nptech.info

pMany of your fellow GL users have been calling to ask us how to create a new account in GL, so I thought it would be a great topic to cover in today#39;s post. We#39;ll assume that you are creating a completely new account to cover the entire process. If the segments already exist, you can skip to the account record section./p pFirst let#39;s have a quick account refresher. Each account number is comprised of segments, which will vary from database to database. Account numbers must be at least two segments (fund and account code) and can have as many as 10 segments, as long as the total number of characters does not exceed 30. When you create a new account, the name and account category default from the account code, which is set up in Configuration./p pWhen creating accounts, if one or all of the segments has not been created, you will receive the error,nbsp;quot;All segments must have valid valuesquot;. To avoid this error, make sure you have all segments of the new account number created beforenbsp;adding the new account record. /p pstrongAccount Codes:/strong/p ol style="LIST-STYLE-TYPE:decimal;" liIn Configuration, click Account Codes./li liClick New Account Code./li liEnter the appropriate Account Code information./li liClick Save./li/ol pstrongSegments:/strong /p ol style="LIST-STYLE-TYPE:decimal;" liIn General Ledger, Configuration, click Tables. /li liSelect Segment or Department. /li liClick New Table Entry. /li liEnter the Number in the Short description field. /li liEnter the Name in the Long description field. /li liClick OK./li/ol pNow that you have the segments created, it#39;s time to create the account record (img alt="Demo Image" align="middle" src="http://www.blackbaud.com/images/support/news/video.jpg" width="16" height="16" /nbsp;a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/kb/index?page=contentamp;id=BB75878"watch the demo/a)./p ol style="LIST-STYLE-TYPE:decimal;" liIn Records, click Accounts. /li liClick Add a New Account. /li liDefine all appropriate account information./li liClick Save and Close./li/ol pWhen you add new accounts, don#39;t forget to a href="http://forums.blackbaud.com/blogs/financialedge/archive/2008/07/08/the-ledger-lowdown-keep-your-vco-up-to-date.aspx"update your Visual Chart Organizer/a (VCO) to ensure accurate reporting and run the a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/kb/index?page=contentamp;id=BB37288"Update Account Plug/a so the new accounts will be available in The Raiser#39;s Edge, if integrated./p pTalk to you soon!/pimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=154128" width="1" height="1"

pHello BBCon attendees and fans - we are getting very excited about the a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/events/bb_conf/charleston/nonprofitconf.aspx"2010 Conference for Nonprofits!/a At T-minus 60 days until the conference begins, we are pleased to announce our keynote speakers! /p pimg src="http://www.blackbaud.com/images/bb/conference/2010/keynote_cousteau.jpg" align="right" height="158" hspace="8" width="200" alt="" /We have marine activist and entrepreneur, Philippe Cousteau headlining at Thursday#39;s keynote session. Philippe is the grandson of marine pioneer, Jacques Cousteau, and has been making a splash over the past decade of his young life with hisnbsp;nonprofit work. Philippe is CEO ofnbsp;nbsp;a href="http://www.earthecho.org/"EarthEcho International/a and co-founder of a href="http://www.azureworldwide.com/team-philippe.php"Azure Worldwide/a, a strategic development company. Look for him this month on Discovery Channel, hosting iOceans,nbsp;/icelebratingnbsp;our oceans with the month-longnbsp;a href="http://planetgreen.discovery.com/feature/blue-august.html"iBlue August/i/ainbsp;/iprogram,inbsp;/ialong with sister Alexandra. a href="http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2009/apr/25/cousteau_grandchildren_receive_legacy_aw80038/"Check out the story in Charleston#39;s local Post amp; Courier/a. /p pWe are just thrilled to have Philippe speak at BBCon this year and you should be too! Stay tuned for more information about the sessions and an underwater-themed event at the conference! Radical! img src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/emoticons/emotion-59.gif" alt="Paradise" //p pTwo totally techy ladies Allison Fine and Beth Kanter will be rocking out at the technology keynote session during prime time of BBCon. The lovely ladies will be presenting their new book,nbsp; a href="http://www.amazon.com/Networked-Nonprofit-Connecting-Social-Change/dp/0470547979"iThe Networked Nonprofit/i/a. Word on the street is that the chances are high that YOU may receive your very own copy of this fantastic read at the conference!!! img src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/emoticons/emotion-21.gif" alt="Yes" //p pAbout Allison: a href="http://www.allisonfine.com/index-flash.html"Allison Fine/anbsp;is the author of a href="http://www.momentumthebook.com/"iMomentum: Igniting Social Change in the Connected Age/i/a, the winner of the Terry McAdams National Book Award, published in 2006 by Wiley amp; Sons.nbsp;a href="http://www.casefoundation.org/"The Case Foundation/a commissioned her to write a paper on young people, Millennials, and activism called a href="http://www.socialcitizens.org/paper/"iSocial Citizens/i/a. Allison hosts a monthly podcast for the iChronicle of Philanthropy/i callednbsp;a href="http://philanthropy.com/media/audio/socialgood/"Social Good/a and she writes her own blog too, of course, a href="http://afine2.wordpress.com/"iA. Fine Blog/i/a, appropriately titled! /p pAbout Beth: Beth Kanter is the author of a href="http://www.bethkanter.org/"iBeth’s Blog/i/a, one of thenbsp;a href="http://beth.typepad.com/"longest running/a and most popular blogs for nonprofits. Beth is also the CEO of a href="http://zoeticamedia.com/"Zoetica/a, a company that serves nonprofits and socially conscious companies with top-tier, online marketing services. In 2009, she was named by iFast Company Magazine/i asnbsp;a href="http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/132/the-most-influential-women-in-technology-the-activists.html"one of the most influential women in technology/a and one of iBusiness Week/i’s “a href="http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/feb2009/id2009029_320890.htm"Voices of Innovation for Social Media/a.” Check out her blog for more information on this groundbreaking women and her be-all end-all authoritative presence about nonprofits and social media./p pWe are so excited to have Allison and Beth share their new book on one of the hottest topics in today#39;s nonprofit world!/p pThats all for now! Stay turned for more next week!/pimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=155749" width="1" height="1"

pHere at Blackbaud Pacific, we have just run two digital marketing focus groups.br /br /Based on the discussions that occured during these sessions, it appears that most of you have a good idea of where to start with online promotion and fundraising. You probably use email as part of your appeals, have dipped your toes in the social media pool, and chances are that someone, somewhere, is working on your search engine optimisation (SEO) strategy.br /br /What appears to be missing however, is a strategy to tie all of these disparate pieces together. How often do you spray your database with emails and pray that it will bring in some form of return? And do you know, beyond a doubt, which media your constituents prefer to be contacted through? Perhaps you#39;ve just signed everyone up to email, figuring that it#39;s cheaper for your organisation and they have the ability to unsubscribe if they want to?br /br /To clarify, there is nothing particularly wrong with this approach. What strikes me, however, is that the results could be so much better if a little more strategy is used. Obviously this is easier said than done, as marketing, fundraising and communications activities vary from organisation to organisation, and responsibilty for online marketing activities can often lie in many disparate arms of the one organisation. Added to this as well are the challenges created by limited resources.br /br /So how do you stop, stand back, take a deep breath, and try to make your approach a little more strategic?br /br /1. Audit yourself. Take a look across your organisation, and make note of every staff member in every division that in some way is participating in your online activities. You need to get a sense of exactly what#39;s going on before reviewing this.br /br /2. Review your orgnisational vision, mission and goals. How are online marketing activities furthering these? Is what#39;s being done currently helping you achieve your goals? Is it working in the short term? What about in the long term?br /br /3. Review your current marketing/communications/fundraising plans. How are your goals being reflected in this? Have any of the activities that are being undertaken in your organisation been mentioned in this? If so, which elements are sticking to the plan? Which elements are not? Which areas of your plans may need to be evolved?br /br /4. Compare and contrast what#39;s happening in reality (what staff are actually doing), to what#39;s happening in theory (what your goals are and how these are being achieved through your plans.)nbsp; From here you should be able to start to identify the gaps, and centralise or decentralise activities as necessary, and make sure the skills required to execute are possessed by the relevant staff members. Most importantly, you can make sure that your short term actions aren#39;t having negative impacts on your long term goals. You can avoid the spray and pray approach./pp5. Start talking to your constituents and listening to their answers. What do they find useful from your organisation? Do they prefer email or being contacted via Facebook? Have you ever actively asked them? br //pp6. Create a strategy that takes into account all of your findings. Remain flexible and adapatable, but make sure you#39;re not over or under-marketing your organisation online. Decide on the main online tactics that you want to engage with, and focus on these. You can#39;t be all things to all people.br //ppStarting to look at what#39;s actually going can be an extremely daunting task, but doing it is well worth the effort. Have you ever tried to do this in your organisation? Why or why not? Do you think that a little more strategy could go a long way?/pimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=155853" width="1" height="1"

pbName?/b Kimberlybr /br /bHow long have you been at Blackbaud?/b I started at Kintera in June 2006. It#39;s hard to believe it#39;s been 4 years!nbsp; bbr //b/p pimg src="http://images.teamsugar.com/files/upl1/1/15111/21_2008/polaroid.jpg" align="right" height="253" hspace="5" width="253" alt="" //ppbWhat technology from the past do you wish would make a comeback?/b I wish Polaroid cameras would make a comeback. I#39;m terrible about printing my pictures after I upload them to my computer. I need a camera that will instantly do the work for me.br /br /bFavorite part of technical communication?/b I love receiving feedback. It#39;s always fun to find out how other people interpret my product explanations.br /br /bProducts you Work On?/b Advocacy and Friends Asking Friends projectsbr /br /bOther projects you Work On?/b Currently I am only working on my writing assignments, but while I was in Support I created an employee-facing solutions database consisting of Sphere tips and best practices, and contributed to the launching of a Help and Support web site.br /br /bHow did you get into technical writing?/b I joined the technical writing team in September 2008 after working as a Technical Account Manager in the Support department. When I learned a writing position was available I expressed my interest because I was frustrated that detailed product information did not exist for clients.nbsp; br /br /bWhat#39;s changed about Blackbaud since you#39;ve been here?/b Well, I don#39;t work for Kintera anymore.br /br /bWhat hasn#39;t changed?/b We#39;re still in San Diego.br /br /bWhat#39;s one unique thing about you?/b While I was in college I worked at the National Archives packing gifts people sent to President Clinton for his library in Little Rock, Arkansas. During my cross-country move from D.C. to San Diego I visited the library and recognized several of the gifts on display.nbsp; br //ppnbsp;img src="http://www.blackbaud.com/images/blogs/Kimberly.gif" height="158" hspace="5" width="198" alt="" /br //pimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=155193" width="1" height="1"

pWhen you#39;re faced with stacks and stacks of advance deposits you#39;ll most likely find at least one error. The error may be that the advance deposit is for the incorrect amount, has the incorrect schedule, or is on the incorrect record. normally, you can just open the Advance Deposit and make the corrections, but what do you do ifnbsp;part or all of the Advance Deposit has already been generated. Don#39;t worry, it can all be undone. /p pThe first step is to remove the generated activity to free up the Advance Deposit to be edited or deleted. To do this, open the record on which the advance deposit credits were generated and select the Activity tab. Highlight each generated credit and click Delete. I recommend posting the reversal on the same day it was originally posted for reconciliation purposes. /p pNow you can open the Advance Deposit record to make the necessary changes. If the Advance Deposit is on the incorrect record, open the Advance Deposit, select File, Delete from the menu bar, and then recreatenbsp;it on the correct record. /p pEnjoy your perfect Advance Deposits. Talk to you soon!/pimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=155093" width="1" height="1"

p style="TEXT-ALIGN:justify;"span style="FONT-WEIGHT:bold;"Charleston, S.C. (August 23, 2010)/span – Blackbaud, Inc. (Nasdaq: BLKB) today announced the launch of a class="tracked" href="http://www.blackbaud.com/blackbaudsocial"font color="#3d9fc8"Blackbaud Social/font/a™, a new offering that provides a class="tracked" href="http://www.blackbaud.com/blackbaudsocial" target="_blank"font color="#3d9fc8"social media solutions for nonprofits/font/a to create both private-label and public socially-enabled communities. It is the only integrated social platform that offers organizations an easy way to extend their mission, access user data, and leverage it for meaningful constituent engagement./p p style="MARGIN:0px;TEXT-ALIGN:justify;"“Nonprofits see the rapidly growing potential of leveraging social media to acquire new constituents and engage them with their mission and programs,” said Marc Chardon, Blackbaud’s chief executive officer. “Blackbaud Social finally gives organizations the ability to integrate their social media strategy with their overall communications, and most importantly, with their CRM.”br /br //p p style="MARGIN:0px;TEXT-ALIGN:justify;"Blackbaud Social is a complementary solution to the company’s existing suite ofnbsp;fundraising, Internet, and constituent relationship management (CRM) solutions. When integrated with Blackbaud Sphere®, it creates the mostnbsp;comprehensive online solution for social media, email marketing, online event management, website management, and advocacy. With Blackbaud Social, nonprofits can drive awareness and traffic from public networks such as Facebook®, Twitter®, and YouTube® to their own private-label house social networks where constituents can meaningfully engage. Blackbaud Social enhances an organization’s ability to more effectively communicate and gain insight into constituent behavior. With a single sign-in, the platform supports bi-directional data transfer to personalize a user’s experience while capturing key data in the user’s CRM profile. /p p style="MARGIN:0px;TEXT-ALIGN:justify;"nbsp;/p p style="MARGIN:0px;TEXT-ALIGN:justify;"a class="" href="http://www.blackbaud.com/default.aspx?pgpId=2531amp;PRID=372" target="_blank"Read more/a./pimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=155755" width="1" height="1"

pSeveral times a week, we offer free, hour-long web seminars on our website. The seminars usually focus on Blackbaud products or best practices for nonprofits./p pTo register, select a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/events/webseminars.aspx" target="_new"Web Seminars/a from the Events menu on our website, find a seminar you want to attend, and click Register Now. Once you submit the enrollment form, you’ll receive an email with instructions for viewing the online presentation, as well as the telephone access number. If you’d like to enroll for additional seminars, click Continue after you fill out the enrollment form./p pHere are some of the web seminars coming up next week:/p blockquotestrongAugust 23:/strongbr /strongIntroducing ALTRU! A Clear View for Membership amp; Development Directors, 2:00 p.m. ET:/strong Learn how Altru can help you cultivate patrons, sell and schedule programs, manage revenue, and focus on your mission. a href="https://www.livemeeting.com/lrs/1100003672/Registration.aspx?pageName=t32vvm73qnpls01p" target="_new"Register now/a/blockquote blockquotestrongAugust 24:/strongbr /strongIntroducing ALTRU! A Clear View for Executive Management, 2:00 p.m. ET:/strong See how Altru can provide you with a global snapshot of your organization to identify the trends which will guide your strategic vision. a href="https://www.livemeeting.com/lrs/1100003672/Registration.aspx?pageName=grctdzqqkbdh90hw" target="_new"Register now/a/blockquote blockquotestrongAugust 25:/strongbr /strongPeak Performance: Strategic Stewardship for Planned Giving Programs, 1:00 p.m. ET:/strong This session will explore how building a relationship major donors strengthens your chances for increased current giving as well as future legacy gifts. a href="https://www.livemeeting.com/lrs/1100003672/Registration.aspx?pageName=9l5rx42gqpd046s3" target="_new"Register now/abr /br /strongGetting to Know AuctionMaestro Pro, 2:00 p.m. ET:/strong Join us to learn how AuctionMaestro Pro can help you plan, organize, and execute your auctions. a href="https://www.livemeeting.com/lrs/1100003672/Registration.aspx?pageName=zstkq0w9274wg5gg" target="_new"Register now/a/blockquote blockquotestrongAugust 26:/strongbr /strongBuilding a Sustainable Giving Program with Grateful Patients, 1:00 p.m. ET:/strong Join us for a discussion about the opportunities and challenges presented by grateful patient programs. a href="https://www.livemeeting.com/lrs/1100003672/Registration.aspx?pageName=c0d2smb26qwvbb18" target="_new"Register now/abr /br /strongstrongBlackbaud Application Hosting: Let Us Focus On Your Software While You Focus On Your Mission, 2:00 p.m. ET:/strong Learn how hosting your Blackbaud applications will protect your data and save you time. a href="https://www.livemeeting.com/lrs/1100003672/Registration.aspx?pageName=2sk8zzf9xpghg5fs" target="_new"Register now/a/blockquote blockquotestrongAugust 27:/strongbr /strongIntroducing ALTRU! A Clear View for Visitor Services and Admissions Directors, 2:00 p.m. ET:/strong Join us to learn how Altru monitors multiple income streams including group sales and facility rentals to ensure profitability and drive better investment decisions. a href="https://www.livemeeting.com/lrs/1100003672/Registration.aspx?pageName=kf07q25px6qqtdvp" target="_new"Register now/a/blockquote pExclusive to our a href="http://forums.blackbaud.com/blogs/raisersedge/archive/tags/Blackbaud+Learn/default.aspx" target="_new"Blackbaud Learn/a customers on August 24 at 2:00 p.m. ET, join us for strongWhat Every Database Administrator Needs to Know/strong to learn about security settings./p pHave a super weekend!/p/strongimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=155376" width="1" height="1"

pOn more than one occasion, you#39;ve probably asked yourself (or a customer support analyst) quot;...what is the difference between The Researcher#39;s Edge and ProspectPoint? What about ResearchPoint and WealthPoint? Well, what services does my organization have? I#39;m confused...quot; We hear you and want to make your experience with Target Analytics much less confusing. Over the past few years, we#39;ve undergone some changes here at Blackbaud. From Blackbaud Analytics to Target Analytics, a Blackbaud Company, we#39;ve created new partnerships through acquisitions and mergers, and our product menu has changed to meet the needs of our nonprofit customers. Because we do offer different products and services, depending on your organizational goals and needs, we want to make sure you#39;re clear on the products you#39;re currently using. /p pa href="http://www.blackbaud.com/targetanalytics/prospectresearch/identification/wp_ontime.aspx" target="_blank"WealthPoint Rating/WealthPoint OnTime/a:nbsp;You can#39;t tell by looking at them who your best prospects are and you may be losing hundreds of thousands of dollars in gifts simply because you don#39;t know who you should be cultivating. Nonprofits are always looking for a better way to identify prospects with greater potential, and while traditional wealth screening is the best way to combine deep research with a cultivation strategy, it is not the most efficient way to make quick decisions about a group of patients, donors, or prospects. WealthPoint OnTime can help by screening your prospects and/or patients through hard asset data sources and ranking them so you immediately know to to begin a relationship with now. Want some icing on that cake? You can send us your lists any time during the day and we#39;ll turn it around in 90 minutes or less. That means that you#39;re using the screening results to visit patients while their still in your facility./p pNot a healthcare organization? Learn more about our a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/files/resources/downloads/Datasheet_Wealthpoint_OnTime_general.pdf" target="_blank"wealthnbsp;ratings/a./p pTo recap, WealthPoint OnTime takes the time and guesswork out of identifying your best potential major and planned gift donors when you need information most...while they are forming an opinion about you, and while they are most amenable to developing personal relationships with your development staff./p pCheck back for other posts in the series, including acquisition lists, custom modeling, and ResearchPoint./pimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=155370" width="1" height="1"

pThe first day of school is right around the corner and there are lots of things to do. Jeffrey Shields created a checklist of things you#39;ll need to do before the big day in the August 17nbsp;issue of a href="http://www.infoinc.com/NBOA/081710.html"NBOA Bottom Line/a.nbsp; The list includes all areas of your school from facilities to the business office to human resources.nbsp; /p pRead a href="http://www.infoinc.com/NBOA/081710.html"Your Back-to-School Checklist/a./p pnbsp;/pimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=154994" width="1" height="1"

pAccountability? Transparency?nbsp; You#39;ve undoubtedly heard these buzz words thrown around, especially if you receive grant funding.nbsp; Funders need to know how their money is being spent.nbsp; If a funder doesn#39;t get accurate reports from a recipient, the recipient likely won#39;t receive further funding.nbsp; In the ever more competitive non-profit space, you must be able to provide accurate, efficient reports that show funders exactly what they are asking for.nbsp; /p pThe Financial Edge has a module called Projects, Grants and Endowments to manage grant tracking and reporting.nbsp; One grant record is created for each grant received.nbsp; You can relate each grant to the projects it funds, budget by grant, record transactions by grant, calculate grant reimbursement requests and report by grant./p pA full suite of reporting options exist for grants.nbsp; Date ranges for grant reporting do not have to be based on your fiscal year!nbsp; Report on the entire grant life, by specific dates, specific fiscal periods or some other date definition as needed.nbsp; Income Statements, Analysis Reports, and Grant Budget vs. Actual are among the many reports that can reflect grant detailsbr /bbr //bTo begin using Grant records, run the Product Details Report, located in Plug-Ins, Miscellaneous,nbsp;to confirm you have the Projects, Grants and Endowments module.nbsp; Then review the Grants section of the a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/support/guides/fe.aspx"Records Guide for General Ledger/a./p pIf you would like assistance, advice or training on using grant records or if you just want to see grants in action, ask your Account Executive!nbsp; We can help!nbsp; /p pKeep your eyes peeled for future blogs on Grants!nbsp; Blogs with details on using grants, grant budgeting and grant reimbursements are coming!/pimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=153690" width="1" height="1"

img style="WIDTH:207px;HEIGHT:264px;" hspace="8" align="left" src="http://www.blackbaud.com/images/pr/2010/RachelAndrewRileyatGreenAward.w.caption.jpg" width="267" height="333" alt="" / p style="TEXT-ALIGN:justify;MARGIN:0px;"bspan style="FONT-FAMILY:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;FONT-SIZE:10pt;"Charleston, S.C. (August 19, 2010) /span/bspan style="FONT-FAMILY:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;FONT-SIZE:10pt;"– Blackbaud, Inc (Nasdaq: BLKB), the leading global provider of nonprofit software and services, is rounding out the third quarter with a continued focus on its core /spanspan style="FONT-FAMILY:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"value of “making the world a better place.” As a result of its many employee-led initiatives, Blackbaud was named a Green Business Pioneer by the /spana class="tracked" href="http://www.charleston-sc.gov/home/home.aspx"span style="FONT-FAMILY:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"font color="#3d9fc8"City of Charleston/font/span/aspan style="FONT-FAMILY:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" and the /spana class="tracked" href="http://www.charlestoncounty.org/"span style="FONT-FAMILY:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"font color="#3d9fc8"Charleston County Council/font/span/aspan style="FONT-FAMILY:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;". The Pioneer Award was presented to Blackbaud because of its work stewarding and protecting Charleston’s environment and resources through achievable business practices./span/p p style="TEXT-ALIGN:justify;MARGIN:0px;"span style="FONT-FAMILY:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"/spannbsp;/p p style="TEXT-ALIGN:justify;MARGIN:0px;"span style="FONT-FAMILY:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"“We are very humbled to be among the recipients of the Pioneer Award,” said Rachel Hutchisson, director of citizenship and philanthropy at Blackbaud. “When it comes to being green, it’s not about what we’ve done; it’s about what we can still do for our environment and the nonprofit community, which is why we have also entered the Charleston Green Business Challenge.” /span/p p style="TEXT-ALIGN:justify;MARGIN:0px;"span style="FONT-FAMILY:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"/spannbsp;/p p style="TEXT-ALIGN:justify;MARGIN:0px;"span style="FONT-FAMILY:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"The /spana class="tracked" href="http://www.sustainabilityinstitutesc.org/gbc.shtml"span style="FONT-FAMILY:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"font color="#3d9fc8"Charleston Green Business Challenge/font/span/aspan style="FONT-FAMILY:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" is a voluntary opportunity for businesses of all types and sizes to pursue sustainability and green-driven strategies, while improving business performance. Developed by the City of Chicago, the challenge is being piloted in five cities across the nation through the initiative of /spana class="tracked" href="http://www.iclei.org/index.php?id=iclei-home"span style="FONT-FAMILY:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"font color="#3d9fc8"ICLEI—Local Governments for Sustainability./font/span/a/p p style="TEXT-ALIGN:justify;MARGIN:0px;"nbsp;/p p style="TEXT-ALIGN:justify;MARGIN:0px;"a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/default.aspx?pgpId=2531amp;PRID=371"Read More./a /pimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=155212" width="1" height="1"

Have you ever wanted to update the look of your website or blog with quality icons? Icons may seem small and un-important but they can enhance the professional look of a page and yet can be really difficult to do well. At Blackbaud, we have an amazingly talented person who creates all the wonderful icons you see in our programs. I am in awe of her abilities. But not many of you will be able to hire people to create icons or you really need to do the icons yourself and if you#39;re like me - you appreciate art and don#39;t create it.pLast week I stumbled upon a great resource - Iconspedia. Iconspedia is a website that hosts/provides free icons.nbsp; /ppa href="http://www.iconspedia.com" target="_blank"http://www.iconspedia.com/a/ppHere#39;s some basic info from their FAQ section:/ppbAre these icons really free?/bbr /Yes, they are free as long as you stick to the rules in the Read-me / License Agreement. Also, in some cases you may need to notify the artists about using the icons and sometimes you need to give credit to them. You can see these restrictions in the pack archive or right under the download section.br /br /bCan I get permission to use certain icons other purposes that aren#39;t allowed by the license?/bbr /You need to get permission from the author that created the icons. Iconspedia is only hosting the icons./ppI suggest you first find the icon pack you want to use and then review the license agreement. Most people just want you to credit them for their impressive work. To me, that#39;s not a bad deal if you get to integrate the icons into your site.nbsp;/ppMost icons are part of a pack. For example, there are many icon packs for the the common social media sites which include icons for websites such as Twitter, Facebook, Digg, Delicious, and more. Most icons seem to be provided in three formats.nbsp;/pulliWindows Icon Pack (.ico)/liliLinux Icon Pack (.png)/liliMac Icon Pack (.icns)/li/ulpbr /Here#39;s a few examples of some icons:/ppnbsp;img src="http://www.iconspedia.com/uploads/19776060761541829343.png" height="64" width="64" alt="" / img src="http://www.iconspedia.com/uploads/152743665.png" height="64" width="64" alt="" / img src="http://www.iconspedia.com/uploads/53000459.png" height="67" width="67" alt="" /img src="http://www.iconspedia.com/uploads/17191027301859118900.png" height="81" width="81" alt="" /img src="http://www.iconspedia.com/uploads/1249654921.png" height="65" width="65" alt="" /img src="http://www.iconspedia.com/uploads/13952417851004877553.png" height="64" width="64" alt="" / img src="http://www.iconspedia.com/uploads/1131948906.png" height="70" width="70" alt="" /img src="http://www.iconspedia.com/uploads/2719526101609485896.png" height="68" width="68" alt="" //ppnbsp;/ppTo get started, I recommend you browse through your website or blog and look for opportunities to visually represent some concepts (or update outdated icons/images). Then, use the search tool on Iconspedia to find the icon you need. For example, I used the icons to create a contact me section on a website. I used the icons to represent the different ways you can contact me and then made each icon a hyperlink to the various websites I participate on.nbsp;/ppbWhat are some of your ideas or potential uses with these free icons?/bbr //pimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=155203" width="1" height="1"

bName?/b Denisebr /br /bHow long have you been at Blackbaud? /b12 yearsbr /br /bWhat technology from the past do you wish would make a comeback?/b Turntablebr / pimg src="http://www.dcwstore.com/turntables/cr85oa.jpg" height="284" hspace="5" width="284" alt="" /br /nbsp;/p br /bFavorite part of technical communication?/b I get to sit all day.br /br /bProducts you Work On?/b Blackbaud Enterprise CRM and ResearchPointbr /br /bOther projects you Work On?/b DITA research team, authoring tool transition team, general tools testing, keeping up with industry trendsbr /br /bHow did you get into technical writing?/b I#39;m an English major and I needed jobbr /br /bWhat#39;s changed about Blackbaud since you#39;ve been here?/b We moved from North Charleston to Daniel Islandbr /br /bWhat hasn#39;t changed?/b My nametag photobr /br /bWhat#39;s one unique thing about you?/b I love Cleveland, OH (and coincidentally she works remotely from there img src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/emoticons/emotion-5.gif" alt="Wink" / )br / pnbsp;img src="http://www.blackbaud.com/images/blogs/denise.jpg" height="240" hspace="5" width="320" alt="" //p pbr //p img src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=155194" width="1" height="1"

pHere are the most popular Forums posts as well as unanswered posts from last week:/p pbMost Popular Topics:/b/p ul lia href="http://forums.blackbaud.com/forums/t/15810.aspx" target="_new"Does anyone quot;soft creditquot; the full amount to multiple constituents for a gift? /a/li lia href="http://forums.blackbaud.com/forums/t/15820.aspx" target="_new"globally add action after email is sent/a/li lia href="http://forums.blackbaud.com/forums/t/15804.aspx" target="_new"Entering a donation - before or after the bank fee/a/li lia href="http://forums.blackbaud.com/forums/t/15845.aspx" target="_new"Globally Removing Relationship Links/a/li lia href="http://forums.blackbaud.com/forums/t/15789.aspx" target="_new"Letter format in export/a/li lia href="http://forums.blackbaud.com/forums/t/15803.aspx" target="_new"Parent of Current Students/a/li lia href="http://forums.blackbaud.com/forums/t/15811.aspx" target="_new"isolate query results/a/li lia href="http://forums.blackbaud.com/forums/t/15816.aspx" target="_new"Importing graduates and parents of freshmen into RE/a/li/ul pbUnanswered Posts:/b/p ul lia href="http://forums.blackbaud.com/forums/t/15834.aspx" target="_new"Ruffalo Cody#39;s Campus Call and IATS/a/li lia href="http://forums.blackbaud.com/forums/t/15831.aspx" target="_new"The Raiser#39;s Edge and WhippleHill/a/li/ulimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=155139" width="1" height="1"

In my quot; A Very Useful and Free Tool for Capturing Screens quot; post, I described how Jing ® can be used to record 5 minutes or less of onscreen actions for video. Since then we have been working on ways to integrate video into our self-paced eLearning lessons. We have plans in place for using video and have even developed some processes that allow us to establish best practices. LeAnn Worley, an Educational Consultant, worked with us to help define our processes and took a few minutes to create...(a href="http://forums.blackbaud.com/blogs/distancelearning/archive/2010/08/18/using-video-for-learning.aspx"read more/a)img src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=155106" width="1" height="1"

pa class="" href="https://bbcon.blackbaud.com/registration.cfm" target="_blank"Join us in Washington, D.C./a on October 20 to 22, 2010 for what will surely be the ultimate learning experience. Whether you are already registered or you’re planning to attend, check out everything this year’s Conference has to offer:/p pstrongAnnouncing Our Featured Presentations and Keynote Speakers/strong/p ul li divstrongSocial Media for Nonprofits Ignite!/strong: As the finale of the Internet Kickoff, this presentation is open to all attendees and will feature representatives from leading social media platforms, including Causes, TwitPic, Twitter, and YouTube. In true quot;Ignitequot; style, each presenter will have five minutes to present 20 slides about their nonprofit programs and initiatives.br //div/li li divstrongTechnology Keynote Featuring Allison Fine and Beth Kanter/strong: In the featured technology presentation, attendees will hear from Allison Fine and Beth Kanter, best-selling authors of the recently released book a class="" href="http://www.amazon.com/Networked-Nonprofit-Connecting-Social-Change/dp/0470547979" target="_blank"emThe Networked Nonprofit/em/a. Allison and Beth will lead a conversation about how nonprofits can scale social change using social media and networks.br //div/li li divstrongKeynote Session Featuring Philippe Cousteau/strong: During the keynote session, we’ll hear from a class="" href="http://www.earthecho.org/about-board-philippe_cousteau.html" target="_blank"Philippe Cousteau/a, grandson of legendary oceanographer Jacques-Yves Cousteau. Philippe is a successful entrepreneur, activist, and entertainment personality. Since the beginning of the Gulf Oil Spill, he has been reporting for various news outlets from the front lines of the disaster. He is chief executive officer of the nonprofit organization a class="" href="http://www.earthecho.org/" target="_blank"EarthEcho International/a./div/li/ul pstrongSessions/strongbr /Our agenda is packed with more than a class="" href="http://bbcon.blackbaud.com/conference_program.cfm" target="_blank"160 sessions/a delivered by expert speakers who have great ideas — both practical and visionary. Check out all of the content listed on our a class="" href="http://bbcon.blackbaud.com/conference_program.cfm" target="_blank"online program/a, where you can filter the sessions according to your needs./p pstrongWin Free Registration!/strongbr /If your organization can’t simply spare the expense to send you to Blackbaud’s Conference, you can enter to win free registration! /p ul li diva class="" href="http://www.blackbaud.tv/Inspire" target="_blank"Enter our BlackbaudTV “Inspire” Contest/a by submitting a video that explains how you inspire your supporters to take action. Your entry earns a chance to win one of two Conference passes or an iPad.br //div/li li divEnter the a class="" href="http://www.blackbaud.com/Inspire" target="_blank"Blackbaud Inspire Tweetaway/a for a chance to win one of four Conference passes by @replying to a class="" href="http://forums.blackbaud.com/controlpanel/blogs/www.blackbaud.com/twitter" target="_blank"Blackbaud on Twitter/a with your message about how you inspire supporters with social media. Make sure to tag your tweet with #BBSocial./div/li/ul pstrongQuestions? Contact us today.br //strongbr /We#39;re happy to answer any questions about this year#39;s Conference. Just call the events hotline at 866.292.4006 or email a href="mailto:conference@blackbaud.com"conference@blackbaud.com/a./p pWe look forward to seeing you in D.C.! /p pnbsp;/p pnbsp;/p pnbsp;/p pbr /nbsp;/pimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=155086" width="1" height="1"

pAs a consultant who works extensively with Blackbaud#39;s NetCommunity product, I frequently find myself discussing the implementation of online communities with clients who are either building a new website, or looking to enhance their existing website.br /br /Online communities built into Nonprofit websites are extremely popular, as by creating user accounts, users get entered into the organisational database, and their details and online movements can be tracked.br /br /Communities can be fantastic resources for organisations with niche audiences and active members. They can be great for:br //pulliPromoting engagement with your organisation/liliCutting down your data management by getting users to update their own details/liliAllowing you to display customised content based on constituent interests, needs amp; behavioursbr //liliProviding added services to constituents that you don#39;t want made accessible to the general public/li/ulpbr /What often gets overlooked when establishing a new online community, however, are the reasons why constituents should take time out to register and continue to return. We#39;re all time poor and spend most of our days multi-tasking, so you need to establish some clear benefits to encourage registration and attendance into your community. br /br /So, with this in mind, here are my thoughts on how you can promote your online community to ensure its success:br /br //pollibEnsure that the functionality and content inside your community will be interesting to your constituents./b Ensure that you have a unique offer that is available nowhere else. Perhaps you could offer health advice if you are a health focused Nonprofit? Or what about updates on what past gifts have contributed to? Don#39;t be afraid to get creative!br /br //lilibFocus on the benefits of your community/b bwhen promoting it on your website./b Have you detailed what#39;s available to users on your web pages outside of the community? Have you made a good case as to why your constituents should go to the effort of creating a user account? Have you focused on what#39;s important to them, rather than what#39;s important to your organisation?br /br //lilibMake the login and register options accessible./b Don#39;t hide them deep in your website design.br /br //lilibDon#39;t try to replicate Facebook/b. It already exists, and you will never be able to offer the functionality that Facebook can. Focus on functionality and content that is original and true to your organisation and expertise. Make your constituents see the benefits of creating one more username amp; password, as what you have to offer is unique./li/olpIt all comes down to making sure your community is one of a kind, and promoting it well. You need to make sure you offer more than just a page where registrants can update their details. Or, if this is all you feel that you can offer, you need to make sure that you establish clear benefits for users who login and update these.br /br /What do you currently do to encourage users to login to your online community? How do you promote the benefits of joining your website?/pimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=155022" width="1" height="1"

pEach month you ask us hundreds of questions. To help anticipate your questions in August, we#39;ve listed the top 10 questions, by module, for August of 2009 on a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/support/faqs/fe7.aspx" target="_blank"The Financial Edge FAQs/a. You#39;ll also find answers to the most popular questions from last week and information about critical issues./p pHere are the top questions you asked in July:/p ul style="LIST-STYLE-TYPE:square;" liHow to reconcile to General Ledger: a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/esupport/esupport.asp?resource=amp;number=0amp;id=BB3358" target="_blank"BB3358/a/li liHow to install or update The Financial Edge: a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/esupport/esupport.asp?resource=amp;number=0amp;id=BB273248" target="_blank"BB273248/a/li liHow to void checks, bank drafts, and EFT notices: a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/esupport/esupport.asp?resource=amp;number=0amp;id=BB59007" target="_blank"BB59007/a /li liHow to add accounts to a Visual Chart Organizer (includes demo img alt="Demo Image" align="middle" src="http://www.blackbaud.com/images/support/news/video.jpg" width="16" height="16" /): a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/esupport/esupport.asp?resource=amp;number=0amp;id=BB64859" target="_blank"BB64859/a/li liHow to add a new account (includes demo img alt="Demo Image" align="middle" src="http://www.blackbaud.com/images/support/news/video.jpg" width="16" height="16" /): a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/kb/index?page=contentamp;id=BB75878" target="_blank"BB75878/a/li liHow to run the General Ledger Report in Summary or Detail (includes demo img alt="Demo Image" align="middle" src="http://www.blackbaud.com/images/support/news/video.jpg" width="16" height="16" /): a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/kb/index?page=contentamp;id=BB109130" target="_blank"BB109130/a /li liHow to import journal entry transactions: a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/kb/index?page=contentamp;id=BB53174" target="_blank"BB53174/a /li liDemo Do Not File prints on W-2s and 941s: a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/kb/index?page=contentamp;id=BB430526" target="_blank"BB430526/a /li liHow to globally add and expire a Pay Type, Benefit, Deduction, Attendance Record, Event, or Attendance Plan to employees (includes demo img alt="Demo Image" align="middle" src="http://www.blackbaud.com/images/support/news/video.jpg" width="16" height="16" /): a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/kb/index?page=contentamp;id=BB708025" target="_blank"BB708025/a /li liInvoices are not showing to be paid: a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/esupport/esupport.asp?resource=amp;number=0amp;id=BB142101" target="_blank"BB142101/a/li/ul pTalk to you soon!/pimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=154953" width="1" height="1"

pEach time you call Support, we track your questions innbsp;a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/kb/index?page=home"Knowledgebase/a.nbsp; Since this information is helpful to us,nbsp;I thought it would be helpful to you guys too. You can find the top 10 questions from last week and last month on the a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/support/faqs/fw.aspx"FundWare FAQs/a.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; /p pHere are the top 5 questions you asked in July:/p ul liError: Posting in Process or The GL parameter is locked by another posting process: a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/kb/index?page=contentamp;id=BB707691" target="_blank"BB707691/a liHow to receive a FundWare update registration key: a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/kb/index?page=contentamp;id=BB711471" target="_blank"BB711471/a liHow to perform Year-End Closing: a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/kb/index?page=contentamp;id=BB707393" target="_blank"BB707393/a liError: Date table entry for ID Type (ID) is missing or closed to entry: a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/kb/index?page=contentamp;id=BB707436" target="_blank"BB707436/a liHow to Reverse an Interrupted or Out-of-Balance Trace Report Posting: a href="http://www.blackbaud.com/kb/index?page=contentamp;id=BB708707" target="_blank"BB708707/a /li/ul pDon#39;t forget to check the FAQs weekly for answers to yournbsp;FundWare questions. Talk to you soon!/pimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=154951" width="1" height="1"

pimg border="0" hspace="0" alt="Join forces and save" align="right" src="http://www.blackbaud.com/images/blogs/shake.gif" width="200" height="144" / Are you getting low on Student ID cards, report cards, or envelopes? Don#39;t throw money away; coordinate with your business office and place a joint Blackbaud forms order. When you order tax forms and include another Blackbaud Forms product now through October 29, you#39;ll save 15% off your order! Call 866.422.3676 to order and mention promotion code strongOX2212310M/strong to receive your discount./pimg src="http://forums.blackbaud.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=154034" width="1" height="1"