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Build a Communications Strategy including social media

pigeonBuild a communications strategy

The use of Social Media within the Voluntary and Community Sector is just beginning. For many organisations and people this is a worrying time with a real concern that organisations will lose control of their identity.

There is a danger that organisations, or individuals within organisations leap in without any planning and that the entry into social media is disjointed and fails.

How to make your site more readable!

read readUp to 16 million adults - nearly half the workforce - are holding down jobs despite having the reading and writing skills expected of children leaving primary school.

The above sentence needs the reading ability of an undergraduate. That is the problem. People have spent years at school being told that good writing has big words.

The aim of writing is communication. Communication fails if it is not understood.

Here are some simple guidelines for accessible writing.

Creating effective web content - 5 tips

ShakespeareWhen you have a CMS (Content Management System) website then you have the power and the opportunity to create your own content. However, with great power comes great responsibility, (I heard that somewhere). Before you start to create your content you should consider the following points.

Who are you talking to?

There is a tendency for organisations to talk to themselves. Sentences start with ‘Our objectives are...'; ‘We have our ethical...'

Now you're talking

Do you work with blind and partially sighted people?

Image of flier for free learning days (click to download)Do you want to welcome blind and partially-sighted people into your organisation?

Publish your podcast to ITUNES from IPADIO

Many people who carry mobile phones, MP3 Players, Ipods etc. use Itunes to help manage their music and podcasts.

Now I am not a great music fan, my phone has a the Beatles album Sgt Pepper, some Beautiful South and a few other songs. But it does have around 50 podcasts ranging from History of Ireland, Friday night comedy from radio 4, Beekeeping and then some random stuff.

You can now publish podcasts to Itunes direct from your IPADIO account.

Accessible PDF Files - Adobe

adobeAdobe® Reader® 9 is free software you can use to read and access the information contained within PDF files. Adobe Reader 9 contains many capabilities specifically designed to make it easier for people with disabilities to read PDF files, regardless of whether the files have been optimized for accessibility.

Download page added

Do you have files that people can download on your site?

bloxIf the answer is yes, then you should provide your users with links to the software they need to read them. I have started to build a page of useful links for PDF, DOCX, PPT files. Plus links for Open Office, Natural Reader and some Browsers.

Have I missed anything important? Let me know

Adding voice to your web site

Listen to the web

Increasing accessibility to your web site should be a primary aim of all people involved in the editing and creation of materials for the web. One of the ways that this can be achieved is through the use of voices.

talk talkThere are three ways of using voice

1. Text to voice
2. Recorded Voice
3. Video

IPADIO and SKYPE

ipadioIpadio lets you broadcast to the internet via your phone

Skype lets you phone from your Computer

skype

You can bring them together as an easy way of truning your laptop in to a way of broadcasting quickly and easily.

Before you start you will need to:

Create an account at Ipadio and register a telephone number

Quick keys in MS Word-Download

quick key downloadUsing keyboard shortcuts in Microsoft Word can help users to get the most out of the system.

It can help you avoid using the mouse which can in turn help reduce some muscle strain as you click through menus etc.

Please feel free to download and share this guide.

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Championing the use of ICT in the Third Sector