Your First Campaign

Get from signup to a live volunteer campaign in 7 days. A day-by-day guide to setting up your organisation, branding, sites, shifts, and inviting volunteers.

Overview

This playbook walks you through launching your first campaign on PurposeTech in 7 days. By the end, you'll have a branded volunteer portal where people can browse sites, pick shifts, and sign up — all self-service.

What you'll need:

  • A PurposeTech account (or sign up for a free trial)
  • Your organisation's logo and brand colours
  • A list of locations/sites for your event
  • Shift times and volunteer requirements per site

Day 1: Account setup and branding

Set up your organisation

  1. Log in to your PurposeTech admin dashboard
  2. Complete your organisation profile — name, contact details, and description
  3. Upload your logo and set your brand colours under Custom Domains & Branding

Configure your domain (optional)

If you have a custom domain (e.g. volunteer.yourcharity.org.nz), set up the DNS records now — it can take up to 48 hours to propagate. See Custom Domains & Branding for instructions.

Don't have a custom domain yet? No problem — your campaign will be accessible on your PurposeTech subdomain. You can add a custom domain later.

Checklist

  • Organisation profile completed
  • Logo and brand colours uploaded
  • Custom domain DNS configured (if applicable)

Day 2: Create your campaign

Set up the campaign

  1. Navigate to Campaigns in the admin dashboard
  2. Create a new campaign with your event name and dates
  3. Set the registration open/close dates — when volunteers can start and stop signing up
  4. Write a short campaign description that will appear on your volunteer portal

Configure email templates

Set up your automated emails:

  • Welcome email — sent when a volunteer registers
  • Shift confirmation — sent when they book a shift
  • Reminder email — sent 24-48 hours before their shift

Checklist

  • Campaign created with correct dates
  • Registration window configured
  • Email templates customised with your branding and messaging

Day 3: Build your site structure

Plan your geography

Map out your geographic hierarchy:

  • Regions — high-level areas (e.g. Auckland, Wellington, Canterbury)
  • Areas — mid-level groupings (e.g. Auckland Central, North Shore)
  • Sites — specific locations where volunteers will be

Create sites

  1. Go to your campaign and add regions, areas, and sites
  2. For each site, add the address, any special instructions, and a site coordinator if you have one
  3. You can bulk import sites from a spreadsheet if you have many locations

Checklist

  • Geographic hierarchy mapped out
  • All sites created with addresses and instructions
  • Site coordinators assigned (if applicable)

Day 4: Configure shifts

Set up shift patterns

For each site, create shifts with:

  • Start and end times
  • Number of volunteers needed per shift
  • Any role-specific requirements

Most street appeals use 2-hour shifts (e.g. 8am–10am, 10am–12pm). Community events often use longer shifts. Choose what fits your campaign.

Configure booking rules

  • Set the maximum number of volunteers per shift
  • Enable waitlists for popular sites if desired
  • Configure whether volunteers can book multiple shifts

Checklist

  • Shifts created for all sites
  • Volunteer capacity set per shift
  • Booking rules configured

Day 5: Test the volunteer experience

Walk through the signup flow

  1. Open your volunteer portal URL (your custom domain or PurposeTech subdomain)
  2. Go through the full signup process as a volunteer would:
    • Browse available sites
    • Select a site and shift
    • Complete the registration form
  3. Check that confirmation and welcome emails arrive correctly

Fix any issues

  • Verify all sites appear correctly on the portal
  • Check shift times and capacities are right
  • Test on mobile — most volunteers will sign up on their phone

Checklist

  • Full signup flow tested end-to-end
  • Emails received and looking correct
  • Mobile experience verified
  • Any issues found have been fixed

Day 6: Invite your volunteers

Prepare your outreach

  • Draft an email or social media post with your volunteer portal link
  • Include: what the event is, when it is, and a direct link to sign up
  • If you have previous volunteer data, import them and send a targeted re-engagement email

Open registration

  1. Make sure your campaign's registration dates are active
  2. Share your volunteer portal link via:
    • Email to your existing volunteer database
    • Social media channels
    • Your organisation's website
    • Partner organisations

The first 48 hours after opening registration typically see the highest signup rates. Time your outreach for maximum impact — e.g. a Tuesday or Wednesday morning.

Checklist

  • Outreach materials prepared
  • Registration is open
  • Links shared across all channels
  • Re-engagement emails sent to previous volunteers (if applicable)

Day 7: Monitor and manage

Track registrations

  • Use the admin dashboard to monitor signups in real time
  • Check coverage reports to see which sites need more volunteers
  • Follow up on sites with low coverage — targeted outreach or social media boosts

Prepare for event day

  • Review your roster management tools
  • Brief any site coordinators on how to use the day-of tools
  • Set up any check-in processes

Checklist

  • Registration numbers monitored
  • Low-coverage sites identified and addressed
  • Site coordinators briefed
  • Day-of logistics planned

What's next?

Your campaign is live! As event day approaches, use the Roster Management tools to handle no-shows, walk-ins, and last-minute changes.

After the event, run your post-event reports to capture attendance data, coverage metrics, and insights for next time.

For more detailed operational guidance, check out the Street Appeal Playbook or Community Cleanup Playbook.