Free Blog & Content Management System for Nonprofits

Wordpress offers nonprofits Free Blog & Content Management System for Nonprofits

Here is another resource from Peter Grandstaff's blog, "8 Amazing eResources That Are Free For Non-Profits." I encourage you to read the full bloghere.

Wordpress - Blog & Content Management System

"Wordpress can confuse people at first because there are two Wordpresses: WordPress.org is home to the free and open source blogging software, and WordPress.com is a site that runs the WordPress software and lets you host your own blog on their site. The are both free to anyone and great for non-profit organizations. If you have your own website you can install WordPress as an add-on to provide a blog on your site, or it can be used to run the entire site like a content management system, or CMS. In fact you’re looking at WordPress right now, as I use it to run my website.

"You can log into an administrative panel on your website and write or edit content as if you were using a word processor, or using HTML if you prefer. WordPress stores your content in a database and automatically applies styles or themes to your work so you can worry about creating content rather than making things work and look right.

"Out of the box WordPress isn’t the best CMS. (It’s a great blogging framework!) Luckily there are many many freely available extensions that add all sorts of features to WordPress making it a very adaptable and easy to use CMS. You don’t need to be an expert to use it or install it, especially if you use DreamHost!"

Read about the other resources here:
http://www.petergrandstaff.com/marketing/8-amazing-eresources-that-are-free-for-non-profits

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Free email and collaboration tools for your school

Google provides free email and collaboration tools for schools

Here is yet another resource from Peter Grandstaff's blog, "8 Amazing eResources That Are Free For Non-Profits." I encourage you to read the full bloghere.

Google Apps Education Version - Web-based Mail & Collaboration Application Suite

Google Apps Education Edition is a set of web-based applications and services that runs on Google’s servers but using your domain name. You can outsource your email & office applications, use instant messaging, host video, and collaborate. The Education Edition includes some extra features and is also free for non-profit organizations.

You can use Google Apps with any domain, but the Education Edition has some extra features that could benefit larger organizations. If you use DreamHost for your hosting you’ll be able to install Google Apps when you set up a new domain in the control panel.

Read about the other resources here:
http://www.petergrandstaff.com/marketing/8-amazing-eresources-that-are-free-for-non-profits

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Free Office Suite for Nonprofits

OpenOffice.org offers free Office Suite to nonprofits (actually, it's open source, so it's free for everyone!)

Here is another resource from Peter Grandstaff's blog, "8 Amazing eResources That Are Free For Non-Profits." I encourage you to read the full bloghere.

OpenOffice.org - Open Source Office Suite
Also known as OO.o, OOo, or plain old Open Office. It is a completely free for anyone office suite including word processor, spreadsheet, presentation creator, and more. This can save a non-profit a couple hundred dollars per computer. Just make sure Microsoft Office doesn’t come on your new computers.

It seems like everyone thinks they need Microsoft Office, but Open Office will meet all their needs and add features they’ve always wanted in Microsoft Office. For instance Open Office can open MS Word and Excel documents and it can export files as PDF, easily.

On top of all the great features Open Office runs on MacOS, Linux, and Windows! That means you can open your files on any computer. If you’ve ever tried to open Microsoft Works documents on a Mac you know how valuable that can be.

Read about the other resources here:
http://www.petergrandstaff.com/marketing/8-amazing-eresources-that-are-free-for-non-profits

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Free Advertising for Nonprofits

Google Grants Free Advertising for Nonprofits

Here is another resource from Peter Grandstaff's blog, "8 Amazing eResources That Are Free For Non-Profits." I encourage you to read the full bloghere.

Google Grants - Free Advertising
This might be the highest value item on this list. It’s also the most exclusive. Non-profit organizations meeting Google’s eligibility requirements may may apply for a grant to receive up to $10,000 of free Adwords advertising per month. Yes, that’s Ten Thousand dollars worth of advertising free for non- profits!

Adwords is Google’s advertising program. You bid on keywords to have your ads appear alongside search results for those keywords. It’s pay-per-click advertising, which means you only pay when someone clicks on your ad. In addition to targeting keywords you can exclude keywords or target your campaigns to specific geographic areas. Adwords is an effective way to advertise any size website.

Google Grants is not open to everyone, but most community organizations and advocacy groups should be eligible to apply. They also expect you to make use of the free account and may terminate it if you let it go dormant.

Learn more here:
http://www.google.com/grants/details.html

Read about the other resources here:
http://www.petergrandstaff.com/marketing/8-amazing-eresources-that-are-free-for-non-profits

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Free email marketing for nonprofits

Free email marketing for nonprofits

Here is another resource from Peter Grandstaff's blog, "8 Amazing eResources That Are Free For Non-Profits." I encourage you to read the full blog here.

Vertical Response - Email Marketing

Vertical Response offers email marketing that is free for non profits up to 10,000 emails per month. They also provide discounted rates on their survey and postcard services. Direct email can be an incredibly powerful way to stay on your donors’ minds and to keep your volunteer base up to date and in the know. You can use it for a monthly newsletter, or to get the word out quickly when needed.

Now, if you’re looking for an email marketing solution for business I use and suggest AWeber. They have a extensive feature set at a competitive price. Perhaps what really sets them apart is their emphasis on educating you in how to make the best use of their service and their outstanding customer support. There are tons of videos, tutorials, and webinars to make sure you know how to take full advantage of your email marketing campaigns. They are also always adding new features and have stood the test of time. You’ll also get a free month to test drive it and make sure it’s right for you, so there’s no risk!

I just heard from AWeber regarding their discount for any non-profit:

• The account will include 3 months of service at no cost then following this period a discount of 25% off monthly billing.
• You will need to postal mail or fax us the order form completed with cc number and a copy of your 501c3.

With Vertical Response or AWeber you’ll get reporting features for your email campaigns. You can see what percentage of people opened your message, how many clicked a link, which links, and more. This alongside Google Analytics will give you all the metrics you need to report on the effectiveness of your on-line presence.

Read about the other resources here:
http://www.petergrandstaff.com/marketing/8-amazing-eresources-that-are-free-for-non-profits

[where: 75223]

Free Constituent Relationship Management tool for nonprofits

CiviCRM - Open Source Constituent Relationship Management

Here is another resource from Peter Grandstaff's blog, "8 Amazing eResources That Are Free For Non-Profits." I encourage you to read the full bloghere.

CiviCRM - Open Source Constituent Relationship Management
CiviCRM is a completely free (as in speech and beer) relationship management system designed for non-profits. The feature set is aimed at activism groups, non-profit organizations, and non-governmental organizations. It is designed to integrate seamlessly with either Joomla or Drupal, which are both free and open source content management systems.

Optional modules can be added for specific needs such as fund-raising, event registration, and more. Combined with the flexibility offered by Drupal or Joomla this is a free website platform that can meet the needs of even the largest organizations. There are reports of it managing a database of 7 million constituents, but it’s free and you could even run it on your DreamHost account!

A few of the non-profit organizations using CiviCRM are…

1. Amnesty International


2. Creative Commons


3. Wikimedia Foundation


4. Atlanta Audobon Society

Read about the other resources here:
http://www.petergrandstaff.com/marketing/8-amazing-eresources-that-are-free-for-non-profits

[where: 75223]

Free Web Hosting For Non-Profits?

DreamHost - Web Hosting Free For NonProfits

My previous blog about the Nonprofit Carnival cited Peter Grandstaff's blog, "8 Amazing eResources That Are Free For Non-Profits." I encourage you to read it here.

For those who are reading this via email, I will be reBlogging his resources directly here over the coming days. Here is the first:

DreamHost - Web Hosting Free For Non-Profits
DreamHost offers their powerful carbon-neutral web hosting for free to non-profits. Instructions for claiming your non-profit status are on the DreamHost wiki.

DreamHost is the hosting company I use, and suggest for most of my clients. They are an employee owned company that offers solid service at a low price with impeccable customer service and a great control panel.

If you don’t qualify as a non-profit you can still make use of this DreamHost promo code to get a discount of $50 on any plan. Just enter the code GRANDSTAFF to claim your discount when you sign up.

DreamHost also offers 1-Click Installs of some of the web applications mentioned below such as WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal. It’s very easy and they guide you through the process with ease. Learn more here:

http://www.dreamhost.com/

Read about the other resources here:
http://www.petergrandstaff.com/marketing/8-amazing-eresources-that-are-free-for-non-profits

[where: 75223]

This Month's Blog Carnival cites Raiser's Razor

May 2009 Nonprofit Blog Carnival includes Raiser's Razor

Thanks to Elizabeth Clawson at the Nonprofit Congress Blog for including my article, "State of the Sector: Welcome to Nonprofit 3.0," in this month's Nonprofit Blog Carnival.

I also encourage you to view the other posts:

• Alan Strand talks about the differences between the funder and the program. 
• Jake Seliger informs us of new grant money available through HUD 
• Peter Grandstaff supplies us with an amazing list of free resources. 
• Anna Farmery explains the importance of social media to branding. 
• Elisa Ortiz kindly reminds us what is important.

Thanks , as always, to Kivi Leroux Miller's Nonprofit Communciations Blog for leading this effort. 

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