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Advice for Nonprofits

Getting Along While Getting Stuff Done

I have some advice for nonprofits. I have been creating websites and assisting with marketing for nonprofits for most of my career. I have worked with large national organizations and small community groups. Some are official 501(c)(3) organizations, some aren’t. I have found no matter the size, they all have one thing in common.

Nonprofits have to work together, despite different backgrounds, personality types, education, geography and skills.

Sounds like a typical workplace environment, doesn’t it? We need to get along with our co-workers and customers/clients at work and elsewhere. And when we volunteer, we have to get along with the people we are teamed up with.

Getting along with others isn’t always easy

Occasionally, one of my nonprofit clients struggles with this. Some people have very strong personalities and can be overbearing. Trying to steer every decision to their way of thinking. Volunteers can get frustrated. Arguments start, bitter emails are sent, it gets out of hand. Sometimes good volunteers leave the organization to preserve their own mental health. Afterall, when you are volunteering, who needs the extra anxiety or toxic interactions? I don’t like conflict or confrontations. I try to stay calm in these situations and work through it. I always encourage open communication and honesty. Respect and taking personal responsibility.

My job is to make my clients happy

That’s my primary goal, happiness. Yes, I want to give my clients a nice, functional website or membership system they can manage moving forward. I want the experience with me to collaborative. I want my clients to know that no question is a bad one. I’m here to answer your phone calls and emails.

Everyone learns in different ways. That’s why I provide support with written documentation, videos, zoom sessions, phone calls and in-person training. I want every client to fully understand what I created for them and how it will help their organization today and into the future. So, how can I provide happiness? By proving the following tips for nonprofits.

What’s my advice?

Here we go, it’s pretty simple, really.

1. DEFINE WHO’S RESPONSIBLE NOW and MOVING FORWARD.

Before we start working together, I want to fully understand the dynamics of the people on the team. I ask questions to determine who will be managing the website after it’s launched. For my clients who use MembershipWorks, I want to be clear who will be keeping it updated in the future, following up with members who don’t renew or helping them complete their online profile for the Membership Directory.

Many times volunteers do this work. And that’s great. Many are eager to learn what needs to be done. Sometimes I continue to be the website administrator because clubs don’t have someone with WordPress skills to take on the website management. I have several clients who ask for MembershipWorks help just once a year for an annual event.

It’s important for everyone to know what roles they will play and what the expectations are for the future. It’s best to work with a small group or one liaison when creating a new website or installing MembershipWorks. When the teams get larger than 8-10 it’s much more difficult to come to a consensus, make decisions, and set up zoom meetings that have to fit into so many schedules.

Once everyone is clear on the role they will play during the project and after, then we proceed.

2. LISTEN.

My second piece of advice is to listen. Even if someone is younger, older or less experienced, they still provide value in regards to the experience you want for your members. Great ideas come from brainstorming when everyone feels they can contribute without being judged or shot down immediately. Everyone involved has value. Sometimes you get more ideas than we can implement! That’s when I start a list for “phase 2” improvements to consider after the initial project is complete. We don’t want good ideas to be lost just because the timing isn’t right at the moment.

3. BE A LEADER.

Some of my best experiences working with nonprofits are when they have a leader who really leads. Someone who empowers others and encourages participation and input. A leader checks in with the progress, knows what’s going on, and who might need some extra support to fulfill their responsibilities. Leaders are observant but don’t micro-manage the project. They keep the overall goals and timeline in mind. I love it when the leader uses tools to create an environment where the team can stay focused and get the project done on time. Happy leaders create happy teams.

Know Your Strengths

I’ve worked with all sorts of personality types and skill levels. In fact, I often have the StrengthsFinders strengths assessment in my mind when I start working with a new group. I like to understand how people are wired and what makes them good at what they do. You can learn more about my top five strengths by reading a post I wrote on the subject. Here’s a clue, my top strength is Activator. I love getting stuff done!

In the end, it’s about happiness. I want my clients to be happy.

Please let me know if you have any questions about how your nonprofit should proceed when starting a new project with me. I’m happily available and ready to help! 🙂

Michelle Aspelin
Mindshare Marketing & Implementation Services, LLC
Learn more about me and read the recommendations from my happy clients on LinkedIn.

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How to earn revenue with MembershipWorks

How to earn REVENUE with MembershipWorks to offset the cost of the membership software – a monetization opportunity

By Michelle Aspelin of Mindshare Marketing & Implementation Services LLC

View my MembershipWorks Developer Profile

If you are considering implementing MembershipWorks (MW) on your WordPress website but want to defray the costs of this amazing membership software, you will like what you read here. If you already have MW, you can still add some of these elements to your website to help offset the cost of your monthly membership with MembershipWorks (see pricing). Keep in mind, these are in addition to the customary ways that websites can defray costs like selling advertising on their website. Even if you choose just one of these, it could be all you need to essentially get MembershipWorks for free! MembershipWorks is an opportunity to monetize your website.

First, I will say that the same opportunity exists with the first three elements/features on the list below. You can charge a posting fee for these elements either to your members, nonmembers, or both. It’s easy to earn revenue with MembershipWorks.

You can include the opportunity to post in one of these elements as a benefit to your members for the amount of your current membership. Gaining you more members who value this benefit.

You can create a new Membership Level or Membership Add-on and upsell your current membership.

You can offer your members a discount on the cost of making a post on one of these first three revenue ideas.

1. Classified Ads Posts – create a community or member only marketplace. Give your members and website readers first dibs on items your members are selling. Helps generate website traffic as well as revenue for your company, organization, club, nonprofit, etc.

2. Announcement Board Posts – bring your members to your website vs relying on Facebook or other third-party sites. Your Announcement Board can be a public board anyone on the website can view or for members eyes only. Posts can be specific to your organization and offer a benefit to members and others. Helping your website be the “go to” site for news in your industry. See DEMO Announcement Board

Announcement Board screenshot

3. Job Board Posts – allowing posts like this on your website could help your site become a career hub. You could charge employers a fee to list jobs on your board that your members would be interested in. Or your members might be the ones doing the hiring for their own organization. Here’s what MW says about the Job Board feature:

“Job Boards are a powerful retention tool. Members who find a job through your website are more likely to renew their membership so that they can stay on top of career opportunities. If you make the Job Board only available to current members, prospective members are also incentivized to join.”

4. Shopping Cart – create a Shopping Cart to sell items on your website to your members only make the marketplace public and sell to everyone. Items can be physical products you mail or ship to your buyers or digital content. You can offer item options, quantities, and limits. You can sell sponsorships for your events, expos and other opportunities by using the Shopping Cart.

5. Forms – use a Form for a one-time thing like signing up for a class or workshop where you can charge a registration fee. You can also use a Form for sponsorships for a one-time opportunity.

6. Events – similar to Forms but instead you use the Events feature to create an event on your calendar and sell “tickets” to that specific event, helping not only to offset your MW software fee but the event costs as well!

7. Donations – offer a list of suggested donation amounts or allow the donor to fill in the amount they want to donate. And if you are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, be sure to let your donors know that all or part of their donation could be tax deductible and they should as their tax preparer. Donations can be for your general fund or for specific funds you choose to promote. Great for annual giving campaigns.

8. Membership Directory – let’s not overlook the obvious here. Some clubs are free to join, and that’s great if you don’t ever incur any costs for the club, group or organization. But if your club has expenses, then creating a very specific list of membership benefits and charging a Membership Fee is a great way to offset your costs. See DEMO Membership Directory

 

Membership Directory screenshot

 

9. Specialized Directory – MembershipWorks is all about the Member Directory, but did you know that you can add other Specialized Directories and charge a fee for the listing? For example, several of my clients are dog clubs and they have a Breeder Directory in addition to their Member Directory. Members pay an extra fee at the time they renew their annual membership. Members themselves can add or remove this directory listing at any time, making it easy for your administrators!

10. Credit Card Processing – Some of my clients worry about offering online payments to their members because of the extra fees that credit card processors charge. First, you need to know the laws in the area you are located. You may be able to increase the cost of the item or membership dues to cover your costs. For example, if you are charged 2.5% for credit card processing, simply add that amount to the cost of your item’s price. If your item is $35, the 2.5% fee is $0.875 so you could charge $36 to cover the fee and a little extra for your organization.

We highly recommend using Stripe for your payment processing because they don’t charge a monthly fee and if you are a nonprofit, ask them for a discount off the fee published on their website. Here’s what Stripe has to say about passing along their credit card processing fees to your clients, customers or members.

“You can pass Stripe fees on to customers by including them in the final charge amount, but it’s essential to ensure compliance with any applicable laws pertaining to your business. Calculate the gross amount, taking into consideration that increasing the final amount also increases the Stripe fee. Be aware that charging processing fees may be prohibited by law in some jurisdictions, so always act in accordance with the applicable regulations.” Read Full Suggestion by Stripe

Revenue Reporting

When I customize the ways you can earn revenue with MembershipWorks, I can indicate what type of revenue you are collecting so you can run reports and upload the revenue to QuickBooks. Revenue can be classified as membership, donations, events, cart items or other. Make sure your treasurer or bookkeeper is an Admin on your MW account so they can login and get the sales revenue on a regular basis.

Don’t let the monthly membership software fee prohibit you from using MembershipWorks to strengthen your organization.

It can add so much regarding the organization of your membership, promoting your members, reducing administrative time and increasing accuracy and transparency. Having a system like this makes it easier to pass on the tasks and responsibilities to the next volunteer or employee who does this important work.

My clients claim that the benefits MWs offers far outweigh the monthly fee.

Ask about a custom DEMO to explain all the benefits of using MembershipWorks AND how you can use it to help generate revenue! Read about the DEMO on my website and watch the 3 short introductory videos about what MW is and how it works.

Call me with your questions!

Michelle Aspelin
952-484-6015

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What’s New? What’s Next for You?

Hello from Mindshare Marketing & Implementation Services!

I’d love to hear from you! Send me an email or give me a call and let me know what’s new for you, for your business, organization, or any endeavor. I’m a connecter and if there’s anything I can do for you, let me know. I can help spread the word using a variety of media like my At Home in Victoria monthly print newsletter, Facebook, email, LinkedIn, personal connections, etc. Let me know if you have something new I can promote, share, or encourage others to consider.

If I manage your website, let me know if you need any new content on your site. New blog posts, product or service offerings or if you just want to celebrate the success you are already experiencing! I miss connecting with people, so please, send me an update!

What’s New with me?

I am still loving my work at Mindshare Marketing & Implementation Services. Primarily making WordPress websites and lately I have assisted another web designer to implement MembershipWorks (a membership management platform) for two organizations, the DDR German Shepherd Dog Club of America and the Great Pyrenees Club of America. Working for dog organizations sure makes me miss my own Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Oliver, but it’s great to see the photos of happy dogs and help them manage their membership.

I also launched a new website for my longtime client, Meg Adams at Divine Containers. Check out the beautiful flower containers she creates with her team! That was another site that brought me joy to watch it “blossom”. She has many photos of her seasonal container business based in Victoria, MN. And she does fresh floral arrangements too!

What’s Next?

I am looking for more projects and clients I can serve. Small businesses or nonprofit organizations. I can serve as an administrator as well as web designer or membership manager. I enjoy doing work remotely, I have clients outside of my local geographic area. You can find my profile on Indeed, LinkedIn or MembershipWorks.com.

But really, I want to hear from you! I feel like I have allowed the pandemic of the past couple of years to impact my work relationships and I have lost touch. Social media is fine, but I miss specific email updates, phone calls, and, especially, in person coffee/tea gatherings where we can really have some valuable “facetime”. If you are local and would like to meet up in person, let me know! I have a flexible schedule.

Cheers!
Michelle

Michelle Aspelin
Mindshare Marketing & Implementation Services LLC
GrowYourMindshare.com

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Non-profit Marketing

Non-profit Marketing – Who’s paying attention to that?

Generally speaking, non-profits are run by valuable volunteers in their spare time. They coordinate events, run fundraising campaigns, collect membership information and dues, all in support of their mission. Who is responsible for your non-profit marketing? When you promote your organization as a whole to your local community, nationally or internationally? Hopefully, you have a volunteer who is well versed in creating websites with keywords so you can be found in search engine results. Someone who understands the value of “the list” for your email marketing campaigns and donation drives. And I hope you have a system in place to house all of your contact’s information so you can easily reach out to a subset of your membership for a specific need and share those contacts with your leadership team.

If you don’t have a volunteer on your team with true non-profit marketing experience, it might be worth hiring me to take a look at what you are doing and offer some advice. I have many tools in my toolbox that might help you get more organized and more focused, which leads to better results for your team emotionally as well as financially. No one wants their volunteers to feel burnt-out, but if you ask them to do too much or pile on projects that are beyond their skillset, they start to leave. They resign from their leadership roles and eventually don’t renew their dues or make other financial contributions to your organization. That can be prevented if your group is organized and efficient with the time that volunteers dedicate to your non-profit.

I can help set up systems for your non-profit. I can create instructions and train your volunteers to manage it moving forward. I can help with any major updates you need in the future. I work on an hourly basis, so you only pay me for work I perform for you, when you need it. I have worked with several non-profit organizations to get them on track for better success and better relationships among their leadership team and their valued volunteers.

Give me a call if your group could use a boost for your non-profit marketing or organizing your group to be more efficient. I’m happy to help!

The Wickenburg Art Club was delighted to discover Michelle Aspelin’s expertise, helping the club transition to MembershipWorks in order to manage the club’s membership on their website. Michelle worked with the board of directors, training them to use the program to its fullest with an excellent PowerPoint tutorial, and was always available to answer every question. We simply couldn’t have done it without her!
Linda McNulty, Wickenburg Art Club

Connect with me!

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Helping Nonprofits Get Organized

Rottweiler Health FoundationI’m so happy that the Rottweiler Health Foundation found me during their online search for a WordPress Website Designer. They were looking for someone to help update their website AND help them complete their nonprofit membership integration with MembershipWorks, a task they had been trying on their own for over a year.

I was able to create a whole new WordPress website for them and finish setting up their membership process in MembershipWorks to help manage their members, multiple donation campaigns, and sync it up with MailChimp (for email marketing) to keep their lists updated automatically. They were fantastic to work with. Their Board members are all over the country so we did everything over Zoom and it worked out great, see rottweilerhealth.org.

“Our non-profit was looking to move our membership management to MembershipWorks. However, we had issues with several other things and had stalled out. I found Michelle on a google search and contacted her to see if she could help.
After speaking with the people involved, she presented a proposal and got to work!!
Michelle helped to work through our issues. She was right there, guiding us were we needed it, and letting us get comfortable with MembershipWorks. She also was able to fully integrate our WordPress system, and helped us get all of our other issues taken care of, including updating our website.
The Rottweiler Health Foundation is now moving along smoothly with our system. We are hearing good things from our Board and our members. All of the issues were done on schedule and on budget too.
As Membership Chair, I am thrilled with how easy it was to work with Michelle. And I know if I run in to any questions in the future, she will be right there to help.” Pat Carkoski, Membership Chairperson

If you know of a group or nonprofit who is struggling to manage their membership, volunteer or donor databases, have them reach out to me! I will see if my strengths and experience match their needs so we can find solutions for them.

You can view other completed websites to see the clients I have helped, view their websites and read their story.

Connect with me to learn more about how MembershipWorks can help your nonprofit membership management. Read more review on my MembershipWorks profile.

Michelle Aspelin
Mindshare Marketing & Implementation Services LLC

MembershipWorks Developer

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How Do You Manage Your Nonprofit Membership?

Ah…the New Year. A Fresh Start. A Second Chance. A New Beginning.

I recently launched a new WordPress Website for a local nonprofit called Elder Resource Association—South of the River. They serve the senior communities in Burnsville, Savage, Lakeville, etc. Their website was ready for a new look, so we worked to get the content updated as well as the design and how it looks visually.

Elder Resource AssociationDuring our initial conversation, they said that managing their nonprofit membership was a challenge. They were outgrowing their excel spreadsheet. I mentioned I had worked with MembershipWorks for some past clients. MembershipWorks is an online platform that manages your member database, sends out automatic email renewal reminders, allows for an online membership directory,  accepts online payments, provides financial reports and event management. We did a demo of the software and they were as impressed with it’s capabilities as I am, so we implemented that into their website as well. We worked quickly in November to get all of this done before their January 1 annual renewal date. Read my MembershipWorks profile and reviews.

Here’s what Kathy Quinby-Johnson of Senior Care Authority had to say,

“Michelle did an amazing job helping our group, Elder Resource Association South of the River, design a new website. As we defined the things we wanted members to be able to do on the site, Michelle recommended MembershipWorks as a tool we should consider and then she managed the steps to integrate it with our site. Michelle is great to work with. She listens carefully to her clients, makes solid recommendations to solve their needs and then implements the project with ease. None of us that worked with her are techies, and she made it so easy. We could not have done this without Michelle’s help. I highly recommend Michelle for this type of project. Call her! You’ll be glad you did!”

If you are part of a nonprofit organization that you think could use help keeping your nonprofit membership database organized and managing your event registrations, give me a call. I’d love to help. Visit my Services page to learn more about what I offer to nonprofits and small businesses.

When Linda McNulty was on the Board of the Wickenburg Art Club in AZ, here’s what she said about implementing MembershipWorks for their nonprofit organization,

“The Wickenburg Art Club was delighted to discover Michelle Aspelin’s expertise, helping the club transition to MembershipWorks in order to manage the club’s membership on their website. Michelle worked with the board of directors, training them to use the program to its fullest with an excellent PowerPoint tutorial and was always available to answer every question. We simply couldn’t have done it without her!”

I can also add MailChimp for your email marketing so it integrates with your membership database automatically. Connect with me to learn more!

Michelle Aspelin
Mindshare Marketing & Implementation Services LLC

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