This year, DigiUp once again surveyed associations to find out which skills they are most interested in developing. We invited volunteers, board members, and employees to participate, and received 41 responses.
The survey focused on interest in three key areas: content creation and communication, digital skills for information management, and digital skills related to security.
This year, social media use and marketing won the top spot in our survey, being the most popular topic for our members in communication skills. AI was again of interest, coming in second, as well as website building, which was the third most popular topic.
Social media is of most interest
Social media continues to be a key area of interest for many associations, reflecting its central role in modern communication and community engagement. It serves as an essential platform for reaching target audiences, promoting events, sharing updates, and supporting advocacy efforts. For many organizations, effective social media use is not just a communication tool, but a strategic asset that helps amplify their visibility and impact.
Among our respondents there is a desire to learn social media basics as well as more advanced use of social media and communication tools. DigiUp recognises this need and plans to offer trainings on social media use this year. Advice on social media skills is also offered by our digital support service.
AI skills are still important
The second most popular area of interest from our survey was AI. It’s important for NGOs to reflect on the role of AI in their daily activities and to think strategically about what AI means for their communities and representation. As AI technologies evolve rapidly, it is crucial to ensure that the voices of vulnerable and underrepresented groups are included and visible in conversations and developments around AI.
From a sustainability perspective, we must also consider the environmental impact of AI, including its carbon footprint and the strain it places on natural resources.
Since AI has been such a popular topic in the past year, we also asked respondents to freely write what they think about the use of AI in their association’s daily activities. We received many interesting responses and insight into how AI is used. Twenty-nine respondents (70%) already use AI in their work or had an interest in learning about AI tools. Six respondents (15%) were uninterested in using AI in their work or see more challenges than benefits. Another 6 respondents (15%) did not have a clear view or did not answer the question.
As this topic continues to be important for our target audience, DigiUp will again organise trainings related to AI and its use in the NGO field in 2025.
Website design
Website management was another important topic for respondents. We have helped several associations with creating a website, and it continues to be a common topic in digital support. Since it has been such a requested topic, we have created an online guide on building a website as part of our own digital support materials.
Our guide is tailored to associations and helps them to think about what kind of features are important to them and what are the price differences between different services. Please contact us if you need advice about your website.
DigiUp in 2025
The results of this survey provide us with valuable insight and direction for planning this year’s DigiUp activities. We thank those who took the time to respond to our survey. At DigiUp, we will continue to provide and develop high quality and diverse digital training to help your association continue to meet the challenges of the digital age.
Please remember that we offer digital support for multicultural associations on an ongoing basis. If your association has challenges or questions about digital support or digitalisation, please book an appointment with us through our calendar.
You can also find a lot of information and guides from our digital support page and from Moniheli's new skill hub.