Posts Tagged ‘2011 charity predictions’
-
Digital things that will rock your charity’s world in 2011
I’ve been catching up on various predictions for the charity sector in 2011 and thought I’d add a few of my own – all free to use, of course, in line with the current need for austerity, but genuinely valuable to organisations big and small.
1. Skype mobile video calling
As a former web content manager, I know that I would’ve cut off my own arm with a pen-knife to get hold of some decent video content from “the field” within a week of something happening. Now, Skype’s iphone app means that people can call your desk-top for free from anywhere in the world – and you can record the call and publish it to YouTube (or your site, or somewhere else) almost instantly.To me, this is so exciting that I felt a bit sick when I heard about it, and not just due to Christmas over-indulgence. It has the potential to open up a new world of virtual field-trips, video messages for donors, video blogs, instant vox-pops, citizen journalism… and it’s cheap.
Though there are some interesting projects going on in schools, I reckon the true potential of Skype to facilitate low-commitment, high-impact volunteering opportunities has yet to be fully explored and this app opens up even more possibilities.
2. Posterous
Do you know how to send an email? Yes? Then you can have a blog. For free. Without having to learn anything. Result!Posterous is the computerphobe’s dream. You literally send it an email, with a subject line and (if you like) a photo attached. You don’t need to remember a password to post by email – it will recognise your email address and do all of the hard work for you.
3. Simple CRB
This is still in development, but if they can pull it off (and I think they will), this might be a real, not-just-talk-but-action step forward in the quest to cut paperwork, free up time and still keep people safe. Imagine!
Simple CRB aims to develop a cheaper, quicker and more effective CRB service for charities and voluntary organisations. It will be run on a not-for-profit basis.
Sounds too good to be true? Help to make it happen by giving your views about how much the current system costs you in time and money and how you’d like to see it improved by filling in a short survey (guaranteed to be simpler than filling in a CRB form).
4. Ecomodo
Need stuff or a venue but got no money? Borrow it instead. I think 2011 will be the year when we all realise how much stuff there is festering in cupboards that could be put to good use. Apparently, electric drills only get used for 12-15 minutes in their lifetime, but 50% of homes have them – by pooling our resources, we can all reduce waste and make money go further.Ecomodo helps you to lend out the stuff you don’t want, and borrow the stuff you do. You can also set up private lending circles so, for example, your volunteers could share equipment or your supporters could share fundraising resources – I mean, how many sets of bingo balls can the world possibly need? Best of all, it’s a chance to meet new people and help them out – and anyone who volunteers knows how good that feels.
5. Monitoring & evaluation 2.0: quick, long-term and mobile
OK, so this doesn’t exactly exist yet, but surely it must be on its way, and if not, I’ll have to make it myself. Surely 2011 is the year when use digital technology to get rid of boring things like monitoring paperwork.Here is the story so far. In 2010, Mappiness proved how mobile phones can be used to map individual’s well-being over time, and new thinking about the promotion of national well-being inspired everyone from our friends Justin and Paul to the Prime Minister.
Meanwhile, research published by v, NatCen and Birkbeck made the case for more research on the long-term impact of volunteering, and v tested the effectiveness of sending surveys directly to participants, rather than expecting project workers to collect and compile data.
It seems to me that if you mashed all of these ideas together, you could cut paperwork and get better, more interesting and more relevant data about the impact of volunteering programmes – not just at the end of a project but over time. And if participants could see value from providing this data too, like they do in the Mappiness app or the million Facebook quizzes my niece spams me with on a regular basis, you’d be onto a winner. In fact, if I get a minute, I think I’ll make this my project of 2011.
Over to you
So there you have it – my tips for 2011, and I didn’t even use it as an excuse to plug vinspired (which, since you ask, is free to use and here to stay). Now it’s your turn – tell me what I missed!
Loading ...
Comments