Whether you are a brand-new group officer or you have been using RamsConnect for a long time, welcome! This training guide will provide you with all the tools you need to successfully manage your RamsConnect Group. We recommend going through each of the topics below so you can know how to use all of the great features that RamsConnect has to offer!
RamsConnect is the One-Stop-Shop for all student events outside of the classroom. It's where VCU students can find information about their groups and events.
Your events and posts automatically reach a wide audience! Adding your events to RamsConnect will gather attention and increase the engagement and activity of your members.
RamsConnect has a range of helpful features that group officers can use to effectively organize and manage their groups.
Connect and communicate with your group members quickly and easily. RamsConnect includes powerful email features, newsletters, buildable websites, and more!
Overview of RamsConnect
What is RamsConnect?
RamsConnect is the primary platform for all student organizations, events, and student engagement at VCU. All VCU students automatically have a RamsConnect account, which is connected to their VCU email. There are over 40,000 active users on RamsConnect and student organizations can use the platform to manage their groups, contact their members, and increase engagement by adding and managing their events in RamsConnect.
Helpful Information for this Training
RamsConnect is managed by VCU Division of Student Affairs. The RamsConnect platform is powered by our vendor CampusGroups. Throughout this training guide there are tutorials and training videos that use a base platform that is equivalent to RamsConnect. Please note that all of these tutorials apply to RamsConnect and that the information from these training videos will help you better understand how to use RamsConnect as a group officer.
General User Guide for RamsConnect
In addition to this Group Officer Training, there is also a general RamsConnect User Guide. If you are new to RamsConnect, please look through the User Guide first to learn more about the RamsConnect platform and how it can be used. You can find a link to this resource at the top of this website, as well as on the main menu of RamsConnect. Please share the general User Guide with your group members so they can get the most out of RamsConnect too!
Main Features for Group Officers
This is a quick overview of some of the top functions and tools used most frequently by group officers. Throughout the rest of this training guide, you will gain more in-depth knowledge of these features and more.
Managing a Group
Accessing your Group's Management Dashboard
When you are an officer of a group in RamsConnect, you will have access to the group's management dashboard. You can find this by searching for your group (or going to My Groups) and selecting the correct group name. When using the Groups tab on the top navigation bar, a settings 'gear' icon will appear next to groups that you are an officer for. You can also click on this 'gear' icon to access the group management dashboard.
Important Features
On the dashboard, there is a left menu with all of the group management features you can use - including features to help you manage your group's Settings, Officers, Members, Emails, and Events. There are also other helpful built-in features like Surveys & Forms, Tracks & Checklists, Badges, a customizable Group Website, a Group Page & community feed, and Finance/Budget tools. In the middle of the group dashboard there are widgets of recently-used features for quick access. On the right side of the group dashboard you can view recent posts from the group's community feed, recent activity in the group, a Join Link & QR Code / Flyer button to easily share a link or flyer to join the group with other students, and a blue Create button for quick access to things like setting up a new event, sending out an email, or adding new members.
Group Settings - Basic Set-Up
From the dashboard, go to your group's settings and make sure everything is complete with your group's important information. For example, be sure to upload a group photo/logo, add a mission statement, update the group's contact information, and add links to your group's social media profiles.
Officer Bootcamp for Group Management
This is a more in-depth overview of the features used to manage groups within the RamsConnect platform. Some key points in this training include: group emails (4:00), creating events (14:00), managing events (19:00), using forms and surveys (24:05), using tracks and checklist (36:50), and the group community feed (46:00). Further down in this training guide there will be more information on these features too. We recommend that all group officers watch this bootcamp, especially if you are new to being an officer in RamsConnect!
Members and Officers
Adding Members to the Group
There are multiple ways for new members to join your group in RamsConnect. Primarily, they can join the group on their own by searching for the group in RamsConnect and clicking join. They can then be verified by a group officer as a group member.
New members can also be added by a group officer. Since all current VCU students have a RamsConnect account, you can add users to your group by going to your Group Dashboard > Members > Add Members > and searching for their name.
When searching by name to add members, you can select multiple students at at a time. New members can also be notified by email whenever they are added to the group. If you have any trouble finding or adding someone to the group, please contact ramsconnect@vcu.edu.
Organizing Group Members
Member Tags and Sub-Group Tags can be used to organize group members into custom categories and targeted lists. This can help officers manage the group and do things like send an email to members with a specific tag.
"Member Tags" are used by officers to manage their members into customized categories. Members cannot see these tags, they are only viewable to the group officers.
"Sub-Group Tags" can be seen by all members of the group and members can tag themselves to join sub-groups within the group. Officers can also use these to tag group members, they will just be viewable to the group members as well.
To add tags to a member, go to your group Dashboard > Members > and then select either Member or Sub-Group tags next to a specific member's name.
You can then select from tags you've already created, or you can create a new tag and assign it to that member.
You can also tag multiple members at a time by selecting all of the members you want to tag and then clicking on the button with three dots on the top right and selecting "+ Add Member Tag".
Adding and Organizing Group Officers
You can add other group officers by going to your group Dashboard > Officers > and selecting the "+ Add Officer" button on the top right. If they are already a member of the group, you can also click the "Officer" checkbox next to their name.
On the Officers page, you can manage all of the group officers as well, including assigning specific positions (like President, Vice-President, etc.), creating a custom position, describing their role or bio, and selecting if they are the main contact or should be visible publicly. You can also update permissions for other officers by selecting the "Permissions" button next to the "Add Officer" button.
Emails and Newsletters
Open this link to watch a video tutorial on how to create and track emails as a group officer.
Using the Email Builder
RamsConnect has several great communication features available to group officers, including the email builder. The Email Builder is a drag-and-drop tool that you can use to design newsletters, save email templates, and send group emails to all of your members or to customized lists of recipients. You can pull content from your RamsConnect group (like events, forms, etc.) directly into the email. Once an email is sent, you can also view engagement information, including open and click rates for an email's recipients.
To create a new email using the Email Builder, go to your group's Dashboard > select Emails > and click the "Compose Email" in the top right corner.
This will take you to the first step, where you can select the recipients for your new email. You can customize the recipients by selecting from the various options of which members or contacts you would like to use. If you have created Member or Sub-Group Tags previously, you can select specific tags as well.
After selecting your recipients, select "Compose Email" and choose the "Email Builder" option to continue creating the new email. The next step will be to write a Subject and choose what email address the email will be sent from. You can choose to send it from an officer's email address, or from the main contact email address for your group. You can also add additional files as attachments here.
In the next step, you can choose from various templates to start designing your new email. You can also save emails as a custom template for your group, which would appear hear as well. Creating a custom email template can be very helpful if you send regular emails or newsletters, as you will be able to save the design and can update the content to quickly send a new email.
The next step is the Design section. This is where you can create and add the content of your email. There are many different drag-and-drop widgets that you can choose from to include different types of content into the email, including dynamic widgets for upcoming events that your group is hosting or a form/survey your group has created. There are lots of features here, so be sure to explore this page to find what works for you.
After the Design step and you've created the content and layout for your email, you can also add 'clickboxes' that will show up at the end of your email. These can add a quick link to an upcoming event or survey as well.
In the final step, you can view and edit the delivery options for your email. You can schedule the email to send on a certain date and time, as well as send yourself a test email to make sure everything is correct before you send out. You can also preview the email or save as a draft before sending.
Once the email is sent, group officers can view tracking information, including open and click rates for the email's recipients.
Events and Attendance Tracking
RamsConnect has an excellent feature that allows Groups to create and customize their own Events. All Events are added to the centralized events calendar and can be displayed campus-wide or to a targeted audience. As a group officer, you can also use the Event Management tools to customize registration options, track attendance, generate reports, and more! Open this link to watch a video tutorial that walks through the event creation and attendance tracking features available to group officers.
Event Guidelines
What is an Event?
When creating an Event in RamsConnect, please make sure it meets the following guidelines:
If an Event in RamsConnect does not meet these guidelines, you will be asked to edit the Event or it will be removed from RamsConnect.
Creating an Event
Events must be created and hosted by a specific Group in RamsConnect. Only Group Officers have access to create Events for your Group, but you can give a group member access by making them an officer or by updating your group's settings to allow members to submit events for approval by your group's officers.
To create a new Event, go to your group's Dashboard and select "Events" from the left menu. This will take you to the Events page where you can see a list of your Upcoming Events. You can click on existing events to manage or edit them. To create a new Event, click the green "Create Event" button in the top right corner.
This will open a pop-up box where you can select from the Templates available to your Group. You can save an Event's set-up as a Template for you Group if you would like to save certain configurations to make a new Event faster. If there aren't any Group Templates, you can always select the "New Event" Template. This will open a new Event Creation page and start creating a default, blank Event.
There are several required pieces of information needed to create an Event, as well as additional settings and features that you can use to customize your Event. To start, you will need to input a Name, Description, and an Event Type. You can also add multiple Tags to your Event, which act as additional filters when users look up Events. You can use a Tag that's already been created, or you can scroll to the bottom of the list and create your own.
You will also need to select at least one Event Focus. You can select as many that apply to your Event, but you must select at least one that best relates to the purpose of the Event.
You can edit the Organizing Team by assigning an Event Coordinator from a list of your Group's Officers. Other Officers will still be able to manage and edit the Event unless you enable the option that only the Organizing Team can manage the Event. You can add someone as a Team Member to help check in attendees at an Event. Team Members do not need to be a Group Officer or a Group Member and won't have access to manage the Event outside of helping with check-in and tracking attendance. You can also select your preferred method of contact if attendees want to contact you.
In the When section you can add the Times and Date for your Event. Most Events should start and end on the same date. Please keep the Event times limited to the actual duration of when students will be attending. If you are have multiple events that are the same (like a weekly meeting), you can use the "Recurring event settings" to select the specific dates the Events will take place. This will create a new Event for each date that is a copy of the Event you are currently creating.
In the Where section you can include the location details for your Event. If your Event is in-person, be sure to click on "Address" and write in the correct address details. If you don't input an address, the Event's location will default to The Commons address. You can choose to only display the location once a user has registered for the event. You can also add information for online events, including links for a virtual meeting.
In the Photo & Flyer section, you can upload a custom image and graphic to help promote your Event. We recommend always uploading an Event photo, as this will look more complete and appealing to students when they see your Event in RamsConnect. The Event Photo will be displayed on the RamsConnect Events Calendar and the Homepage upcoming events slider. The Flyer can also be used to include more key information about your event and will be seen when they open the Event's registration page.
In the More Details section, you can add additional files and include information if food is provided.
In the Access & Display options, you can decide who will have access to register for the event, as well as who will be able to view the event. This defaults to VCU users, which include all students, staff, and faculty. You could choose to make the event open to everyone, or only for your group members or targeted subgroups of users (like only your Group Officers or members with a certain tag/badge).
In the Registration Options section, you can decide how users can register for this Event. You can edit the default RSVP option (please note that all Events in RamsConnect are free, so the 'ticket price' should always be $0) or create additional registration options. For example, you could be creating volunteering event where there are 15 spots available to help with cleaning and 15 spots available to do a different role. You could reflect these roles and options by adding and editing the registration options here.
Within the registration options, there are a lot of features and settings available to Group Officers. You can add an attendance limit (ex: there are only 200 spots available for an event, so only the first 200 people can register). If you add an attendance limit, you can also activate the Waiting List feature (which would automatically move the 201st person to register into the event if someone cancels). You can also set up a reminder email, personalize a confirmation email, and automatically send a feedback survey to attendees after the event takes place.
In the Advanced Options section, there are many other features and settings you can use to further customize and edit your Event. You can add additional questions to the registration form, co-host the Event with another Group, and save this Event as an Event Template so you can easily create similar Events for your Group in the future.
Once you've finished adjusting the settings and editing your Event, click the green "Create Event" button at the bottom of this page to create the Event. This will publish the Event to the RamsConnect events calendar and to your Group's Events. You can still edit and manage your Event by going to your group's Dashboard and selecting "Events".
Event Check-In and Tracking Attendance
When your Event occurs, you can use RamsConnect to check-in attendees and track attendance. To manage attendance tracking and/or start event check-in, go to the Events page for you Group and click on the "Manage" option for the correct Event. You can click on the Event's name and select "Manage" or you can click the gear/wheel icon next to the edit button.
This will open the Event's management page, where you can click the green "Track Attendance" button at the top right.
This will open the Attendance Tracking pop-up box, where you can choose which check-in method you want to use. The "Track Attendance with a Computer" option will let you check-in attendees by manually searching for their name or email. The "Self Check-In QR Code" is a very helpful option that allows attendees to scan the QR code with their own device and check in using their phone's internet or the RamsConnect Mobile App (if they have the app downloaded, this is a fast process). You can also choose to set up a device as a kiosk where students can sign themselves in manually by searching their name.
You can review attendees that have registered and/or checked-in by going back to the Event's management page and scrolling down to the "Attendees" section. In this section, you can filter attendees by the registration or check-in status and you can view if they registered, checked in or out, etc.
You can also add or invite attendees manually by clicking the green "Add or Invite Attendees" button at the right of the Attendees section. This will open a pop-up box where you can choose to add, invite, or check-in attendees to this event. You can search for users by their name or email and multiple users at the same time, or you can paste a list of emails to add a large number of users at once. If someone wasn't able check-in at an event, you can write their name and email down and quickly add their information to the event after it's occurred.
Event Marketing
Setting up your event
When an event is created in RamsConnect, it will automatically be added to the RamsConnect Events Calendar, which can be seen by everyone on RamsConnect. The RamsConnect Calendar is organized chronologically, so when a student goes to the "Events" page, they will see all of the events happening today, then tomorrow, etc.
Make sure your event has an event photo and all of the event information is correct, like the event location, time, date, description, registration options, etc. These are the basic parts of creating an event in RamsConnect, but they are important pieces to help make your event look better in the system and on the platform-wide calendar.
Share a link to your RamsConnect Event
Once the event is created, you can find a custom link to your event's registration page by going to the event and clicking 'Manage' if you are a group officer. This will take you to the event's management page where the "Copy Link" button is.
Selecting the "Copy Link" button will open this pop-up with a QR code and custom hyperlink that you can copy and share with others.
Share with your Group Email / Newsletter
Using the Email Builder in RamsConnect, you can send out announcements and reminders for your events to your group members and contacts. When creating an email, you can include upcoming events and dynamic content that links to your event's registration page on RamsConnect. This is a great way to keep your group members up to date on group events and makes it easy for them to look at the event details and register for the event.
Post on the RamFeed
With the custom link to your event, you can create a new post in the RamFeed and announce your upcoming event on the community feed. RamFeed posts receive over 600 views on average, so just by making a post on the RamFeed you can increase your opportunities for engagement and event attendance.
When posting on the RamFeed, make sure you include the link to your event, a brief description with important details like the date and time, and include an event photo or flyer graphic to help grab attention and provide helpful information.
Use Social Media and link to your RamsConnect Event
If you use other social media platforms (like Instagram, Facebook, etc.), you can include the RamsConnect link to your event in your social media posts and comments. This can help extend your reach as well.
How to request a promotional banner on the RamsConnect Homepage
If you are interested in promoting an event or program on the RamsConnect Homepage (via a banner), the following criteria must be met and a request must be submitted at least two weeks before the event's start date:
Additional Information:
Website Builder
Open this link to watch a video tutorial on how to use the website builder to create a customizable website for your group.
Open the Web Page Editor
Go to your group and click Manage to open the group dashboard, then select the Website widget on the dashboard or from the left menu bar. Then click the "Migrate to the New Website Builder" button at the top right of this page.
Manage Pages of Website
After selecting the new website builder, you can create and manage the pages on your group's website from this main menu. You can create pages by using the button at the top right, as well as access the website settings.
You can access more features for each page by clicking on the button with three dots at the right of each row. This drop-down has several options, including access settings, page access, renaming the page, and deleting the page. You can also duplicate pages that you've created and can choose to hide or publish specific pages by using the checkboxes in the middle of the row.
Edit your Website's Pages
You can edit your website's pages by clicking on the name of the page or by clicking the Edit button at the right of each row. When you have opened your website, a blue edit button will appear at the top left of the webpage if you are group officer. Clicking the blue edit button will open the left menu with Drag & Drop Sections that you can use to edit each page on your website.
Customize your Website with Widgets
Once you have entered editing mode, you can drag and drop widgets from the left menu bar,. You can delete, duplicate, and move the widgets on your webpage. Within each widget, you can edit the text by clicking on the text and typing in your content. There is a smaller box with helpful tools for text editing and uploading content like images, video, and hyperlinks.
There are many options and widgets available to choose from, including dynamic widgets that will automatically update with information from your group (like officers, newsletters, photos, etc.). If you need to edit any information that is dynamically updated (like your group's address or officers), you can change these by editing your group settings from your group dashboard in RamsConnect.
Forms, Surveys, and Workflows
Open this link to watch a video tutorial on how to use forms, surveys, and workflows as a group officer.
Creating a Form or Survey
Forms and Surveys are created within a group. To get started, go to your Group's Dashboard and select "Surveys & Forms" from the left menu or from the widgets on the dashboard. This will take you to the Surveys & Forms page where you can see all of your group's forms that have already been made. You can manage a form and view submissions by clicking on the form's name. If you want to create a new form or survey, click the purple "Create" button in the top right corner.
After clicking "Create", a window will pop-up for you to select which type of Form you want to create.
There are several different types of Forms to choose from. To learn more about what each Form will do and how to best use them, read the articles included below for helpful instructions:
Form Settings
It's important to review the settings for any Form you are creating to ensure they will work correctly and meet your needs. When you are on the Manage or Edit page for a Form, click on "Settings" to view all of the options.
Using the Logic Tool
Adding Logic to your survey/form can automate certain steps and help make your survey/form more effective. There are different ways you can use and implement logic in a form or survey and you can find more detailed information on these features by following the articles that are linked below.
To add Logic to a question on your Form, follow these steps:
After saving your question, click the Logic Button (two crossing arrows) for the question you are wanting to use.
This will take you to a page that shows all Logics currently assigned to this question. To create a new Logic, click the "Create Logic" button at the top of the page.
This will open the Logic settings where you can set up and edit how the Logic will work and what it will do. You can choose to activate or deactivate the Logic as well.
Creating a Workflow
Workflows allow you to set up a complex approval process with multiple teams of users who need to participate in various steps along the way. To learn how to set up a Workflow, read this article.
Remember that you can use the logic tool to activate a workflow step based on the answer to a question. If you wish to do so, make sure the workflow step settings indicate this and then add the workflow logic to the appropriate question.
Pulling a Report for your Form/Survey
For every form/survey your group has created, you can pull a report with all of the data and submissions that the form has collected. To access and view this information, go to the Surveys & Forms tab for your group and click on the name of the Form/Survey you want to view.
You can generate a report using all of the data and submissions for the Form or you can select specific submissions by using the filtering options at the top of the page or manually checking the specific submissions with the checkbox on the left. Once you've selected the appropriate submissions, click "Generate Report". You can then download and view the report outside of RamsConnect.
Tracks, Checklists, and Badges
Open this link to watch a video tutorial on how to use tracks and checklists as a group officer.
Creating a Checklist
Checklists are an engaging way to map out goals or expectations for your group members and can help track progress towards various accomplishments. Multiple checklists can be assigned to a Track to create a more advanced module, and you can assign badges to members who have completed certain Checklists or Tracks.
To create a new Checklist, go to your group's Dashboard and navigate to the "tracks & Checklists" tab on the left menu. Click the "Create Checklist" button at the top right of this page.
Clicking the "Create Checklist" button will open a pop-up box where you can start setting up your checklist, including the name and description, choosing a deadline, whether it should be visible, and if it's a sequential checklist. If you are adding this checklist to a larger Track, you can enter the order for where this checklist will appear on that Track.
After saving this information and creating the new Checklist, you can add items to the Checklist by going to clicking on the Checklist's name and then clicking the purple "Create Item" button at the top right of this page.
This will open a pop-up box where you can enter the information for each item, including the title, details, a completion deadline, whether you want the user to be able to check the item off themselves, and if the item is optional or required.
If a user isn't allowed to check the item themselves, officers can manually check items off or you can create a Completion Rule and add it to the Checklist item. This will automatically check off the item once the user has completed a certain task or action (ex: check-in at an event). If you want to create or add a Completion Rule, read this article.
Creating a Track
To create a new Track, go to your group's Dashboard and navigate to the "Tracks & Checklists" tab on the left menu. Click on the "Create Track" button at the top right of this page, just to the left of the purple Create Checklist button.
After clicking "Create Track", a pop-up box will open where you write a name a description for the new Track. You can also select a color and icon for the Track.
Once a Track has been created, you can then add Checklists to a Track and edit the order of the Checklists. To add a Checklist to a Track, go to your group's "Tracks & Checklists" page and find the Checklist that you are wanting to add. Towards the right of the row, click "Select Track" and choose from the drop-down menu which Track you are wanting to add the Checklist too.
Remember that you can set the order for your Checklists to appear by changing the number in the edit menu for individual Checklists.
Assigning a Track or Checklist
To assign a Track to a set of group members, go to your group's Tracks & Checklists page and click on the "Assign" button in the row of the correct Track.
This will open a pop-up box where you can select from different options of which users you would like to select and assign this Track to. For example, you could assign this Track to all of your group members, only group officers, or to specific groups of members.
You can also assign users by using a list of email addresses. You can do so by clicking the three dot menu button next to the Track and selecting "Batch Assign".
You can assign Checklists to users in the same way, by selecting "Assign" and using the categories shown above, or by selecting "Batch Assign". However, the "Assign" button for Checklists is also found in the three dot menu next to the Checklist's name.
Creating and Assigning Badges
Badges can be awarded to users and groups. They can be assigned/awarded automatically based on accomplishments within the platform and based on Completion Rules that you can specify.
To create a new badge, go to your group's Dashboard and navigate to the "Badges" page by clicking the "Member Success" tab in the left menu and then clicking "Badges". On the Badges page, click the "Create Badge" button at the top right.
Clicking the "Create Badge" button will open a pop-up box where you can input a name, description, and upload a badge icon or choose from a standard icon. You can also choose to make the badge private.
After creating a Badge, you need to apply a Completion Rule for each Badge. You can do this by going to the Badges page and clicking on the "Completion Rule" button next to the appropriate Badge.
This will open a pop-up box with a drop-down menu you can choose from to create the Completion Rule. Based on your selection, the Badge will automatically be applied once a user completes the specified task or track/checklist.
Additional Support
Still have a question or need help with RamsConnect?
Please reach out and contact us by email at ramsconnect@vcu.edu.
Need help with your student organization?
Please contact the Leadership & Student Organizations team by email at studentorgs@vcu.edu or by visiting The Underground: Student Organization Resource Center.
