This post has been contributed by Lance Trebesch and Taylor Robinson from TicketPrinting.com
4a. Wiki Pages
A “wiki” is a website that can be easily edited by its users. The most popular wiki today is Wikipedia which is an online encyclopedia where people from all over the word update and add information. However, wiki pages can be used by your nonprofit in innovative ways to do more than simply provide basic information found on Wikipedia. Your organization can create its own wiki pages for topics that it wants supporters to learn more about or for any topic that is critical to the overall cause or purpose of the organization. These pages will be vital tools for your nonprofit because they create community and encourage personal involvement in the organizations cause. Furthermore, few nonprofits have started creating their own wiki pages so there is a great opportunity to create unique content. Your nonprofit can take advantage of wiki pages in two ways:
1. It can create its own wiki page(s).
2. It can add information to Wikipedia.
Create Your Own Wiki Page
What should you make your wiki page(s) about? To answer this question you should consider your organizations overall objective and identify what specific topical areas are important. Wiki pages create involvement and provoke discussion. Do your selected topics facilitate this type of discussion? You want to select a specific topic that people are passionate about and are likely to make a contribution. Remember that a wiki page is only going to be useful if people become involved!
How do you start a wiki page? JotSpot is the leading provider for users to create wiki pages. Recently purchased by Google, JotSpot provides users with limited or no knowledge of html code some incredible benefits.
Benefits:
- Rich Media- Most wiki pages today contain text only. JotSpot allows for pictures, spreadsheets and calendars which will be useful for conveying your topic.
- Editing- When a wiki page is edited, previous versions are saved for easy recovery.
- Graphical Interface- One of the most important benefits of wiki pages is their ease of use. Anyone who knows how to operate Microsoft Word will have adequate knowledge to create and update a wiki page. This means that supporters will easily be able to make contributions and edits to the page.
- Attachments- Excel, Word and email documents can be attached to wiki pages which will allow for more rich content to be added to the site.
- Permissions/Security- You can set the desired security settings to decide who is authorized to view and edit your site.
Edit or Add Information to Wikipedia
How can Wikipedia be beneficial to your organization? Making edits and contributions to Wikipedia will help optimize your websites search position. Your nonprofit organization can make changes on Wikipedia that provide readers with more accurate and up-to-date information on your topic and a link to your website. Komen for the Cure is an example of a nonprofit organization that has effectively used Wikipedia to provide useful information while promoting its cause.
4b. Online Calendars
Online calendars can be used to inform supporters of important upcoming events and fundraisers. Calendars are easy to update and should be incorporated into your website. Those charged with the task of generating awareness and creating genuine interest in a fundraising campaign know how difficult this can be. While an online calendar will not promote a fundraiser on its own, it is another online channel that should be utilized to help keep supporters current. Lions Clubs International, Rotary International, and Beating the Odds Foundation along with almost every major nonprofit organization today have online calendars (calendar types vary).
How do I create my own online calendar? There are several high quality and free online calendar providers available. Google and Yahoo both have free applications (Google Calendar example below) and are a good choice for most nonprofits. Trumba calendars have many additional features including the ability for visitors to send automatic email reminders of upcoming events, forward the event to a friend, download event information, or sign up for an event. The service costs $99.95 per month and is more appropriate for larger organizations. It is recommended that a free online provider be used to get a feel for how the calendar will work for your organization prior to consideration of a paid service.