Imagine choosing an expensive high-end smartphone with dozens of fancy features—a high-resolution camera, advanced productivity apps, and complex settings—but never bothering to get educated about those features, only using it to make calls and send texts. While some people do this without feeling stressed or thinking about the wasted dollars, in a nonprofit setting this… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Nonprofit Technology
Five Initial Steps on the Nonprofit AI Journey
Trying new technology can feel like exploring a new place. Nonprofits are at a crossroads with artificial intelligence (AI). AI seems exciting but it is also risky. Nonprofits need to think carefully as they move forward. AI is not just about new tools for nonprofits. It changes how they can think about operations and processes…. Read more »
Your Nonprofit is Being Hacked Right Now
Regardless of size or assets, your nonprofit is either being hacked right now or an attempt is being made to hack it. Attacks aimed at taking over networked systems, gathering data or both are a constant reality. If your organization has a website, a computer, a phone or tablet connected to the internet, you are… Read more »
The Next Wave of Technology for Nonprofits
Marnie Webb, CEO at Caravan Studios, recently asked nonprofit tech folks via Twitter “I’m giving a talk on the next wave of technology for NGOs. What groups of technology would you include? And why?”. I think Marnie was asking about tools or technologies, like Artificial Intelligence or Machine Learning. Thinking beyond the tools, the question… Read more »
Digital Crisis Counseling – Technology Meets the Hotline
Nonprofits provide digital crisis counseling services using online chat or text via a computer or mobile device. These services augment the traditional telephone counseling hotline services provided by organizations that support survivors of domestic or intimate partner violence, sexual assault, human trafficking and many other issues. While phone hotlines have been in use for decades,… Read more »
Nonprofit Websites: Five Ways to Keep Them Alive
A website is the most important part of your nonprofit’s presence online, followed by email and social media. It is the online transactional hub where people can learn about your work in a deep way, make donations, sign up for your email list, review volunteer opportunities and much more. Without an interactive, up-to-date website, you… Read more »
An Analog Social Media Exercise To Improve Content
For the Professional Social Media class I teach at Sonoma State University, I created an exercise designed to help folks practice both content creation and looking at metrics. Nonprofit’s can use this at a staff meeting or other gathering to help people improve their content creation skills as well as their skills with looking at… Read more »
Impact Leadership & Technology in Nonprofits: Four Traits of Leaders
I am frequently asked to speak to nonprofit leaders on the topic “What leadership qualities support effective use of technology?”. Here are the four traits I share that I have found to be vital to impact leadership. Impact Leadership means demonstrating leadership in the service of generating greater impact for your organization. I have witnessed… Read more »
Nobody Owes Your Nonprofit Software
At a recent seminar, a member of the audience, a nonprofit staff member, was visibly angry that “none of the discounted databases on TechSoup come with free technical support”. While I can understand how frustrating it is to try to learn how to use the mostly non-intuitive database programs out there, I was struck by… Read more »
The Arts and Mobile Marketing
I am honored to be featured in a new special report from Musical America Worldwide entittled "Mobile Marketing: The Arts In Motion". The report includes wonderfully helpful information for performing arts organizations about engaging audiences via mobile, mobile options, vendors and – best of all – case studies of organizations using mobile. Analytics and Texting… Read more »