❖ Heads up! This article is only intended for Agency Managers.
Once your Agency is set up, start posting volunteer Needs—these are the Opportunities volunteers can find and respond to. Volunteers can search by Interest or Agency, so make your Needs clear, compelling, and engaging!
Creating Needs
Go to My Agency > Needs. If you manage more than one Agency, then the button is labeled My Agencies.
Click Add New Need. This opens the Create Need page.
Fill out all required fields and any optional ones you want to include.
Click Create Need to finish.
Key fields explained
Field | Description |
Title | Give your Need a title. |
Description | Add a description that lets volunteers know more about your organization or the kind of work they can expect to participate in when they volunteer for this Need. |
Cover Image | Personalize your Need with a cover image. |
Interests & Abilities | Select Interests & Abilities that are relevant to your Need. These help match volunteers with them. |
Qualifications | Select a Qualification as applicable. |
Designate a Site Supervisor or Contact Person | Toggle this On to provide contact information for a person that volunteers can reach out to about this Need. |
Duration | Select how often the Need occurs (i.e., one-time or recurring). |
Capacity | Set the maximum number of volunteers required to participate in this Need. |
Hours | Set the number of hours volunteers are expected to participate in for this Need (e.g., 4 or 2.5). |
Hours Description | Set the time volunteers are needed (e.g., 9 am - 3 pm). |
Virtual Need? |
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Address fields | Share the location where this Need takes place. |
Duration Types explained
Duration Type | When to Use It |
Is Ongoing | For Needs with no end date—always looking for help. Ideal for: |
Runs Until | For Needs with a set end date. Perfect for: |
Happens On | For a one-day Need with a specific date. Use for: |
Multi-Date | For Needs that span consecutive days. Great for: Note: Not a placeholder—you can’t switch to shifts later! |
Custom Shifts | For Needs with varied shift times. Ideal when: |
Recurring Shifts | For repeatable shifts on a schedule. Perfect for: |
Changing a Need or Opportunity’s duration can cause data issues, like volunteers being unable to log hours. To avoid this, clone it or create a new one with the correct duration type.
Promotions and Sharing
Select how you wish to share your Need.
Scroll to the Promotions and Sharing section of the Create or Update Need form.
Select the privacy setting for this Need.
Public: The Need is shared publicly with users on the site.
Private: The Need is only accessible when shared with users manually via a link or by Initiative. If the Need is assigned to a User Group, then User Group members will also gain access to the Need.
Select the Initiative, if applicable.
Additional Options
There are several additional options available to personalize your volunteer Need.
Scroll to the Additional Options section.
Fill out each field as applicable.
Click Create Need to finish.
Field | Description |
Allow Team Registration? |
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Minimum and Maximum Age fields | Set the minimum and maximum ages allowed to participate in this Need.
Note: This doesn't restrict the Need to those ages. It simply informs users of the age restrictions. |
Family Friendly? |
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Outdoors? |
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Wheelchair Accessible |
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Attributes | Add additional important details here, like "wear clothes you don't mind getting dirty" or "we serve refreshments at 2 pm". |
Additional Notification Recipient(s) | Toggle this On to provide contact information for a point of contact that volunteers can reach out to about this Need. |
Comments | Comments are private. Only Site Managers can see comments on Needs. These are not visible to volunteers. |
Clickwrap Waiver | Use a clickwrap waiver when you don't require a volunteer's signature for them to qualify for a Need. |