But if you were to believe some vocal Christians complaining about Google changing their policies, you would think that they do hate us.  Google used to give away the Education version of Google Apps to all non-profit organizations, including churches.  Now they do not.  You can still use google apps for free, but they limit the service to 10 email addresses / accounts.

To be honest, I was sad to hear the news, too.  But we cannot assume that this is because they have a low opinion about faith-based non-profit organizations. The laws that protect churches registered as non-profits are also under attack – specifically the tax laws.  We should not be surprised by government or business that wants to remove financial advantages that churches have enjoyed for years.  And to go further, I don’t think we should make assumptions about the motives behind these changes.

What I do know is that Google provides a great value for churches who want to use their services.  If 10 email addresses isn’t enough, I suggest you pay for the service – its $50/year per seat.  If you have an IT guy on the payroll who is managing Exchange server, you would save money to retire the server and use Google Apps for email/docs/calendar/contacts  and dropbox.com to share files.

That is my advice and I am sticking to it.

I am the accountant / business manager at my local church. We are looking for a suitable replacement to our current SaaS church management system and I have been asked to research Google Apps. Which of the apps successfully administers the member database? Is it possible to track attendance and to print directories from this app? The system we have been using does a great job with these features as well as tracking donations but it is too expensive. What have other church administrators found that works for them? As for tracking donations … I have worked with QuickBooks for several years and find it to be a great accounting tool. However I am not convinced that it is a good tool for tracking donations. The donor giving statements are time consuming to create and are not clear for the donor to understand. Are there other churches that are using QuickBooks successfully as a donation tracking tool? If so, how are they specifically doing this?

My Reply:

Carole,

In short, a feature-for-feature comparison of a robu$t ChMS (Church Management System) to Google Apps for non-profit is apples to oranges. But I maintain that the 95% of features that encompass the day to day operations of a typical pastor/volunteer are easily handled by Google Apps. In fact the ease of use, accessible nature of apps in the cloud, documentation, third-party add-ons, security, etc, etc… all add up to make Google an easy winner… for free. FREE! All your email, contact list, calendar, online forms, and document needs are handled with Google Apps.

Since Google Apps is all based around email, the staff will use the online suite daily – from work or home. Getting them to adopt a new ChMS will be difficult. Getting them to adopt Google Apps will be natural. Google Apps will also replace your intranet, if you have one. The staff can share secure calendars, documents and even share the contact list.

Google Contacts, found within the main email application, is the contact database. You can have unlimited groups, custom fields or tags that can be used a million ways, pictures, maps, multiple addresses, even list the family members. It is quite powerful, yet simple to use. Google focusses on speed and simplicity, not obscure power-features.

As far as printing pictorial directories, there is no easy way. Printing mailing labels is easy though. and if you have a Mac, you can really get things done fast. Once you use a Mac for mailing labels, you kick yourself for not switching to a Mac sooner. (stepping off soapbox now….)

I need to get some professional accountants in on this discussion to speak of the pros/cons to quickbooks. The main benefit it that it is THE INDUSTRY STANDARD. Period. THousands of churches all over the world use Quickbooks for all their financial needs. The clever marketing of some of the big ChMS companies sway many to go with a PROPRIETARY, NON-STANDARD system, but I recommend the best. It has the best documentation and support of anything out there. And you will never have to migrate from another dying/changing proprietary system ever again.

BTW – I recommend you hire a local accounting firm to handle all finances. Keeping the tracking and distribution of finances with a professional “outsider” can save sooooooo much pain. There will still be opportunity for volunteers to work, but your mission-critical processes will be solid, safe and sound.

-Brook Drumm

NO ADS, TOTAL PRIVACY, SHARED CONTACTS & MORE

Three good reasons why you should choose  the non-profit edition over the standard FREE (with Ads) Google Apps version you may be using now. Instructions after the break…

Here is the page that explain the process:
http://www.google.com/support/a/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=72223

And here is the form you will need to fill out:
http://www.google.com/support/a/bin/request.py?contact_type=nonprofit

TIPS

• Make sure you put the name of your organization EXACTLY as it appears on your original paper copy
• The Non-Profit edition IS the Education Edition, so don’t worry if the language doesn’t say “non-profit”
• On the form, you will only see the field to put your EIN number in AFTER you select the non-profit organization type. SEE BELOW.

Let us know about your upgrade experience or questions.

-Brook Drumm

(dateline: the Cloud) — Incremental Improvements Add Up to Revolutionary Innovation

As if we needed another reason to recommend that everyone give a listen at the first possible opportunity to our podcast interview with Brad Stark (we shamelessly and repeatedly plug this episode [#4] ’cause Brad’s expertise and information are just that good), here we are again with another.

Make that 4 others. Yes, 4 reasons, and all of them are 9s.

Among the many other notable, remarkable, eminently practical developments at Google Apps for Non-profits is a takes-the-cake topper: Up-Time Access Reliability.

No matter how slick and integrated and flexible a cloud-computing system might be, it’s pretty much worthless if users click to open an app and  get “404s” instead of their 411.

Brad’s word to the wise — in “a nudge is as good as a wink”-style — was pretty mind-blowing, and he told us without having to kill us later. We considered that a significant plus.

He kept it short and sweet. Four 9s are Better than Three. In other words, Google’s current up-time (esp. thanks to the shards concept of cloud-storage security/redundancy) is and has been at 99.9%. That’s an enviable achievement, but Brad was quick to point out that this figure is not good enough for some of the firms, agencies and businesses they serve and want to add to the Google Apps Business Clients, Google Apps Non-Profit Patrons and even us little Google Apps Individual Consumers.

No, they are on the verge of one of the most coveted credentials in the computer world: Four 9s.

99.99% ANNUAL server-ready, immediate-access data availability. Average. For every clients (no matter how many individuals make up that client account).

99.99% up-time. That all sounds as squeaky clean as a bar of Dove Soap and all, but the translation into time-scale is stunning. 99.99% real-time access computes to an amazing clock-figure.

So, spill it already, right? Right.

.01% of one year?

8 seconds.

There is no need for any more fighting in the church data management provider War Room. The data-access time-gap risk is being solved as we tap, tab and tweet. Just like inventions made in the space program, innovations and advancements made for Google Apps Enterprise end up in the hands of us ‘reg’lar folks’ as well, by way of G’Apps for Non-Profits (and to a lesser extent in the individual client version).

Like we keep saying: listen to the podcast. And, by all means, try it for yourself and let us know here how it’s working for you there– wherever your ‘there’ is.

Reach & engage supporters

Improve organizational operations

Raise awareness for your cause

I heard some good news the other day that I wish someone had told me long ago. It’s something that every church staff, para-church team and any other not-for-profit organization can receive as a great blessing, and it might even be a game-changer which helps us get God’s Good Word of Hope out more easily and with great effect.

Brad Stark of Appirio.com puts it like this: “Every dime saved on communications and data-management software costs by using Google Apps can go to the Kingdom instead … and that’s a LOT of dimes!” So true, and Google Apps for non-profits is already helping ministry groups all over the world.

But is it helping your ministry? If not, maybe you have the same problem I had. I knew Google Apps, but I needed the Google way explained to me “more adequately.” I had no idea that their slug-line was something they wanted me to take personally:

You are changing the world. We want to help you.

Enter Brad Stark (be sure to give our podcast interview with him a listen) and the simple truth: Google Apps for non-profits is powerful, free, and getting better all the time (note the segment on incremental improvements adding up to robust advances and additions to the Google Apps toolbox).

If this is news to you, like it was to me, then click quick to see what we think it worth shouting from the rooftops.

Subscribe Here: http://portablesermons.com/ministryvault

Or Here: http://itunes.apple.com/podcast/ministry-vault/id382190586

Brad Stark has helped some of the largest BIG enterprise companies switch to Google Apps.  He explains the benefits of Google Apps, the difference between the paid and free versions of Google Apps, and answers questions about the main concerns in the minds of many churches considering a move to Google apps.  A few show links after the break …

http://www.appirio.com/

http://www.google.com/apps/intl/en/nonprofit/index.html

And ‘saferer’ is exactly how to describe what Google Apps is doing with data security in the very ‘cloudy’ extended forecast for us all here in Internetville.

Not all clouds are the same, and this helpful article, Is user data safe in the cloud?, points out several significant security concerns with some forms of cloud-computing. The upshot is that the cloud itself is not inherently secure (no big surprise there), because not all cloud-based business is done with secure protocols. This only news in the sense that some of the causes and effects — the implications for unsuspecting, perhaps too-trusting users– are explained in non-tech-geek clarity.

All of this very practical information invites a closer look to see what IS secure and reliable in the cloud. Once again, we can say hello to our little friends (you guessed it): Google Apps.

So, does this word of warning prove right the nay-sayers and conspiracy theorists and disgruntled survivalists who stockpiled supplies in preparation for the Y2K implosion? Well … who needs to worry what those folks think, bless their hearts?

What about those of us who have figured out that we can use Google Apps as a top-shelf replacement for many or all of our work-station-based communication, word-processing, graphics-development, data-management, and staff-coordination tools?

Isn’t it about time for everyone else to catch on and catch up? Maybe a little more evidence to resolve unacknowledged, uninformed concerns about costs, adaptability, accessibility, and reliability will help. Here’s another link in the chain, another brick in the wall, to drag another monthly church management software contract expense tracked as a church budget line item out into the light where it can finally ’byte’ the dust: Google Adds OAuth Support to Google Apps.

Give it a try first chance you get and please get back to us here in the Vault. What works for you? Anything that doesn’t? See if it isn’t a new favorite tech-tool. It’s all good(er)! And safer(er), too.

___ — \ | / — ___

Vaulting Soon: Anyone for a Heapin’ Helpin’ of ‘SHARDS’? Don’t Say No ’til You Know What They Are …

Google Instant is a new search enhancement that shows results as users type. This is not the suggested search terms that try to predict the actual words being typed, this feature will actually show results of the predicted search terms. It is truly amazing technology - like a feature from the future!

The problem with this feature is that when you typed the first few letters of a perfectly legitimate word, it will start guessing. This is mostly harmless, but, on some unfortunate occasions, Google can (and does) serve up some results which are generally considered very offensive or otherwise inappropriate.  Google defended itself by correctly stating that this is the result of algorithms – computers rendering the most likely results based on a complex comparison of your letters and actual historical traffic from real people.  Regardless of why, I immediately turned the feature off and recommend that others do the same.

In its efforts to remedy the problem, Google started implementing a blacklist of search terms for Instant Search. This blacklist contains terms that will not be allowed – they disregard these terms and do not produce any results. I support this and think its the right thing to do to protect children from inappropriate results. I turned the feature back on in my Google settings and so far so good. Maybe ‘Instant’ is office-ready after all. My advice is to tread lightly, since “blacklisting” is not an exact science. The good news is that Google is trying to solve this problem!

Microsoft just announced that it is abandoning its website / blogging platform and moving 30 million users to WordPress. This effectively doubles WordPress’s user base to 60 MILLION USERS!! With that kind of endorsement and success, I now pronounce all other website options for churches DEAD ON ARRIVAL. With the juggernaut, that is Microsoft, throwing in the towel and giving the nod to WordPress, the battle for your website content is now over. Read on for 5 reasons WordPress is better (and cheaper) than what you are now using.

FULL DISCLOSURE: I am a web designer that has exclusively used WordPress for over 3 years. My entire business is founded on the ease of use and power of the WordPress content management system. 99 of my 100 websites all use WordPress and that includes ALL of my church and non-profit clients. I speak from experience.

1. It is #1

In 2009, WordPress won the Open Source CMS Award. As stated in the linked article, it marks a shift in the public perception of WordPress, from blog software to full-featured CMS.

2. It is Free

You can download it and load it up on your own server FOR FREE.  Many hire a Pro to set it up and maintain it on a curated server. You could also sign up on WordPress.com for a limited, free account with ads.  But price isn’t the only advantage – there is a HUGE Open Source Community offering thousands offree plugins and themes.  You can do ANYTHING with WordPress and the price is still $0.  (EDITOR: For perspective, my basic monthly hosting/support fee is  $25/mo. for those that don’t want to maintain the server themselves.) This is complimented by the fact that all teh other software required to run the server is also (free) open source software: Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP, affectionately called “L.A.M.P.” by the geeks out there.

3. Ease of Use (this is a BIG one)

The question of WHICH website CMS platform is the EASIEST to use is has been debated heavily in the past, but the latest version of WordPress 3.01 has squashed the competition.  This is, admittedly, a preference – a judgement call.  The fact that I see clients and developers moving to WordPress is not conlusive.  However, there are fundamental differences that make it easier that Drupal and Joomla, the other 2 competing products…

• Simplicity in the UI - WordPress hides what you don’t need in the User Interface.  5 user roles zero in on ONLY what you need to know.  It also lets you customize every page of the interface to get even more clutter out of the way.
• Simplicity in the Language -WordPress subscribes to all web standards and strives to use well understood terms…  shying away from confusing terms like “nodes” or “mambots“. You don’t have to understand much of anything to use WordPress.
• Simplicity in the User Experience - You can install WordPress in 5 minutes.  You can change your theme in seconds.  You can upgrade your theme and plugins in seconds.  And, the site administrator can edit the (CSS) style sheet right on the site without needing any other software – just a browser.

4. Google Compatibility

WordPress prides itself in serving up websites that work in all browsers.  Of course, browser compatibility is heavily dependent on the theme in use, but they provide a best-in-class theme in the base install to get you started!

WordPress has also worked closely with Google to ensure that the core programming code, that runs the software, is optimized to work well with Google Search.  It is essential that Google, and other search engines, can read the code to make sense of the content that populates your website. Third party plugins can further improve your SEO (Search Engine Optimization).

The flip side of the Google equation is keeping you and your site SPAM-FREE!  The company that gave us WordPress also provides individual users with a spam protection plugin called Akismet.  Your bases are covered.

5. Support

WordPress is stable and secure – thanks to an installed user base in the millions, and thousands of contributing developers all over the world.  The software is not buggy, quirky, or insecure (like some other church website solutions).  It does not use flash (flash is dead, proprietary, doesn’t work on iphones). Best of all, its entire codebase is Open Source and freely available for the public to scrutinize.  The end result is a tremendous amount of documentation on ALL aspects of WordPress.  If you can Google a question – you will find an answer.  Here are two great places to start: WordPress.com -the commercial endeavor and WordPress.org – the Open Source community supporting WordPress.

We might have the best (or most expensive) programs and systems that money can “buy,” but they won’t work unless we have people to use them and make the most of them.

A recent listing for an online magazine position prompts another round of discussion in the Google-Apps-are-Church-Management-tools discussion which Brook Drumm (fearless leader here at M’Vault and at portablesermons.com) started.

It appears that, increasingly, the question of whether “to cloud or not to cloud” is already be a moot point. If the business world adapts (much of it already has) to web-based applications– leaving on-site network systems behind– then they will be seeking employees with cloud-based information management talents and training. Schools will meet that market demand by supplying a prospect-pool of graduates– adepts– comfortable and familiar with these tools as a matter of course. This is the new basic skill-set.

Not only are the tools of data management shifting to the cloud, the workforce must necessarily follow. This workforce includes the brothers and sisters in Christ who minister alongside us by means of technology. And Google Apps is the leaps-and-bounds-ahead leader in the field.

In the following job listing (currently posted as unfilled), an online magazine is seeking a freelance web designer for occasional HTML/CSS and Javascript tasks including:

1. Formatting text and images into 1-2 HTML e-blasts monthly using Mailchimp
2. Updating image-map and text for a web based ad platform
3. Updating content and images within a Google Maps API based ad
4. Designing new ads/web button for the magazine
5. Managing the design and coding of an Amazon Webstore
6. Coding new advertising platforms
7. Troubleshooting  problems and providing tech support for a WordPress blog running a custom theme with custom CSS/HTML/PHP
8. Managing design and coding of an Amazon webstore
9. Troubleshoot server and hosting issues for ancillary servers

This job can be done from off-site with occasional visits to office. Hourly rate commensurate with experience. Candidate should have strong proficiency in HTML/CSS and some familiarity with Javascript, Photoshop, and Illustrator.

Of the 9 action points listed, 8 of them are directly cloud-computing-specific. That is the trend, and very likely it will only become more prevalent. The people who get the jobs of today and tomorrow are and will be working “in the cloud,” and they are the people we want and need to fill our ministry need for technology experts with time, energy, and expertise to invest in our fellowships.

And that brings us back around to the Ministry Vault connection. Not only do ministry teams have to consider what to use (esp. when deciding between a site-specific church management software system package or a self-customized adaptation of Google Apps), it will also be a priority to know what our members (incl. staff) are trained to use and enjoy or prefer to use.

Who will go for us into the cyber-harvest fields, and who can we send to the digital mission field? The ones who are willing and the ones are are able to use the web and its tools as they are and as they will be: cloud-based.

Feedback is critical to leadership and making sound decisions. But most leaders don’t have the time to poll more than a few individuals for their take on an event or new idea.  Keep reading for some great online survey tools!

Enter the Online Survey

You’ve all taken online surveys before. In a church setting, these surveys can be used for:

• first-time guest feedback
• Sunday service feedback from staff & key volunteers
• polling for community service ideas
• congregation health survey
• etc…

Free Services

If you’re already a Google Docs user, you have this built in. You can post unlimited questions and they include ‘skip logic‘: depending on their answer to a particular question, they can be taken to a different page. From your Docs homepage, just pull down the Create New menu and select Form:

Survey Monkey is a freemium service that allows you to post 10 questions, but lacks the ‘skip logic‘ that Google builds in for free.

Zoomerang is another freemium service that gives you 12 questions.

Get Busy

Now that you know that you can post surveys for free, how are you going to use online surveys for your church? What creative ways have you seen them used for churches?

I have been using Google Reader for years, but until I started getting serious about blogging, I was never a devoted user.  Over the last month, I have cleaned out my feeds, subscribed to only the most useful content to stay informed for this blog, and fallen in love again with Google Reader.

Enter: Google Reader Play

I typically catch up on tech news using Google Reader on my iPhone, but today I fired up my MacBook and noticed one of their famous experimental offerings:
New! Google Reader Play is a fun way to browse interesting stuff on the web. Give it a try!

In short, Google Reader Play is still an RSS reader, but it goes beyond the text-only approach in Google Reader to make Reader more accessible for everyone. It is a new way to view your feeds, and it didn’t take long for me to be hooked – it really is fun. Best of all, there’s no set-up required: visit google.com/reader/play to give it a try.

One of the big differences is that it presents a full-screen view of each item.  You have arrows to move to the next or previous article in sort of a filmstrip metaphor.  Clicking the title of an article will take you to the original site and posting. The images are large and videos autoplay full-screen.

Reader Play adapts to your tastes — as you browse, you can click the “like” button, and Google will use that info to show you more items they think you’ll like. It is kind of like listening to a Pandora music station. It uses the same technology as the Recommended Items feed in Reader to identify and aggregate the most interesting items on the web. You can also choose categories to personalize your stream.

While you don’t even need a Google account to use Reader Play, if you want to star, like, or share items, you will be asked to sign in to your Google account. Since Reader and Reader Play share the same infrastructure, any actions you take in one will be reflected in the other. If you sign in, Reader Play will also be personalized with items that people you’re following have shared in Google Reader, and items similar to ones you’ve previously liked, starred, or shared.

Since Reader Play is an experiment, it’s launching in Google Labs for now. To be clear, Reader Play isn’t intended to replace Google Reader: both Google Reader and Reader Play are about finding and reading interesting stuff online. In essense, Reader Play is a different view of Reader. It’s designed to be a fun and easy way to browse interesting items, while Reader is a highly customizable way to organize your feeds, keep track of what you’ve read, and much more. In Reader, you can switch to this view by clicking “View in Reader Play” from the feed settings menu.

Submit your church to Google Maps.  Even include service times, pictures and more.

Webmaster Tools – http://www.google.com/webmasters/

Verify your site, add your sitemap, and get an SEO (Search Engine Optimization) report card

Analytics – http://www.google.com/analytics/

See site traffic and trends.

Google AdSense – https://www.google.com/adsense

Advertise your site.

Image Swirl - http://image-swirl.googlelabs.com/

SketchUp – http://sketchup.google.com/

Fast Flip – http://fastflip.googlelabs.com/

Voice Search – http://www.google.com/mobile/google-mobile-app/

Latitude – http://www.google.com/latitude/intro.html

iGoogle – http://www.google.com/ig

Take all of Google’s tools with you.

Google Labs in Gmail – Tweak your email to be more productive.

Mac Address Book – Sync Contacts and Print Labels

Google Chrome – http://www.google.com/chrome/intl/en/features.html

Backupify – http://www.backupify.com/

Backup your Gmail account (and much, much, more)

• No advertisements
• 2000 unique emails a day – verses 500/day with the standard edition

Well worth the trouble, I think.

Churches speak of eternal destinations.

Is this a match made in heaven? Not really. But I do think that any organization that accepts the Great Commission to bring the Good News of Jesus Christ has a responsibility to do an excellent job getting THE WORD out there.  Lets cover some of the basics…

Google.com

Do no evil. http://www.google.com/corporate/tenthings.html

Get a Google Account

https://www.google.com/accounts/NewAccount

A google account, is basically a gmail (email) account that unlocks the door to Google’s services “in the cloud” (online, not on your computer).  The big strokes here, once you are in the club are:

• Gmail – http://mail.google.com/ Complete with online  …
  • Calendars: http://www.google.com/intl/en/googlecalendar/about.html
  • Documents:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRqUE6IHTEA (Breaking News: This Just In! DocVerse)
  • Forms: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzgaUOW6GIs
  • Tasks: http://mail.google.com/mail/help/tasks/
  • Contacts: http://mail.google.com/support/bin/topic.py?topic=12867
  • Buzz.
• Photos – http://picasa.google.com
• Photo Editing – http://www.picnik.com/
• Reader – http://www.google.com/reader
• Maps – http://www.google.com/maps
• YouTube – http://www.youtube.com/
• Earth – http://www.google.com/maps
• Google Voice – http://google.com/voice

Staff Productivity: Google Apps

http://google.com/a

While the majority of these fall cleanly in the “personal productivity” column, there is a professional side to Google: Google Apps.