The concept was first designed by a San Francisco company, the Extraordinaries, which was founded in July of 2008 as a for-profit social enterprise. Co-Founder Jacob Colker started the company because they recognized an opportunity to mobilize micro or byte-sized amounts of spare time for worthwhile causes and communities. “Tapping into the latest trends in information and telecommunications technology, Jacob Colker has combined volunteering, the internet and mobile phones to pioneer a new form of activism in which almost anyone can devote spare time – waiting for the bus or to see the doctor – to a useful charitable or scientific task.” (Sparked – http://www.sparked.com/about) Known as the world’s first micro volunteering network, Sparked offers hundreds of volunteer opportunities.

The idea behind micro-volunteering is to break down a project into thousands of individual tasks which anyone can easily do in their spare time. Distributed problem-solving, now more commonly known as crowd sourcing,may have been around as long as the internet itself.  This is a common scenario when a task or question is posted online to anyone who would like to tackle it. The question can be as basic as, “How would you handle the following situation…” or “we’re looking for ideas.” to an online community. Before the World Wide Web, on-line communities organized around various interests, and topics called USENET newsgroups were popular. Currently, some examples of crowd sourcing projects include Re-Captcha (digitizing books one word at a time), Google Image Labeler and Mechanical Turk, a project from Amazon.com with over 40,000 tasks that pays pennies for each completed.

Some examples of micro-volunteer jobs could be:

• Translating one web page or short brochure into another language

• Editing a press release or newsletter

• Posting a request by a non-profit to the volunteer’s various networks e.g. (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn etc) such as “We need a free meeting space by Friday” or “We are looking for volunteers.”
• Designing a graphic

• Doing web searches to seek out resources for clients in certain geographic areas
• Analyzing information on a spreadsheet and offering short description

What makes micro volunteering attractive?

Micro-actions can be done from anywhere, at any time. Volunteers control the pace and setting in which they volunteer their time.  You can do it while watching TV, on the bus or in your pajamas. You are not restricted to being at a certain place at a certain time anymore.

Most micro-actions are low-commitment, meaning the barriers involved with traditional volunteering (lengthy training, orientations, screening) are non-existent or removed.

People who uncomfortable with a group of strangers might feel more at ease with micro volunteering as they can now volunteer in their own company

Volunteers are able to do more in less time and have the option to achieve more in between their traditional charitable commitments.

Because micro-actions can be performed from anywhere, at any time, volunteers can be drawn from all over the world.

Micro-volunteering is more accessible, removing barriers involved with conventional volunteering e.g. housebound people, disabled people.

Volunteers realize quickly that they can make a difference, do something that benefits a worthy cause on their own terms, giving them greater control over the difference they can make.

To Find A Micro Volunteering Task

Visit Help From Home, http://www.helpfromhome.org/which provides information on over 500 micro volunteering actions / initiatives that can all be performed in under 30 minutes and even suggests whether you need those pyjamas on or not for the task. http://www.sparked.com/

http://vinspired.com/

Other websites involved in micro volunteering include:
http://www.charityguide.org/
http://www.microvoluntarios.org/
http://urbantastic.com/

Key Findings:

Impact of Current Economic Conditions

• Slightly fewer charities are reporting challenges than in mid-2010. Currently, over half of charity leaders report their organizations are facing increased demand because of economic conditions and about half report difficulty carrying out their mission.
• The percentage of organizations reporting increased demand jumped significantly between late 2009 (45%) and mid-2010 (54%) and it continues to be high.
• Currently, just under a quarter of organizations (23%) report that their existence is at risk.

STRESS LEVELS

Currently, 14% of charities are under high stress, almost identical to late 2009 (13%). The elevated stress seen in mid-2010 seems to have been driven largely by the numbers of organizations strongly agreeing that they were having difficulty fulfilling their mission and/or moderately agreeing that their existence was at risk. Some types of charities are more likely to be under stress than others. A number of groups of charities are less likely than others to report high stress. These include:

• foundations;

• charities with annual revenues of $1.5 million or more;

• charities in the Philanthropic Intermediaries and Voluntarism activity area;

• charities in the Prairies; and

• charities with 100 or more paid staff.

Financial and Human Resources

The Canadian economy seems to be recovering from the economic downturn but unfortunately this has not yet translated into increased resources for charities.

Financial resources

The dominant picture presented by survey responses is of a sector where revenues for most organizations are continuing to hold steady or decline, while expenditures are increasing. On average, charities report that revenues have dropped by approximately 0.4% compared to this time last year, while expenditures have increased by 4.8%.

Human resources.

The figures reported by charity leaders have been quite consistent over the past 12 months but  there are worrying indications that the sector is losing paid staff. The numbers are not large, but if the trend continues it may have serious ramifications. Organizations with between one and four paid staff  have reported an average decrease in paid staff in all three editions of the Sector Monitor. Although the size of these decreases is small, the trend is consistent and worrisome. Loss of even a small fraction of a full-time equivalent position represents a serious decrease in available human resources to these organizations.

The volunteer picture has not changed greatly from mid-2010. Two-thirds of charities report that their volunteer numbers have remained about the same and almost a quarter report that they have increased . Foundations are more likely than operating charities to report that their volunteer numbers have remained steady.

Confidence in the Future

Despite some discouraging trends, charity leaders are on the whole very optimistic for the future. In all three editions of the Sector Monitor, just under half of leaders (44%) predict their organization will be better able to carry out its mission in twelve months. Similarly, just over a quarter predict they will be stronger in the next three to four months and about half say demand for their products and services will be stronger over the same period.

(Imagine Canada – 3 rd Sector Monitor  Report – February 8th 2011)

Statistics Canada says the numbers of retirement-aged Canadians in the workforce will continue to increase — in less than 10 years, one in five people in the workforce will be aged 55 to 64.Canada’s population would age rapidly until 2031, by which time the entire baby boom generation would have turned 65. It would continue ageing after 2031, but at a less rapid pace. (Statistics Canada )

This demographics shift also has implications for the volunteer sector namely how to engage this crucial segment of the population and harness their knowledge and skills. Many baby boomers, often well-educated and with disposable income are also seeking ways to remain involved in their communities.  They are more demanding––seeking opportunities for growth and uses of their time that are new and innovative and looking for interesting and meaningful experiences.

The new 2010 research study conducted on behalf of Volunteer Canada gathered practical information for use by volunteer organizations to attract and retain skilled, dedicated volunteers among four specific demographic groups: youth, family, baby boomers, and employer-supported volunteers.

Characteristics of Baby-Boomers

• Boomers are looking for purpose in their volunteering engagements.
• Baby-boomers have time and relatively flexible schedules compared with other groups.
• Boomers expect efficiency and effectiveness of organizations in volunteer management.
• Boomers indicated that they are willing to stay with an organization for  many years as long as they are treated well.

Advice to organizations

• Volunteer organizations need to have strong volunteer coordinators and use  interview and screening techniques to understand clearly the skills and time commitments of the volunteer and discuss the needs of the organization
• Develop clear job descriptions and job specifications for volunteer opportunities, in line with professional human resource management techniques.
• Exit plans and touchstones to give feedback for better engagement and retention.
• Greater online engagement would be beneficial, allowing people to get information through as many online and social media outlets as possible.
• Virtual communications to allow professionals who are frequently travelling to remain engaged.
• Boomers may be interested in short-term ‘contract’ based volunteer opportunities that allow them to contribute to a defined project with a short timescale, versus  a longer term commitment.
• Some baby-boomers felt that volunteer engagement is up to the individuals and that volunteers should speak up about what they want to do and what skills they want to use in an organization.
• Get to know your volunteers
• Understand the volunteers’ family / work situations
• Make it clear what the economic value and the real time commitment needed for a volunteer opportunity, so that the value can be recognized.
• Volunteer recognition is highly important, to feel part of the organization and have a role in decision-making.
• HR policies for volunteers and staff need to be the same.

Full version of the report:

The following are excerpts from The Heart of the Donor: Insights into donor motivation and behavior for the 21st century Executive Summary and Caring Canadians, involved Canadians: Canada Survey of Giving, Volunteering and Participating 2007

Highlights:

Age

The older the individual, the more likely he or she is to be a donor. The Heart of the Donor p 2.
Generally, the likelihood of giving tends to increase with age, with the donation rate rising from a low of 71% for 15 to 24 year olds to highs of 89% for those 45 to 54 and 88% for those 55 and over.  CSGVP p. 18

Income Connection

Income is highly correlated with donor behavior. The Heart of the Donor p 2.
Giving also increases with income. The donation rate rose from a low of 71% among those with household incomes less than $20,000 per year (average of $210) to a high of 90% among those with more than $100,000 in household income (average of $686). CSGVP p. 18

Wealthier people do tend to give more, but they tend to give a lower proportion of their income than do lower income individuals. The Heart of the Donor p 4.
Although those with higher income tend to make larger donations than others in absolute terms, they usually donate a lower percentage of their total before tax household income when they do contribute.  CSGVP p. 18

Education Level

The proportion of donors increases as education level increases The Heart of the Donor p 2.
Greater giving is also associated with higher levels of education. For example, 72% of those with less than a high school degree made a donation, giving an average gift of $215. In contrast, 91% of those with a university degree donated, with the average amount being $711. CSGVP p. 18

Religion Connection

People who regularly attend religious worship services are slightly more likely to be donors than are those who don’t attend, but people who financially support a place of worship are far more likely to be donors to nonprofits than are those who don’t give money to a place of worship. The Heart of the Donor p 3.
Canadians who are religiously active are more likely than other Canadians to be donors and tend to give more when they donate. Just less than one in five Canadians (17%) reported that they attended religious services on at least a weekly basis. These weekly attendees are more likely than other Canadians to donate and make larger annual donations CSGVP p. 23

Gender

Men and women are equally likely to be donors. Men tend to be more generous than women. The Heart of the Donor p 3.
Women are more likely than men to make donations (87% donated vs. 82% of men). On the other hand, men still make larger average gifts ($453 vs. $422 for women). CSGVP p. 18

How Do They Give?

Two giving channels clearly stand out —point-of-purchase collection boxes  and direct mail. A third of all donors have given online in some form.  The Heart of the Donor p 7.
The most common ways in which Canadians made donations in 2007 were through the mail (16% of donations were made this way), in response to someone canvassing at a shopping centre or on the street (12%), canvassing door-todoor (12%), through a collection at a place of worship, such as a church, synagogue, or mosque(11%), or by sponsoring someone in an event such as a walk-a-thon (11%) CSGVP p. 29

The influence of parents on today’s adults

Parents who modeled specific behaviors led to children who now engage in those behaviors.  52% of the adults who watched their parents frequently support nonprofits are today active donors, compared to 26% of those who rarely or never saw their parents give. The Heart of the Donor p 7.
The extent to which people were involved in community activities as youth, or were exposed to role models who volunteered or helped others, is positively related to their charitable giving behaviour as adults. For example, those who reported being active in religious organizations or student government, belonging to a youth group, volunteering, or having parents who volunteered were more likely than others to report making charitable donations. CSGVP p. 29

Motivations

No matter how it’s measured, two factors stand above everything else: cause and integrity. The number one factor for what makes an organization their favorite is the trustworthiness of the organization.Number two is that the type of work they do is a priority for the donor —everything else pales before these two factors. Heart of the Donor p. 7

The reasons most frequently identified as being important were: feeling compassion towards people in need (90%), wanting to help a cause in which they personally believed (86%), wanting to make a contribution to the community (80%), and having been personally affected or knowing someone personally affected by the cause the organization support (62%). Somewhat fewer donors donated to fulfill religious obligations or beliefs (32%), or because government would give them a credit on their income tax (23%). CSGVP p. 31

Imagine Canada is a national charitable organization whose cause is Canadian charities and nonprofits. They support charities and nonprofits so they can, in turn, support the Canadians and their communities.

Imagine Canada is also asking each political party specific question about the non-profit sector. You are encouraged to ask these and other relevant questions in your local riding.

The election kit includes a list of DOs and DON’Ts for charities to help organizations engage in the election process in a responsible manner, as well as specific suggestions for actions that organizations can take to maximize their engagement. In recognition of the importance of civic engagement, the Election Kit also provides a “Get Out the Vote” document with suggestions and links for helping to ensure that all voters have their say on Election Day. (Imagine Canada)

Election Kit 2011

Additional Resources from Imagine Canada:

To help stay informed during the campaign,  a special election newsfeed service that you may want to subscribe to for this period. their Blog,  website, on Facebook, LinkedIn, and on Twitter.

How to GetInvolved? http://www.getinvolved.ca/

Volunteers can be matched to opportunities that fit their interests and skills.  They can also browse through 100’s of opportunities or get a customized match through GetMatched. Volunteers can also create an offer, basically creating an online volunteer resume. First, create a profile; include skills, interests and what causes you care about. There is an “About Me” section and “How I get Involved” section. By creating a profile, you promote your unique skills and organizations can be matched to you.  There are tons of resources as well, 75 informational videos, you can get bi-weekly emails matched to your profile, track your volunteer hours with the Power of the Hour tool and explore resources for the latest volunteer news.

Organizations can also spread the word and share volunteer opportunities. Organizations can also sign up and create a organizational profile including contact information, logo or photos. They can also post opportunities and tell Getinvolved what skills they are seeking in volunteers.  Organizations can also contact Getinvolved and they will spread the work through social media channels. Organizations can also get matched to volunteers with the skills they need. Click on volunteers to browse our users. To get a customized match click Get Matched, tell Getinvolved what you are looking for and you will be matched with talented volunteers. Organizations may ask prospective volunteers questions or send them an email and get started.

Organizations can also access all the resources, over 75 videos, biweekly emails matched to to your profile , track volunteer hours with Power of the Hour Tool and  surf resources.  Organizations registered with Getinvolved are from all across Canada and range from the David Suziki Foundation to the Children’s Peace Theatre, to name a few.

There are abundant opportunities here to get involved. Volunteering is great for students and jobseekers who want to build on experience. Seniors looking for ways to give back will also find lots of opportunities. Career people with knowledge and skills to share will also find ways to help out.

Within days of signing up, I had received several offers to volunteer. There are plenty of virtual opportunities which is good news for me as I like to work from home.  I have  volunteered with sites such as Volunteer Match, Idealist. Org, and UN Volunteers but it is nice to finally have opportunities in Canada. I always knew they were out there, now I know how to find them!

1. Know what you want

Do some checking around and find websites that you like – examples are very helpful for designers to get a sense of what you want. Also know what type of website that you want, if you are setting up an online store your needs will be very different than someone who is looking to set up a community site, forum site or a blog.

2. Do the groundwork first

If you want to have your own website with your own domain, you will need to register a domain name (i.e. mysite.com) and purchase a hosting package. (There is free hosting but you will also have ads from the hosting provider on your site as well so this is not recommended if you want a professional look.)There are a lot of companies out there that provide both services and it is easier for you if you find one that will register your domain and set up a hosting package for you. Googling web hosting and your locality will yield several viable options to check out.

There are plenty of inexpensive hosting options, if you need more services i.e. Ecommerce then the price will go up. Don’t expect designers to know all the ins and outs of web hosting and technical requirements. Most web designers focus on the content and design of the website, not the technical end of things so it is better to phone around and ask the people at the hosting companies.

3. Listen to their advice

When the designer advises you that something simply will not work or not look good on the site, please listen, there is a reason why they are telling you this – it will save so much work and hassle down the road.

4. You want your site done ASAP so try and pay your web designer within a reasonable amount of time

Most designers want to finish their sites as soon as possible so the client can get up and running and they can get paid accordingly.  When we have to wait for an inordinately long time to receive payment, it is very frustrating after putting in hours of work on a website or project.

5. Avoid the dreaded scope creep

A little bit here and a little bit there, sneaking in a few extra details and before you know it, your simple little site has grown into an unwieldy monster, not quite what was in mind originally. Most designers make up a quote based on your requirements and expect to abide by it and also for you to abide by it. Adding on unanticipated and extra items only delays the job and puts pressure on the designer as well as acting in bad faith.

6. if you want to maintain the site yourself, then do it yourself

Unless you are willing to learn HTML, CSS, scripts and other technologies, you are better off getting someone to update and maintain your site. Your other option is to use a do-it-yourself website builder that provides templates and totally automates the process i.e. Yahoo Site Builder. You don’t have much control over the appearance but it enables people who don’t know HTML or coding to produce a workable site. The other option is to use a web authoring program such as Dreamweaver that will design pages and produce sophisticated sites. You will have to learn how to use the program so that may take additional time and investment but may be worth it if you plan on having the site for awhile.

Many web designers hand code or do not use web authoring programs so it doesn’t usually work too well when the client wants to update the site themselves as they usually are not familiar with the design of the site.

7. Why can’t anyone find my site?

Probably because it was never submitted to the search engines and directories, because the site is not optimized, because you don’t have any incoming links and so on and so forth. Traffic doesn’t magically appear. Make sure you ask your designer about SEO (Search Engine Optimization).

8. Don’t try to penny pinch at the designer’s expense

We all try and get the best deal for our dollar but if you either don’t want or can’t pay for a professionally designed website then you are better off with a do-it-yourself site and free hosting. There are many freelancers out there offering affordable fair prices and also smaller companies that offer inexpensive packages – do some research first.  Before you start, determine what you need and what you can afford -  don’t forget that hosting and domain registration cost as well.

9. Don’t expect the designer to do all the work

It’s your website, so you have to take the time to decide what you want the world to see on your web pages. Try to have any content, photos or write-ups, text, etc ready for the designer. They can make suggestions and improvements but it is up to you to determine the direction of the site. Also try to keep your site updated, if you haven’t changed anything in 3 years, don’t blame the designer if it looks outdated! They can’t arbitrarily make the changes; the impetus has to come from you – the website owner!

10. We want you to succeed – really

Designers are proud to see the results of their work on the web and for clients to be happy with the results. Much of the process of design is working together to achieve a common goal – a usable, accessible website, that is esthetically pleasing and serves the purpose e.g. running an online business, providing information or entertaining.