Wordcamp 2013 Sunday Room 1 Session Nonprofits and WP @jbmanos discusses the basic anatomy of a Non-profit organization, the 501(c)3 exempt organization, and what information is there in its exempt purpose, 990 forms, and other things that every 501(c)3 must report publicly. This information is great help to understand their needs and purpose -- and functions for their websites. Wordpress can do

1. public charities online
John B. Manos @jbmanos
Non-Profit Websites
@jbmanos
Sunday, August 25, 13

2. What is a non-profit?
A corporation that:
• Has a charitable purpose (mission)
• Has no private owners
• Pays no dividends
• Promises not to give its assets to private
interests
@jbmanos
Sunday, August 25, 13

3. What is an Exempt
Organization?
• An exempt organization is a Non-Profit
Corporation that has been determined by the
IRS to have an exempt purpose and meet the
conditions of one of 29 categories.
@jbmanos
Sunday, August 25, 13

4. Exempt Orgs types are
referred to as 501(c)
• There's 29 different kinds of
Exempt Organizations!
@jbmanos
Sunday, August 25, 13

5. The 501(c)3 public
charity
• Most Non-profits are in the 501(c)3 category
• They are "Religious, Educational, Charitable,
Scientific, Literary, Testing for Public Safety, to
Foster National or International Amateur
Sports Competition, or Prevention of Cruelty to
Children or Animals Organizations"
@jbmanos
Sunday, August 25, 13

6. How a Non-Profit
Becomes a 501(c)3
• A corporation organized for nonprofit activity
applies to the IRS to be one
• Form 1023 that lists its exempt purpose
• The IRS determines that the non-profit
corporation exists for 501(c)3 purposes
• "Determination Letter"
@jbmanos
Sunday, August 25, 13

7. EVERY 501(c)3 has an
exempt purpose
• In order to become a tax exempt public charity,
they had to declare the exempt purpose they
exist on Form 1023
• Form 1023 is public
• The exempt purpose is reported on public 990s
every year
• We can find these online
@jbmanos
foundation center 990
finder
exempt purpose is a well
written explanation of
what the charity does --
will help determine what
WP can do for them
Sunday, August 25, 13

8. @jbmanos
Sunday, August 25, 13

9. @jbmanos
look at how the WP sites
run by Wordpress
Foundation help it
accomplish these goals!
Information,
collaboration, multi-
author, and easy to use --
for FREE
Sunday, August 25, 13

10. @jbmanos
Sunday, August 25, 13

11. @jbmanos
The 990 even gives you
easy reference of who
the people responsible for
the charity are -- also
an easy list for the
website
Sunday, August 25, 13

12. Nonprofit no-nos
@jbmanos
Sunday, August 25, 13

13. Non-profit no-nos
• Avoid excessive UBIT (unrelated business tax)
• Generally, no advertising (but sponsors OK)
• Generally, no affiliate links
• Political Campaign intervention (no endorsements
for or against a candidate for office) or lobbying
• But issue advocacy OK all day long
@jbmanos
Sunday, August 25, 13

14. Have Exempt Purpose
Need Website
Church Tutoring Food bank
@jbmanos
Sunday, August 25, 13

15. Have Exempt Purpose
Need Website
Church
Service schedule
Announcements
Location
Pictures and events
Beliefs
Tutoring
Find tutors with skill
Find students
Match and schedule
Donor reports
Success stories,
testimonials
Take donations
Food bank
Announce operation
Solicit specific
needs
Take donations
Schedule volunteers/
make it easy for
people to show up
Donor reports
Media information
@jbmanos
all of these functions can
be easily accomplished in
wordpress, but every
nonprofit is a different
animal with a wide
variety of functions that
make sense for their
website.
WP can handle it all, but
there isn’t a real, “ONE
SIZE fits all NPO/EO
solution for the functions
-- WP is a one CMS can
add it all solution, though
Sunday, August 25, 13

16. Who is going to do it?
@jbmanos
Sunday, August 25, 13

17. Free wordpress
• Easy to update
• Email
• Docs to posts
• Apps
• Easy to teach and intuitive
@jbmanos
teach the nonprofit to
make its own update
regularly.
what nonprofit doesn’t
know how to email?
Set up email to post for
them
Make it easy for them
to get current
information on their
site!!!
Sunday, August 25, 13

18. Free hosting
• Dreamhost offers free
hosting for any 501(c)3
• Email
• Announcement lists
• Discussion lists
• Wordpress
@jbmanos
Sunday, August 25, 13

19. CHALLENGE:
• You, in this room, know how to set up wordpress, or can learn
it
• Wordpress is free
• Dreamhost will give a 501(c)3 free hosting, with email
announcement lists and all
• Find a low resource nonprofit you like that doesn’t have a
website or has an old one and make a site for them for free!
• Next year: we can have a showcase and stories of how
wordpress + wp camp bham made a difference
give back, and spread WP appreciation - learn in the process
help a low resource get a functional, current, easy to update website --
the #1 thing nonprofits orgs need is a current information (content)
even a twenty twelve site that is current is WAY better than a glitzy
out of date site
Sunday, August 25, 13

20. public charities online
John B. Manos @jbmanos
Non-Profit Websites
@jbmanos
Sunday, August 25, 13