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Running your organisation

The web is a wonderful tool to help with many of the processes that can make your office run better, smoother or cheaper.

Leasing software through the internet (ASPs)

An important trend for nonprofits is the growth of services that develop and deliver software tools over the internet, usually for a monthly fee. Companies that provide this service are known as application service providers or ‘ASPs’.

ASPs allow smaller nonprofits to do things with specialised and expensive software that they could only dream of before. They are particularly useful for smaller nonprofits without regular access to IT support.

Nonprofits can use ASPs to conduct the following types of services online.

• Accounting
• Website content management and maintenance
• Credit card transactions online
• Data and database management
• Donor and membership management
• Email messaging and listservs
• Event management
• Fundraising online
• Group collaboration (virtual offices)
• Planned giving
• Surveys
• Search engines
• Traffic access logs
• Volunteer recruitment
• Web discussion forums
• Activism and advocacy tools

Benefits and risks of using an ASP

Save technical resources

When you use ASP software, you’re hiring an external company to build and operate a system (in other words, outsourcing). The cost of large software packages, for instance fundraising software, might be beyond your budget. ‘Renting’ the software on a monthly basis through an ASP can be more manageable financially. ASPs can often customise their products to meet a specific nonprofit need.

Risks: Although ASPs can save technical resources, they also can reduce your control and involvement with the systems you depend on.

No software installation worries

The traditional method for installing software is to configure it on a designated computer in the office. Most ASPs make this step unnecessary because the software is accessed over the internet and is accessible from any computer with internet access. You don’t need to worry about installing or maintaining the software on your office system. This creates a double benefit: staff time saved on computer setup and an increase in the number of locations where people can be productive, and staff don’t have to be in the office to use the software.

Risks: If your internet connection goes down or your internet service provider goes out of business, you risk losing access to your data. Always maintain a way to get onto the internet if your high-speed access doesn’t work.

Keep software up to date

ASPs update their software from a central location without having your staff physically involved. Instead of installing updates, your staff can focus on learning how to use the improved software.

Risks: Automatic updates are an advantage, but not when they significantly change how the software is used. Your staff may access the software one day, only to find that menu items are in different places, or that a function they used no longer works the same way. Not being informed of the specifics of an update can cause issues with using the software.

Automate your backups

ASPs usually take care of the backups for you. Typically, the task of backing up the data that is stored in your software systems requires ongoing technical staff time and equipment resources. Many ASPs have more sophisticated and secure backup systems than most nonprofits.

Risks: There is always a risk of a backup being lost or the data corrupted. If your ASP has a poor backup process, you could lose data you thought was secure. Or, if the business closes on short notice, there may be a delay in getting access to your data, which could be a serious problem. Always have a backup copy of your data off-site to protect against disasters.

Manage your own software costs

Traditionally you pay for software once (or in some cases every year as well) and you own it. Upgrades and extra features are purchased as needed. The initial cost of the software is just the beginning, of course, as you will need to customise, maintain, and troubleshoot it often on a special computer which also must be set up and maintained. But when you use an ASP, you pay as you go, rather than having the costs all up front – more like a lease than a purchase.

Access to software expertise

When you use the services of an ASP, you can get specialised technical support to help you with training and troubleshooting.

Risks: Although ASPs provide specialised knowledge and experience, one downside could be difficulty in communicating with those technical experts. Additionally many ASPs do not have thorough knowledge about nonprofit operations. You will probably need to educate them about what your organisation does and how it works.

Enhance your data security

ASPs provide secure environments for your confidential information. Although not all ASPs ensure high levels of security, generally data is more secure with them than in most nonprofit systems.

Risks: There is a risk with any system that the ASP’s security will be compromised. See the fact sheet: How do I manage my e-security when the service is outsourced? (RTF format, size 103 KB)

Meet multiple software needs at once

When you use an ASP, you can often meet multiple needs with integrated software suites. For example, many nonprofits have more than one contact database – one for volunteers, one for donors, and one for clients – and often they can’t be combined or cross-referenced easily for searching or reporting. Some ASPs combine these functions in one integrated package that provides one report cross referencing every interaction a person has with your agency. This can give you a much clearer idea of your constituents – and your contributors. See more on customer relationship management.

One of the best software integrations that ASPs offer is the ability to combine email messaging with other tools such as credit card payment collection or event organising. Since ASPs build online tools that collect personal information for nonprofits, it’s easy to ask someone visiting your website to give you his/her email address, and then have the ASP store that email address for later use. That information can be used later for sending email updates or asking the website visitor to participate in an advocacy campaign.

Risks: Integrating may necessitate changing the way you work, especially if staff are using different systems. Now they will need to learn the new software and integrate it with the way they work. Integration also creates a ‘super system’ that will demand management. If your system had been made up of smaller, separate pieces in the past, the task of managing those systems was possibly spread between a number of staff.

Receiving news feeds (RSS)

RSS (really simple syndication) is a way to have information regularly sent to you from a website, in what's called a ‘feed’. You can receive these feeds in special RSS ‘news reader’ software, which is a bit like receiving email in your inbox. Most major online news sources use RSS to deliver content, such as the BBC, ABC, Yahoo, The New York Times and The Sydney Morning Herald.

You can collect different feeds from sites large or small such as the ABC or BBC and have them as a combined ‘News’ listing on your desktop.

If you are using Internet Explorer or Netscape as your browser you will have to install a news reader that then displays the RSS feeds from websites you select. After installing the news reader, you can add a feed from each site by clicking on the ‘XML’ orange button next to the feed. An example of an easy-to-use free reader which can be embedded in the sidebar of your browser is Sage.

However the Firefox web browser already has Sage installed (go to Toolbox folder), so if you are using this browser you can start organising RSS feeds into your desktop browser without downloading any additional software.

See also adding RSS to your website.

Finding and downloading software

The web is a great resource for finding software – both free and paid – available to run a huge range of applications.

There is a wide range of free and completely legal software on the internet which should not be confused with pirated versions of standard software e.g. illegal copies of Microsoft products.

Banking online

Almost all banks and financial institutions offer access to some of their services via the internet. Once you have a user name and PIN (personal identification number), you can do banking from anywhere, any time of the day or night. Internet banking is using the bank's internet site to do your banking.

Note: don't confuse internet banking with e-commerce , which is about selling services and receiving donations or subscriptions via your own website or email.

There are several possible ways in which you might use the internet for banking.

• Paying bills
• Paying wages
• Paying tax and super
• Transferring money between your accounts
• Researching interest rates and special products available to you

The possible benefits for nonprofits are numerous.

• Saving time physically going to a bank and standing in a queue
• Doing banking at any time from any internet connection
• Obtaining information such as account balances instantly when you want it
• Managing your various accounts and the payment of invoices more easily

Contact your bank, or look on the internet for their website, and find out:

• what internet banking facilities they offer;
• what you need to do to use them, e.g. what computer equipment and software are required;
• whether their system can deal with more than one signatory to the accounts;
• what help is available in using the system;
• if there are any charges and what they are; and 
• what their security measures are.

There are three main methods of payment with internet banking.

• Credit card – this is where you use a creditor’s e-commerce facility to pay them using a secure payment gateway.
• BPAY – if the organisation you want to pay is a registered BPAY biller (utilities, most trading government bodies and insurance companies are all registered BPAY entities) you can organise a payment via internet banking. You are usually able to pay by credit card if you wish.
• Electronic funds transfer (EFT) – instead of using BPAY you enter the payee’s account details in your internet banking module, the account you wish to transfer from and the amount to be transferred. Next time you transfer money to them they will be registered as a transfer account on your system so you won’t need to enter the account details again. EFT has the benefit of allowing you to schedule the payment for later in the week or month. See also e-commerce.

Online purchasing

Much of what organisations require in the way of office supplies and services requires little thinking or shopping around. However, when the purchasing decision requires research, such as buying a new office desk, when there is a reason to check whether a long-term supplier is still offering the best deal, or when you are looking at good flight or accommodation deals the internet can be a great time and cost saver.

Search engines, local business directory websites and Yellow Pages online , can be used to research suppliers and options. A supplier's website should contain their product lines and services plus prices and fees, delivery costs, availability, payment terms, guarantees and any after-sales service.

A growing number of suppliers provide for ordering and paying online such as airlines, car hire companies and hotels. There are many advantages to this, including discounts for ordering online and the convenience and cost-efficiency of being able to order whenever you wish, in or out of traditional office hours.

Searching for grant and funding opportunities

The internet is great resource for digging out funding opportunities for your organisation. The following sites provide links to funding opportunities:

Information on Australian Government grants

Grant programs run by the Department for Victorian Communities

OurCommunity’s independent portal for Australian nonprofits claims to be Australia's Premier Grants and Funding Resource

NSW funding programs, awards and scholarships includes all federal and local government funding opportunities for community programs.

Volunteering and the internet

Recruiting volunteers

The internet is a fast, cheap and effective tool for recruiting volunteers. You can reach people outside your normal catchment including segments of the community who traditionally have lower participation in volunteering activities. These can include people from non-English-speaking backgrounds, youth, older people and people with disabilities.

The best way is to register your organisation with an online community volunteering site. You will be able to provide basic material about your organisation, its programs and volunteer opportunities. Individuals can then provide you with an ‘expression of interest’ via email.

Here are some general guidelines for handling volunteer inquiries online.

• Make sure that your organisation is actually ready for volunteers.
• Make sure that that the skills offered by volunteers tie in with your organisational needs. Be aware of the possibility that using the expertise of volunteers with high-level tech skills can lead to solutions that exceed what your organisation needs or can manage – particularly once that volunteer has moved on.
• Provide written job descriptions and a well-thought out process for handling prospective volunteer enquiries.
• Make sure your staff know about the recruitment and can answer any queries. Within minutes of posting the position, you may have someone calling or emailing you about the position so you need to be prepared.
• Provide your email address as a way for people to get back to you. The internet audience is used to virtual connections, they prefer to click rather than ring and are even more unlikely to pick up a pen or get around to buying a stamp to apply.
• Try to answer all inquires about the position within 48 hours.
• Once the position is filled make sure it is deleted from the site.

Online advertising should not replace your regular recruitment methods but complement them.

Online volunteering

Virtual or online volunteering means providing community service electronically via the internet and a home or work computer.

Virtual volunteering can be particularly useful for those people who want to contribute to your organisation but who have time or distance constraints, lack of mobility or simply a preference not to leave the home or worksite. One disabled virtual volunteer noted that when volunteering online, ‘People see me, not the wheelchair’.

Virtual volunteers use fewer resources – generally they don’t require work space or your stationery, telephone and computer systems.

The types of work that virtual volunteers can do include the following.

• Maintaining websites
• Performing online research
• Providing technical assistance to staff and clients
• Helping with online marketing and communications
• Writing grant and sponsorship proposals
• Refining strategic and operational plans and developing budgets
• Mentoring clients in a range of activities.

Electronic client referral

Many agencies currently send referrals relating to clients by fax or email. Increasingly, however, there is a move to specialised online referral systems. Features of these include:

• full internet security;
• a reduction in the double entry of data;
• automation of responses; and 
• the ability to track the progress of a referral.

Eventually, all human service agencies will use some electronic system to refer clients.

The NSW government's ReferralLink is one of the first widely available, free and secure systems designed for human services to refer clients with. It allows over 1500 non-government organisations, ranging from childcare to welfare, to safely send referrals to each other and to NSW government agencies. For more information see http://bsdp.hsnet.nsw.gov.au/.

Staying in touch with members and clients – customer relationship management

Managing your member and client relationships is important to most nonprofit organisations. Managing these relationships can range from the simple to the sophisticated depending partly on the size of your organisation and client base, and the criticality of those relationships to your overall objectives.

The varying complexities of relationship management are matched by the varying complexities of the tools. It can be as simple as keeping an email list of your members or as complex as the systems used by banks for managing their communications and sales with customers.

Basic email

Using the internet to manage relationships with members and clients at its most basic involves keeping a list of email addresses and conducting regular mailouts to the list.

Automated email

When your email communications have become too large and complicated to carry out with a simple email software such as Outlook, you might want to look at tools that automate part of the process such as auto replies to emails you receive, or personalised bulk emails.

Keeping track of the relationship

The next step is a tool, usually a simple email management database, to track emails so you can look at the history of the relationship with an individual or group – who you have sent emails to and if and how they’ve responded. This allows you to know who needs which services or who has what particular interests or skills. It means that you can target communications to a particular group of members or clients in a way that better reflects the needs of that group.

CRM packages

If you are doing a lot of communicating with members or other target audiences, then it can be useful to be able to track communications and transactions with individuals from phone calls to email and sales. A website can be established so that whenever a member or client accesses it or sends an email to your organisation via the website, software tracks and records the user's pathway through the site, records what pages they looked at, what information they downloaded and the topic of any email they might have sent – e.g. requesting further information or changing their subscription address.

Staff can also access the same website, usually through a password-restricted section, and record daily activity with members and clients. All this information can be stored in a central database and cross-referenced so that reports can be generated at any time providing information such as membership lists, their individual preferences, the last time there was communication between you and them and what it was about.

This information-gathering and reporting capacity can be used to personalise communication with members and supporters, and enable you to alert them to subscription renewals, promote special events or campaigns, or inform them of new services, all in a timely and relevant way.

Some people are concerned that using the internet to manage relationships with members or clients will take away the personal touch which is important for most nonprofits. But using the internet for CRM helps automate the process of managing your dealings with your key stakeholders, freeing up time to spend with them face-to-face and on the telephone. In fact, using your website as a CRM tool can improve the personal touch with your members.

Before building or purchasing a CRM database, you need to sort out the following.

• Brainstorm with the team what member/client relationships need managing and what the benefits would be of improving them.
• Research what your member/client preferences are – e.g. ask them if they would like to receive email alerts.
• Research the ways in which the internet can assist with customer relationship management and what off-the-shelf solutions are available or, if you have a web developer, what they can offer.
• Identify the average technical capacity of your members/clients for using email and websites – e.g. the speed of their computers and connections to the internet.
• Do a cost/benefit analysis on the preferred customer relations management solution – i.e.determine the value of the expected benefits of improving member/client relationships, determine the various costs of the solution required to meet those expectations, then assess whether the value of the benefits outweighs the costs.

Promoting your work

The internet is an important and often relatively cheap tool for promoting any organisation. There are many areas where a website, and the use of email, could add value.

• Gaining new members and supporters
• Providing members, clients and supporters with additional help and information via your website and email newsletters
• Meeting client and member expectations that they can research, order or book online whenever it suits them
• Creating more opportunities for promoting the organisation and its work
• Establishing and reinforcing the organisation’s image and name
• Saving time and money when doing traditional promotional activities – e.g. emailing a newsletter is much cheaper than mailing it by post.

See more on promoting your website and email newsletters.