Archive for December, 2009

New year, new Kindle with BigTent

Published December 22, 2009 Big Features 6 Comments

Still wishing for a Kindle this holiday season? Tweet with BigTent (@BigTentGroups) and you could ring in the New Year with 1,500 of your closest literary friends.

Here’s how to win:

  • Follow @BigTentGroups (5 points)
  • Tweet about your @BigTentGroups group, a feature you like, or even ask us a question (5 points)
  • Tweet using the #bigtentgroups hashtag (2 points)
  • RT one of our tweets (2 points)

Between now, December 23, and 11:59 p.m. Pacific time, December 31, rack up participation points and we’ll pick one lucky winner of a second-generation 6″ Kindle, which holds over 1,500 books.

To make sure we’ve counted all of your entries, please send an email to learnmore@bigtent.com and let us know what you’ve done in the Twittersphere.

Happy holidays and good luck!

-The BigTent Team

BigTent provides more flexibility with membership management

Published December 21, 2009 Big Features Leave a Comment
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In the past week, we’ve overhauled the way groups and members can manage their information on BigTent. Here’s more about the changes:

1. Membership forms. You can now choose what’s included in your membership form on a field-by-field basis. Already running a group on BigTent? Learn how to customize your membership form in this FAQ.

2. Individual privacy controls. When members fill out the form to join your group, they can pick and choose what they want to share with the entire group. This is helpful because everyone has different comfort levels with sharing things online.

In addition, people who belong to more than one BigTent group will find the added benefit of controlling information sharing on a group-by-group basis. You can share your email address in one group and not another, for instance.

Of course, group admins will still get access to all form information, particularly from fields that are required.

3. Custom fields now appear on the profile page. Show your group spirit in your profile! If you ask members to provide information specific to your group, such as a favorite store, actor, or recipe, these answers can now show up in member profiles.

If you want to see these concepts in action, take a look at the short video we’ve produced:

We hope these changes improve the way your groups function on BigTent, and we welcome any questions or feedback you have. Happy holidays!

Best,

Rosa and the BigTent team

BigTent welcomes Grouphut leaders and members

Published December 19, 2009 Big Features 12 Comments
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BigTent wishes to extend a warm welcome to the leaders and members of Grouphut. We understand that the decision to shut down a company is never easy, and we are honored that GroupHut founder, Ken Walker, has chosen BigTent as the home for his groups going forward.

We want to make the transition to BigTent as easy as possible. To get an overview of BigTent, take a look at our YouTube Quick Tour or our list of features.

After you start a BigTent group, be sure to visit our Coach Corner for training webinars, videos, and other resources to help you get the most out of BigTent.

If you have questions or would like help in migrating your member data over to BigTent, send an email to support@bigtent.com and put “GroupHut” in the subject line. We will make sure to get right back to you and help in any way that we can.

Again welcome and we’re excited to get you up and running on BigTent.

- The BigTent Team

Launch into 2010 with BigTent

Published December 9, 2009 Big Features 1 Comment
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To celebrate the holidays and to help get groups up and running in time for 2010, BigTent will migrate member data for groups that want to launch before the end of the year. This member data can include anything such as  names, addresses, and kids information.

If your group has 50+ members, and you would like help migrating their information into a BigTent group, email us at support@bigtent.com with “Data migration” as the subject line. Already have your list of member data? Feel free to attach it to your message.

“Data migration” usually isn’t synonymous with “lots of fun,” so think of it this way: calling on BigTent for member data migration is like getting a jet pack for your group. We’ll handle the migration, so you can focus on the fun parts of your group — putting on events (with timesaving online payments), hosting discussions, and more.

Don’t let the thought of having to migrate your data to a new technology slow you down! Put on your jet pack, launch on BigTent, then blast off into an awesome world of free tools for online groups.

As an added bonus, groups that migrate their data before the end of the year will get a special, BigTent-hosted Q&A forum in their groups. The Q&A forum provides a month’s worth of tips to get your members comfortable with using BigTent, and features timely responses from BigTent experts.

We look forward to seeing your group on BigTent soon!

Best,

Diane & the BigTent team

Lose Weight With Laura: Tying it all together with BigTent

Published December 7, 2009 Group Spotlight 1 Comment
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Get ready to get inspired by Laura Allen and her support group, Lose Weight With Laura! An avid writer,  Laura started her group to share her experiences of escaping obesity, and she encourages her readers to do the same.

“People write in their own stories and we hold one another accountable,” says Laura.

Laura reaches over 3,000 fans through multiple channels, including her popular show on BlogTalkRadio. Having just launched on BigTent, our team thought it would be great to connect with Laura and learn more about her and her weight loss journey:

Q: How did your group get started?

A: I’ve lost 73 pounds since 2002, and I started blogging about my triumphs and challenges along the way. I kept getting several personal emails after each of my writings, and I realized that I needed a place for people to connect and share their discoveries on a more collective basis.

Q: Why did you choose BigTent?

A: One night, I was very tired and wrote up an email about my dream virtual support group. It was rather extensive. Someone wrote me back — I think it was Jaine — and said “We can do that.”

I love that you guys return calls. You send follow up emails. You’re like this huge machine that gets behind a dreamer and brings her vision into reality.

With the tools that BigTent offers, I know I can keep growing my group in a sustainable way. I can plan messages to go out in the future, and your system will mail them out for me on time. It means I can get sick, life can happen, but my group will keep going in a comfortable rhythm.

Q: What’s next for your group?

A: I’ve planted the seed of community with BigTent, and I hope we all continue to lose weight and grow together as a lifelong community. I just do not think you can face a giant like this on your own.

I’m also working on a book to compile all the lessons I’ve learned over the years.

Q: When you’re not focused on your support group, what else are you up to?

A: I love domestic life! I graduated from University of Virginia in 2006 and I married my college sweetheart, Anwar. We live in Charlottesville, VA, and have a two-year-old baby girl.

You can read more about Laura’s experiences as an equestrian-turned-weight-loss-blogger in a DailyProgress.com article published earlier this year.

Follow Laura on Twitter: http://twitter.com/LoseWeightLaura

Follow BigTent on Twitter: http://twitter.com/BigTentGroups

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