Wild Apricot
OCTOBER 30, 2008
Wild Apricot non-profit technology blog is sponsored by Bonasource, creators of Wild Apricot software. Our blog provides ideas and advice to small non-profits — charitable organizations, professional and business associations, social and recreational clubs, student and alumni organizations, churches, online activists, communities, and many others.
Wild Apricot
SEPTEMBER 23, 2008
As you may know, the Wild Apricot blog about non-profit technology is hosted and sponsored by Wild Apricot software. The main focus of our blog is technology help and advice to millions of small non-profits. Among the subscribers to this blog are many people using Wild Apricot software, so we also do occasional posts about Wild Apricot software updates. Even if you are not interested in Wild Apricot software yourself, we hope you can take a quick look.
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Wild Apricot
DECEMBER 24, 2008
About Wild Apricot Our blog provides technology advice for small non-profits. Many subscribers are also Wild Apricot software clients, so we do monthly blog posts about our software. Wild Apricot simplifies non-profit management for thousands of professional and business associations, clubs, charitable organizations, churches, activist groups and communities.
Wild Apricot
NOVEMBER 27, 2008
Our blog provides technology-related ideas and advice for small non-profits - professional and business associations, clubs, charitable organizations, churches, activist groups and communities. Many subscribers are also Wild Apricot software clients, so we do occasional blog posts about our software updates. Wild Apricot smart software simplifies life for people in associations and non-profits.
Wild Apricot
OCTOBER 30, 2008
NTEN Office Hours puts the experience and skills of nonprofit technology experts at your service in a free-access online question-and-answer chat session. The expert volunteers cover a wide range of tech topics of special interest to nonprofits: online, in real time.( read more
Wild Apricot
NOVEMBER 5, 2008
Technology and design help, in particular, are becoming easier than ever for nonprofit organizations to find. Here are two new sources for recruiting a designer or technology professional to help your nonprofit, pro bono, with a specific project: Idealist.org has.( While many useful sites aim to bring together volunteers with nonprofits in need of help, a recent trend seems to be toward job-specific matches.
Wild Apricot
JUNE 27, 2008
We discuss issues and trends in modern web technologies that help your organization achieve more with less. Published Friday, June 06, 2008 8:13 PM by Rebecca. June 6, 2008 10:41 PM. June 8, 2008 11:03 AM. RSS feed: We write on web technology and social media tools for non-profits - charities, associations, clubs and other organizations. Ease of use - technologies that delight you and those that frustrate you. Michael Steins NON-PROFIT TECHNOLOGY BLOG.
Wild Apricot
DECEMBER 21, 2008
Tags: General non-profit interest Volunteers Non-profit technology nptech
Wild Apricot
DECEMBER 1, 2008
Nonprofits looking to start using social media as a marketing tool with find a wealth of sound advice online, but putting the pieces together into a solid strategy? That's the real challenge. No one simple strategy will work for every nonprofit group. (In In fact, trying to give step-by-step "one size fits all" directions for using social media is a lot like trying to teach a shy first-time party guest how to mingle with strangers.)
Wild Apricot
OCTOBER 27, 2008
Since the earliest days of world exploration, maps have told compelling stories to people who may never see the places depicted. Topographical lines on paper only go a small way to recreate the traveller's experience, however, and the rest depends on the viewers' imagination. Now, personalized and interactive maps are stretching those boundaries, and helping nonprofits to bring their messages home.
Wild Apricot
OCTOBER 22, 2008
It seems like a dozen different social-media sites start up every day, so it can be a challenge to know where to put your online outreach efforts. Twitter is one real-time networking platform that's clearly floated to the top of the social-media pool, however, and it's a great place for any nonprofit to dive in.
Wild Apricot
OCTOBER 20, 2008
If you've checked your website statistics lately, you may have noticed an increase in the number of visitors who come to your site by way of image search results pages — Google Image Search, MSN Live Image Search, and so on. Webmasters are of mixed opinions about image search traffic, but there are some things you can do to make the most of the growing trend for image search, and its potential to bring new website readers. But why is the quality of image search traffic even a topic for debate?
Wild Apricot
SEPTEMBER 16, 2008
The original intention of sites such as Twitter may have been purely social, but like many Web 2.0 tools, it has evolved in the hands of its users. This time last year, the Canadian Marketing Association saw Twitter as a new toy for the tech savvy Millennial , “an easy, non committal way to keep tabs and staying emotionally close to our friends with low effort, risk and intrusion.†Within a few months, however, that tune had changed to How Tweet It Is.
Wild Apricot
DECEMBER 31, 2008
Tags: Blogging Google Analytics Non-profit technology Non-profit Communications nptech
Guilt by Association
DECEMBER 22, 2008
These two folks from Forrester Research (Charlene has since moved on to a solo life) wrote the defining social technology strategy book for the year. Their fundamental contribution to the world is the Social Technographics Ladder , which identifies peoples’ behavior in their use of social technology better than any before. Technology choices come LAST. But it also provides compelling specific examples of how social technologies are changing life today.
Associations Live
SEPTEMBER 30, 2008
TechnologyJust wondering.why do I feel like I absolutely have to answer my cell phone, no matter what I'm doing, no matter where I am? It's controlling me. It's disruptive and it affects my concentration. I am putting myself back into the drivers seat. If I am on another phone, doing something else, trying to get a project done - leave me a message, that will work just fine!
Wild Apricot
DECEMBER 11, 2008
Want to learn more about Web 2.0 and the latest social media trends? Convio is hosting a free webinar with Emily Riley , Senior Analyst from JupiterResearch, and social media blogger Beth Kanter of Beth's Blog. In only 75 minutes, attendees will learn about the latest findings on the use of social media, real-world examples of effective social media campaigns and how nonprofits can leverage "word of mouth" marketing techniques on 2009.
Wild Apricot
SEPTEMBER 17, 2008
Looking for new ways to use technology to create positive social change, they're calling for your ideas: What are the big problems we can solve by starting small? Social Innovation Camp — “an experiment in using social techology for social change†— will be bringing together some of the UK's best software developers and designers with social innovators, for one weekend in December.
Wild Apricot
DECEMBER 3, 2008
Search engine optimization is all about helping people to find your website when they search for information online. Clearly, you want your website to show up at the top of the search engine results pages when potential supporters look for information about your organization or your cause -- but many small nonprofits simply don't have the budget for an SEO / SEM company to help make that happen.( read more
Wild Apricot
NOVEMBER 28, 2008
Checking for and fixing broken links on your organization's website can be tedious and time-consuming, but it's a vital task for anyone who manages a website. You can save time and effort by preventing a lot of those broken links, however. The key is to be a bit strategic when you're choosing which page you'll link to, and double-checking that your link is correctly formed before you ever hit the "Publish" button.( read more
Wild Apricot
NOVEMBER 23, 2008
First-time nonprofit managers can often use a bit of guidance from more experienced colleagues, as well as the answers to specific questions. The problem is, there just aren't enough mentors to go around, and perhaps this is especially so in the nonprofit sector where resources are stretched to the limit. What's the solution? Well, Third Sector New England believes it's found a partial solution at any rate.( read more
Wild Apricot
NOVEMBER 20, 2008
Choosing software for your organization is a lot like choosing where to set up your office. Basically, there are two choices: you can buy your own office building, or you can rent space in someone else's building. And it's the same with your organization's software. But which is the better choice for you - self-installed software or a hosted package? read more
Wild Apricot
NOVEMBER 18, 2008
If you're running any kind of organization, a suite of office software is essential — at the very least, you need a fairly good word-processing program, a spreadsheet application, and some sort of presentation software. Feature-rich Microsoft Office has made that particular market its own for at least the past decade, but now a few strong alternative software suites are fast gaining ground.( read more
Wild Apricot
NOVEMBER 14, 2008
Internet users are getting used to — and expecting, even demanding — greater levels of interactivity in the websites they visit. They're looking for websites that are much more than a simple digital publication. Websites that engage them in some active way, even if it's simply to leave a comment on a news item, subscribe to get updates or a newsletter, or speak up in a quick opinion poll. Websites, ideally, that give users a way to connect and interact with each other online.
Wild Apricot
NOVEMBER 3, 2008
Online seminars can offer an affordable option for professional training, ideally suited to nonprofits who don't have the travel budget to send staff and volunteers to major conferences and workshops.( read more
Wild Apricot
OCTOBER 15, 2008
Did you catch the buzz? Today is Blog Action Day , when bloggers around the world are asked to bring attention to one social issue. Last year it was the environment; this year, it's poverty. It's the kind of easy feel-good meme that the Internet loves -- and that can reward participating blogs with a boost in web traffic -- but what are the real rewards for the cause? At first glance, one would be forgiven for wondering.
Wild Apricot
OCTOBER 9, 2008
Media outlets need to enrich the syndicated wire service stories with local content if they are to attract readers and advertisers — but few have the budget, these days, for a cadre of local reporters to seek out and report on the "local angle" of a story. Nonprofits working on the ground in a community do have that local content to offer, but perhaps no way to distribute it. Enter good2gether , a new web service that wants to play matchmaker.
Wild Apricot
SEPTEMBER 30, 2008
Arguably the most influential of social bookmarking sites, Digg.com is often both criticized and commended for having a narrow topic focus. With big changes in the works at Digg right now, what are the odds that the site might broaden its horizons, and add a separate category for nonprofits and social change? A fair number of solid stories from the nonprofit sector are submitted to Digg every day — but those stories tend to get lost in the crowd. Demographics , to begin with. High visibility.(
Wild Apricot
SEPTEMBER 25, 2008
Many of us are familiar with the Meals on Wheels concept - to deliver nutritious and affordable meals to people in need: seniors, convalescents, and people living with disabilities. In desperate need of a new facility in which to prepare all those meals, Calgary Meals on Wheels has just launched a major capital campaign - and a new website. We asked Leann Hackman-Carty to tell us about it.( read more
Wild Apricot
SEPTEMBER 24, 2008
Are the people who are visiting your website really the audience that you're trying to target? The more you know about your website visitors, the better you can tailor your content to attract the audience you want to reach — but for nonprofits and associations with a limited budget, market research can be a tough challenge.
Wild Apricot
SEPTEMBER 22, 2008
Hundreds of new web-based applications come on the market every year, so there's likely to be an affordable application for almost any administrative task -- with no need to download, install, maintain and update the same software on each of the computers in your organization. It's an approach that makes sense for many small and medium-sized businesses, and perhaps even more so for nonprofits and associations with limited resources. But how do you go about finding the tools you need?
GlowGlobally
MARCH 20, 2008
February 14, 2008 – Nearly 50 leading U.S. trillion in assets today released a climate change action plan at the United Nations that will boost investments in energy efficiency and clean energy technologies and require tougher scrutiny of carbon-intensive investments that may pose long-term financial risks. As the report above illustrates, 2008 is shaping up to be no different. GrowGlobally.org.
Guilt by Association
DECEMBER 8, 2008
A few days later, Jeremiah Owyang of Forrester sounded my wake-up call : Now that social technologies are becoming mainstream, do your crisis communications plans account for them? Both plans employ the communications technologies that we had seven years ago: Mainstream media, websites, e-mail and phone. Steve did the publishing because he knew his doctors didn’t want to learn about blogging technologies during this crisis.
High Context
DECEMBER 11, 2008
I have a new teleconference recording available for purchase and download, called Creating High-value Partnerships with Technology Providers. This teleconference was based on my fifteen years of experience in working and consulting on partnerships between organizations and their technology providers.
Off Stage
DECEMBER 13, 2008
13, 2008 - Holiday Greetings! 2008 Christmas Poem. 14, 2008 - RE: Holiday Greetings! Technology. Off Stage. 12.00. Normal 0. false false false. EN-US X-NONE X-NONE. What we have here is the Christmas cat, friend of morning sun, which loves her back. She explores, joyfully, the Christmas tree, its glistening lights and ribbons blowing free-. ly in the warm air. She reaches out. to touch it, curious about. how such things can dance and sway.
Off Stage
DECEMBER 7, 2008
7, 2008 - Building a Better Board of Directors for your association. I tried and tried last night to put the latest blog article on this site, but technology refused to cooperate. Technology. Off Stage.
GlowGlobally
NOVEMBER 13, 2008
Architects, engineers, planners, developers, fabricators, academics and specialty subcontractors attended seminars and workshops covering an array of diverse approaches to the technologies, techniques and philosophies inherent in the realization of tall buildings and mega projects around the world. GrowGlobally.org. global association strategy, regional planning and local infrastructure to grow your business. About. Channels. MarCom. Market & Biz Plan. Meetings. Membership. Products.
Guilt by Association
SEPTEMBER 8, 2008
My team at the Massachusetts Medical Society has been working on social media technologies for more than two years. While these percentages are relatively small in an absolute sense, they have been robust enough to fuel the worldwide social technology engine today. We will focus on our social technology efforts on young physicians in online communities. Social media technologies can help MMS achieve our objectives and fulfill our mission.
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