Please see the calendar for upcoming events.

Faculty | Date & Times | Location & Price | Technical Requirements

Listening is the most effective persuasive strategy in existence. Nothing builds trust, loyalty, commitment, and action like feeling heard. We live in a society of unaccountable government and corporate power, where people's everyday experience is akin to talking to a telephone company's customer "service" department. In this context, civil society organizations can be a breath of fresh air. The Internet represents an opportunity for scaling up listening to our stakeholders that we haven't seen since the intimate life of villages. In so doing, our organizations will raise more money, mobilize more volunteers, and build vastly greater capacity to pursue our missions. Over the course of this seminar, we will help you:

• leverage the top five online listening strategies for maximum impact on your results
• use the four part HIMS matrix to quickly evaluate your communication
• select the tactics that will have the most immediate payoff for your organization
• apply online listening strategies to fundraising, volunteer development, public relations, and other areas
• apply online listening strategies to improve fundraising returns
• develop long term improvement plans to dramatically improve the positioning of your organization

This seminar will leverage the insights developed over twenty five years of communication work in civil society and over a decade of research and consulting about online strategies involving hundreds of organizations. If you are looking to do more with the stakeholders you have, build long term loyalty and unprecedented effectiveness in your communication, then this seminar is right for you.
 

Our seminars are intended for the professional staff of nonprofit organizations, specifically those working in communication, fundraising, or technology. Our packages tend to be tightly focused on a particular professional field and our seminars deliver lessons that can be immediately applied within a particular professional's field of authority.
 

These seminars will be taught by Michael C. Gilbert, who has been consulting with nonprofits about internet strategies since the early nineties, and communication in general since 1984. He is the author of Communication Centered Technology Planning, 2nd Edition and Twenty First Century Fundraising Resources, 2nd Edition, the Editor of Nonprofit Online News, and the Founding President of the Nonprofit Technology Enterprise Network. For more information about Mr. Gilbert, please see his bio.
 

This is a single ninety minute session.

Seminar: (The next live online presentation of this seminar has not yet been scheduled by The Gilbert Center.)

(You can also hire us to present this and any of the seminars listed on this site, as well as custom sessions, for your group privately, online or in person at your location. Please contact us for more info if you are interested.)

New On-Demand Option: If you would like to attend this seminar, but our schedule doesn't work for you, then you can now request the "On-Demand" option. What this means is that we will schedule time for you to watch the recording of the seminar when it is most convenient for you, within a couple weeks after the live session. (There is no additional charge for this option.)

One on One Consulting Sessions: To be scheduled with the instructor, within two weeks after the sessions.
 

This is an open registration seminar, which means that anyone can attend. It will be held online. The base registration fee is $99, which covers the first student. There is a $15 fee for each additional student watching at the same computer with the first.

Additional Resources

To help support your implementation of what you learn.

Michael Gilbert has a proven track record of helping individuals and organizations move the ideas he has taught in a seminar from concept to implementation during one on one consultations afterwards. He will answer any questions you have regarding the seminar materials, of course. But more importantly, you'll have access to the discipline and focus that comes from his twenty years of experience. He can help you develop a plan and get it started. One call or many, it all depends on how much help you need in your particular situation. Also, you may have additional people join the call on your end, if you like.

Location & Timing: Each call is 30 minutes in length and can be held over the phone, in person, or online via chat with audio and video. The timing is somewhat flexible. The first one should be scheduled within two weeks after the seminar.

Pricing: The price for one on one consulting is discounted by more than 50% if you buy it as part of a seminar package.

Technical Requirements: This depends on how you decide to conduct the consultation. We will discuss this with you when we are scheduling it.
 

Publications

Communication Centered Technology Planning, 2nd Edition., By Michael C. Gilbert, et al

Communication Centered Planning is the core of our work at The Gilbert Center. This 254 page book is a rich guide to that core. It's divided into four sections: Strategy and Leadership; Cooperation, Integration, and Listening; Weblogs, Email, and Other Tools; and a large section of Annotated Resources. In every section, we've worked to provide a mix of vision, practical methods, and quick tools. The book can be read from front to back, but is intended for the busy professional who will want to keep the book on hand for inspiration and support. (Read More Here)

Quick Guide: Are You Listening? Applying the HIMS Matrix, By Michael C. Gilbert

Civil society organizations have used the Internet to dramatically increase the number of people to whom they speak. I call this Scaling Up Talking. But the true power of the Internet is tapped when there is dialogue, when the conversation doesn't just go one way. Organizations now have to learn to Scale Up Listening. They need to start creating methods and tools for assessing how well they are listening. The HIMS Matrix is both a tool and a corresponding method, as well as a framework for further exploration of listening as an organizational practice. (Read More Here)

You are responsible for making sure that you can meet these requirements before you register to attend one of our online seminars. Please feel free to Contact Us with any questions you might have.

Seminar sessions are broadcast to you via Quicktime, and you are able to send in questions during the session via AOL Instant Messenger. For this you will need:

• An internet connection (broadband will yield improved performance)
• An email account and email address
• A free AOL Instant Messaging account and client software (AIM Web Site)
• Directions to get a free screen name
• Install AIM on your computer
• Or see the help page linked to below for other options.
• The free Quicktime Player plugin (Quicktime Free Download)
  • The ability to access this test movie with Quicktime.

If you're having trouble, check the Technical Help page.