Getting Started Toolkit.doc.doc

Getting StartedToolkit

TRADING GRACES CYCLE TWO

Lutheran Services in America700 Light Street

Baltimore, MD 21230-3850

CONTENTS

Trading Graces™ Coordinator Job Description…………….......3-4

Trading Graces™ Q&A…………………………………………5-7

Getting Started Step-by-Step Checklist…………………..……….8

Registering with eBay Checklist…………………………………..9

Registering a Business Account with eBay ..…………………10-19

Setting Up a PayPal Account Checklist………………………….20

Setting Up a PayPal Account (required)…….….......................21-24

Registering with MissionFish™ Checklist………………………25 Registering with MissionFish…………………………………26-32

Creating an eBay “About Me” page……………………..…….33-34

Cycle Two Returning Participants Instructions………...………35-37

eBay, PayPal, MissionFish Registration Events Sequence Addendum……38

TRADING GRACES GETTING STARTED TOOL KIT 2Revised 06/06/06

Trading Graces™ Coordinator

Position Summary:

The Trading Graces™ Coordinator will assume primary responsibility for implementing the Trading Graces™ Online Auction Event, a Lutheran Services in America (LSA) fund/awareness raising campaign.

Reports To:

The Trading Graces™ Coordinator reports to the chief executive officer or her/his designee as listed as follows: .

Primary Accountabilities:

1. Develop and implement an action plan for Trading Graces™ within the parameters as outlined in the LSA/SMO Agreement and in the Trading Graces™ Program Manual (toolkits).

2. Establish the mechanics, logistics and timeline for successful execution of the event in cooperation with the LSA Trading Graces™ Online Auction Event Manager and/or the LSA Trading Graces™ Online Auction Event Facilitator.

3. Abide by the participation requirements as established via the LSA Trading Graces™ Online Auction Event Agreement, MissionFish, and/or eBay.

4. Use entrepreneurial energy to develop and implement a plan to engage the organization’s constituents in this event.


5. To use Trading Graces™ as a platform to tell the organization’s Lutheran social ministry story and to engage the media and other constituent groups in support of the event.

6. To spearhead the process of obtaining goods and services for the organization to auction during the Trading Graces™ Online Auction Event.

7. To work with LSA in tracking information and generating reports to assess the effectiveness and quality of the Trading Graces™ Online Auction Event.

Qualifications:

1. Previous experience in project management or equivalent experience in a nonprofit faith-based organization.

2. Technical, oral and written skills commensurate to position.

3. Ability to interact with diverse groups of people in a manner that creates confidence and trust.

4. Ability to work on multiple tasks and perform as a team player who is resourceful, creative and results oriented.

5. Commitment to this organization’s church-related social ministry mission and vision.

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work related to this position. They are not intended to be considered as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills.


Trading Graces™ Q&A

How will the Trading Graces™ online auction work?

LSA, together with its member organizations, will participate in Cycle Two of the Trading Graces Online Auction Event scheduled to begin on eBay at the end of February 2007. The online auction will be hosted by eBay through its charitable affiliate, MissionFish. LSA member organizations will register as corporate not for profit sellers with both MissionFish and eBay and set up a PayPal account to process electronic payments in order to maximize the charitable benefits provided in what is known as a “direct selling” model. LSA member organizations will, prior to the online auction event, solicit items to sell on eBay and list them in LSA’s Trading Graces National Preview Gallery. Proceeds from items sold during the online auction event will benefit the listing (seller) organization while drawing attention to a unified Lutheran online auction event and creating greater awareness for the variety of Lutheran social ministry organizations, their stories, and their needs.

This “cutting edge” approach is new to me. Can I really do what is required to participate?

You or someone your organization knows has familiarity with selling or buying on eBay. This is the perfect opportunity for your organization to recruit some new volunteers to help you with this project. Don’t be shy about asking a teenager or some group of young people to give you their assistance. This is the perfect time to explore building a new relationship with a local parish or youth group. LSA, of course, will provide you with instructional material toolkits, communications pieces such as press releases, sample job descriptions for staff or volunteers, timetables, and other supports. You can always use the website to recruit volunteers. Places to try- www.idealist.org and www.volunteermatch.org . Returning participants (from Cycle One) already have the foundation requirements in place. Some returning participants may need to subscribe to PayPal (a requirement in Cycle Two) and make some minor updates to their MissionFish and eBay profiles.

What kinds of things sell on eBay?

Almost anything can be sold on eBay. You can practically allow your imagination to soar with possibilities. You will need, however, to be sensible when considering whether your organization might accept certain items to sell on its behalf. Also, you might want to think about the practicalities associated with shipping large, bulky items over distances.

While you may not know in advance the types of treasures your organization may secure for auction until you begin asking your constituents, don’t forget to think imaginatively. For example, you might know an attorney who would offer her/his services to write a will, or another successful business friend might offer the use of a vacation home for a week.


http://www.volunteermatch.org/

http://www.idealist.org/

In Cycle Two we are changing our focus a little by moving away from the eBay slogan: “almost anything sells on eBay, the world’s marketplace” and will encourage participants to focus on attractive, higher quality, and higher value items. We learned in Cycle One that 80% of our total sales were realized in the sale of items valued at $50.00 or more in the marketplace. It is likely that Cycle Two participants will seek items that return more revenue rather than listing a number of lower-priced items.

eBay’s website provides information on the top items that people searched for, and eBay also publishes a “Hot Items” list. Participants are encouraged to make use of eBay’s information and supports as they consider the kinds of items to sell.

What type of commitment do I need to make?

LSA member organizations indicate their willingness to participate in this exciting endeavor by contacting the Trading Graces™ Online Auction Event Manager: John B. Carter at phone: (410) 230-3548 or email: [email protected] for more details. Participants will be asked to:

establish a point of contact person with the event manager, sign a participation agreement with LSA, and follow, use, and abide by guidelines and instructions provided by LSA during the

various stages leading to the online event.

In Cycle Two everyone will be asked to set an organizational goal to indicate how much money they hope to raise by selling items on eBay. New participants will agree to complete the required registrations with MissionFish, eBay and PayPal by a certain date in order to permit sufficient time and energy in soliciting items.

How soon should I get started?

Get started today to maximize you efforts. Ideally new participants should complete all of the foundational work in July and August so attention can be turned to soliciting and listing items into the preview gallery beginning in September. Getting started today will allow more time to secure great auction items, build momentum for the event, and heighten media and constituent awareness for the event.

What is the national preview gallery?

In order to provide the maximum exposure to the public for the items you sell, LSA will open the Trading Graces National Preview Gallery in September 2006. The longer a listing is seen in the gallery, the greater potential there is to stimulate an interested buyer. As you begin identifying items to sell on eBay, you will add a description and photos of your items. LSA will post this information on its website to help raise awareness, drive interest, and build momentum for the auction. At the height of Cycle One, LSA had over 2,000,000 hits on its website.


mailto:[email protected]

What is the “direct selling” model?

The direct selling model allows a nonprofit organization to sell items in its behalf on eBay. The organization finds the items, lists them, and handles transactions to collect payment and ship items when they sell. In the direct selling model the listing (seller) organization realizes other benefits by selling on eBay through MissionFish. The items are distinctly identified with a charity ribbon to indicate that proceeds from the sale benefit a nonprofit organization, and the listing fees and final sales price fees (on items that sell) are refunded to the nonprofit by eBay through MissionFish. This results in even greater returns to the nonprofit organization.

Does LSA collect a fee?

LSA is thankful to Thrivent Financial Services for Lutherans for providing seed monies for the Trading Graces Online Auction, and the event was designed to become self-sustaining. LSA charges, then, a modest participation fee to its member participants. The fee in Cycle Two is five percent (5%) of the final sales price of items sold at auction. Participation fees are billed to member organizations following the close of the online event.

Why should our organization join in?

The emerging phenomenon of nonprofit fundraising on the internet has been documented in fundraising literature. In just a few short years, scores of nonprofit organizations have begun to experience increased awareness and support for their ministries via online auctions. By joining LSA in this endeavor, your organization will stand side by side with other Lutheran social ministry organizations as we move, in Cycle Two, Trading Graces to a higher level of awareness and fund raising on the internet.

Trading Graces Online Auction (Cycle One) was truly a pioneering effort, and not just for LSA and its participating member organizations. eBay’s High Profile Events/Cause Marketing department commented: “It was one of eBay’s largest single offerings of listed items and one of the broadest in scope”, said Matt Winters. “It involved more than sixty-six (66) different nonprofit organizations from across the country in a well-coordinated effort.


Getting Started Step-by-Step Checklist*

Sign the Trading Graces Participation Agreement

Obtain the eBay User Name Assigned to Your Organization

Register (business account) with eBay

Receive account validation

Register to accept electronic payments with PayPal.com

Register as a nonprofit organization at MissionFish.org

Receive MissionFish verification

Add MissionFish seller account

Contact: John B. Carter (phone) 410 230-3548 (email) [email protected] with any informational needs or questions about Trading Graces™.



Registering with eBay Checklist

Please collect the following and have at hand for registering on eBay:

An eBay User ID (assigned by John Carter at 410-230-3548)o This ID will be in the format: TradingGraces-c####

A working email address associated with your organization

A Credit Card or Debt Card from your organization

A voided organization check (providing the checking account number and routing numbers)


Registering a Business Account with eBay

Go to: http://www.ebay.com

Click “Community”


http://www.ebay.com/

Scroll down to “More Community Programs”Click “eBay Giving Works”

Click on “Sell Now”


Click on “Sell Your Item”

Click on “Register” to begin the registration process.



Click on “Want to register as a business?”

Complete the fields with your organization’s information. Enter your name as the organization contact person. Click “Continue”


Choose “Create your own ID” and enter the eBay User Name that John Carter gave you (tradinggraces-c####). Create a password (**write it down and remember it) and click “Continue”.

Enter your organization’s credit card information as required in the screen below. This entry is just to confirm your identity and helps keep eBay a safe place to buy and sell. Later, you will have to add the credit card account number again in the eBay seller registration.

Click “Continue”The next page should look like this:


Check your email

eBay will send an email that looks similar to the one below.Click on the link “Activate Your eBay Membership”

Your eBay organization registration is complete…but you need to register as a seller.

Click on “Start Selling”


Click on “Create Seller’s Account”

Enter your organization’s credit card information and click on “Continue”


After you have provided eBay with your organization’s credit card information, you will receive an email confirming that your credit card has been stored on file. The subject of this email is: “Verification of New Account with eBay-Credit Card on File” The email will have a link that you need to follow. Click on that link and you will be taken back to eBay.


Enter checking account routing and account numbers and click on “Continue” (button not pictured)

Check the box that says “I would like to use this credit card to pay seller fees” (not pictured) and click “Continue”.

Note: eBay charges listing fees (all items) and charges a fee on the final sales price (on items that sell). These will be charged to your organization’s credit card and you can pay these charges automatically . After items sell, eBay rebates the listing fees and finals sales price fees on all items that sold as its charitable contribution to your organization. eBay remits the listing fees and final sales price fees on items sold on a schedule through MissionFish by electronic funds transfer into your organization’s checking account. eBay’s Giving works charitable rebates are paid monthly up to a maximum of $2,000,000.00 per year. You will not receive any notice about the electronic funds transfer into you account. Following the close of the event, please ask your financial people to be on the look-out for an EFT deposited by “MissionFish/PntsLghtFdn”. eBay charitable rebates of fees following the Trading Graces Cycle One event were posted on or about May 10, 2006.


Choose the following selling format when prompted: “sell item at online Auction” Click “Continue”

The next screens will guide you through setting up your items for bid. You can just exit from eBay at this point. You are done!

Before leaving eBay, please note that eBay will assign you an internal email box. From time to time eBay messages will come to your attention via your regular email, e.g, yahoo.com or in your Inbox-Microsoft Office.

Don’t answer, reply or provide any information in these emails as they could be phishing or spoofs. If eBay sends you an email, it will always appear in your mailbox housed in the eBay system. When you log-in on eBay you can click on the link “My Messages” to view and/or respond to emails safely. Report any suspicious emails to [email protected]. eBay offers an “About Me” page feature at no additional cost. Please create you about me page to provide as much information about the various ministries your organization offers. You can also post pictures of your organization and or photos depicting the services you provide (you need, however, to obtain the appropriate releases from your clients if they appear in any photos).



Setting Up a PayPal Account Checklist

You will need the following information on hand to set up an account with PayPal:

A working email address and phone number associated with your organization

An Organization check ( a voided check providing the routing number and account number). PayPal transfers funds electronically from PayPal to your organization’s checking account


Setting Up a PayPal Account (required) To sell on eBay as a nonprofit and to participate in the eBay Giving Works Charitable rebates, you must set up a PayPal account. NOTE: This is no longer an option and is, in Cycle Two, a requirement.

Some folks are reluctant to sign up for PayPal because of unsolicited emails and phishing. This can be disconcerting, but PayPal is a very secure site. PayPal is owned, now, by eBay, and there is one way that you can always tell that an email from PayPal is legitimate. It will always have your full name in the address heading. Nevertheless, if you receive emails saying they are from PayPal, you can always send them on to [email protected] . PayPal customer service is pretty good at getting back to you in a timely manner, and, PayPal offers a customer service line (1-888-221-1161) where you can speak with a real person.

Go to www.paypal.com and click “Sign Up” at the top right hand corner of the screen.

On the next screen, click on “Business Account”. In order to receive payments, you must have a business account.

Click “Continue”.


http://www.paypal.com/

On the next screen, click the “GO” button.

Complete your organization information, and click “Continue”.

**Estimate the average transaction price, monthly volume and percentage of revenue from online sales**


Continue to fill out the next page using your name (you are the contact person) but register using your organization address information and email.


**Please write down your password**

After you complete the section, you will be asked to provide your organization checking account information. This is to allow electronic funds transfers to be made directly into your checking account. Fill out the information and click “Continue”.

Your PayPal registration is done! Please visit PayPal, later, to update your profile information and set your EFT transfer limits.


Registering with MissionFish Checklist

Please have the following information at hand to register to be recognized as a nonprofit by MissionFish:

A working email address

An eBay User ID/Active eBay Sellers Account

An active PayPal Account

An electronic copy of your logo

Your organization’s Mission Statement

Your 501(c)(3) letter or other proof of tax-deductibility

A voided organization check that can be faxed

Note: During the registration process at MissionFish you will be required to print a signature page, sign it, and fax that page along with other documents to MissionFish. If you don’t follow these instructions precisely, your registration will not get processed. MissionFish does not take the initiative to communicate with you on the status of your registration. If there is a problem with missing information, MissionFish will simply stop processing the registration. You need to take the initiative in communicating with MissionFish if your registration is not validated within 2-3 business days of completing the required processes. In communicating with MissionFish, the avenue for communications is restricted to email. MissionFish does not provide a direct dial telephone number to its customer service representatives.

Registration with MissionFish is a two-step process. Register, first, to be recognized as a nonprofit, and after receiving validation of nonprofit recognition, return and completed the registration for MissionFish direct seller (and link the eBay-MissionFish accounts).


Registering with MissionFish™

Go to: http://www.missionfish.org

1. Click on “Register to benefit”2. Proceed to Nonprofit Registration

To register you'll need the following information:

1. A working e-mail address 2. An electronic copy of your logo (jpg or gif format, 50kb maximum) 3. A mission statement of 512 characters maximum (about 40 words) 4. Your 501(c)(3) letter or other proof of tax-deductibility 5. A voided organization check


http://www.missionfish.org/Help/gettingstarted.jsp#nonprofit7b

http://www.missionfish.org/Help/gettingstarted.jsp#nonprofit7a

http://www.missionfish.org/Help/gettingstarted.jsp#nonprofit4f

http://www.missionfish.org/

Click Start and complete the registration form.


**Please write down your MissionFish username and password**

You will be instructed to print out this page and fax MissionFish with the following: (make a copy for your records)

Your 501( c)(3) letter or other proof of tax-deductibility, and A voided organization check The signed and dated signature page MissionFish instructed you to print out

Fax these documents to: 202-729-8040

Once MissionFish reviews your materials and verifies your account, they will send you an email verification. This usually takes 1-2 business days. If you do not hear from MissionFish within 2-3 business days, log on at http://missionfish.org/Help/contactus.jsp. A MissionFish Community Care Team member will address your concerns. Ask them to check the progress on your registration and advise you on its status and/or inform you if there is any missing information.

Provide any additional information (if required) and wait for an email confirming the completion of your nonprofit MissionFish registration.

When the confirmation email arrives, return to: http://www.missionfish.org and complete these tasks below in sequence:

Register as a Direct Seller (do this first!) Register as a MissionFish Nonprofit Seller

(Note: you will cause an error if you try to register as a Direct Seller or as a MissionFish Nonprofit Seller before your MissionFish Nonprofit Registration has been validated. The instructions specifically dictate that you wait to receive confirmation of the MissionFish Nonprofit Registration before returning to MissionFish to complete the Direct Seller and Nonprofit Seller Registrations.


http://www.missionfish.org/

http://missionfish.org/Help/contactus.jsp

To register as a MissionFish Direct Seller, click on My MissionFish and sign in using your MissionFish username and password.

Click on the “My Direct Sellers Tab”.

Once there, add your eBay User Name (tradinggraces-C####) in the box marked “Add a Direct Seller”

And then click “Add”Sign Out.


Go back to the homepage and click “My MissionFish” to update your profile.

Click “Register to sell”


Click “Start”

Enter the eBay User Name and password to link the eBay and MissionFish accounts.

Click “Sign in Securely”. Proceed to MissionFish Authorization page.


Click “Agree and Continue”

Fill out the information on this page with your organization’s address.

Click “I have read and agree to the terms and conditions that appear in the User Agreement.” Then click Continue.Review the information and click Continue again

Your seller registration on MissionFish is complete!


Creating an eBay “About Me” page

After you have completed registering with eBay, MissionFish and PayPal, please log on to your eBay account and can create an “About Me” page. An “About Me” page allows you publish information about your organization such as: who you serve and the achievements your organization has accomplished. In an “About Me” page you can tell your organization’s story in a creative way and invite the public to support your efforts. You can even add pictures depicting your services, and create a link to your home URL. Each Trading Graces organization is invited to set up an “About Me” page to maximize public awareness of Lutheran health and human services ministries and programs.

To set up an About Me page, sign into eBay and go to “My eBay”.Scroll down along the left margin and find: My Account. Click on “Personal Information”.

In the next screen, find “About Me page” and click on “Edit”


Your screen should look like this:

Click on “Create Your Page”

You will be prompted to chose to follow eBay’s step-by-step process or to create a page using HTML. If you are not an expert at writing HTML, choose step-by-step and click “Continue”.

Follow the step-by-step prompts.

If you selected to enter your own HTML, you will be given a blank box to enter your HTML information.

Note: The LSA “About Me” page will list the names of every participating organization and have a link to each organization’s “About Me” page.


Cycle Two Returning Particpants Instructions

Four specific changes must be made to your existing accounts to allow for easier searching on eBay and for participating in eBay Giving Works Charity Rebates in Trading Graces Cycle Two. The changes include:

Renaming your eBay account from its present name to fit the format: tradinggraces-c####

Setting up a PayPal account (required to participate in eBay Giving Works rebates)

Updating your MissionFish profiles Creating an eBay “About Me” page (see section above).

1). Rename your eBay Account (change your eBay User ID)

To rename your eBay user account, call or email John Carter to receive a pre-assigned eBay User Name in the format: tradinggraces-c####.

(Phone: 410-230-3548 or email: [email protected]).

Go to My eBay, find My Account, and click on “Personal Information”.



To the right of your User ID, there is an “Edit” button, Click on it.

You will be asked to sign in again. Sign in using the new User ID. Exit eBay.

2). Set Up a PayPal Account. See and follow the instructions for setting up a PayPal account which appear in pages 20-24 of this document.

3). Update your MissionFish profiles by following the steps below:

Log on at MissionFish. Log on as a nonprofit using your MissionFish User Name and password.

Select: My Direct Seller tab. Select: Add a Direct Seller and enter the new eBay User ID (tradinggraces-c####). Remove old eBay seller ID.

Click on For Sellers (still in MissionFish) and scroll down the page and click on Start. Click on: OKEnter your new eBay User ID (tradinggraces-c####) and your password.Click on: Sign in SecurelyClick on: Continue.

You have successfully updated your MissionFish profiles to reflect your new eBay User ID!

Exit MissionFish.

4). Create an eBay “About Me” page by following the instructions appearing in pages 33-34 of this document.


Addendum

eBay, PayPal, MissionFish Registration Events Sequence

week item task description

getting started toolkit reference

page # start datecompletion date notes/comments time

1 A Review Getting Started Toolkit all 1.0 hours1 B Request Participation Agreement page 6 0.25 hours1 C Return Participation Agreement page 6 0.25 hours1 D Obtain eBay User ID-JCarter page 8 0.25 hours2 E Collect eBay Registration

Checklist Materialspage 9

0.50 hours2 F Register on eBay pages 10-15 0.50 hours2 G check your email page 15 0.25 hours2 H Activate eBay Membership pages 15-16 0.25 hours I check your email page 17 0.25 hours2 J Verification of New Account

with eBay-Credit Card on Filepages 17-19

0.50 hours3 K Collect PayPal Registration


0.25 hours3 L Set Up PayPal Account pages 21-24 0.50 hours4 M Collect MissionFish Registration


0.50 hours4 N Register with MissionFish/Fax

MissionFish Documentspages 26-28

0.50 hours4 O Wait for MissionFish

Confirmation emailpage 28

0.25 hours4 P Register as Direct Seller and

nonprofit Seller ( MissionFish)pages 28-32

0.50 hours5 Q Create eBay “About Me” page pages 33-34 1.0 hours

7.50 hours