Web company donates to charity by design
Chronicle of Philanthropy story by Caroline Preston
Company: Sierra Bravo, a web-development company in Bloomington, Minn., with 70 employees.
How it gives: In March, the company held its first Overnight Website Challenge. For 24 hours straight, web developers at Sierra Bravo and other web design businesses provided free web design for the websites of local charities that were selected in a competition.
Sierra Bravo publicized the event in local newspapers and on radio stations, generating applications from 50 charities. Four judges, including experts in nonprofit organizations and online media, selected 11 charities to participate.
Molly Kennedy Lageson, office manager and volunteer coordinator at Metro Meals on Wheels, says her charity's website wasn't effectively communicating the work of the nearly 40 local chapters that her group represents. The eight web developers she worked with created two websites - one for a general audience and one for member charities - and helped make the sites more appealing and easy to use.
"We still get random compliments from people saying, 'You have a really nice website,'" she says. "We never would have been able to afford this level of quality."
How much it gave: Eight-eight volunteer web developers and designers donated a combined 2,2112 hours, or approximately $200,000 worth of time.
How the business benefitted: Sierra Bravo was able to attract more web developers to its staff because of the publicity from the contest. It also strengthened its relationship with other companies, such as New Horizons Computer Learning Center of Minnesota, which offered free computer classes to charity officials who participated in the event.
Why it worked: Sierra Bravo held a meeting between charity staff members and web developers about 10 days before the event. Mark Malmberg, the company's communications manager, says next year charity leaders from the 2008 contest will share their experiences with charities participating for the first time. Even with the company's planning, one charity ended up not using its new website because it was not compatible with the groups Internet-technology system.
Ms. Kennedy Lageson also recommends preparation: "Find examples of websites you like and don't like. Bring in information about your organization and share your mission and culture." She also says to get lots of sleep beforehand. "I took a long nap afterward," she says.
