Over 200 entries were submitted to the NTC conference scheduled for April 8-10 in Atlanta, Georgia. Now the public gets to help vote for which sessions in fundraising, communications, technology, programming, and leadership get featured at the conference and which ones get the ax. Voting runs through October 16th and accounts for about 30% of NTC’s decision-making process. Obviously NTEN can't fit in all these great panels in three days, so if I had to pick my top 10 favorite sessions, they would be – drum roll please:
1. Cross Platform Events That Rock 
Online events aren't only about having a conversation on your own website. How can you get more people involved by meeting them where they're at? We'll use the TSdigs event in October 2009 as a case study. This cross-platform event allowed for multiple levels of interaction with the single goal of teaching nonprofits how to tell stories digitally. The event took place on forums, webinars, Tweetchat, Second Life, flickr and YouTube.
Editor's Note: Nonprofits can learn a lot about mutli-channel events from this session. Nonprofits should take advantage of these channels more to coincide with their events.
2. How to Convert More Online Supporters into Donors? Pick Up the Phone.
Not since the iPhone's unveiling have the Internet and the Telephone come together so powerfully. As nonprofits recruit more supporters via email, websites and social media, one of the most successful ways to convert these folks into donors may just turn out to be good ol' Telemarketing. That's right. "Retro" or not, it turns out that phoning up freshly acquired online supporters within a day or two of their having subscribed to your email list yields very high, very respectable donor conversion rates that compare well to what you'll get from direct mail or just continuing to communicate with them online. Several leading nonprofit fundraisers and consultants will provide specific case study data showing how it's done.
Editor's Note: Never underestimate the power of telemarketing. It still remains one of the most effective ways to raise money for nonprofits if done right. Care2 submitted this session.
3. Using eCRM to Drive Organizational Consensus and Integration: Slipping Change Management In Through the Side Door
Nirvana for any non-profit constituent relationship management (CRM) strategist is the the integration of key marketing and communication messages across all in-person, print, and electronic engagement vehicles. Reaching a state of nirvana, however, is something not always easily achieved in siloed organizations, particularly if they are large, multi-affiliate non-profits with staff distributed all across the country.
Join the Director of Internet Strategy & Operations and the Associate Director of eCRM for the American Diabetes Association on a multi-year journey from organizational balkanization and infighting to cooperation, integration, harmony and collaboration -- and learn how to lead change management from the inside out in a way that has everyone thinking it was their own idea to make the trip.
Editor's Note: Raise your hand if nonprofit lives in silos? Silo's hold your nonprofit organization back - particularly from an online communications perspective. This session should help your organization achieve its inner peace.
4. Open APIs - What's Happened, Who's Used It, And What's On The Horizon In The Future
Open APIs were made widely available in the past several years. The real question however, is how have non-profit organizations been able to leverage Open APIs to further their mission and how successful have they really been? As a non-profit organization who is considering embracing Open API technology, it's critical to understand how to measure its success and ROI. This session will review how using Open API technology can help you further your mission. API technology continues to evolve as non-profit organizations are pushing the limits of current functionality. What does the future hold for API technology and how can non-profit organizations continue to innovate and influence the next generation of open integration?
Editor's Note: Nonprofit's hear a lot about API's in the media, but how many are actually taking advantage of Open API's? Not many and that's why this session is important.
5. Technology From the Top - Why and How to Align Technology With Your Mission
One key differentiator for the top tier nonprofits of any size is the attention paid to technology resources. In these successful nonprofits, a comprehensive technology strategy is aligned with the mission and the strategy is understood at all levels of the organization. During this session we will discuss how to align technology and mission for the success of the organization.
Editor's Note: Many nonprofit's think of their technology staff as IT people who fix their computer's when they crash or when the printer breaks. That's a mistake. The most effective nonprofits actually make their technology staff a core part of the organization so that technology decisions are driven by the nonprofit's mission.
6. Superheroes of Online Fundraising: Become a Data-Driven Strategist
Learn how to transform from a mild-mannered online organizer into a true data-driven mastermind! Smart nonprofits use data to continually evolve their email communications. When you use data to drive your strategic decisions, you'll make better decisions, avoid mistakes, and achieve a higher return on investment. But how do you transform your organizational culture to become data driven? And what kind of data are we talking about anyways? How do you sift through the massive volumes of online data to discover what is truly relevant? Superhero costume is not required.
Editor's Note: Analyze data. Segment audiences. Implement testing. Test again. And repeat. Behind every famous campaign you have read about, there are database superheros who helped make it happen through their analysis and testing.
7. Culture and Strategy in Software Selection
Nonprofit software selection today is about more than price, features, support and ease of use. Leadership and IT managers face new issues in blending organizational culture, mission and strategy with technical and business choices. This workshop will explore a series of five general considerations reflecting what's new on the web and in technology generally such as security and privacy versus convenience and cost, identity and visibility of one's own web site versus identity in and through social media, intensity of inernal tracking contacts, donors and clients versus peer and network organizing models and more.
Editor's Note: Technology comes and goes so fast, so it's important that nonprofits stay up to date on the latest technology and web trends.
8. What's New and Why You Should Care: An Ignite-style overview of hot trends and why they matter to your nonprofit (TM)
Confused by "hot trends" like B-Corp, Twitter, Shared-services, L3C, insideGOOD, Facebook, LinkedIn and/or others? Using an Ignite approach we'll check out what's new and discuss how to quickly evaluate whether the latest and greatest tools, models and trends are right for you! (*this is one of the hottest trends!).
Editor's Note: A nonprofit Ignite. Tim O'Reilly would be proud.
9. Building Relationships in a Constituent-Driven, Always-On, On-Demand World: Aligning Technology to Fulfill Strategic Objectives
The last decade has seen a seismic shift in the way that individuals everywhere communicate and relate to one another. In any one day an individual could easily be communicating by telephone, text message, email, Twitter, Facebook, Linked In, Skype, Instant Messaging, etc. with well over half of that communication originating from their mobile device. 15 years ago relationship building for a charity involved three key communication tools: the mail, the telephone and in-person. Charities used those tools because everyone used those tools. That was how we all built relationships. In 2009, almost all of your constituents communicate in fundamentally different ways than they did 15 years ago. For some, it is the only way they have ever communicated. For others, it has been a slow adoption of a few tools that save them time, make their lives easier and have become intuitive and simple to use. Click to read more.
Editor's Note: At the end of the day, it's all about building relationships to spread your nonprofit's mission, raise awareness and generate action. Your nonprofit needs to use every tool at its disposal to be where your audiences are and connect with them.
10. "This is Not Your Grandmother's Online Map!" -- Advancing Your Mission With GIS Tools
Maps, mashups, and mobility: geographic information systems (GIS) and online mapping applications continue to become more powerful and easier to use every year. Nonprofit and community organizations around the globe are harnessing these tools to mobilize supporters and advocates, to tell their stories and the stories of their constituents, and to share knowledge with people, organizations, and communities everywhere. Click to read more.
Editor's Note: First of all I love this quirky title, but I digress. Mapping projects can be incredibly cool and mind blowing or down right boring. Learn how to use mapping tools to tell compelling stories, and mobilize supporters locally or nationally.
Shout Out's To:
Ok, I can’t just pick 10 submissions, so I have to give some shout outs to:
Diversifying Your Tech and Online Communications Teams
Editor's Note: That’s my panel. Yes, I’m giving a shout out to myself as well as fellow panelists Jocelyn Harmon, Ivan Boothe, and Shireen Mitchell.
Online Donors: Why They Leave and How to Get Them Back
That's Not Funny: Using Humor in Online Communications
Community Management and Moderation
My Converging Life: Managing your Personal and Professional Brand in Social Media.
Your Web Site Is No Longer Enough! Social Media As Content, Conversation and Community
Did you submit a panel to NTEN? Shout it out below!
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