Barnabas Notes

A few weeks ago, I launched my first site from the client side.   I’m really pleased with the site: we worked with 5Q Communications to do the strategy & architecture, then they brought in our friend Michael to work on the design side.  Then, back over to 5Q to build a custom CMS on Django and build out the site.  We came up against a deadline to be off of the Kintera site, so we’re continuing to build out features, but here’s a quick highlight of what the site has (or will have).

• Around 50 mini-sites for ministries, service opportunities, and supported missionaries
• New & improved services player incorporating flash with sermon chapters & better usability (coming soon)
• Church blog and mini-blogs for each of the mini-sites to let people hone in on content that’s specific to them
• Classifieds section (coming soon!)
• Promotion of facebook & twitter, which we’re going to start using (or start using more effectively?)  something.
• Multiple admin levels to restrict access, but allow staff to have responsibility for maintaining content (I’m ambitious!)
• fantastic design & much improved usability

The process has definitely been different being a client versus being the one responsible for the site.  The hardest part has been having someone else in charge of the timeline. It’s a relief in some ways (it was nice not having to manage the dozens of to-do lists and keep things on track and hours under control), but difficult to step back & let the team do their jobs without asking to know all of the details. We actually helped migrate some of the content, so we had access to the site as it was being built (because of the tight timeframe), which was also different (I can’t imagine giving a client that level of access!).  There was no grand “reveal” of the site when it was all done.  Instead we watched it come together piece by piece across several weeks.

Check it out when you have a chance: www.parksidechurch.com.

via SSIR: Click to listen to Premal Shah, Kiva’s president, discuss the creation of online giving markets and how the power of online communities can strengthen the world of microcredit.

The whole talk is less than an hour I believe, and maybe a fourth is Q&A. Premal Shah makes three points to creating online markets: 1) Make it an addictive user experience, 2) Be radically transparent 3) Crowdsourcing 4) Building increasing returns on data 5) Finding value in the long tail

Interesting strategies from Kiva:

• Under his point to be “radically transparent”, he cites Kiva’s “Help Pay the Rent” option that will give 10% of your donation to Kiva’s operating costs. One year, this option funded 60-75% of their admin costs. Also, using the CEO blog to talk about the “highs and lows.”
• They couldn’t do a full-scale social network functionality, but they realized by simply adding a profile photo upload, it provided the “fun” that users wanted.
• To help them scale, they implement “crowdsourcing” through a full-fledged recruiting program to send people overseas (not working remotely but on site) for 10 weeks.

Other interesting points:

• 10% action rate (10 people will give out of every 100?)
• Most online giving markets do not have huge marketing budgets
• “Kiva’s a really bad investment but a really great donation.”
• Plan for organic growth, not press-driven growth
• Oh, and for some of you, in the Q&A portion, listen for a familiar voice (not mine).

More here: http://www.ssireview.org/onlinegivingpics

Today is Rebekah’s last day of work. She’s taking a little bit of time off, and with her having more time we’re hoping to be able to have friends over more often. It might be tough to pull off, but I was thinking it might be fun to try to get some people from the Silas team together. We probably have a critical mass of people still in the DC area, and then the out-of-towners can travel if they want to, but totally understandable if you’d rather use your travel budget to visit your family for Thanksgiving or Christmas. But just because we may not be able to get everyone to come doesn’t mean we could get some people together. I was thinking maybe sometime in the spring. Any enthusiasm for this idea, and if so any ideas for dates?

The Pew Internet and American Life project recently released a report detailing adult’s use of Social Networks. Hat tip to Read/Write Web for the heads up.

You can download the whole report at the link above, but here’s the important stuff:

• 35 percent of American adult internet users have a social network profile
• 75 percent of online adults 18-24 have a social network profile
• 50 percent of adults have a profile on MySpace
• 43 percent use social networks to “organize with other friends for an event, issue or cause”

You could interpret these numbers as more adults using social networks, however; I believe it has more to do with the fact that more people on social networks have become adults.

People who are eighteen this year were born in 1990, some people refer to them as “digital natives.” In other words they don’t know a world without a pervasive internet.

The fact that MySpace is still the dominant representative supports that theory. MySpace was the social networking site for a number of years when people in this age group were teens.

From a fundraising perspective, the percentage of older adults online is still relatively small. 30 percent of adults 35-44 and 19 percent of adults 45-54. These are the core donors of many nonprofits.

So if you are looking for funds now, social networks are probably not the best choice from a demographic standpoint.

However, if you are looking to engage the next and the next, next generation of donors – social networks are a safe bet.

Comment @ Masterworks

With the departure of the last of the original group (who was only officially here for two of his six years but that’s another story), I felt the need to take responsibility for Silas Man lest he get shoved unceremoniously in the corner of the shelf above the new guy’s desk. Admittedly, I don’t know the full story of Silas Man’s origins but I do know that at one time he was special to most of you. In the move from Joe’s care into mine, his new home is on my windowsill. All the sun will be a big change for him, but I think he’ll make the adjustment like a pro. Rest easy… Silas Man lives on.

I’m a fan of Seth Godin, but this post got me going this morning on two levels.

First the less practical. The post is titled “If you could change your life.” Lives can always be changed. I happen to believe this change is often the wonderful collaboration of the Holy Spirit and us, but whatever your belief, we shape our lives through every choice we make.

Sure there a decision points where we take drastic turns and we call out those places and say our lives changed. However, the bigger life changes are those we take subtly day by day until later we look back and we see we’ve changed in a way we are proud of or one we are not proud of. With the latter often being the impetus for one of those drastic turns.

I know this isn’t what Mr. Godin meant to say, but I want to say it here as well – you don’t need this experience to change your life. I think you just need prayer and humble boldness. Others would say you just need a kick in the rear. Whatever it is, change (both for the good and for the bad) is always possible.

Second the more practical. To take advantage of this opportunity you have to quit your job or be without a job. Mr. Godin is looking for people who are trying to start something new.

This is a theme I’ve seen running through the five and a half years of agency life: when things aren’t going well and you feel like you might have a better way to do it, its time to start your own thing.

Or if you have a great idea it’s better to keep it to yourself and create the organization to use that great idea, than to find an organization already working in that space and develop it with them.

I’m not speaking from an ivory tower here, I’ve had these same thoughts. When you are butting your head against the process for the third time in a week and just don’t feel like your co-workers are going to “get it,” whatever it is, the siren song of your own shop is sweet, sweet music.

But at the end of the day is the world better off with yet another brand and identity consultancy with a name that starts with a number and a smarmy website? For the record I’ve smarm, but I’m not sure it’s what we need.

Or is the world better off with smart and creative people trying to make existing organizations better from the inside. Are the lessons you learn about working together with the “great unwashed” who don’t read Seth’s Blog or Signal vs. Noise and think the Cluetrain is a new emo group, valuable?

I struggle with that question a lot and would love to wake up the ex-pats and other lurkers here and hear their thoughts.

Another video post because it’s shorter than typing and I can’t misspell anything.

That’s right friends. I’m not but two states north of you and one state south of Cotton and one state west of Fraher.

1″ of wet snow expected.

Ad for local PA State Senate canidate

This is about the fifth or sixth mailer I’ve gotten from Edgar Vogel. His opponent, Petrella, has an ad on TV where he is in his backyard BBQ’ing. I’m guessing Vogel doesn’t have the money for TV so he’s sticking to direct mail.

This ad just made me laugh with the horrible Photoshop work and I wanted to share it. Actually this probably isn’t even Photoshop, it’s probably just Microsoft Paint.

We got a dog and needed to do some on the run treating to teach her to heel. Here’s what we use.