WordPress!
The one word you need to know to instantly create a website and blog.
Go to wordpress.com and create your website/blog = weblog in seconds. When you know more, WordPress gives you more options at wordpress.org. That’s it, GO!
Really, that is it. WordPress and the WordPress community has already posted answers to all your questions. If you need help finding the answers, post your questions in comments.
One of my favorite pictures is of my nieces and nephews, Kelsey, Jeannine, Nelson and Erica, in Halloween costumes. Erica, the Easter Bunny, is holding the tail of her cousin Cat woman. Three year old Erica wanted to be an Easter Bunny and her support system, directed by her mother, took action to make it happen in the same way they took action to help her become a doctor.
Erica’s godfather, after learning she wanted to be a doctor, had her name, Dr. Erica Patrice Ruger, carved into a 3 feet wooden name plate for her 13th birthday. Dr. Ruger still has her name plate and will complete her obstetrics and gynecology residency at the University of Texas Medical School in Houston, June 2010. Clearly Erica was a good student and is a good doctor but she needed her support system to encourage her possibilities.
35th Pastoral Anniversary Benefit Tribute Gala features Legendary Gospel Singer Tramaine Hawkins
More and more churches are using technology to spread the word about their missions. Grace Baptist Church, Mt. Vernon, NY use the technology Power of The Pew to create and maintain its website, stream services, stay in touch with congregants, share the ministries of the church and announce the celebration of the 35th Pastoral Anniversary of the Rev. Dr. W. Franklyn Richardson.
Members use information technology and social media to schedule meetings and invite family, friends and the community to join them for two weeks of anniversary activities which includes the grand opening of their third housing tower, adding another 133 units of affordable housing in Mt. Vernon; community night service and a black tie benefit gala, featuring legendary gospel singer Tramaine Hawkins, in honor of Dr. Richardson on April 16th for 35 years of servant leadership at Grace.
The gala, an anniversary issue of the church’s magazine Inside Grace and other activities will benefit two institutions created by Dr. Richardson: Grace Community Development Corporation and Grace Educational Trust. A complete schedule of anniversary events and gala tickets are available at www.gracechurchtoday.org.
Photo by Adria Richards: WordPress MeetUpNYC WordCamp, November 14-15, 2009
What is MeetUp? Wikipedia describes Meetup as “an online social networking portal that facilitates offline group meetings in various localities around the world.”
Meetup.com says its goal is a “Meetup Everywhere about Most Everything…We help people use the internet to get off the internet to meetup in person in their local community. Meetups make a difference in people’s lives and can change the world. Meetups help members find and join groups with a common interest.”
Over 700 attendees along with WordPress co-founder Matt Mullenweg participated in WordPressNYC Meetup group’s WordCamp during a rainy weekend in November 2009.
What ever your interest there is probably a Meetup occurring near you. If not, Meetup will help you start one about your interest. Check it out because Meetup is hiring too.
A Small Change can help “Make Your Fundraising Efforts GoViral. Non-profits of all sizes
can use the same tactics to make their fundraising campaigns spread from person to person and group to group,” like bolts of lightning spreading your brand or message with each strike.
The first thing your blog must do is EMBRACE visitors with the relevant information they are looking for when they browsed the World Wide Web to find your blog. 
Second, your blog must share the expertise it was created to convey. Sharing expertise can be accomplished with news portals, studies, opinions, events, links, photos, music and videos through a cross-section of blogs, websites, social media and webnars that your site was created to convey.
Technology: Key To Nonprofit Survival
Nonprofits, particularly those small organizations, that have hung on while support for their missions dwindled to almost nothing since the needs of children and families in crises escalated with the devastation of the 2005 Indonesian Tsunami; followed by Katrina, several other hurricanes and storms, and the worst economic recession in decades. To survive, these organizations must tie their futures to technology that allows them to appeal to new bases of supporters from across the country and around the world. What technology do nonprofits need to implement to create a viable future? read more…
Nonprofits or anyone interested in a successful online presence must know that visitors to their websites decide in 4-8 seconds if they will stay or go. PC Magazine’s article Performance suggested we actually have only 4 seconds to grab a visitor’s attention before they decide to leave or stay.
So what does this all mean? It means plan to share something compelling enough to make a visitor want to learn more about what you offer in 4 seconds. Once your page loads and comes into view for a visitor, you have 4 seconds to convince your visitor to stay and learn more about what you do.
Your compelling story should indicate that you have the answer to the problem they clicked on your site to find. In 4 seconds a visitor will determine whether your website provides the relevance that will lead to the solution they are seeking.
Natural disasters and the economic recession pushed many nonprofits so far back on the back burner that some, like W. W. Law Foundation, lost almost all financial support to the extreme needs of families and children in crises. To help continue its mission to save American history like that amassed by its name sake, civil rights activist, educator and historic preservationist Westley Wallace Law, NonprofitPal identified the following resources for nonprofits to use to appeal to a new base of supporters.
photo credit: MajoraCarterGroup
NonprofitPal is a social media, new media communication and WordPress resource for nonprofits. NonprofitPal identifies the most effective strategies, technologies and tools available for nonprofits to create an online presence to successfully fundraise and carry out their missions.
Free: One hour Needs Assessment:
- Identify most pressing need
- Identify Information Technology needs
- Review technology, communication media and social media usage
- Identify which new communication media and social media will most benefit nonprofit
- Recommendation for creating an online model
Retain Pal Services To Start or Update Your Online Presence
WordPress: An Open Source Nonprofit Fit
- Introduction to Open Source and WordPress
- Benefits of WordPress Blog and Content Management Systems
- What to Consider When Choosing Wordpress
- Starting A WordPress Blog
WordPress 2-In-1 Blog/Website