1. Free Online Resources: Build Your Youth Program 2008 National Convention

2. REDCROSSYOUTH.ORG

3. BLOG STRUCTURE Posts Pages Summary Recent Posts (last 5) Blogroll Websites Online resources National News (RSS feed) International News (RSS feed)

4. CAPABILITIES Each post or page is structured differently Basic text editing Hyperlinks Embed photos and YouTube videos Backend tools exist for administrators Approve comments, users and posts Monitor site Edit site structure

5. WHAT WE BLOG ABOUT Blog exists for several reasons Promote the Red Cross mission to the public Recruit new youth volunteers Showcase our best volunteers around the country Administrators categorize posts Line of service Biomedical services, international services, etc. Demographic it targets Elementary school, middle school, high school, college Club or youth program activity Fundraising, recruitment, leadership, etc.

6. WHY BLOG? Functional hybrid of website and message board User generated content with administrator editing and approval Allows for professional, dynamic web presence Links into existing community blogs Cross-promote Red Cross Chat and the Red Cross Online Disaster Portal

7. HOW TO PARTICIPATE We encourage feedback from each program Doesn’t matter if you are a youth leader or just getting involved Discuss your ideas, your experiences and Red Cross current events (local, national or international) Recognize successful events or extraordinary youth Integrate the blog RSS feed into your youth websites Contact the blog administrator at MorganMat@usa.redcross.org MorganMat@usa.redcross.org

8. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES Free tools exist online Refer to handout for web addresses Information has also been uploaded to the blog Over the next year, we will be developing a full manual for electronic engagement Visit our youth booth to sign up for ARC-Youth Wire, the national youth listserv

9. SOCIAL NETWORKS MySpace and Facebook Allow programs to create public or private profiles Advertise Communicate effectively Post photos and updates Link to local resources and websites

10. SCHEDULING Jott Call a phone number and it will transcribe your message to a text email sent to your account Remember the Milk Send an email to a customized address that uses that information to update your online calendar Doodle Everyone checks when they are free so you can schedule meetings at the best time Google Calendar View your schedule visually; receive email and text message reminders

11. COMMUNICATING Yahoo and Google Groups Secure groups that can only be accessed by your groups Set up listservs Share documents Monitor group activity Email addresses Create free email accounts that sounds professional Yahoo, Hotmail, Gmail

12. ADVERTISING Digg and Reddit Allow users to vote upon interesting news You can generate national coverage Consider advertising your impressive feats Example: Kina Grannis from the benefit album “Band Together: To Fight Measles”

13. ROYALTY-FREE PHOTOS Sxc.hu allows photographers to upload their photos to be used for non-commercial purposes Wide variety of photos

14. QUESTIONS For more information contact us at: Justin Lam, National Youth Council LamJ@usa.redcross.org Mat Morgan, National Youth Council MorganMat@usa.redcross.org