Soapbox Engage Blog

Your organization's mission matters most of all. It's not the technology but your purpose that should be front and center.

It's not the hammer but the house that it's building that is the focus and goal.

We couldn't be happier to have our latest Soapbox Engage Partner agree so strongly with that fundamental principle that they named their whole firm for it: Mission Matters Group!

Are you getting the most of out your organization's communications megaphone?

Review these three quick content pointers - and grab our free Soapbox Communication Planner to help you plan the publishing of that content for maximum effect.

We're proud to say a hearty "Ahoy there!" to the latest Soapbox Engage Partner, Bigger Boat Consulting.

Aboard Bigger Boat are some fantastic mates dedicated to launching unmitigated Salesforce success for nonprofit clients.

As they tell it:

With the current protests in Turkey and Brazil, focus is again being drawn to the role of social media in mass movements agitating for change.

Mobile-friendly channels such as YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook are being leveraged by organic groups of individuals to speak out and mobilize.

News outlets are highlighting social media's ability to bridge national boundaries to inspire and inform groups thousands of miles away from one another - as well as confuse and muddle their messages and goals.

We commented earlier on the massive explosion of mobile internet use and how it is contributing to 2013 being the year of responsive web design - responsive web design being a powerful and flexible way to make your site mobile-friendly.

How do you know if your site traffic justifies the investment in making your website mobile-friendly? If you've got Google Analytics tracking traffic, you've got ready-made reporting waiting for you.

At PICnet, we love what we do. Deeply. And the prime numero uno reason for this is that we work with great clients who are rocking the world for social good.
We're happy to share the next in our occasional series of personal little love notes from a PICnetter to one of our clients. Julie Dennis sends this out to the good folks at the Global Fund for Women.

Who is Global Fund for Women?

Global Fund for Women funds women-led organizations at the local, regional and national level. Through its support grants, the Global Fund for Women advances women’s rights by increasing resources for and investing in these organizations. Their main vision is to create a sustainable world where women and girls realize their human rights and have a voice to create change.

On Monday, Google announced that it will retire Google Checkout in November 2013.

What does that mean for organizations using Google Checkout to accept online payments? As Google notes:

Last week, CyberSource, the "world's first eCommerce payment management company", became the latest payment option added to the Soapbox platform.

CyberSource joins PayPal Website Payments Pro, Braintree, and Authorize.net as options for accepting online payments through the Soapbox Engage and Non-Profit Soapbox platforms.

Each of the four options allow for seamless processing of payments for donations, member dues, and event registrations - all with the option of integrating with Salesforce.com.

Learn more about how Soapbox processes payments and integrates with Salesforce.com in real-time:

Can you believe it? It’s been one year since we had our inaugural Soapbox User Summit, but I still remember April 19, 2012 like it was yesterday. We had all the PICnetters together from near and far. We had Gunner from Aspiration Tech facilitate and clients attend from DC, Maryland, Connecticut, and New York.  

We voted on our own session ideas, broke out into small groups, mingled with the Support Department at PICnet, had a gorgeous location and beautiful weather, and got to learn from accidental techies about their successes and struggles with technology for their own organizations.

It was certainly a productive, worthwhile way to spend a day in Washington, DC.

Recently, Judi Sohn, former Convio Common Ground staff member, current KELL Partners consultant, and all around maven of Salesforce and nonprofit technology, wrote a blog series discussing "Life After Common Ground."

In her series, Judi provides guidance to nonprofits caught by the demise of Convio Common Ground and highlights various tools to consider, including our own Soapbox Engage.

In the concluding post of her series earlier this week, she made one particular comment that moved us:

We're just under three weeks away from the second annual Soapbox User Summit on May 8th - and have reached the first and final reason in our countdown of the Top 5 Reasons Soapbox users should register and attend.

Reason #1: Nothing beats face-to-face with the Soapbox community to empower your organization

After five months of diligent cleaning and repair work in the wake of Superstorm Sandy, IceStone’s Brooklyn factory floor is humming again.

“The machines started running last week,” said Sarah Corey, Marketing Manager for IceStone.

IceStone factory floor in wake of Superstorm Sandy

The weather's heating up as if in expectation of the second annual Soapbox User Summit on May 8th! We've got just two remaining in our countdown of the Top 5 Reasons Soapbox users should register and attend.

Reason #2: Raise more money and reduce expenses

We're nearly one month from the second annual Soapbox User Summit on May 8th and continuing our countdown of the Top 5 Reasons Soapbox users should register and attend!

Reason #3: Learn about new products and services - and contribute to what's coming