Shortly after Al Gore invented the Internet, MCEC launched www.militarychild.org and like many non-profits we have not made significant changes since that time. It is easy for an organization to not take the time to update their Web site with all the other pressing issues. With phones ringing and emails coming in it's easy to forget that there is another critical communication channel you are neglecting.
But on a given day, more people outside your organization probably interact with your website than with you, your staff, your magazine, send email or call you on the phone---combined. To make a good impression on your constituents you need to make the time for your website.
The expense is the first thing that usually stops nonprofits from getting around to updating their site. It's usually not as much as you fear. At some point in the past a company provided a bid for nearly $1M to redo our site. This of course set the expectation with our group that the project was not affordable. There is no reason for a nonprofit to spend $1M just for a website update.
The reality is you can spend as much or as little on a site but you can have a very nice site updated by a professional firm with an open source content management system for <$25k. If you have a lot of content (multiple pages, sections, lots of documents to post, lots of pages with different structures then expect to pay $50-$75k. A high end firm with very strong design and heavily involved account service will be in the six figures.
To get started prepare a detailed RFP, and if someone in your staff does have online experience then seek out an expert who will volunteer some time. MCEC sought advice from my co-workers at Dell and other experts who either provided feedback on the current site we should keep in mind or technical expertise when reviewing portions of the proposal.
Ask for references of firms from people who have recently completed online work. Look for contacts who have a lot of experience in this space, all web firms are not created equal.
Keep in mind this is the primary communication channel for your organization. Invest and budget with that in mind.
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