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Tool: Google Groups
Written by Mary on November 26, 2007 – 5:22 pm -Name: Google Groups
Website: http://groups.google.com
What it is: Google Groups allows you to create group e-mail lists and send messages to large groups of people
Rating: 
Applications for activists: A great way to connect the people in your campaign though easy mass e-mails which all members of the list can use. You can also use it to keep in touch with supporters outside your movement (take this action!, attend our Saturday rally!).
Cost: Free
Available Languages: All languages that Google is available in (we think)
You can figure it out in: 10 minutes
Why we like it: Free, simply and elegantly provides a crucial mass communication function.
Some problems: If you try to add a lot of people to the group at the same time, Google will need to verify that the additions are legitimate and that you are not a spammer. This can cause a delay of about 24 hours. Having a mass e-mail list is easy to abuse. If people send messages out too frequently to the group it will become annoying.
Steps for Use:
1. Create a Gmail account here. (You will need a Google Gmail account to create a Google Groups account. If you already have a Gmail account, then just sign into your Gmail account and click the “Groups” link in the top lefthand corner of the page. That will open your Google Groups homepage)
2. Once you get to your Google Groups account homepage, you can create a new group by clicking the gray “Create a group” button on the right end of the blue toolbar.
3. Choose a name, e-mail, and description for your group. The e-mail is the most important because this is the e-mail your group members will use when they e-mail they group. When they send an e-mail to this address, Google will forward the message to all members of the group. It should be sensible and easy to remember.
4. You also need to choose an Access Level. You should choose “Public” if you want everyone to be able to send out messages. You should “Announcement only” if you want to be the only one who can send out messages. This is a good option if you think your group members might abuse the list by sending out too many messages.
5. Click the “Create my group” button.
6. Now you are taking to a page where you can add the e-mail addresses of people you want to be in the group. You are now in the “Invite members by e-mail” section. This means that each people you add will receive an e-mail where they can accept or reject membership in your group. If you are already sure that they want to be a member of your group, then click the “Add members directly” tab. Then they will automatically be put on the membership list. If you add over a certain number of members (I think it is about 20), Google will need to review the list to make sure you are not a spammer. This will delay additions to the list by about 24 hours. For this reason it is better to add small groups of new members, which do not need to be verified by Google.
7. If you choose to add people directly, you can choose their E-mail subscription options. A good choice is “Send email for each message and update,” which means that they will receive every message as soon as you send it. They can change this preference if they want to.
8. After you add the members, you will be sent to a page that displays the homepage of your group, where are the messages are displayed online, and the e-mail address of the group, which members will use to e-mail the rest of the group. Remember this information, as you will need it to use your group.
9. Now, go into your e-mail account and send an e-mail to your Google Group e-mail address (YouCauseHere@googlegroups.com). The message will be sent to all the members of your group.
Is anything about these instructions unclear? Did we make a mistake? Let us know in the comments section and we will make the appropriate change.
Tags: googlegroups, tool
Posted in Listservs, Tools |