Today’s Presentation

• A brief history of the .ORG domain

• How .NGO and .ONG are different from .ORG

• How .ORG, .NGO and .ONG affect online fundraising success

• How to purchase and complete the verification process for .NGO and .ONG

• How to use your new .NGO and .ONG domains

A brief history of the .ORG domain

• .ORG was established in 1985 as the one of the Internet’s original top-level domains – along with .COM and .NET.

• .GOV and .EDU were also available, but verification was required.

• Early adopter nonprofit organizations and charities began registering .ORG in 1992. [Wayback Machine]

• There are currently more than 11 million .ORGs registered worldwide.

How .NGO and .ONG are different from .ORG

• Long associated with nonprofit organizations, in truth .ORG is open to individuals, companies, and organizations of all kinds.

• Released on May 6, 2015 the .NGO and .ONG domains can only be registered and used by NGOs, ONGs, charities, and nonprofits.

• “NGO” is the widely adopted acronym for “non-governmental organization.” “ONG” is the same, except in romantic languages (i.e. Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, and Romanian).

How .NGO and .ONG are different from .ORG

• There are an estimated 10 million NGOs worldwide of which the majority are not yet online.

• According to the 2017 Global NGO Online Technology Report:j- “NGO” is the predominant term used in Africa (53%), Asia (52%), and Europe (31%).- “ONG” is the predominant term used in South America (35%).

- “Nonprofit Organization” is the predominant term used in Australia & Oceania (49%) and North America (79%).

How .ORG, .NGO and .ONG affect online fundraising success

• According to the recently released 2017 Global Trends in Giving Report:j1) Donors are more likely to trust websites and email addresses that use .ORG (72%), .EDU (7%), and .NGO (6%).

2) Donors are least likely to trust websites and email addresses that use .NET (30%), .COM (29%), and country-code domains, such as .ca, .uk, and .au (13%).

How to purchase and complete the verification process for .NGO and .ONG

• The .NGO and .ONG domains are sold bundled. You buy one and get the other free.

Step 1. Purchase your domains from a participating registrar. The .NGO/.ONG domains costs $30-50US.

Step 2. Upon purchase, you will be prompted to create an account at OnGood.ngo to complete the verification process. It takes 5-10 minutes and requires documentation to prove your nonprofit, charity, NGO, or ONG is legal and in good standing.

How to Use Your New .NGO and .ONG Domains

• For those organizations that prioritize .ORG:

“Redirect” .NGO and .ONG to your .ORG website, such as savethechildren.ngo. This is free and easy to do through your domain registrar.

• For those organizations that prioritize .NGO or .ONG:

- Pick a date for launch and direct your website to your new .ngo or .ong domain.- Update print materials, email signatures, etc. - Set up your .ngo or .ong email addresses.

How to Use Your New .NGO and .ONG Domains

• .NGO and .ONG make ideal URLs for microsites or campaign redirects, such as:

worldaidsday.ngosavethewhales.ngodiadeldoar.ong

Conclusion

• This webinar was sponsored by the Public Interest Registry – the nonprofit responsible for managing the .ORG, .NGO and .ONG domains.

• This webinar was not recorded. Notes will be emailed within the next 24 hours. You are now subscribed to the Nonprofit Tech for Good e-Newsletter and email alerts from the Public Interest Registry.