Update Chapter Websites
 

A piece of unsolicited advice if I may. :p

Piggybacking on the Know your history and policies thread, please be sure your chapter's website is either current or neutral with it's information. And that all links work.


*This is especially important right now with respect to recruitment.*


I was perusing different GLO's chapter's websites and noticed that quite a few had not been updated to reflect the year as 2004. An alarming number had a mixture of dates listed for rush. For example, one site had information posted on their home (first) page about rush with current dates, then under the link for recruitment, had dates and times for 2002. Not even last year's information, but from two years ago. :eek:

If you don't have a dedicated member in charge of your chapter's web site, then here are a few simple solutions that may help. I'm sure there are more so please feel free to add.

1. Keep as much information neutral on the site so that you do not have to update too often. This way you don't have to worry about updating it. i.e "For information regarding rush, please contact so and so." Or a link back - and be sure the link works - to the Greek Affairs site.

2. Web addresses change. Actually check out your site as often as possible to be sure that any links you may have, are still valid. It's embarrassing to have a link to your school or national headquarters that does not work.

3. Photos or images posted often "disappear" if they are linked to another site. Other sites update their information and can remove the pictures you are linking to. You should too. So if necessary, and after you get permission, either download the picture to your site, or be sure links are current.

4. Speaking of keeping current; please do not have an "Under Constitution" or "Coming Soon" on a page and not mean it. These "notices" really should not be up for more than a week or two. If it is going to take a while, then please add a target date "Coming January 2005" so people don't keep checking back.

As a webmistress... co-sign to this entire post!

Agreed. As an alum advisor, getting our actives to keep the website updated is sometimes like pulling teeth. Occasionally, I'll just have to go and do it myself. That doesn't make me happy.

This is #1 on my pet peeves list! It's so frustrating as well and not very good "PR" for the chapter.

While we're on the subject, how about some website appearance DOs and DON'Ts? I'll start.

1. Obviously, no pictures of members with cigarettes, alcoholic drinks or drug paraphenalia. I myself enjoyed both alcohol and nicotine in college, but do you want rushees and their parents seeing that?

2. Pictures of members wearing skimpy clothes. This includes pictures of your members, no matter how attractive, wearing white mini-skirts and/or white skin-tight tank tops posing with their pledge class after ritual (yes, I mean you, Gamma Eta chapter of ASA)

3. Pictures of members dressed up for "ghetto" socials or anything else that might reflect poorly on the sorority or might lead rushees to believe that the members were disrespectful of other groups on campus

4. A really long flash intro where the greek letters do acrobatics and dance around that page. Not going to influence anyone to express interest in your chapter.

As for a "DO", my chapter has the creed on the first page. A nice balance to the (admittedly cute) photos of girls with blue Lion-Paw prints on their faces or shamrock deely-boppers on their heads.
-To fill my days with satisfying activity
- To find dominant beauty in art, literature, nature and friendships
- To know the peace and serenity of a divine faith
- To love life and joyously live each day to its ultimate good
- This is my creed in Alpha Sigma Alpha

This goes DOUBLE for fraternity men! :D :eek: :D

In addition, be careful of where your chapter posts stuff on the internet in general. You would be amazed at how many pictures by different GLO's my friends and I have found on Webshots that show them hazing the new members. In a few pictures, you could even see the composite that has the sorority name, chapter, and crest. :eek: I'm not condoning hazin, but if you really feel the need to haze, don't post your pictures on the internet where everyone could see them and could get your chapter in trouble, as well as give all greeks a bad name.

i co-sign all of the posts above me!

Me, too.

Great suggestions everyone! As someone who visits a lot of chapter websites, I'd simply remind everyone that if you don't want your mother (or your International President) to see it, don't put it on the website! I have seen some great chapter websites and try to send notes to thank them for representing their chapter and the Fraternity well.

The other caution would be the posting of private information, i.e. personal phone numbers and even individual emails. Your chapter's webmaster should have consent of everyone pictured and/or named on your site. You don't know who will be looking and harvesting chapter websites for personal infomation (name/ address/ phone #) and what they'll do with it (spam or stalk may be totally different things but the information should not come from the chapter website). I hate to sound like I don't trust people but the honest truth is that a healthy degree of distrust will keep you and your members safer.

I run the website for my alum club and I created a webmaster email on yahoo specifically for that reason. Our meeting calendar is posted but not locations (which are private homes)

Dude that chapter makes you guys look great!

-Rudey
--I miss east coast girls!

And here is my #1, all-time, website pet peeve:

FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT'S HOLY, PUT A LOCAL HISTORY OF YOUR CHAPTER ON YOUR WEBSITE.

Unless you are the founding chapter of your organization, you have a separate local history. It's really tiresome to want to find out how chapters started, why they picked your sorority, and click on "history" only to read your national history, over and over and over again. I mean...how much effort does that show? You cut and paste from the national site? Why bother with a history section at all?

If you really don't know how your chapter began, here's what to do: you know your chapter founding date. 1) Look in old yearbooks from your alumni office from that time or before 2) call your national HQ, and ask them to look in the archives for any magazines/other history of your chapter's chartering 3) ask chapter alums for help compiling your history in your yearly newsletter, in the college's alumni magazine, and on your website.

I have heard people say "well we are national now, not local anymore" - maybe so, but you wouldn't even BE if the women who started your local hadn't had the idea to do so. You wouldn't be without the founding class, if you were a colonization from the ground up, without an existing group.

It's just plain disrespectful to omit your local history. Please stop doing so.

I wonder how many GC guys made a beeline to the Gamma Eta Chapter's website immediately after reading LionTamer's post??? :D

My guess is all of them...

I so wish my undergrad chapter would update their website. I also agree about the picture comments. All actives should be forewarned *can't say it enough* about where their pics may end up. Just because they don't put themselves on their own website *in letters* doing questionable things doesn't mean people won't run across it on a fraternity's website.