❖ Heads up! This article is intended for site managers. If you're an agency manager, click here.
Here are a few commonly asked questions and answers about Needs:
- Q. How do I add multiple recurring shifts per day?
- Q. Can I bulk-edit shifts?
- Q. How can I make a Need virtual?
- Q. How can I promote Needs?
- Q. Can I create a Need without an agency?
- Q. How do I change the duration of a Need?
- Q. What is a private Need?
- Q. How do I cancel a Need?
ⓘ So you know: Some sites have language overrides in place, so you might see Need in place of Opportunity. Contact us if you want to request a language override for your site.
Q. How do I add multiple recurring shifts per day?
You can add multiple recurring shifts to a Need that has the duration type of recurring shifts assigned.
1. Go to Volunteerism > Needs. 
2. Click the Need Title from the table that has recurring shifts assigned. 
3. Select Edit Shifts. 
4. Click Add Shifts. 
5. Select Recurring Shifts from the dropdown for Duration.
6. Add the recurring shifts you need for that Need.
7. Be sure to click Save Updates to Shifts when you're done to save your changes!
ⓘ So you know: You can add shifts a maximum of 13 months in advance; however, we recommend only scheduling shifts out 3-6 months in advance. If you schedule them out 3-6 months in advance, it improves the volunteer experience and helps limit any future scheduling conflicts.
Q. Can I bulk-edit shifts?
Do you need to add, edit, or delete shifts for Needs with custom or recurring shifts? You can individually or bulk-edit them and schedule volunteers as needed!
1. Go to Volunteerism > Needs.
2. Click the Need Title that has custom or recurring shifts assigned.
3. Select the Edit Shifts tab beside Edit Need. 
4. From here, you can:
- Add shifts
- Delete shifts
- Edit shifts
- Review shift information
- Schedule volunteers
How to edit shifts in bulk
To delete, edit, or schedule volunteers for shifts in bulk, check the box beside Shift Begins or check the box beside each shift that you want to edit in bulk. Then select which action you need to take. 
How to edit shifts individually
If you want to edit shifts individually, you can click the pencil icon under Options for the shift you want to edit. 
- You can also go to Volunteerism > Needs and click the Need Title that has custom shifts assigned.
- From there, scroll to where it says Shift Date/Time and you can add shifts.
How to delete individual shifts
You can delete shifts if you need to. You can delete them in bulk or individually.
1. Go to Volunteerism > Needs and click on the Need Title with custom or recurring shifts that you want to delete.
2. Go to the Edit Shifts tab beside Edit Need.
2. You can click the (X) under Options in the table for the shift(s) you want to delete. 
3. A warning pops up—click Yes to continue or No to cancel.
ⓘ So you know: When you delete shifts from this area of the site, it also deletes any volunteer responses associated with that shift and Need. You can opt to notify respondents by deleting shifts from the Update Need Need area of your site.
How to delete shifts and notify respondents of this update
1. Go to Volunteerism > Needs and click on the Need Title with custom or recurring shifts that you want to delete.
2. On the Update Need page, scroll until you see the blue Add Shift button.
3. Click the (X) to the left of the shifts you want to delete.
4. Don't forget to click Update Need to save your changes!
- To notify volunteers of this update, check the box beside Notify respondents of this update?—especially if volunteers have already responded to a Need.
How to delete shifts in bulk
If you want to delete shifts in bulk, you can from the Edit Shifts tab.
- Check the box to the left of Shift Begins to select all shifts on that page.
- Check the boxes to the left of the individual shifts you want to delete.
- Once you've made your selection, click Delete Selected Shifts to delete them in bulk.
ⓘ So you know: When you delete shifts from this area of the site, it also deletes any volunteer responses associated with that shift and Need.
Q. How can I make a Need virtual?
Do you have Needs that can be completed from home or on a computer? You might want to make a Need virtual if volunteers are able to accomplish those tasks from their own homes or some other location. You can update a Need to make it virtual at any time.
1. Go to Volunteerism > Needs.
2. Select the Need Title from the table that you want to update.
3. Scroll down until you see Virtual Need? and select Yes to make it a virtual Need.
4. Don't forget to click Update Need to save your changes! 
Q. How can I promote Needs?
There are several ways for you to promote your Needs! You can:
- Copy the Need link and attach it to your Rotator Images.
- Copy the Need link and attach it to a Spotlight.
- Copy the Need link and share it through social media, etc.
To find a Need link so you can start sharing and promoting them with your community:
1. Go to Volunteerism > Needs.
2. Select the Need Title from the table that you want to get the link for.
3. Copy the link beside Need Link on the righthand side of the page and share away! 
Q. Can I create a Need without an agency?
You must create an agency before you can create and post volunteer Needs. We like to say that agencies and Needs are structured like a house: 
Q. How do I change the duration of a Need?
Depending on the duration type assigned to a Need, you can just change it directly from the Need's settings; however, for some duration types, you have to take a few extra steps.
How to update an existing Need
1. Go to Volunteerism > Needs.
2. Click on the Need Title—make sure it isn't one with scheduled shifts.
3. Scroll until you see Duration and select from the dropdown options the new duration you want to apply. 
4. Be sure to click Update Need to save your changes!
✏️ Quick tip: You may want to notify respondents of this update—especially if volunteers have already responded to the Need. Just check the box beside Notify respondents of this update? before you click Update Need.
How to clone a Need with shifts
While you can't use the same process to update a Need with custom or recurring shifts, you can either create a new Need or clone an already existing one. To clone an existing Need so that you can change the duration type:
1. Go to Volunteerism > Needs.
2. Click the Need Title for the opportunity you want to update.
3. Scroll until you see Clone Need beside the red Deactivate Need button and click it. 
4. A warning pops up—click Yes to continue or No to cancel.
5. Clicking yes takes you to the Create Need page where you can scroll to Duration and make your selections. 
- The settings for the existing Need auto-populate, but you can make any necessary changes to it from here.
6. Be sure to click Create Need to save those changes!
How to expire ongoing Needs
You can expire a Need that has the Is Ongoing duration type assigned. This removes the Need from public view so volunteers can't respond to it.
1. Go to Volunteerism > Needs.
2. Select the Need Title that has the Is Ongoing duration type.
3. Change the status from Active to Inactive. 
4. Now it won't appear in the table on the Needs page unless you filter for Inactive Needs. 
- Volunteers won't be able to see the Need once it's Inactive.
ⓘ So you know: You can always change the duration type from Is Ongoing to Runs Until, Happens On, or Multidate and backdate it to when you want the Need to show as expired. Once expired, just like Inactive, it won't appear to volunteers and they won't be able to respond to it.
- If you expire the Need with this method, you can always view it in the Manage Needs table by clicking Show Expired Needs.
Q. What is a private Need?
You can create private Needs that are only accessible to those you assign them to or share with. It won't publicly display on the front end of the site unless a volunteer has been assigned to it. These Needs appear with a lock icon. 
How can volunteers access private Needs?
Volunteers can access private Needs by a shared link or if they're part of a User Group that you assign the private Need to. This makes these Needs viewable to only those specific volunteers that you share it with or assign it to.
- You can find the link to the private Need on the Update Need page:
- You can also add a User Group to the private Need at the bottom of the Update Need page:
ⓘ So you know: You can also assign a private Need to a User Group when creating one.
Q. How do I cancel a Need?
If you need to cancel a Need you can always close it by changing its status from Active to Inactive. This makes it so the Need is no longer accessible to volunteers at the front end of your site. It also makes responses for that Need inactive.
