|
AN INTERACTIVE GUIDE TO BUILDING ADVOCACY GROUPS
| ||
|
Part II
| ||
Internet Services: Mailing Lists
Internet services are important for lay advocacy groups in the twenty-first century. They are relatively inexpensive services but critical ones for keeping the membership in touch with one another. One example of this is the Genetic Alliance MemberForum. It is a terrific gathering of experts - and experts-to-be - in many aspects of lay advocacy providing each other with the richness of experience that one can only experience in such an environment. Mailing Lists A mailing list is the simplest and perhaps most important way for your group to harness the power of electronic communications. E-mail lists permit your group to communicate instantly and cheaply with members all over the world, and allow your members to start and contribute to conversations on the many subjects that concern them. Monitoring mailing list traffic gives you a sense of what is on the minds of members (although it is important to use other methods, since different people have different thresholds of comfort for different forms of communication). It also gives you a way to get time-value information to members immediately, without relying on surface mail or hoping members will visit a Web site. Maintaining a mailing list requires diligence, however. Because the barrier to participation is so low, mailing lists can bring out the worst in some people - making them feel free to say whatever is on their minds, instantly, without the benefit of reflection. They can also be overtaken by conversation that is not on point - "noise" that drowns out the "signal." If you choose to maintain a mailing list, you must devise a "Terms of Service" - a list of rules and expectations that, if violated, provide for consequences, such as removal from the list. Mailing lists can be as simple as a list of email addresses that a group leader uses to broadcast information, but interactive lists, where all members can participate, and which may have automated command functions, must be "hosted." There are many options for doing this, including creating a group at Yahoo! or Topica, or the ISP you use for your Website may offer mailing list support as a service as well. See the resources section for pointers to electronic hosts, and ask the Genetic Alliance about hosting a mailing list if you are not yet ready to purchase a hosting plan for a larger electronic presence. » Internet Services: Websites, Chat Rooms, and Newsgroups
|
|
|