My new storm shelter

I usually don’t write about this kind of stuff, but since there were storms in the Oklahoma City area last night, I thought I would share my experience getting a storm shelter for me. Since last May, you haven’t been able to turn on the TV or browse the web without seeing the flood of ads for the various Oklahoma City storm shelter companies promising to keep you safe. I decided to give in a get one. Choosing one can be an overwhelming task, but here’s how I got through it.

Choosing the Right Type of Shelter 
Storm shelters come in many forms with varying sizes, features, and installation locations. If you are like me and clueless to the various types of shelters and the locations they can be installed, National Geographic has a great article on the various types of tornado shelters. Most companies only specialize in one or two types of shelters. Figuring out which type of shelter will best accommodate your house and your budget will help you narrow down the list of companies to a more manageable size.

Since my house is already built and has a backyard prone to flooding, I chose to go with an underground garage storm shelter. I don’t park in the garage anyway, so this option worked out perfectly for me.

Scouring the Reviews 
A storm shelter is only as reliable as the company that installed it. I scoured the various review sites and testimonials. I tend to put more trust in independently verified reviews from third party sites like Angie’s List that are much less susceptible to manipulation and fraudulent reviews.

After I got my short list of companies together, I called each of them for a quote and asked for references. Most all of the companies were happy to provide them. The ones that were not seemed like they had something to hide and I immediately crossed them off. The fact a business is unwilling or can’t give a reference usually matters more than what the reference actually says.

I find the fact a business is willing to give a references more impactful than what the reference has to say in most cases.

Who I Went With Ultimately 
I decided on a storm shelter from Oklahoma City based storm shelter company Thunderground. I liked the fact that they are local and not based out of state. Also, they were one of the few Oklahoma City storm shelter companies specializing in underground garage storm shelters.

I just needed a small shelter so I went with their “standard regular” shelter. I was surprised to learn that their price included the taxes and installation.

They were booked a few weeks out on installation, which I expected given that it was at the start of the storm season when I reserved mine. The actual installation was surprisingly quick. It only took them around four hours from start to finish.

I haven’t had to use my shelter yet, but I’m glad I got one. It gives me piece of mind knowing I don’t have to scramble to find somewhere for me and my dogs to go.

It's a new year!!! What now?

The new year is upon us and now it's time to make some decisions for your organization. You've already forecasted your upcoming year but did you remember your website? Anymore, it's not just enough to build a website. It's got to stay fresh in the minds of your donors. How about a redesign? I'm not saying you have to redesign it every year but you should consider giving it a face lift every couple of years. Technology changes from year to year so you want to be sure that your website is up to it's top potential. So how do you know if you need a redesign? Definitely look at how long it has been. If it's been two or three years, consider it. If you are using a content management system like Joomla or Wordpress, this is even easier than you know. There are so many fantastic templates out there that have been designed for these CMS you can easily purchase one and use it. In some cases, you may need some assistance from a designer/developer to maybe make sure it's loaded correctly and all the features are up-to-date. A good designer can also take a template you purchased and make modifications to match your brand a bit better. Just consult with your favorite designer for options on this.

Marketing and Fundraising Sessions

The Center for Nonprofit Management (Dallas) is offering several sessions on Marketing and Fundraising. Some topics are:

The most powerful tool in fundraising - Writing the case statement clinic.
Building donor partnerships - Beyond the sponsorship package: creating donor partnerships
Attract new donors - Web design do's and don'ts and how to's
Tell your story - Write to be heard! secrets of a PR Pro

You can read more about these sessions by visiting their website at www.cnmdallas.org

Free EBook from Network for Good

Network for Good has released a new EBook titled "How to Raise A Lot More Money Now - 50 Great Ideas from 11 Top Experts." The book gives you creative ideas on how to raise money for your organization. In past postings, I've talked about strategic ways to get donations. People like to see where their money is going. So being creative with that part of your website can really get peoples attention. Take a few minutes to review this EBook.

If you need help with getting your website designed or redesigned to draw in donors, visit www.gogreencre8tive.com.

Don't forget your networking tools. Get help with you networking as well. I have packages exclusively for non-profits to manage your networking.

Joomla 1.5.20 Security Release

Yes, I know we just upgraded a release a few days ago. But now Joomla has another security release that fixes some bugs and a couple of security issues. Because it's a security release, everyone needs to really update their sites. To view a list of the fixes, visit the Joomla website.

New and Improved: The Witte Museum

The Witte Museum got an amazing face lift with the assistance of myself (the designer) and NPower Texas. The original website was outdated in appearance and structure. They wanted a more interactive site that would draw in visitors to the museum. They also wanted an easy way to update it regularly. I implemented the Joomla CMS so that making changes and managing the website are a breeze. I also implemented a rotating banner on the homepage where they could highlight features and exhibits as they occur. On every page is a row of "call to action" items that fade in and out and are scrollable. On every page, a visitor can do things like plan their visit, donate, get involved and learn more about their capital campaign. The Witte Museums mission of “promoting life-long learning” has been accomplished by making it easy for visitors to have a clear path of action when on the website.

If you're interested in getting a makeover for your website, contact me via email.

Visit the website at www.wittemuseum.org.

Giving in 2009 was still good

The Chronicle of Philanthropy reported in their newsletter that "individuals, who make 75 percent of all charitable contributions, held steady in their giving, providing more than $227-million, the same sum they contributed in 2008, according to researchers at Indiana University’s Center on Philanthropy, who compile Giving USA."

View the source »