Design-a-Thon Case Study

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A Case Study in Modern Barnraising:The Southern Fried Design-A-Thon

How 30 volunteers spent 24 hours kickstarting a nonprofit program.

www.youthturns.org/wp/design-a-thon

This case study is presented in the hopes that others will learn from the experienceof a group of volunteers. In the open source tradition, we invite you to improve on any of this.

It is our hope that others will be inspired and empowered to replicate, iterate and improvethe Design-a-thon model in cities around the world for other worthy causes. Share it!


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What shou ld the o rganizer s d o d ifferently ne xt time?


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This is a slide from the Ignite presentation (one of the Design-a-thon deliverables), showing some of the work, as wellas the team of amazing people who did something extraordinary.


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IntroductionNothing happens in the world without the coordinated effort of human beings alignedaround a common purpose or intention. When people are working together for a higher

purpose, incredible things can happen. And something incredible did happen on July 24, 2010in Nashville, when a group of incredibly talented professionals from Nashvilles social media,advertising, marketing and technology communities volunteered to perform the modernequivalent of a barnraising.

In a 24 hour period, these volunteers created a comprehensive marketing platform thatempowered a passionate nonprofit program to launch a national conversation aboutgenerational incarceration. Two million kids in the US have at least one parent in prison at any given time, each of whom have a 50/50 chance of going to prison themselves. The platform was

intended to give the founder of the organization (himself a prisoner in a long line of prisoners)everything he needed to harness the waves of interest and support when he would speak aboutthe issue of generational incarceration.

The goal of sharing this exhaustive archive of information is to empower people allaround the world with the lessons we learned from inviting 30 people to spend 24 hours workingtogether to create a marketing platform for an inspiring nonprofit program. Our sincere hope isthat others will take this model and replicate it around the world and that this case study willprovide useful information about organizing and running such an event. During our planningprocess, we did not find any such resource, so we added it to our list of deliverables.

The Design-a-thon experience created not only a marketing platform for a worthy nonprofit, but lifelong bonds between teammembers, most of whom had never worked together before. A deliverable that was unstated, but clearly a result of the event is a deeper network of geeks doing good work.

This case study is licensed under a Creative Commons Share-alike license. If you wouldlike to discuss planning a design-a-thon in your area, please contact @jessicarmurray or@ianrhett and wed be happy to help you get your design-a-thon off the ground. Whether youcontact us for help or not, if you DO put on a Design-a-thon or similar event, please share theprocess and learning so others can continue to improve this model.


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Case Study In the first quarter of 2010, a very special nonprofit came to the attention of the

web, design and marketing community in Nashville. This nonprofit, which would come to be known as YouthTurns, is dedicated to ending generational incarceration. The face of YouthTurns is Andy Dixon, an ex-con for whom crime was the family business. Andy spent27 years in prison, and is now determined to keep other youths from following in his footsteps.

While on a trip to California after his release, Andy serendipitously bumped into GeoGellar, one of the organizers of a social media event called the 140 Character Conference.

Attending the conference was a kind of digital initiation for someone whod spent almost allof the Information Age behind bars. This experience immersed Andy in all that is possible withsocial media, and he was encouraged to get in touch with one of the leaders of the social mediacommunity in Nashville, Jessica Murray. Jessica was inspired by Andys story and broughtin a friend of hers, Ian Rhett, to find a way to help Andys cause. The 24-hour Southern FriedDesign-A-Thon was born.

Our Challenge(s)Like the name Design-A-Thon implies, this event had some inherent challenges.

Working creatively for 24 hours straight (with an hour-long fire alarm thrown in at 5am) witha volunteer team that had never worked together, for a startup program that didnt even have aname were a few of the initial challenges we faced.

Additionally, the clients technical understanding was somewhat limited. Andy wentinto prison at a time when people were afraid to plug in their microwaves for fear of burningtheir houses down. He emerged into a world of the iphone, Facebook, and Twitter. Hes learnedremarkably quickly, but hes still a stranger in a strange land when it comes to computers. So

working with Andy in the decision-making process involved a fair amount of client education. Andys organization was technically a project of another nonprofit focused on serving the

families of the incarcerated, a Tennessee-based 501(c)(3) called Reconciliation. The projectconcept meets an obvious need (the 1.7 million children of prisoners in the US), with an obvioussolution (mentorship, education and awareness). However, it was clear from the beginning thatthe program had no marketing or strategic direction. The project lacked a name, logo, website,or any social media outlet. It also needed marketing materials such as brochures and any otherresource Andy could use to promote the cause.

In the 24 hours that followed, Andy would receive a new logo, brochure, business cardsand letterhead, marketing strategy, a 5-minute Ignite presentation, a 7 minute video package, ahandbook for prison families, social media accounts, and a new website, complete withan owners manual.


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Our Process

Pre-planning

The organizers reached out to the marketing, design, and web community in Nashville,relying heavily on Jessicas connections in these communities. Independent designers and webdevelopers, small design firms, and representatives from the corporate marketing world signedon, including a marketing non-profit called The Collaboratory which engages marketingprofessionals in job transition to work for non-profits.

Early meetings established the leadership team. We selected a Press/Media Director,Creative Director, Recruitment Director and Production Director, and determined that theprojects name had to be determined well in advance of the event. We held a potluck with many of those who had signed on for the event and brainstormed for a few hours. YouthTurnsemerged as the new brand for fighting generational incarceration. Volunteers researched theavailability and checked with a local attorney to ensure that there was minimal risk to using the

name. An email list on GoogleGroups was set up to manage an email list. Five days before the

event, an email was sent to the list with details about When, Where, What to bring, etc..The Creative Director, Project Manager and Marketing leads met two days before to get

acquainted, review the plan and map out a schedule for the day of.

Event Kickoff (also see Day-of Timeline, below) Volunteers gathered at 11am, the official start time of the event, and stood in a circle tointroduce themselves by saying their name, their role and something they were excited about.Organizers acknowledged event sponsors, oriented people to the building, establishedcommunication requests/guidelines about checking out with Team Leads, and set the context forthe event: Be patient with each other. Ask for help, and no matter what happens, its all goingto turn out well!

Teams/Team Leads Everyone was assigned to a team. We separated into Design, Web Development,Marketing/PR, Video and writing teams, with photographers floating around. Each team alsohad a Team Lead which would be responsible for any needs associated with that team after theevent, and ensured their groups deliverables.

StrategyIn the initial hours of the event, we gathered all the writers, PR persons, Team Leads,

and Creative Director together to create a comprehensive overall strategy for the creative. Weheld a group meeting shortly thereafter and communicated the strategy to the rest of theparticipants. We also gave Andy time to tell his story to those who were not yet familiar. A finalcrucial part of our strategy was check-ins every 4 hours, so teams could familiarize themselves


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with the work of other teams, and communicate breakthroughs to everyone.

Event MarketingWe let the world know what we were doing through our PR campaign and social media

outlets. Three television stations visited us and did segments during the 6:00 news. We alsoextensively used Twitter and the hashtag #designathon. Finally, we broadcast the wholeevent live on the internet via Ustream. We even did some brainstorming with the participants

watching our streaming feed.

Group Check-InsWe had many group meetings throughout the night. The first established the timeline for

the event and the second communicated strategy. After that, we met every 4 hours for updatesand to communicate the needs of each team. In the first update check-in, we saw the progress of the logo and each team communicated what they needed from each other team. In the secondcheck-in we saw the final logo and learned the tagline that had been approved by the client: A free generation. In the early morning we were able to see nearly complete versions of everyones projects. Then at 11am we all came together with the media present to do a finalreveal and show all aspects of each deliverable.

Client involvement, approvalsThe client was an active participant in the entire 24 hour process. Initially providing

input into the creative strategy by outlining his vision, ideas, and knowledge of the issue and being available to review and approve work as it happened. Key to the project success was the

passion, conviction and issue knowledge of the client.

Wrapping up At the final group check in, we reviewed the items that could not be fully, 100%

completed by the end of the 24 hours. The case study, for example, got kicked into the nearfuture. The website also needed some tweaking, and for the next several days, spellingcorrections and some minor content edits were made. Each remaining, incomplete deliverable

was assigned an owner who was responsible for making sure that the deliverable was not justcompleted, but delivered. In the case of the printed materials, this meant taking the files to theprinter, etc..

Event Day-of Timeline: SATURDAY 11:00am:


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- We gather in a circle, saying name, what we do, and something we're proud of. outline of theschedule, building orientation (bathrooms, emergency exit, parking ,etc), requests: don't leave

without checking out w team lead, hasthtag everything, setting expectations: it's all good, nomatter what. tell people to get their stuff set up, get logged on get tech worked out. Meanwhile,team leads and copywriters will meet with Creative Director and client to outline a strategy in

lobby.- Lunch from Panera while everyone starts to get acquainted. 11:30am:- Team leads, writers, client and Creative Director meet to discuss strategy. Key questions: whatare goals/intent? What story are we telling?- Designers begin work on logo explorations- Designers meet with copywriters to start brainstorming a tag to go along w/ logo ideas 1:00 pm: - Everyone gathers back up. We take group picture for critical mass.

- Creative strategy is shared. 6pm:- Concept review SUNDAY 12:00a- Creative review 3:28am:- We have a tagline! "A free generation"

4:40 - 5:40am:- Fire alarm in building. Incessant. Fire trucks. Firemen can't turn off alarm, go home. Alarmcontinues. Insanity is bricked. 8:19:- Breakfast arrives 8:30 (?)- Progress review

10:00- Wind down- Creative freeze, finishing up. Writers in a mad dash. 11:00am- Final creative presentation- Assigned owners to manage deliverables production


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Final Deliverables

1. A name (YouthTurns was created in pre-event planning to allow time for Trademark

research)2. Tagline (A Free Generation)3. Logo4. Business card and letterhead5. A website with donation capability 6. Tri-fold brochure7. An Ignite PowerPoint presentation8. A 7 minute video (assets shot before and during the event)9. Facebook page10. Twitter page with custom background11. Marketing & Social Media plan

12. layout of a 64 page handbook for prison families (for parent organization Reconciliation)13. A website owners manual to help the client manage their site.14. A case study about the event to share what we learned.

LessonsWe surveyed our participants to see what insights we could glean from our process,

determining what was done well, and what areas needed improvement. Here are some summary notes. The actual survey data is included below and we encourage you to read those, as theyrefull of insight.

What We Did Right Almost every participant polled felt that taking a team-based approach to the project

worked fantastically. Breaking down the project into deliverables which were managed by ateam leader was absolutely the right direction to take. Check-in meetings were very productiveand focused and helped keep all teams on the same track.

Other similar events have done multiple nonprofits in 24-hours. Our Creative Directorhas participated in several of these. However, focusing on just one nonprofit allowed us to focuson quality and depth, and as such there was cohesion across all deliverables.

Encouraging people to take breaks, and not fry themselves. Actively curating volunteers. Jessica knew pretty much every person on the team, and

actively recruited the right mix of people.Empowered teams to do their thing.Getting media coverage was huge. 3 TV stations lead the news with our event.

Areas for Improvement, notes for next time


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Andys story was clear and the group had emotional buy-in, but as the night progressed,it became clear that we didnt know much about what YouthTurns actually did. Many respondents said we need to make substantial improvements in disseminating backgroundinformation prior to the event.

Other comment feedback indicates that more strategy and planning should occur in

advance. This would include wireframes and site maps, design assets, and content strategy. Also, collaboration tools like Google Docs, instant messaging, and Sugar Sync need betterprotocol and setup ahead of time, so everyone has access to the needed resources.

Finally, exhaustion was a real challenge, so some participants wondered if it might be better to start earlier and end around midnight, finalizing the following morning.

Despite all these factors, everyone on the team, including the client, feels extremely satisfied with the results of the event.

Data dump policy: request that no one leave without dumping ALL data (raw assets,everything) onto a shared folder. Nothings sucks more than having to duplicate someones work

when just a tweak will do.Common Communications Protocol: Agree on a chatroom or place for everyone to

connect electronically, ESPECIALLY if in a dispersed environment. And even though it mighthave been overkill in an office building, Skype or other video conferencing might have madeimpromptu meetings more valuable (ie - being able to have andy share with more than onegroup at a time).

More cookies.

Project Management Notes (by Ian Rhett)Convening a team of people whod never worked together and creating a 24 hour creative

process for an ambitious list of deliverables for a non-profit project that didnt even have a name was perhaps, in retrospect, a little insane. But never doubt the power of alignment! Whenpeople come together in common cause, its amazing what can happen. This was perhaps one of the biggest takeaways for me.

It was important at the outset to create a sense of team and cohesion as a group. To dothis, we had everyone stand in a circle and say their name, what they do, and what theyre excitedabout. This allowed everyone to see everyone as they answered. Perhaps because of the sense of purpose in being there, there was an immediate sense of community as people shared in eachothers cause for excitement. The circle also created a kind of container for all that buildingenergy.

It was also important to orient everyone, not just to the space, but to each other, the

process, and the teams theyd be working with. We called for team leaders to step forward andthen asked everyone to get together with their teams. This ensured that every person in theroom was, or, had a team leader. This is a principle known as Instant Command structure,

which gives people a clear understanding of how to organize themselves.The project was more or less run scrum style. The deliverables were prioritized, we

held standing meetings with each team reporting the status of what theyre working on andrequesting anything they needed from any other team. In the later meetings, these reportsupdated the % complete for each deliverable. These were all-hands meetings to ensure that


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everyone heard everything, rather than filtering through team leads. This also gave people built-in physical breaks.

An important context set at the outset of the project was declaring the unforseen resultas perfect, no matter what. It was clear that SOMETHING was going to happen, but we hadno idea what. Rather than worry about getting it right we decided to focus on doing our best

and being content with the results, however they turned out. We debated about offering beers in the fridge. The design-a-thon was definitely anintense working environment, and taking a beer break is not an uncommon way to loosen up andrelax a little. We opted against getting beers, and I think it was a good idea to explicitly NOThave alcohol.

An important part of project management is cheerleading - making sure that people areacknowledged for what theyve done. As the work unfolded, it was almost impossible not to getexcited about what was emerging. We also made kind of a big deal when deliverables wereaccepted by the client, with an x-ing ritual where the person or a rep from the producing team

would put an X in the box next to the deliverable on the whiteboard. Everyone applauded as weknocked off one deliverable after another.

There was a lot of work on the backend. Arguably, there was a lot of work the entire time.But the Web team was waiting for most of the night for content, and the last 90 minutes was amad dash for pretty much all the teams. Id recommend a 2hr warning, then gentle remindersevery 30 minutes.

Another important piece that played a role in this project was trust. The collaborativeprocess requires it, as does a 24 hour, intense collaborative process. Andy trusted the team tocreate something for him that would work for him. I trusted Bruce, the Creative Director, to leadthe creative process, and Bruce trusted the team to do great work. We trusted Jordan to leadthe web team, and the Collaboratory to bring some great resources to the table. I trusted Jessicato handle all the event details (which she did up until the minute she had to literally drive all her

worldly possessions to Chicago), and the team trusted each others best intentions. And

everyone came through. Hugely.It was also extremely important to me that we document and share our learning, so the11th deliverable was this case study. (Disclaimer: this document was not produced until afterthe design-a-thon). In doing the initial research for this project, I looked for other examplesof barnraising and found very little in the way of knowledge for the commons. Im grateful forBrian VanderMeys collaboration and hard work on this document.

Finally, one last note on a project management principle that really worked wonders onthis project: Let people do their best work. Remove obstacles, static, friction or anything elsethats causing any interference to the creative process. Trust people to do great things and they

will.

Conclusion

The Design-a-thon model of compressed community engagement resulted in animpressive scope of deliverables and forged a team of community-minded communicationsprofessionals who are excited about doing this kind of project/event again. Many loved theopportunity to stretch their creative legs, and were rewarded by getting to see the deep impact


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this event had on our client and the future of their organization. We estimate that at national-level agency rates approximately $60-65k worth of services were rendered. Donated space, food,printing, web hosting, email marketing, and other in-kind donations were valued atapproximately another $10k.

The results of this event are severalfold:+ A community of "Geeks for Good" was formed in Nashville.+ This community created a professional platform for a passionate man of conviction, launchinga program.+ A model emerged of rapid platform development. Given any strategy, a team of people cangenerate a professional, integrated marketing campaign within 24 hours. We believe this modelis an opportunity for both the nonprofit and forprofit worlds to rapidly respond to an ever-changing world.+ A model emerged for community organizing and engagement. A collaboration space wascreated to harness creative problem solving energy through an intense experience that forgeddeep bonds between participants.

In the spirit of Open Sourced collaboration, we offer our learning about doing this kind of an event in the hopes that others will take our work apart and put it back together in new, moreefficient and effective ways. Please share what you find out.


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Tools used: Adobe Creative SuiteOpenOffice.org

WordpressUstream and webcam for live video streamingPowerpointSugarsync for easy file sharingGooglegroups for list emailTwitter, Tweetdeck, Facebook for social media-ingGoogle docs for team roster, collaborative writing, post-event survey Final Cut Pro for video editing (plugins?)

Video cameraMobile phone camerasDigital still camerasChalkboard for sign-in/out boardping-pong paddles, balls and tableXAMP for development web server

Whiteboards, Large Paper Rolls, MarkersSweet sugarsnacks (oreos, chocolate, etc.) for midnight pepLots of caffeinated sodas

note: remember serving utensils for donated food!


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Project Documents: Wordbank from naming brainstormCreative Brief (included)

A promotional recruiting poster (included) Welcome kit: Schedule, Page-o-sponsors, map-o-buildingMedia Release (included)Team RosterCase Study (just is.)


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Project Document: Media Release For Immediate Release

Media Contacts:Susan Sizemore, 615.584.3190, [email protected] Ratliff, 615-476-3200, [email protected] Creative Community Donates Design and Web ExpertiseTo Help Break the Cycle of Generational Incarceration Twenty-four hour design event to benefit 24-year-old Nashville non-profit Nashville, TN (July 16, 2010) Reconciliation, Inc., a 24-year-old non-profit agency, is gettinga youthful face lift with the creative genius of more than 30 design professional volunteers. In an effort to break the endless cycle of generational incarceration, nearly three dozen creativemarketers are collaborating to redefine, expand and develop a logo, collateral pieces andmarketing strategy as well as a website for YouthTurns, a newly formed initiative under theReconciliation umbrella. The 24-Hour Design-A-Thon event begins at 11am on Saturday, July 24 at CoLab Nashville (2304th Avenue North) and is expected to attract volunteers from some of Nashvilles most creativedesign teams. I am thankful for the outpouring of support for Reconciliation, said former board member

Anderson Dixon, who knows firsthand about generational incarceration and whose passionateand compelling story gave birth to the YouthTurns initiative as he works to break the cycle helearned from his father, grandfather and uncles. I wasted twenty-seven years of my life in prison, said Dixon. This is not something I amproud of ... it is simply a reality. When I was in prison, microwaves were not even available.... He added, I met some of Nashvilles creative team on Twitter and now they are helping me helpothers. The response from Nashvilles tech community is unbelievable. The services provided by this team are something we simply could not have afforded on our own. Dixon continued, Weare hopeful the new website and campaign to support YouthTurns will raise much-neededawareness to stop the alarming trend of generational incarceration. The volunteers participating in the 24-Design-A-Thon event represent members of the Nashvilletechnology community who also donate their time and talents throughout Middle Tennessee.Other volunteer groups partnering in the effort include CoLab Nashville, the Collaboratory,GeekforGood.net and Social Media Club Nashville.


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In addition to marketing support, local businesses are donating food and services to support the

volunteers during the marathon marketing effort including Advocate Printing, Ellendales, Guy Brown Products, Maffiaozas, Panera Bread, Peak 10 and Primarily Rye. Reconciliation (www.reconciliations.org) is a 24-year-old Nashville non-profit organization thatstrives to assist families and children to move beyond the stigma of a parent or family member'sincarceration. CoLab Nashville (www.colab.com) is a space dedicated to growing the small businesscommunity through a collaborative environment in the heart of downtown. The Collaboratory (www.enterthecollaboratory.com) is a newly launched, Nashville-basedorganization of professionals in transition who tackle pro-bono marketing projects for non-profits as a means of keeping their skills sharp and giving back tothe community. GeekforGood.net (www.geekforgood.net) is a pro-bono arm of Civic Actions, LLC, a globalnetwork of technology strategists developing web-based solutions for non-profits andprogressive causes. Social Media Club Nashville (www.socialmediaclub.org/chapter/nashville) is a local chapterof more than 230 chapters across the globe, dedicated to establishing industry standards andgrowing the social media community.

Laughing Penguin Publicity | PO Box 140396 | Nashville | TN | 37214


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Project Document: Recruiting Poster


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Project Document: Creative Brief

Project Title: Reconciliation, Inc. YouthTurns Branding Overview: (Project information, goals, measurable objectives)Reconciliations Ministries was founded twenty-five years ago when a social worker noticed the isolation of women and family members of incarcerated adults. She anda small group of other volunteers began changing that pattern. Eventually, they wereable to purchase a building, the Guest House, to accommodate families and individualswho traveled more than 100 miles to meet with their loved ones in a Nashville prison.A second house was purchased to provide a place for support groups for adultsand children on the outside. The Rainbow house is also used for offices to assist in

finding resources for families, monitoring legislation that may affect family members,and keeping an open line of communication between the Tennessee Departmentof Corrections (TDOC) and family members. At times, we also assist families facingstressful issues related to the reunification of those leaving prison with their families. Reconciliations is a Tennessee 501(c)3 corporation. YouthTurns is a new program of Reconciliations which is intended to generateawareness about the issue of generational incarceration - the cycle of children followingtheir parents into prison. This cycle has become assumed in the planning process for

building prison capacity. That is to say that a factor in estimating the number of prisonbeds is the birth rate of felons. Consequently, well build a 1.5MM prison bed for a felon,rather than spend a few thousand dollars to provide two semesters of college to preventthat prison bed from being filled.

Challenge:Currently, the project has no identity and no marketing materials to support its mission.Reconcilliations has an identity, untouched in 25 years, and minimal graphic materials. Objective:The goal of the design-a-thon is to deliver usable materials to YouthTurns to begin their work. Using the materials generated by this design-a-thon project, YouthTurns will beempowered to speak to audiences about this issue, and have a place to send people tocapture their interest, support and generosity(donate). Strategy:As a startup project, the project has a number of programs it envisions:


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1. a curriculum for young people2. an awareness campaign about the issue of generational incarceration3. extending the reach of the current suite of Reconciliations services. Initially, the bulk of the work done by YouthTurns will be an extension of the

Reconciliations services, with a focus on intervention and services to youth to divertyoung people from following their parents to prison. Andy Dixon, the principal behind the YouthTurns project is a former convict who hasbecome a tireless advocate for children of felons. Having served 27 years on anillegal conviction, he witnessed first-hand the children of prisoners visiting the prisonas children, then landing in prison as convicted criminals. Andys first-hand prisonexperience, combined with his extensive prison-library-accumulated knowledge of thecorrections industry, his engaging mannerisms and compelling story make Andy aneffective spokesperson for this issue.

After getting out of prison, Andy met an individual with connections to the social mediacommunity, and has spoken twice at the annual 140 conference in New York City,comparing Twitter to the prison yard.

Our goal is to provide him with the materials he needs to speak in public about the issueand to leverage his already-emerging platform in the social media world. Tactics: Deliverables Needed, in order of priority (contributing teams): 1. Logo (Design Team)A new logotype for the YouthTurns project that can be used across all media.

2. Tagline (Writers)A tagline for the YouthTurns project. Breaking the cycle of generational incarceration 3. Business cards, letterhead and envelope (Design Team) 4. Tri-fold brochure (Design + writers)The purpose of the brochure, like the website, is to generate awareness of the issue of generational incarceration and the YouthTurns project, and to engage volunteers anddonors to help the program bootstrap its programs. 5. Video package for website (video team)A short video package is being prepared to demonstrate the Reconciliations services,interview with Andy


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6. Website (design + web teams)Informational, inspirational with calls to action to volunteer and donate.Includes owners manual for updating content. 7. YouthTurns Marketing Plan (Marketing team)

What steps are required to maximize the impact of the fundraising, awareness andrecruiting activities? 8. Facebook page (design + web teams)A designed landing page for Facebook that emphasizes liking, donations andvolunteering 9. Ignite presentation (design + writers)a 5 minute PowerPoint-based presentation, structured as follows: 20 slides that auto-increment every 15 seconds. This is an emerging public speaking format popular in the

emerging technology community. 10. Prison family handbook (design + writers/editor)This consists of typesetting existing copy provided by Reconcilliations, updating photoswhere possible and redesigning the cover. Basically giving a facelift to this exisiting andoutdated piece. 11. Design-a-thon Case Study (all)A shareable asset that talks about challenges, successes, and best practices inorganizing a 24 hour volunteer marketing event.

Audiences : (Who are they, how will they use this brochure or website, what should beavoided in talking to these audiences)

- The general public- Families with parents in prison- Technology audiences (140 conference, etc.)

We are targeting two audiences with two purposes; 1) religious and secular communities or individuals willing to contribute resources; and 2) potential clientsto inform them of our services. Our greatest concern regarding the solicitation of communities and individuals is that we not offend some potential contributors bymentioning religious themes or issues and that we not offend others by excluding them.We want to avoid demonstrating any type of political or religious bias. When presenting information to family members, we want to word information in a way


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that would reduce potential entitlement issues while letting them know it is our intentionto serve and support them.

Tone and Image: A serious tone would be most appropriate in presenting our desireto improve society by supporting families and preventing future crimes. Studies show

that recidivism is reduced when men and women released from prison are happilyreunited with their families. Our focus on helping the children of incarcerated adultswill also significantly reduce the likelihood of future crimes. If we can convince thesechildren to complete their public education and enter college, society wins because theywill grow into adults who do no commit crimes. It is our hope that those released fromprison will join with their children become viral, and transform society with their messageand actions. Additional Thoughts:- Make sure youre working within the planned donations from vendors. Meaning, dontcreate something that cant be produced.- Plan for your process to include presenting your work internally(project leads or Creative Director) for cohesive brand message

- Plan for your process to include revisions after presenting- Plan for your process to include presenting your work to the brands director. In thiscase it will be Andy Dixon

- Plan for your process to include revisions after presenting- Plan for final presentations- Plan for releasing all assets of your assigned project/s to the assigned director whowill facilitate the production of the final product- Make sure we know all the deliverable quantities and launch dates for eachdeliverable


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Deliverable: Social Media

Implementation Guidebook Introduction

Andy, it has been an amazing 24-hours learning about generational incarceration, hearing yourplans for Youthturns, and helping to create the materials that will strap rocket boosters to thisorganization. However, with all these new resources, we want to make sure you have a clear understanding of how to put everything to use. This guidebook is dedicated to making Youthturns social mediaand web marketing strategy accessible.

It Starts With Your Voice Before you start on your social media strategy, you must find your voice. Are you going to be raw and open, reserved and buttoned up or a combination of both? It is important that your socialmedia outlets serve as a reflection of you, your organization and your purpose. Be transparent,

be yourself and you will reach the people who can help you make a difference. The overallgoal with using social media is to expand your reach, let your story go forth and conquer. Be

accessible by those who connect with you online.

We will outline the networks and platforms we are setting up for Youthturns below. We alsoare providing some best practice tips for ways you should use each network for the optimalsuccess.

Target Audience

You will have a diverse group of listeners across your social channels that you need to consider when speaking or posting content updates. These groups include: general consumers, potential volunteers/mentors, potential donors, potential candidates for the program, members of themedia, and people who are already actively involved in your organization. Speak in a languagethat is appropriate for your target audience. How do you know this language? Follow them, andemulate the way they communicate.

Twitter

You are already connected to Twitter personally. Now take it to the next level with Youthturns.


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Think of Twitter as a cocktail party. There are millions of conversations going on around you.Some have no meaning to you, and never will. But there are many that do. And you need tointeract with them in an engaging fashion. However, the last thing you would do at a cocktailparty is barge in uninvited to an existing conversation. Instead, you stand off to the side, listento the interaction and wait for an appropriate time to interject. Choose a time when youre not

just noise, but able leave the conversation better because you joined it. Find influential peopleto follow on Twitter, listen to them, and offer up any help you feel you can provide. Once youopen yourself up and give advice, send a kind word, and prove that you are a thought leader in

your arena, people will want to connect with you. Know what you have to offer Use your lifelong experience with generational incarceration as a launching pad for discussionon the issue. But also do topical research and share useful information you find, with links tosources. Emphasize credibility in every way, and you will increase awareness of how this cyclecan be broken.

Know your ideal community Seek out anyone who is in education, parents, community leaders, politicians, influentialfriends, and social media thought leaders (and more that you think of). But dont just ask thento retweet your information. Give them a reason to. Make your information so compelling andfilled with facts, case studies, real life testimonies that they cant help but want to spread the

word. Tool tip: use search.twitter.com to search for keywords associated with Youthturns. When youfind someone having a conversation that fits, make a connection by following, replying, and

retweeting.

Facebook Many nonprofits are starting to use the Fanpage as a way to connect with volunteers and solidify their brand. Use your fanpage as a resource for those who share a common interest and passionfor your cause. Start with your existing friends, and ask them to be your fan.

After your fan page is set up you should embed the link into your newsletter, email, and websiteto encourage more people to join. Don't be shy about letting people know about your page asa means for communication. You can also track how many people view the page on particulardates by going to the view insights link on your page. You can use this as a metric system to seehow effective this type of advertising is in helping your organization grow.

We have linked your Twitter stream to your Facebook Fan Page so updates you send out overTwitter will also show up in Facebook. Facebook Fanpages are not permission-based likepersonal pages. Anyone can become a fan of your page. Once they like your page, help theminteract by asking them to post their stories via video. Tools:


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Tool tip: Check out http ://w ww .f acebo ok.co m/nonpro fits for m ore t ips

Blog Blogging is a form of communication that allows your organization to build your brand andpersonally to feed and inform your audience of what is important to the cause. It reminds

your audience of the problems that exist and the solutions that can be offered. You also buildrapport and attach personality to your brand. But content is king; new statistics or personalstories keep your audience engaged. Therefore, it is important to regularly update a blog on aconsistent schedule (i.e. every Monday posting new information). And the benefit isnt just for

your current readers: putting out new and fresh information gives priority to your site in searchengines. Tools to help with social media:

SocialMention.com : see what people are saying about Youthturns on social networks Google Reader: tool that allows you to set up email updates for mentions of your

organizations name or issue (generational incarceration) Ping.FM

Video Blog/YouTube

YouTube is the largest video sharing site in the world. It lets registered members to upload videos which can be viewed by the people on the internet. Videos put up are anything fromnovice to more pro videos. YouTube is the 2nd most visited internet site, after Google. Andysstory is best when heard and video is your number one tool to get that message to your targetaudience.

When you post a video, youve got to make something that people will find intriguing or helpfulso theyll check it out. If its uninteresting at the beginning, then they wont even bother viewingthe whole thing. Finally, use your keyword in your title. Make sure you Include the keyword in

your tags and description. A good description should answer the questions of the audience; How is this video going to benefit them? Finally make sure you Tag all your video clips with terms

you want to be associated with generational incarceration, youthturns, etc. Make sure youremember to optimize in order to get good search engine rankings. Video is a great way to buildstewardship. Say thank you to your fans, your volunteers and your donors.

Email Marketing Brand identification is one of the fundamental concepts of marketing, and you can use emails tocontribute to yours. Brand identification is letting people know who you are, and what you standfor, by creating an image in their minds. This is literally gold in the marketing arena. Emailmarketing is a very cost-effective marketing tool that is a simple way to deliver your message.

You must build your list organically and with permission. It is imperative that you ask someonefor permission to send them an email. Otherwise, you are spamming them. Once you have yourlist of targeted prospects, use your custom template to deliver timely and effective messages.
http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnonprofits&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEM8dKhWx1DKNvZCY0Q0JMNhe5QnAhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnonprofits&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEM8dKhWx1DKNvZCY0Q0JMNhe5QnAhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnonprofits&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEM8dKhWx1DKNvZCY0Q0JMNhe5QnAhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnonprofits&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEM8dKhWx1DKNvZCY0Q0JMNhe5QnAhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnonprofits&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEM8dKhWx1DKNvZCY0Q0JMNhe5QnAhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnonprofits&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEM8dKhWx1DKNvZCY0Q0JMNhe5QnAhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnonprofits&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEM8dKhWx1DKNvZCY0Q0JMNhe5QnAhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnonprofits&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEM8dKhWx1DKNvZCY0Q0JMNhe5QnAhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnonprofits&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEM8dKhWx1DKNvZCY0Q0JMNhe5QnAhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnonprofits&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEM8dKhWx1DKNvZCY0Q0JMNhe5QnAhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnonprofits&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEM8dKhWx1DKNvZCY0Q0JMNhe5QnAhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnonprofits&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEM8dKhWx1DKNvZCY0Q0JMNhe5QnAhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnonprofits&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEM8dKhWx1DKNvZCY0Q0JMNhe5QnAhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnonprofits&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEM8dKhWx1DKNvZCY0Q0JMNhe5QnAhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnonprofits&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEM8dKhWx1DKNvZCY0Q0JMNhe5QnA


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Make sure your subject line is catchy, but does not contain Spam content. Do not send emails onMondays or Fridays, as these days are when most people are not opening non-essential emails.Timing of your email is important as well. Send your emails when your audience is most likely toopen them, normally after breakfast or after lunch.

Once your campaign is sent, Emma gathers analytics and will tell you who opened the email, who clicked through it, who opted out and countless other information that can be used to guide you in meeting and following up with potential donors and sponsors.

Website Traffic/Awareness:

Tag all communications, marketing pieces, speeches and company collateral with web address.

Include website url in all social channels as a way for your following to learnmore, donate, etc.

Join appropriate directories, non-profit listings (research). Search Engine Marketing: once Youthturns achieves 501c status they should

apply for a Google Grant ($300 AdWords per month) http ://w ww .google .com /grants /detai ls.html#e ligibil it y.

Content on website should include pages targeted at owning the keywords on thesubject: "generational incarceration", "inter-generational incarceration". Suggest

blog posts and informational back pages on the site for each major keywordgroup you want to target.

Content Updates:

Update content on a regular basis with information about Speaking engagements (where Andy speaks at, image/clip from

speaking). Research and share news updates on the issue (either press mentions

of Youthturns or simply press coverage on the topic of generationalincarceration).

Anonymous stories of real children assisted by the program (show thechildren who are benefiting from this program, number of childrenserved, success stories.

Ways people can get involved (donate, share with friends, attend speakingevent, request Andy for a presentation).

Video Updates from Andy Video is recommended to highlight Andy's passion for the subject and

authenticity. Clips should vary between clips of him speaking, clips of children sharing

about the program, Andy giving recent "success story" or updates on Youthturns.

Networking and Social Media Tactics Your goal is to spread awareness through personal contact
http://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibilityhttp://www.google.com/grants/details.html#eligibility


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Face-to-Face (Networking in the real world) This is your bread and butter. A compelling story told in person has no

substitute. Focus on networking events, especially those socially oriented When you get a business card or contact information, follow up after that

encounter. Reach out via email and offer any help you can provide Dont be afraid to ask for advice Offer to grab coffee to get to know each other better

Good afternoon Ian, It was great meeting you this afternoon with Jessica Murray. CivicActions sounds like such a passionateorganization, and you can be sure Ill be learning more about

you all. Please, let me know if theres any way that I can use my network to help you uncover more business and spread yourimpact. As we chatted about today, Ive devoted my life to thecause of generational incarceration, and my goal is to spread

awareness through speaking engagements. Id love to hear youradvice on how to best maximize our message. Might you havesome time in the next week or two for me to buy you a cup of coffee? Id like to get to know you and CivicActions better, andgo into more detail about the life-changing work were doing at

Youthturns, keeping children from following their parents path toprison.

Reach out to those you know already and ask them to introduce you to morepeople to tell your story.

Twitter When someone mentions you, always reply with a comment and thanks.

Visit their feed and comment or retweet something you can relate to. Becareful not to choose something at random or it may feel forced. When someone follows you, consider sending a PERSONALIZED direct message.

However, if not tailored specifically for them, this will be viewed as spam. Be sure to regularly interact with your community by commenting and retweeting

Facebook You neednt accept anyone and everyone as friends on Facebook.

Reserve friend status for just people you know. The rest of the people will befunneled to fan pages.

Depending on your speaking gigs, a fan page for Andy Dixon may be prudent, inaddition to your profile page.

LinkedIn LinkedIn is a professional social network used to connect with the businesscommunity.

The conversation and content on LinkedIn should be more professional and lesspersonal than on networks like Facebook and Twitter. Updates and posts should

be about the organizations growth, initiatives, success stories and upcomingprojects.

LinkedIn is also more oriented toward understanding how your network relates


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with each other. Members are categorized in 4 different ways: 1st, 2nd, 3rddegree connections, and those who are no remote connection.

With 2nd degree connections, you can see who you know that knows thatperson, and request an introduction.

Target Networking Categories Leaders Leaders of large groups are a potentially a very efficient means of networking,

because connecting with one such person opens you up to potential high-valueconnections with many more. Church pastors come to mind here, as well assuccessful people in social media. Those in social media live fast-paced lives,and they might give you quick assistance without much buy-in. It is easy to RTor @reply. A personal connection in person, however, will make them moreinvested, and theyll work harder for you.

Peers Nonprofits are your brothers and sisters. You can help each other. Getting to

know other nonprofits will help you run yours better as you exchange ideas andlessons. Also, weve talked about a potential speaking tour. Find others whospeak for a living and learn how they made their way.

Partners Seek out organizations that are doing work with families affected by incarceration

and youth initiatives. You can combine efforts and have access to each othersnetworks

Community and Education Leaders It is crucial to get buy-in from those who influence policy and the educational

system. Pursue relationships on the school board and city government. Digthrough your network for introductions.


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Raw Survey Data - Free Responses

How well did you understand the purpose of the project/the clients goalsprior to the event?-- I don't think the client themselves had more than a general idea of goals/scope of the projectas it relates to the underlying strategy. I think they put themselves in the hands of the team, andthey came through brilliantly. -- "A more thorough content strategy and overall planning session that involved all of the teamleads would have been very helpful.

Also, wireframing, site map and page map for Website would have knocked time frames forcompletion down, IMO." -- Pre-meetings were very helpful and the leadership meetups were crucial. -- The Creative Brief was very informative. I do not know if it could have been explained any clearer prior to hearing Andy tell his story. However, maybe tasks could be assigned beforehand.For instance, I was on the design team, I probably could have been doing research about non-profit design, youth design, even existing programs focused on prison outreach. -- "An overview of expectations would have been good although I know team leads were in theloop. -- Changing agenda made it a bit hard to plan, especially for media - but then they can be afickle bunch as well. -- I think there were some areas of the services they provide that were not full flushed out (ontheir end) which made creating content for it difficult.

How well did you understand the scope of the project?-- I missed some meetings where Andy might have been involved. If he wasn't there for pre-meetings, his input was vital to the scope. -- I found out about it through Primarily Rye's newsletter. I honestly had no real clue exceptthat it was a 24hr event. I am so glad that I did it! -- What are the next steps for ongoing help/continuity? Did we discuss this and I missed it?


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What is your level of satisfaction of the experience working on the project?-- Timing was everything. And we did a good job with the process and how everyone new at

what stage we were in and what was needed. The talent selected was great. The right amount of people to accomplish what we needed -- It was an incredible event and I think that a lot was accomplished. -- Hard to access all online in google docs, I tried to access the Marketing Plan but I don't seemto be able to edit it. -- I think there was a lot of chaos at times, which can be good, but only the outcome of thatchaotic event is then properly focused into real deliverables. Also, my team (web) neededanother person in order to let some of us take a break (or a longer one). This resulted in very tired team members by the end, and a lack of focus through the meat of our work.

What is your level of satisfaction in the outcome of the project?-- Completely impressed with the team, and inspired by the results. -- Feel we nailed it. The message was really important to the success and the language andconcept I feel will get attention. -- Good use of crowdsourcing and technologies.

What was your biggest challenge in this project?-- Communication between teams on such a short timeline & Printing capabilities -- my team leader was dogmatic in his insistance on doing things his way which he believed

was the only right way - I know we could have accomplished a lot more if he had been open tolistening to others -- "Pre-event coordination and planning time. Jessica made the event possible with all her work prior to the event. I would have liked to have coordinated more with PR. I'd've liked to have had

weeklies and newspapers covering as well. The TV coverage RULED. It was totally awesome tosee. -- I was also pretty nervous about the scope. It was an ambitious project, and everyone camethrough HUGE to deliver an impressive amount of work." -- Implementing content strategies on the fly, and trying to write copy with little background orcomp. research.


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-- Working with people I never had before. But it ended up like I had. Web development teamneeded input faster than they actually got it. -- This project was amazing to be a part of. One suggestion would be to give the teams a littlemore background info on the organization before hand (competitive info, general info on the

org, etc). I think this would have saved some time in the beginning when we had a lot of ourenergy haha. -- It took me a little while to clue in to what was going on. However, I also showed up 2hourslate, so that might have been my fault. -- Keeping up with the pace -- Getting the info needed at the time needed -- Overcoming the lack of sleep. By far.

-- The organization of what we needed to do and having all the files readily available. Also,dealing with some stronger personalities! :) -- Overcoming the design challenge without having assets. -- Not really understanding exactly what Youthturns does.

How did you overcome it?-- Teamwork -- I worked hard to do the tasks assigned even though they didn't seem very useful to me -- Relied on Jessica to handle the pre-event/sponsorship details and recruiting. Being new toNashville limited the depth of my resource pool to draw from. As a result of the event, though,my networks' grown by 30 Nashville geeks! W00t!! -- Working as a team and asking a lot of questions. -- Collaboration was great!. Communication. Getting the web team the audience flow and needsfaster. They didn't need content, they needed how the user engages with the site info first.

We just rolled with it! -- Everyone was extremely helpful and patient with me. -- Went home - lol. Asked questions and ALL were eager to share. -- Stayed on top of things....proactive


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-- Umm, I didn't really. On the web team we didn't have enough people to overcome thatchallenge. We worked through it, but I feel that the work suffered as a result and we had to work after the event to clean up. -- "Continued to ask questions (therefore wasting some time)"

-- Trying to be a self-starter, I used what information I could to start and just update asinformation trickled in. -- Asked a lot of questions.

If you did another Design-A-Thon, what would you personally dodifferently?-- Stay for the whole time. -- I would be more vocal at the beginning about my team's need for better direction and moreconcrete ideas of what we could do to benefit everyone else and better accomplish our part of thedeliverables. -- "Better coordination/setup of collaboration tools: Googledocs, file sharing, etc.. Sugarsync

worked, but we didn't have a "dump before leaving" policy, and GDocs weren't necessarily accessible to everyone. Would've loved to have had a better IM protocol, as well. I probably

walked a couple miles inside the building, shuttling between rooms. -- Better/more in depth creative brief prior to. -- I'd like to have an easier way for people to stay connected, too. Like I'd like to be able toadd everyone's email address to a form and have it automatically connect me via FB, Twitter,LinkedIn, etc.. I'm working on a GeekForGood profile system which might be able to do that,too. -- Sweets and chocolate covered espresso beans available in the evening, too. Made a late nightrun to pick up snacks. -- On the sponsorship tip, I'd probly find a single money sponsor to pay for meals andmaterials. While it worked out, we had more food than we needed. -- More pre planning with team leads -- "More info on the organization/client prior to the event, as mentioned above. -- Relating to the writing team specifically, there were some brainstorming notes made in priormeetings that would have been helpful to us in the beginning that we ended up getting later inthe day.


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-- Crowdsourcing -- Coordination was great...with team leads. That helped.

-- The physical space and organization of it. -- The leadership was great! Collaboration was overall reallly great! -- Collaboration definitely worked and produced superior results. -- "Same group!

What were the most innovative breakthroughs you made?-- Working with a new team. -- Honestly I don't feel like I made any innovative breakthroughs. -- Don't know about breakthroughs, but really blown away by the power of alignment - whatcan happen when talented made a people come together with common cause. I think I gotanother glimpse into group dynamics/energy. Witnessing the team as an entity was cool. -- Not sure innovative would accurately describe, but I'm happy that we pulled together andstayed on the same page for the most part. -- Continue talks with Andy and Linda to find out more needs they didn't even realize they needed that could have made them even more successful. Like the educators angle. -- Coming up with concepts rather quickly (especially after just learning about the client), i.e.,the "Imagine If..." campaign, tagline, etc. -- Teamwork. It was so cool to work with people that I had just met. -- Use of social media, interactive tools. -- The brainstorming sessions were amazing. Ideas were bouncing everywhere. -- The marketing ideas behind building a brand weren't transparent to me before and now I'mable to take that and apply it to my profession. -- Realizing that this in a non-profit with little knowledge of the internet so we kept thingssimple.


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How (if at all) did you adjust your typical client-facing process to adapt tothe needs of this project/client?-- More hands on deck, more listening and negotiating. -- Rather than establishing a command-and-control structure with one person "in charge"the event was pretty well distributed. The CD did an awesome job of guiding the process,providing feedback, insight and direction, but it really felt like the teams themselves defined anddelivered. -- Usually require a content strategy and critique before any copywriting, so we had to lean oneach other for information and research. -- The client was VERY willing. Stayed all night -- The process was pretty typical, just had to speed it up a bit. -- Andy was so laid back, so the approval process was very different. -- Not really changed... altered in the sense that the client was there the entire time, but how wetalked to them wasn't much different. -- Became more of a I'll-do-whatever-you need-me-to-do-to-get-this-done type of person.

Went with the flow and allowed there to be a creative director! You have to push yourself intocomplete production mode. - I did not. - Kept things rather generic rather than being overly detailed.

Would you do another Design-A-Thon, and why?-- Yes. It was an amazing experience -- I would be a little careful about making sure my skills were needed but if it was a good fit,

yes,I would do another design-a-thon.

-- Yes. I can't wait.-- ABSOLUTELY. Awesome experience for an awesome cause. -- Yes, I love wortking with talented people in a fast-paced environment for a good cause. -- Absolutely! Fantastic experience, awesome to meet like-minded people!


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-- Yes. I think it's incredible that YouthTurns now has an identity web-site, video, brochure, adsand marketing plan. Now they can get going and do what they do. I am so glad that I got to be apart of this. -- Yes -- great education/satisfaction

-- Yes, feels great and exercises the mind. -- Most likely, it was fun (until I crashed afterward) and I made lots of great connections.

-- Yes, really neat idea, great collaborative tool. A great way to show that good design is relevantIn the life of a non-profit and helping getting a solid message across. -- Absolutely - it was a lot of fun watching everyone work in something they were so passionateabout.

-- YES! It was just a great event and I love giving back.

What was the most rewarding aspect of the experience?-- Teamwork -- It feels good to have been part of the process of helping YouthTurns. It's a great organizationand knowing I had a part in helping Andy with his work is very rewarding. -- Connecting with the team. I feel so much love for each person, it's silly. The bonding thatoccurs from working together like that is really awesome. -- Knowing that we've helped a great organization take very important first steps.helping someone in need. And that someone shared a very personal part of their life with all of us.(Jamie) -- All of the completed, great work we were able to accomplish in the short time frame that willreally help to get YouthTurns up and running. The most rewarding aspect was working withamazing people who wanted to make a difference. -- Everything. From meeting Andy and Linda and hearing their story to seeing everyone elsegive up their time, energy, sleep and skills to work towards this cause. People continuously amaze me. -- Contributing to such a tremendous cause. Meeting Andy (and all of the team)feeling like i made a difference for a good cause. andy was an amazing person. -- Knowing that a worthy cause was helped, and working with so many great people/peers.The personal connections made.


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-- Working with everyone and all the laughs! -- Being a part of such a huge community effort. -- Seeing that we really helped Andy move forward with the tools we provided.

What should the organizers do differently next time?-- Good question! Looking forward to the answers! -- Planning sessions with more specific progress measurements and goals prior to event. -- More time with the client (maybe it was because I missed some of that). -- Provide more info to all volunteers. -- I think the Ichat room was a good idea but it wasn't really utilized. So things that we hadquestions about, such as typefaces, colors could be quickly answered if everyone had connected.- just a thought. -- Overview of the effort in advance and close with next steps... -- Two words: more cookies..