Protecting against spam

On 31st March 2021

Urgh spam. No, not the canned meat. The inconvenient annoyance that seems to find its way to my email every day! It’s a human thing to receive spam/junk but why do we get it and how can we spot spam? These are the questions that come to mind when I’m staring at an email asking me to click a link to pay for something I swear I never bought! Well, here at TeamKinetic we are going to explain how we protect you against spam, why we get spam and how to spot it…

Protecting against spam

At TeamKinetic, we don’t want our customers being bombarded with spam emails. So, to help with this we first used Google Captcha, a method which tries to distinguish between robots and humans. But, the robots got smarter! There were signs that the system was getting easily defeated by the bots… Don’t worry it isn’t an i, Robot situation!

Now, we have found a better way to detect and remove as much spam as possible, we use a multifaceted approach which includes:

A non human visible honeypot which forms elements that bots love to fill in.
Testing to see if JavaScript had been run.
Timing how long it takes to complete and submit a form (robots are much faster than humans)!

Why do we get spam?

Its practically impossible to stop all spam. If you are too strict you lose valid emails but if you are not strict enough, too much spam will get through the cracks. It is difficult to find the perfect balance but we feel we have have hit the nail on the head. I can tell you that we get 98% less spam using the combination methods above than when the contact us form is left without protections. Sounds great, but what about that 2% that gets through, how can you spot those types of emails? Keep reading to find out…

How to spot spam emails

Most of the phishing and spam messages we get contain dire messages about your domain name and or the search engine optimisation (SEO) for your website. Your domain, if its is managed by us, is automatically renewed, there is no danger of it being de-registered and neither do you need to pay to keep it registered. The same goes for SSL certificates. Others talk about errors on the website and offer to fix them if you download a program; DONT! As a general rule don’t follow any links in any unsolicited email or message. There are some useful tips for how to spot phishing messages on the IT governance website.

What we advise…

If you get any emails which seem suspicious or you seem to be receiving many at once, never click on a link or send personal information. Open a support ticket or head to our website to start a live chat and we will gladly look into this for you.

Remember, stay safe offline and online!

3 Reasons Why You Don’t Use SMS Text Messages

On 18th March 2021

In TeamKinetic Features, Volunteer Management

If you are reading this, you might not be using SMS text messages to manage your volunteers. And you will have your reasons as to why you feel that SMS text messages would not benefit you, your organisation, or your volunteers. This is where we come in. We’re here to debunk some of the common reasons why organisations think they don’t need text messages to manage their volunteers.

1) You don’t know how to use them

If you have never bought them before, then of course you’re not going to know how to use them. But, it is very easy to pick up. In fact, we have created a video that shows you exactly how to turn text messages on, how to set up automatic messages, how to send texts to specific volunteers, and how to send texts to the volunteers on a specific opportunity. Sending text messages to volunteers has never been so easy!

2) You don’t know the Impact

So, you think your organisation doesn’t need SMS text messages. But, do you know about the impact?

It will make you wonder why you didn’t use them earlier. Here are just a few ways it can ompact your volunteers:

You can automatically alert your volunteers by text when they have a session coming up, if their criminal check is due for renewal, or even when one of the providers they follow adds a new opportunity. Not only does this help engagement and encourage volunteers to attend sessions, it also makes your life a lot easier.
Our SMS text messages function has been proved to be a more effective way to reach people and ensure they read your message over email. No longer will you have to worry about people not receiving your email because it either got lost in their inbox, they rarely check their emails, or it just went to spam; sending texts gives a higher chance of volunteers seeing your message.
You can easily text groups of volunteers, individual volunteers, or all volunteers on a particular opportunity, and give them the information they need. Alternatively, if you enter a valid mobile number as the reply-to number, volunteers will be able to text you back and continue the conversation. Or you can provide a short name that will let volunteers know where the message has come from, but they will not be able to reply directly. This makes communication a lot easier for both the volunteer and the volunteer manager.

Let’s look at some scenarios for example:

3) It costs too much money

You may worry that using text messages is just another ongoing expense for your organisation, and it is, but, it’s all the brilliant benefits, like the ones mentioned above, that makes it worth the expense.

We also have an offer available for a short time, which may help your organisation if one of your reasons for not buying SMS messages is money. Currently, for every 2 messages you buy, we give you one for free. So when you buy 500 texts, you get 750 and when you buy 1000 texts, you get 1,500. Meaning, the more you buy the more money you save! Perfect for communicating with volunteers, both when in a lockdown and when out of a lockdown.

So, should I use them?

After reading all through the reasons why you thought you didn’t need SMS text messages, you might be thinking there could be benefits after all. So why not check out our SMS text offer? After all, it is saving you money in the long term. Take a look at our video below which explains how to do this:

Should I Be Using SMS Text Messages?

On 18th March 2021

In TeamKinetic Features, Volunteer Management

Yes, yes and yes. That is the first thing you see when you Google ‘Should I be using SMS text messages when managing volunteers?’. And the research isn’t wrong, using texts as a form of communication to your volunteers is incredibly beneficial. Not only does it improve communication, but it can also increase engagement and volunteer return rates. And let’s not forget the speedy responses that come from sending text messages, perfect for those time-sensitive situations.
However, the one thing you don’t really see when you Google this question is how beneficial SMS texts are from someone who is currently using them.

This is where we come in. If you are considering using SMS text messages but are still a bit unsure, hear from Claire at Halton and St Helens Volunteer Centre about her personal experiences using them.

Halton and St Helen’s Volunteer Centre

First, a little bit of background. Halton and St Helens is an organisation that provides advice, information and development support to voluntary, community, non-for-profit, faith organisations and volunteers in the Boroughs of St Helens and Halton. Here, Claire spoke to us about her experiences using SMS text messages in her TeamKinetic system.

1) When did you start using the SMS text message feature?

So, we started to use the text message feature fairly early on into the first lockdown of the pandemic. It was also around the same time that we first launched our TeamKinetic portal.

In addition to this, it was around March/April that we had quite a substantial funding grant come through, which allowed us to buy a great big text bundle. And I already knew of the texts and how they worked from the work we have done with TeamKinetic before.

2) How do you use your text messages?

Initially, we used text messages for our volunteers who were supporting local residents during the pandemic with the community tasks. We would use the function to send a text to show they are a verified volunteer for us, this was pre the ID cards. It was a quick and easy way for us to give them something that was mobile that they could show the person they were working for that they were a verified volunteer.

When the ID cards came into play on the community task dashboard, we started to use the texts to message our ‘Street Champions’ about ongoing tasks that hadn’t been picked up that needed to be done. I’d say that is the main way we used them now.

3) Do you find the SMS text messaging feature helpful in communicating to and engaging volunteers?

Yes, definitely. Between that and emails, we can have more of an impact in terms of communicating straight away with volunteers. And it’s that instant impact that is important for us particularly when there is an urgency in terms of volunteer support.

Recently we have also used them with our vaccination volunteers. For example, when volunteers have dropped shifts and we have then asked other volunteers to quickly log in and see if they can pick up a shift. So, that’s been really helpful as we’ve now had full commitment and maximum volunteers throughout our vaccination programme which is great.

4) How have you benefited from the SMS text message feature compared to a time when you didn’t use them?

For me, it’s just an added bonus in terms of being able to communicate quite directly with that we’re not always in connection with and we don’t see physically. It wouldn’t even matter that much when we’re back into the ‘new normal’ after COVID-19 and we do see people on a regular basis. This is because the text messages would still be a massive benefit in terms of that quick turn around and communication with volunteer around shift patterns etc.

For example, we have worked with the TeamKinetic portal for years at Warrington Hospital, and we have never used the text message feature with them. This is mainly because we have never had the funding to be able to do that. But, again with some added funds, we have been able to out a little bit of a bundle on there too. So, we have now used it for when we have needed to contact our away finders, when there’s been an urgent need for people to support the vaccination centre, or when we’ve needed a quick turnaround on support. I think we could probably do that again going forwards, even when we start to bring our volunteers back, it will be a great tool.

We also use them differently in the Hospital in terms of the communication that we do in Halton and St Helens through the Volunteer Centre. So, with the Hospital it’s linked directly to a phone number which helps that two-way communication. With the Volunteer Centre, we actually just link it to a name so they understand it’s just from us and there’s no response from that.

5) What would you say to another organisation that is considering using the SMS text message feature but is still unsure?

For me, it’s a great way of quickly communicating and getting action from volunteers very quickly too. Particularly if you have got an event on for example or you are providing urgent response support; it’s a great way of supporting that quick action of volunteers to get engaged, get involved, and get moving.

Thinking About Buying SMS Texts

If after reading this, you realise SMS texts would benefit your organisation and your volunteers, then check out this video explaining how to take up the offer!

Lockdown 3.0 – How To Volunteer Safely

On 15th January 2021

Lockdown 3.0 is here in the UK and we are bringing to you the guidelines given by each government in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland on how to volunteer safely. Below are each government and links to guidance on how to volunteer during this lockdown… Keep reading and stay safe!

England

A ‘reasonable excuse’ for leaving your home includes volunteering – you can also leave home to provide voluntary or charitable services, where it cannot be done from home. For further guidance, see below:

Coronavirus – How to help safely
Volunteer placements, rights and expenses
Coronavirus – Meeting with other safely

Scotland

Examples of reasonable excuses to go out include to provide voluntary or charitable services, but only where that cannot be done from your home. For further guidance, see below:

Helping your neighbours, friends and family
Coronavirus – Advice for volunteers
Coronavirus – Local protection levels

Wales

The new rules allow volunteers to go out to provide care or help to a vulnerable person, including emergency help. This includes getting food and medicines for them. For further guidance, see below:

Coronavirus – How can I volunteer?
Community response to Covid-19 – enabling safe and effective practice

Northern Ireland

Where possible, you should volunteer from home. If you cannot do so, you can volunteer outside your home, if you are able to meet the regulations and guidelines applicable at that time. For further guidance, see below:

Guidance for volunteering during the COVID-19 pandemic
Coronavirus (COVID-19): staying safe when helping others

2021 Resolutions – What Happens Next?

On 13th January 2021

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I think everyone would agree that 2020 was a bit of a rubbish year. Between the pandemic, Brexit and Trump we saw some of the very best and worst of human nature play out in front of our eyes. As we head into 2021, we at TeamKinetic think we can make the world a slightly better place to be. As part of our first meeting back as a team, we discussed what our hopes for 2021 look like and our resolutions to help us get there. We thought it might be nice to share these with the internet and challenge you to come up with your own resolutions to share with us.

Personal Resolutions

Here’s what the team are thinking about for 2021:

Company Resolutions

As a company we have set ourselves some resolutions and goals as we look to come out of the pandemic stronger. We want to share these with our customers, so you can hold us to account if you think we are coming up short.

TeamKinetic will be investing time on our UX/UI across our product as we look to standardise and modernise the interface. We’ll be giving special attention to mobile and small-screen usage as we think this will be the number one way volunteers interact with our services in 2021.

We have plans to improve how opportunities can be created with a new approach based around the creation of ‘roles’. This is a really big change for TeamKinetic so you are likely to see this feature set develop over the next 12 months. We’re excited for you to see what we have in mind with this.

We are looking at DBS/ PVG and other forms of ID verification that can be undertaken directly in your TeamKinetic application. We want to reduce your administrative burden and save you money on the cost of administering criminal record checks.

This year we want to build on our customer steering group with more interaction and feedback from you, our customers. We will be launching our customer attitudes and satisfaction survey which we hope you will get involved with. We are developing new tools that will help us understand how you use TeamKinetic. Also, we’re launching our supplementary training that you can access to improve what you get out of TeamKinetic.

Last year saw some huge new features added to TeamKinetic. We will be continuing to refine and explore where these go next. We hope you will be with us to share your thoughts and opinions on what we do.

Here’s to 2021.

You can find TeamKinetic on social media and listen to our podcast:

Have you enjoyed using TeamKinetic? If you could leave us a review on Capterra, we’d really appreciate it! We’ll even send you a little thank you.

Lockdown 3.0 Volunteering Guidelines

On 11th January 2021

Another day, another lockdown. Lockdown 3.0 is upon us and we know the volunteering world are just waiting to read about the new guidelines from the government. We have found some useful information in regards to volunteering during this lockdown. Each is relevant per country…

As this is a fast changing situation, please make sure you are checking for latest guidance from your national government and/ or infrastructure body.

England

Government National Lockdown: Stay at Home guidance
Coronavirus (COVID-19) volunteering
Practical support and information

Scotland

Examples of reasonable excuses to go out include to provide voluntary or charitable services, but only where that cannot be done from your home. For further guidance, see below:

Coronavirus (COVID-19): stay at home guidance
Coronavirus (Covid-19) advice for voluntary organisations
Coronavirus Third Sector Information Hub

Wales

Tthe new rules allow volunteers to go out to provide care or help to a vulnerable person, including emergency help. This includes getting food and medicines for them. For further guidance, see below:

COVID-19 updates and guidance
Volunteering during the coronavirus pandemic
Public Health Wales statement on Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak

Northern Ireland

Volunteering during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic
Coronavirus (Covid-19) Situation

Managing Micro Volunteering

On 12th October 2020

In COVID-19, News & Views, Volunteer Management

Micro-volunteering is the idea of volunteering in ‘short bursts’. This means volunteering in short and convenient ways, at times and places which suit everybody’s schedule. What makes micro-volunteering different from standard volunteering is that it can be done online or face-to-face, and doesn’t require any long term commitment. This means that the volunteer also doesn’t have to go through an application or training process first. Micro-volunteering is perfect for both volunteers and organisations! It has the potential to attract a wider diversity and greater number of people, including individuals who wouldn’t have got involved otherwise due to conflicting schedules.

Examples of micro-volunteering include:

Delivering supplies to those isolating from covid-19
Signing online petitions
Writing blogs
Retweeting and posting relevant content to social media
Two minute litter pick
Buying a homeless person food or a hot drink
Researching and completing online surveys
Donate old clothes and goods to a charity shop

Remember this..?

Going Beyond the Ice Bucket Challenge | Ipsos

Remember when the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge went viral in the summer of 2014? Where everyone, including big celebrities like Mark Zuckerberg, would tip a bucket of ice water over their head to raise awareness of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).

Well, this was a perfect example of micro-volunteering. While this wasn’t classified as your ‘typical’ volunteering, it engaged people all over the world and encouraged them to donate their time and resources into raising awareness of ALS. This viral challenge raised $116 million over two years from people engaging in this challenge who previously might not have got involved if it wasn’t for micro-volunteering.

How has COVID-19 impacted this?

The rates of micro-volunteering will have naturally increased from COVID-19. This comes from people having too much spare time and wanting to use their time to help others during such a negative time.

COVID-19 has made the majority of the population go into self isolation to protect themselves and to protect others. This then meant many volunteers had the suspend their volunteering duties- this is where micro-volunteering comes into play! Micro-volunteering has allowed volunteers to continue their contributions whilst isolating at home. For example, VolunteerScotland has seen 60,000 people come forward as a response to COVID-19, prepared to help in the most difficult of times- and this is just Scotland!

The future of micro-volunteering…

Micro-volunteering is only going to continue to grow, especially considering the current climate, and this is something we need to encourage. It’s simple, without micro-volunteering there would be less people volunteering their time- especially during COVID-19.

One of the biggest barriers to volunteering is people not having the time. Work commitments is the biggest barrier at (49%), with people ‘doing other things with their spare time’ closely following (35%), and child commitments following at (23%). Micro- volunteering allows people to contribute to volunteering around their schedule. This can even be sharing something on social media to raise awareness.

With COVID-19 now also causing volunteering barriers, micro-volunteering has come to the rescue. Micro-volunteering has allowed volunteers who are self isolating to continue to contribute to a cause from the safety of their home. This could prove to be the future for many volunteers who may not feel safe to return to face-to-face volunteering for a while. This then allows organisations to continue to receive volunteer support, despite the current COVID-19 situation.

How can you encourage micro volunteering with TeamKinetic?

During the peak of the COVID pandemic, we added an entirely new feature set around micro community volunteering. It includes a new admin and provider management page. Your volunteers also have access to their own progressive web app, allowing them to join micro volunteering tasks and record their progress using their phone.

Step 1 – Enable the community tasks feature from your super admin options menu

As you can see above, there are a few options available. Remember to give access to your volunteers and allow them to download the web app in order to access your community tasks.

Step 2 – Add your community tasks

Select ‘Community Tasks’ from the ‘Opportunities & Providers’ menu. Once you have enabled them in the super admin options menu.

Hit the big GREEN plus button to add your first community task.

There are some important things to know when adding your community tasks;

All the data you add in the red section is visible publicly to your volunteers.
The first set of data in the yellow section headed ‘Private Data’ is never revealed to volunteers.
The second set of data in the yellow section headed ‘Data Shown to Assigned Volunteers’ is only revealed to the volunteer that applies and is accepted for the task.

You can describe the task here and provide a location for the recipient. This is as well as restricting which volunteers have access to see and pick up these tasks. You can restrict by their ID check, criminal check status, and whether they are linked to the assigned provider or not.

All your volunteers that have logged into the web app will receive notifications when new tasks are added. This will either be in the app for Android/Chrome devices or via email for iOS devices.

Step 3 – Get your volunteers completing the tasks

By enabling access to volunteers in the super admin options menu, your volunteers can login at ICanHelp.teamkinetic.co.uk. Additionally, by switching on the relevant options, you can also select to advertise the web app to your volunteers when they login on their dashboard.

When they login they will see a familiar mobile app interface and can search and select community tasks and apply to join.

Once they have applied you will see their application in your admin community tasks management page. From there you can assign them to the task. The volunteer will receive a notification that they have been assigned a task and can then view the full details in the app. Once they have completed the task, the volunteer can then update the status within the app.

It’s a super easy and fast way to encourage participation with those small micro-volunteering activities in your community. This will also help to build lasting connections.

Don’t hesitate to get in touch or open a support ticket if you need more help setting up your community tasks. You can chat to us through our website or directly email us at chris@teamkinetic.co.uk.

“Volunteer Management Software for non-profits? I don’t need that!”

On 1st October 2020

In Charity, News & Views, Volunteer Management

Volunteer Management Software. A scary term which sounds completely crazy to those who have religiously used Excel to manage their volunteer workforce. So, I get it, it can be frightening going from years of working on hundreds of excel sheets to just one piece of tech. But, what if I showed you how easy it can be?

So let’s take a look at some of the most common sayings non-profits have when talking about volunteer management software.

What even is volunteer management software?

Volunteer management software is an online system which allows your organisation to manage all of your volunteers in one simple space. With TeamKinetic, our system allows you to recruit, manage and retain volunteers through various methods. You can create volunteer opportunities, events, rewarding systems and much more.

I’m no good with technology!

With volunteer management software you don’t have to be tech savvy! Most software nowadays is very straight forward and is made to be user friendly, otherwise, no one will use it. So, there is no need to be nervous about using this particular software. TeamKinetic have easy to read tutorials which guide you through your site to help get you started and understand the different areas. We also hold training sessions so you and your staff can gain an advanced knowledge of the software.

We have a limited budget!

We understand this so we offer not only a free trial but also a free version! This allows organisations with limited budgets to use our software and have unlimited active opportunities and unlimited volunteers. Giving your organisation the chance to manage your volunteers FREE of charge!

We don’t want to change!

Change can be hard but sometimes it’s for the best. Today, many young people are becoming more interested in volunteering, especially for non-profits. The youth and technology go hand in hand so in order to attract the younger generation you will need to start heading down the tech route. But don’t fear TeamKinetic is here. Research shows our software is effective at recruiting younger volunteers. This could be down to our digital tools that let you share to social media or the fact the younger generation prefer that digital approach. This is a great way to start building up a variety of volunteers whilst still retaining past volunteers.

Other departments take priority when it comes to new software!

Every non-profit relies heavily on their volunteers, so, having a good system to allow for the proper management of your volunteers must be a big priority. However, we understand that perhaps you feel you don’t have the time to set up the software and that your time could be better spent doing other things. That’s fine! We understand – that’s why we try to make the setting up process as easy as possible! At TeamKinetic we have tutorials which can be followed when setting up a site and even training with our team to help configure that new system to meet your organisations requirements.

We are a small organisation – We won’t need it!

No matter how small, organisations need this type of volunteer management to be able to better manage their volunteers. Having a system which ultimately runs itself means less time creating and maintaining Excel documents and more time promoting your volunteer service and helping volunteers. TeamKinetic is host to many small organisations, so we know our volunteer management software is flexible for all companies.

TeamKinetic for Non-profits

At TeamKinetic we want to ensure that your organisation is reaching their full potential when it comes to volunteer management. You can recruit and retain volunteers, create opportunities and events, give rewards and gain feedback, and many other features. Our software gives you the chance to have all of your volunteer management in one convenient space. And for a limited price.

We hope that your hesitations about trying out volunteer management software have disappeared, but, if they are still lingering call us on 0161 914 5757 we are more than happy to talk you through our software in more detail!

Alternatively, take a look at our website to find out more and start your FREE trial today! Or, read through our social media pages for more tips and tricks – Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube.

We hope you enjoy our system!

Conquering Ben Nevis