, and 0 to 2000: A Trio of Tools and Tips You Can Use Today
Flickr photo by red5standingbyLet's kick off February with some advice for getting your organization (or yourself) advocating for your cause with free social media tools.
First, there's Twitter. This tool should be familiar to the NTEN community by now, but just in case you're tuning in for the first time, Twitter is a free social networking/micro-blogging tool that allows you to submit short updates to your network via the web, your mobile device, or a third-party application; you also receive short updates from the network you're "following."
How to apply it to your mission:
- Update your volunteers, constituents, and friends with the latest news about your cause (a bill, a candidate, a campaign, an event, etc.).
- Organize attendees or participants at an event or project in real-time.
- Engage a community on a personal level -- Beth Kanter leveraged her network on Twitter to help her win the Giving Challenge.
You may want to read this article on Read/Write Web about Twitter's emergence as a viable communications platform. Note the helpful information and considerations for how to use it!
How To: Put Technology to Use
Your guide to resources that will help you put technology to work for your cause.
Prepare for the NTC
> First, register before January 15th to get the best price. Then you may want to book a room at the Sheraton New Orleans at our special rate.
> Now that we've gotten that out of the way, you should start thinking about what you're going to do at the NTC. Start with the agenda to figure out which sessions you can't miss. Learn about the Day of Service. Submit something to our video contest. Finally, brush up on your dance moves so you can impress on the floor during our After Party at New Orleans' legendary Tipatina's.
> And, of course, we will be in New Orleans. The NOMTC has a pretty nice web site, packed with tourist information, as does the Convention and Visitors Bureau.
> Some suggestions: Check out the Ellis Marsalis Quartet. Attend a basketball game (so the team doesn't have to move). Find culinary bliss at John Besh's August.
Map Your Data
> Google moves one step closer to making desktop applications obsolete with the release of the Google Chart API. The Wild Apricot blog offers a tutorial and a list of sites currently using the API.
> Last month, we mentioned that Many Eyes offered a visualization of the Mitchell report on steroid use in MLB. This month's cool mappings include "Average Time Spent Commuting by State" and "The 2007 International Privacy Ranking". Learn how to use Many Eyes yourself.
Use Twitter
> Nate Ritter recently blogged about "Using Twitter to Help Communities". More advice is sure to come from NTEN Member Britt Bravo's recent Net2ThinkTank query, "How Can Nonprofits Use Twitter? Should They Even Bother?"
> Lifehack.org offers "5 Ways to Use Twitter for Good". You may also be curious how reporters use Twitter. More practially, you should visit VideoJug for advice on the actual basics of using Twitter.
How To: Put Technology to Use
Your guide to resources that will help you put technology to work for your cause.
Save Money on Hardware
> Care2 has published an excellent guide to virtualization software. Why have multiple computers when you can run multiple operating systems on a single piece of hardware?
> You might also consider repurposing older hardware. Box Populi lets you podcast from effectively ancient computers. And Debian Linux has published a series of guides on how to set up everything from a webcam server to a firewall on less than top-of-the-line systems.
> Of course, you may just need to get rid of decrepit systems. You can donate your outdated hardware, or, if you're feeling frisky, try to make it into the "Top 40 Most Creative Uses for Old Gadgets".
Create an Online Survey
> Third Sector New England's guide offers a number of best practices for online surveys. Perhaps the best advice: "Be prepared to cut survey questions mercilessly."
> The Institute for Citizen-Centred Service has published an overview of online survey tools. Another report focused on web-only tools (PDF) has been put together by NPower New York.
> Here at NTEN, we use SurveyMonkey.com. Have you taken the IT Staffing Survey yet? It closes on November 30th.
Hold a Virtual Meeting
> The foreign ministers of Great Britain, the Maldives, and Malta recently held a joint virtual press conference on climate change in Second Life. In fact, SL seems to be very popular as a meeting space these days. Here's a guide on how to do it yourself.
If Second Life kind of weirds you out, read how NTEN member Don Wedd is setting up a virtual meeting space for the National Community Tax Coalition.
How To: Put Technology To Use
Understand Open APIs
> So, Kintera and Convio have released APIs (see Community Buzz, below). Great! What's that mean? "Advanced Purling Instruction"? "Automated Princess Interrogator"? Something else entirely?
> If you missed it, NTEN hosted an introductory session on Application Programming Interfaces at the 2007 NTC; the session slides are still available. We also published a report on Open APIs following our highly successful debate last year.
> You should also check out Care2's "Primer on APIs and Databases" and John Maeda's extended metaphor on the subject.
> Once you've got the basics, read "Can We Talk? Innovative Responses to the Data Integration Challenge", an exhaustively researched report on more than just APIs, by Dahna Goldstein and Jennifer Bagnell Stuart.
> By the time you've finished, you may want to sign the Integration Proclamation.
Choose Open Source Software> Michelle Murrain and the Nonprofit Open Source Initiative (NOSI) have just published an update to their excellent "Choosing and Using Free and Open Source Software: A primer for nonprofits". If your organization is considering a move to Open Source software (or if you want to push it in that direction), you should give this well-written guide a read.
> While it targets forprofits, Si Chen's presentation on "Why Enterprises Are Adopting Open Source Applications" is full of information, including case studies; Frank Scavo summarizes some of it on his blog.
> If you're feeling especially ambitious, check out open source guru Eric Raymond's paper on the economics behind FOSS, "The Magic Cauldron".