Solution: Checkboxes with Date/Time
The solution
is to use an online registration
with checkboxes that have a date and time
associated with each one. Those create future meetings.
Oh, you want to know the issue for which this is the solution?
Issue:
The issue for which this is the solution is any type of non-typical volunteer schedule . By non-typical, I mean events that occur only once a month, but you want them to always be on the 3rd Tues after the 1st of the month , regardless of what day of the week the 1st falls on. Or, events that seem random and just do not have a rhyme or reason for when they occur - one month it's on a Monday at 3:00 PM, but another month it's Saturday at 9:00 AM.
Whatever scheme you can devise for your volunteers, this method will work for you.
The checkbox option in online registrations also allows for a limit , so you control how many people can select that time slot/meeting. Also, because TouchPoint has the concept of 'intent to attend', you can make adjustments to a volunteer's commitment. Just change the commitment on the specific meeting. You can even send reminders. You handle that a little differently than on the volunteer calendar, but you can easily accomplish notifications.
Are there features on the volunteer calendar that you will not have by using this method. Absolutely! Example: your volunteers cannot send sub-requests, and you don't have the calendar format. That said, the use cases for this are not those typical weekly types of slots, so you really do not need some of those features that are really necessary for, say, your weekly group of ushers at your Sunday services. The volunteer calendar is packed with features for those types of volunteer opportunities. However, once you look at all the ways to manage future meetings and future attendees by using this method, I think it will more than make up for what you don't have.
This video demonstrates how this works.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLEDtTxOxnk?rel=0&w=560&h=315]
Read more...about the options for online registrations.
This is not a new feature. Those checkbox options and future meetings have been there a long time. We just realized we needed to help you solve tricky issues by talking about this as an option for volunteers. This method uses some of the features of RSVP links that you can email to potential volunteers. However, for this, we recommend using a normal online registration and sending a Register Link so that the registrant can view all the options in the actual registration, instead of having to put all those links in one email.