Web 2.0 Training for Nonprofits

I just realized that I hadn't uploaded the Online Marketing 201 training PowerPoint, so here it is for you to use. It covers how to register in local search, what recommendation portals to pay attention to, and what Web 2.0 sites are appropriate to use to find interested volunteers.

Free Online Marketing Classes

Come one, come all, and learn how to adjust your web content and online opportunities to attract more volunteers!

Online Marketing 101: Can Volunteers Searching on the Internet Find You?

Learn how to drive volunteers to your website and online opportunities.

Unless you work on optimizing your Volunteer Center’s website and marketing it to search engines (Google, Yahoo, Ask.com or MSN/Live), volunteers searching the web WILL NOT FIND YOU. The steps are easy,
and you’ll leave with steps and templates to get started.

You can register for the training that works best for your schedule at the following link: https://pointsoflight.webex.com/meet/kwatier

Online Marketing 201: Benchmarking your Site, Registering with Local Search and Using Web 2.0 Communities

Have you attended the basic Search Engine Marketing Training and you're ready for more? You will learn about how you measure how effective your website is at attracting traffic (based on how well your competitors are doing), and then dive into how to register for local search engines and how you can use online communities like Facebook, Gather.com,and Craigslist.org to promote your volunteer opportunities.

You can register for the training that works best for your schedule at the following link: https://pointsoflight.webex.com/meet/kwatier

What is all the Yelping About?

So what is Yelp? Founded in 2004, it is a social networking site where people can add reviews about businesses that have interacted with, and frankly it's growth in traffic should make local non-profits/Volunteer Centers think about how to get involved.

This June, more than 1.4 million people visited its site, an increase of 124 percent over June of last year, according to comScore. The site boasts more than million reviews.

So how do you get involved?
Visit yelp.com and type in your Volunteer Center/nonprofit's name in the "type of business" box, and then fill in your city. You should see your nonprofit listed, and the first step is to claim your listing, by clicking "edit business listing" and check that you are the business owner. You can also upload photos. There is also a help page that will introduce you to how Yelp works and how as the owner of the non-profit, you should interact with your reviewers.

How can Yelp help me get more volunteers?
1. Your nonprofit is probably already listed on Yelp, and you should be aware of any current reviews about your nonprofit posted online. So you should check Yelp out just to see what folks are saying about you.
2. It's an easy way to create another link to your website.
3. And if that wasn't enough for you to get excited, Yelp also has widgets that you can add to your existing website encouraging your website visitors to leave reviews. I'm envisioning an easy way to get great testimonials to use on your marketing brochures....Simply find your listing and click on "link to this page".

Other local search sites to pay attention to:
Ok. Yelp is one of many local search sites that you should visit and check to see if your local nonprofit is listed. The other big traffic sites you should check are:

• CitySearch’s (15.7 million visitors this June),
• Yahoo’s Local Guide (29.5 million unique monthly visitors)

It takes just a few seconds to update your non-profit's online listing in these directories, and it is yet another way to capture people's interest in volunteering.

Work for Google Part time in Your Own Community

Own a camera and looking for an easy part time job?

You can work for Google by helping them document the world!

(All you have to do is) buy a digital camera and a notebook, and walk down the street. Take pictures of every business you see. Then write down the address, hours of operation, method of payment, and a couple of other things. Oh, and be sure to get the contact information for the business.

Then go to the library, get on a computer (if you don’t have one at home), and put this information into a database. The ever-benevolent king of all Internet advertising will thank you for your efforts with $2 for every business you upload and another $8 once they confirm your information is correct.

The whole article about the deal is from a Search Engine Watch article.

The Value of Registering with Local Searches

The latest buzz in Search Engine Marketing (SEM) is local search. As a non-profit, should you focus on these search engines? Absolutely! Why?

63% of US Internet users (109 million people) performed a local search in July of 2006.

(according to a September 2006 comScore analysis). It's also easy and free for non-profits to register. I would suggest that non-profits looking for volunteers register or post to the following sites:
AskCity
Google maps
Yahoo local
Craigslist
Insider Pages. You join, then add your business.
True Local

With some of these sites, it's important to re-visit them to see what is being said about your organization. Insider pages allows for users to leave reviews, and you want to make sure that the comments that are left are positive about the work you are doing!