SolutionsNOW! Consulting Blog

Computer Humor

solutionsnowconsulting — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 23:58:04 +0000

Every once in awhile a good dose of humor comes along and if it makes me laugh, it passes my test. This one did. I hope you enjoy it.

You have to be old enough to remember Abbott and Costello

to fully appreciate this. For those of us who sometimes get flustered by our computers, please read on… If Bud Abbott and Lou Costello were alive today, their infamous sketch, ‘Who’s on First?’ might have turned out something like this:

COSTELLO CALLS TO BUY A COMPUTER FROM ABBOTT

ABBOTT: Super Duper computer store. Can I help you?

COSTELLO : Thanks. I’m setting up an office in my den and I’m thinking about buying a computer.

ABBOTT : Mac?

COSTELLO : No, the name’s Lou .

ABBOTT : Your computer?

COSTELLO : I don’t own a computer. I want to buy one.

ABBOTT : Mac?

COSTELLO: I told you, my name’s Lou .

ABBOTT : What about Windows?

COSTELLO : Why? Will it get stuffy in here?

ABBOTT : Do you want a computer with Windows?

COSTELLO : I don’t know. What will I see when I look at the windows?

ABBOTT : Wallpaper.

COSTELLO : Never mind the windows. I need a computer and software.

ABBOTT : Software for Windows?

COSTELLO : No. On the computer! I need something I can use to write proposals, track expenses and run my business. What do you have?

ABBOTT : Office.

COSTELLO: Yeah, for my office. Can you recommend anything?

ABBOTT : I just did.

COSTELLO : You just did what?

ABBOTT : Recommend something.

COSTELLO : You recommended something ?

ABBOTT : Yes.

COSTELLO : For my office?

ABBOTT : Yes.

COSTELLO : OK, what did you recommend for my office?

ABBOTT : Office.

COSTELLO : Yes, for my office!

ABBOTT : I recommend Office with Windows.

COSTELLO : I already have an office with windows! OK, let’s just say I’m sitting at my computer and I want to type a proposal. What do I need?

ABBOTT : Word.

COSTELLO : What word?

ABBOTT : Word in Office.

COSTELLO : The only word in office is office.

ABBOTT : The Word in Office for Windows.

COSTELLO : Which word in office for windows?

ABBOTT : The Word you get when you click the blue ‘W’.

COSTELLO : I’m going to click your blue ‘w’ if you don’t start with some straight answers. What about financial bookkeeping? You have anything I can track my money with?

ABBOTT: Money.

COSTELLO : That’s right. What do you have?

ABBOTT : Money.

COSTELLO : I need money to track my money?

ABBOTT : It comes bundled with your computer.

COSTELLO : What’s bundled with my computer?

ABBOTT : Money.

COSTELLO : Money comes with my computer?

ABBOTT : Yes. No extra charge.

COSTELLO : I get a bundle of money with my computer? How much?

ABBOTT : One copy.

COSTELLO : Isn’t it illegal to copy money?

ABBOTT : Microsoft gave us a license to copy Money.

COSTELLO : They can give you a license to copy money?

ABBOTT : Why not? THEY OWN IT!

(A few days later)

ABBOTT : Super Duper computer store. Can I help you?

COSTELLO : How do I turn my computer off?

ABBOTT : Click on ‘START’……….

I challenge you to create an Abbott and Costello for Social Media. The best entry wins an hour of coaching time!

Step 3: Adding in Twitter to our Social Media Strategy

solutionsnowconsulting — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 18:54:26 +0000

Okay, so we have a Facebook page (Solutions Now Consulting) and a Facebook Group (One-Stop Resource for Non-Profits) and now we’re adding in Twitter (OneStopResource). We set up a profile – easy – just follow the instructions. Then it gets a bit complex, because Twitter offers little in the way of support or instructions. It’s as if they think people who get on are intuitively or genetically capable of instantaneously knowing what to do. Typically, not so. Particularly as those of us “over the hill” in age attempt to grasp the intricacies of Social Media Marketing.

So, you’ve picked a name (a critical piece – you want people to be able to find you easily). This involves either using part or all of your business name, or using something that has a keyword with which folks will be looking for you.

Now that you’ve done that, you want to create a profile. Here, you want to fill it with the keywords that folks use to find you on-line. And since it can only be a few lines, you get to the essence of that description quickly and succinctly.

That was the easy part. Now you could sit there for weeks, getting on every day and wondering, “Why am I here?” “How do I find people to follow?” “How do they find me?” Good questions all. Twitter will offer you a few folks to follow at the start. They are typically the big names out there who have thousands of followers. Pick one to start to follow – someone with a lot of followers. Then click on their name and go to their page. On the right you’ll see the number of followers and the number they are following, and pictures of them below. Click on one of the pictures. That person’s page will pop up. You can chose to follow them or not. Your choice. Choose folks whose tweets are ones that you want to pay attention to, or whose ideas are consistent with your own. There are a lot of folks out there who are just following folks willy-nilly to get the information out about their products and services (ah-hem) without any thought of paying attention to you. They are pointless to follow! If you click on the numbers of followers or following, a list of those folks will pop up and you can click on them and check them out. That’s one way to add followers. People you add will typically follow you back – not all, but some percentage (currently about 30% or higher).

Another way to add followers by following is to look for like-minded folks. You can go to “search” at the bottom of the page, and once there, click on “advanced search” in the gray part of the box. Fill in some section of the search parameters and a list of tweets will come back. So, for instnace, if you want to find folks interested in non profits, type that in the exact-phrase box, and you’ll find folks tweeting about non profits. If you want to find folks in your area, type in your town name, and folks tweeting about it, or who have it in their profile, will show up. It’s an interesting, and not terribly intuitive method, but it works.

Finally, there are a number of web sites that can help you search and do it automatically. There are also ways to automate tweeting about interesting articles pertinent to your follower’s interests. It involves several sites, and some setting up time, but once done, you can know that your followers are getting useful information and you don’t have to go looking for it using Google yourself. Since it only takes about an hour to set up all the automation, it’s well worth the invested time. Since I believe that we should all save time, I’m going to point you in the direction of my colleague Bill Crosby who created a set of easy-to-follow videos that explain every step. You can check it out at http://bit.ly/Annt. The price is well worth the time you will save, both in learning it and in using it!

To sum up, you get followers by following, and you tweet about things you are doing and you can add automated input as well on topics interesting to your followers.

Next time I’ll talk about tying all this together. Good luck out there! And if you are already using Twitter for you non-profit, I’d love to hear how it’s going! Head on over to our Facebook One-stop Resource group (http://bit.ly/fakiy) and tell us how you’re using it!

Jan Ott www.transformlifecoach.com; www.mymultiplestreamsmentor.com

Think like a marketer – Find a joint venture partner

solutionsnowconsulting — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 22:12:55 +0000

This morning at my BNI meeting (that’s Business Network Internaltional, and you should check out the one’s in your neighborhood to get the word out about your company or organization even if you don’t join), one of the members, a DJ, said he was looking for unusual venues to DJ at. And suddenly it hit me. There is another member who has an auto repair shop. He and I saw each other at a morning Chamber event, and I had said to him, “You need to think about hosting one of the Morning Mixer’s or After Hours networking events.” And when G. said he was looking for unusual venues, I thought, “That’s it. He could team up with the auto reair shop and co-host an After Hours.” I said so to both after our meeting, and they are now exploring the idea. Every company and organization has the opportunity to do much the same thing. There are all manner of interesting ways to get the word out about what you do. Our Chamber event was at Habitat for Humanity’s second-hand store. They take in items that people are getting rid of as they remodel or tear down buildings – doors, old paint, appliances, some furniture, fixtures, etc. And then they resell it to make income for Habitat. Think how they could team up with local businesses. They have donor, volunteer and prospect lists. Other complementary businesses are always looking to expand their range. Habitat could send thank you’s to donors with coupons off for their joint venture businesses. It doesn’t even have to be a business about homes. It can be a jeweler, or a caterer – anyone looking to expand. Or they could introduce their lists to someone new in town. Other businesses that have been good to them to the new ink cartridge refiller that just moved into town. Or a DJ looking to introduce his services! Both the companies and organizations win. The companies get new business, and the organizations get to thank their donors in a way that costs them nothing (if by email) or little (if by mail). The ideas are endless, but most of us think in a pretty small box. I’m looking to have us not just expand the box, but get out of it altogether.

Let us know of interesting joint ventures you’ve done, or heard about!

Jan Ott, www.transformlifecoach.com; www.mymultiplestreamsmentor.com

Factors that affect how you estimate training costs

solutionsnowconsulting — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 00:25:00 +0000

Time for the design and development of training varies depending on these factors:

How well defined is the project at the start
- Are you creating learning objectives or are they already defined
- What content is available – how organized is it, what research is required
- What up-front work needs to be done before production can begin. For instance – repurposing a well designed class is faster than creating a project from scratch.
- How complex is the subject matter – what level of learning is required to meet course objectives.
- What level of practice is required to meet course objectives?
What is the level of SME involvement in project
- The type and quality of SME support can lessen or increase project costs.
What media elements will be used
- Is video available or does it need to be scripted and shot
- Are there existing graphics
- Will graphic concepts need to be created from scratch
- Will there be narration – professional or in house. I have found that the costs are about the same because it takes more time and the quality is less for amateurs. However, internal resources are often not tracked, whereas external costs are tracked.
What level of interactivity is needed
- Are you telling facts or telling a story – its takes more effort to create a story, than to show just the information.
- Are there gaming elements

For more information contact see our website www.hollinger-group.com, www.solutionsnowconsulting.com

Second step of our Social Media Strategy – Facebook!

solutionsnowconsulting — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 16:34:33 +0000

Next, we created a group on Facebook. Why? There are over 100,000 new users every day added to Facebook. How many of you wouldn’t want to be in touch with 100,000 new people every day? How do they find you? People do searches right on Facebook to find like-minded people. People whose causes they care about. People who care about the same interests. There are groups for just about everything on Facebook. And people go looking for them. Also, once people become members of your group, or fans of your page (businesses use pages), they get updates from you, and you can also send personal messages. Those members, then, can ask that their friends become members or fans. Most folks who care about something do ask their friends to get involved in their causes and groups. We’re certainly asking our friends to join. Our group name, “One-Stop Resource for Non-Profits” (http://bit.ly/fakiy) as you might notice, is not the same name as our company – Solutions NOW! Consulting. Why? Because when people go looking for things on the web, they look for places using keywords more regularly than they use business names. We will have our business page, our Twitter account and our website all linked to each other, so folks can find us everywhere. Most people aren’t looking for “solutions,” they’re looking for “non-profits” or “resources for non-profits” or the like. We want them to be able to find us! On that group site, we’ll have discussion threads about useful topics, with invitations for others to contribute, links to resources, links to our own businesses (we five all have our own specialties), and links back to Solutions NOW! We will also import this blog.

Why might you want to create a group rather than a page? Think of it this way – pages are more static. They are more about information and little about interaction. It’s a place to post how to get hold of you, what your business hours are, what you do, and that like. A group is for more interaction – the stories people have about working with you, pictures of events, asking questions and getting answers, best practices, keeping in touch with volunteers, showcasing volunteers, etc. There are so many things you can do with it. It’s certainly worth your while to consider!

Now that we have the page, we’ll ask our friends to become members of the group. And then as we provide some information, and interaction begins (if you look at most groups on Facebook, you’ll find there’s often not much action, and few followers), the expectation is that those who take part and find it useful will offer it to others. It takes dedication and some work to create the interaction, but well worth the effort. A good group can provide you with instantaneous feedback, useful input, a source of referrals, especially if you ask that they pass on information you give, and some great information if you begin to create dialog among like-minded folks. Most folks in non-profits have great tidbits. The secret is to get everyone to share them! we’ll invite our friends, and then we’ll also join like-minded groups (you’ll see I’m part of a number of non-profits groups) and connect by joinging discussiones and speak about our group in those groups. One of the aspects that’s important about being part of social media is to actually BE SOCIAL!

So, in light of this most recent creation, I would like to ask: If you use a Facebook group and it has served you, please go to the One Stop Resource group page, and post on our discussion thread about how you use it and how it has served you. We’d love to hear! http://bit.ly/fakiy

Jan Ott www.transformlifecoach.com; www.mymultiplestreamsmentor.com

Follow us as we create a social media strategy

solutionsnowconsulting — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 00:11:49 +0000

For all of you who are new to us, let us tell you a bit about what we’re about. We want to create a place that you can find information, connect with resources, skills and like-minded folk. To that end, my role (this is Jan Ott) over the next couple of months is to explain how social media can support your organization. I have studied and used all kinds of social media for over a year, and followed and learned form the masters of marketing on this subject. You might think that you don’t need any sort of social media since you’re not “selling anything.” Well, first, yes you are. We all sell, all the time. Getting anyone to do anything is selling, even if we’re only selling our ideas. And second, you can use social media in the most amazing ways! And that’s what I’m here for. We’re going to do something pretty interesting over the next couple of months. We’re setting up our own social media strategy to help our own business, and we want you to be able to “look in the peephole” (sounds better than being a fly on the wall!) at our progress. As we get out there, we’re going to let you in on all our strategies and how to do them. As we do, I’ll be commenting on where and how these strategies can support various kinds of non-profits (and small businesses). So, here we go.

The first thing we did was set up a web page. Big surprise. Nearly everyone has one these days. How often do you go to a business or non-profit without “checking them out on the web?” More and more folks are using the web rather than the yellow pages, and almost everyone does a sort of background check using the web to make sure that whomever they are doing business with, whether buying, selling, or giving, is legitimate. Doing that involves checking them out on the web. So that’s step number one. Check us out at http://www.solutionsnowconsulting.com. We’re looking forward to supporting you!

Janet Ott, www.transforlifecoach.com; www.mymultiplestreamsmentor.com

Creating effective company sponsorships for non-profit events

solutionsnowconsulting — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 00:09:15 +0000

As Suzann said in her blog post, so often non-profits are already out of the starting gate before they think about the company that would be a good sponsor for an event. They’ve got the venue picked out, the date, and what they’ll do, but haven’t gotten a company lined up yet.

There’s a tendency for all of us to decide what we want to do and then get all the details of the event taken care of, but there are some questions to ask ahead of time, and those questions will help you target the appropriate companies.

What is the goal of the event? Typically, it’s a fund-raiser, but for what true purpose – where is that money really going? Is it daily operations? A capital campaign? Specific to your cause (bringing kids to camp, building a house for someone already named)? This will help you target the appropriate company. A toy company for kid’s camps, building materials company for houses work, but not the other way around. You want to make sure that the company is complementary to your values and goals. And let them know that.

Why would the company want to partner with you? What can you offer them in return? You always want to answer for the company “What’s in it for me?” and “Can I do it?” before they even ask. There are so many things you can do for a company. Not just a name on the event material, and advertising, though those are good things. But you also have a list of folks – donors, clients, volunteers. Companies are always interested in expanding their range. People see names in event material all the time. But if they got a mailer from you thanking you for your participation, and in it was a coupon for a percentage off, or some introductory offer from a company (or more than one company), the likelihood of those folks using that coupon is higher than a statement to that effect in the event material. Because customers that are satisfied often turn into repeat customers, companies are generally happy to take a lower profit at the front end to gain repeat happy customers at the back end.

Will this be an annual event, and thus, a longer term relationship? Think like a for-profit company. Non-profits can create joint ventures just like for-profits companies. What if Habitat for Humanity created a day-long event to give workshops on fixing things around the house to save money? Who might want to sponsor? Lowe’s, Home Depot, Ace Hardware; local contractors and handymen. The companies get to show off their wares and skills, and can offer discounts to those attending the event. How about a cancer camp or retreat center having a day-long health fair and being sponsored by Whole Foods, local gyms, health-food stores, and therapists and body workers?Knowing that this is every year can solidify and expand the gifting of a company. Being involved in the event also creates a sense of belonging and understanding more clearly what the vision and values of your non-profit are about.

Are you thinking too small. Expand your vision. There is also a tendency to think about one, or at most, a few sponsors for any event. But expanding who you invite can not just add to, but multiply the results. In Dallas, one of the biggest fundraisers of the year is a $60 set of certificates that give discounts at many companies around Dallas for a short time. People wait all year to buy larger items because the discounts are deep. Every year more and more companies want to be part of this fund-raiser because they know so many people buy the coupon books and are out shopping at that time. And the folks that come into the stores like what they see, and come back again later, even then the free snacks and drinks are gone.

Following Suzann’s pointers and thinking more outside the box can greating enhance your event and fundraising in general

Top Ten Steps to Successful Sponsorship Development

solutionsnowconsulting — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 18:46:26 +0000

Whether it be for annual operating expense or event support, corporate sponsorship can be an integral part of your nonprofit organization’s annual fund development plan.

Can you raise money through sponsorship in these economic times? Yes, you CAN, with the proper approach and due diligence.

Even before identifying prospective sponsors you must embrace the fact that unlike individual donors their motivation is not usually altruistic. Sponsorship is a business relationship between the corporation and the nonprofit, and they DO expect a return on their investment.

One must also accept the fact that sponsorship development is a year-round effort. Looking for sponsors two months before an event is an exercise in futility and unfair to the prospective sponsor.

Here are my Top Ten Steps to a Successful Sponsorship Development Program:

Develop a committee of sponsorship volunteers who will work year-round under the direction of the Event Coordinator or Fund Development Manager.
Determine who your audience is & match that audience to the interest of prospective sponsors.
Create a prospective sponsor list early in the planning process.
Set sponsorship levels based on the promotional value to the sponsor.
Determine deadlines for commitments (this should be part of the entire event timeline.)
Don’t overlook the importance of the connection between marketing your organization and sponsorship development.
Develop an informative sponsorship packet and make initial & follow-up contacts.
Honor all sponsor recognition commitments without exception.
Continually cultivate relationships with sponsors and non-sponsors.
Don’t turn down offers of support without due process.

Suzann Stahl

www.solutionsnowconsulting.com

Hello world!

solutionsnowconsulting — Tue, 05 May 2009 18:38:01 +0000

SolutionsNOW! Consulting, a subsidiary of Nonprofit Solutions NW, is a network of independent nonprofit consultants working together to offer strategic, workable solutions for their clients.

SolutionsNOW! Consulting members help nonprofits take a step back in this difficult environment, clearly assess their needs, and develop strategies for planning their futures. Consulting group members have collective experience that spans several decades and past economic downturns so they can quickly evaluate your situation and suggest solid solutions.

SolutionsNOW! Consulting demonstrates how efficiency in planning and thoughtful partnership alignment can achieve better results than doing it all alone.

Specialty Areas

Board Development
Develop visionary, accountable boards of directors
Strategic Planning
Create real, deliberate, discernible
change in the community
Fund Development
Develop sustainable, diverse resources and asset building
Meeting Facilitation
Facilitate trusting, productive meeting environments
Staff Development
Build long-term, quality staff relationships
Marketing/Public Relations
Increase public awareness and your visibility in the community
Administration/Management
Create an open and responsible organizational culture
Program Planning
Make the sum of the parts work for the whole

Visit our blog often!