As a digital marketer, it’s important to keep checking the tools you know against the new tools that are out there and see if you can make an improvement. Last week, after investing a few weeks of careful surveys and planning, I created three volunteer recruitment events and am now in the process of getting them on the radar of prospective members. This is the sales funnel: free service project + free club meeting + free wine tasting on three different days over the course of five weeks. I created Facebook Events for each as well as ticketing options through Eventbrite (because it does come with added publicity options in addition to email list building and CRM opportunities). I mean, I love Eventbrite — but I do need to check out what else has come along. After adding my listings to local community calendars and asking key members to share invitations with their network, it is time to look at three other volunteer management systems. So here is what I am comparing, with a goal to expand my reach AND manage future prospects.
Here are the three I picked for free versions of volunteer management systems: SignUp.com, POINT.com, and Evite.com.
SignUp.com offers a basic but functional free version that’s well-suited for simple activities and smaller groups. It includes unlimited emails, participants, and sign-ups, with mobile-friendly sign-ups and various administrative tools such as quick shift scheduling and calendar synchronization (SignUp.com).
POINT.com, typically aligns with providing comprehensive tools for volunteer management, often integrating features for broader nonprofit management including donations and detailed reporting. They offer free onboarding and tools — but it feels like you will need to sign up for a paid plan to make it worth the time you invest. It deserves further scrutiny.
Evite, on the other hand, provides a different approach focusing more on event invitation and management rather than volunteer coordination. For tracking dinner reservations and empowering members to easily share links with their personal contacts, it has its own advantages. Plus, I love the creative digital invitations, which can be sent via email or SMS, and includes features like RSVP tracking. Users can invite up to 750 guests per event, with more extensive options available under paid plans. It’s particularly noted for its convenience, user-friendly interface, and creative flexibility, allowing hosts to design personalized invitations with ease (Evite) (CompareCamp.com) (Evite) (Software Advice) (GetApp).
In summary:
- SignUp.com is best for straightforward volunteer scheduling and management for small to medium-sized events or groups.
- POINT.com could be better for organizations looking for a more encompassing nonprofit management tool that includes volunteer management.
- Evite is ideal if your primary need is event management and you want to create and manage invitations digitally, not specifically for volunteer coordination but for general guest management.
These platforms cater to different aspects of event and volunteer management, with Evite leaning more towards general event invitation and management, while SignUp.com focuses specifically on volunteer and small event coordination. Stay tuned until next month when I will share the ROI results, between organic versus paid promotions on Facebook, Eventbrite, community calendar listings and if I can successfully merge info between campaigns so they save me time instead of just being duplicative.