Getting Started Guide

Now that you have visited the TU.org website and would like to create a Chapter and/or Council site, please take a look at the information below to help guide you through the site building process. These micro-sites are connected to the TU community and are fully hosted by TU.

First Steps

Watch the Getting Started Video An Introduction to TU's new Website for a quick guide through the new site with setting up your own user profile.

Update your Individual User Profile to begin using the new TU.org, simply login to your User Account and complete the profile information about yourself. This individual user account allows you to join and follow various groups within TU in addition to your chapter and council groups. It is important that your user account synchronizes with your membership record. The key to this sync is your email address. You should use the same email address on your user account as you do for your membership record. This is especially true if you are a volunteer leader and need access to the Leaders Only Section - LOS.

You may have an existing user account. To check, try logging in with tu+membership number. For example tu123456789.

New Password If you're not sure you have an account, check here Request New Password

New User If you need to set up a User Account, visit the Register Page. We ask that you encourage your Chapter’s membership to set up individual user accounts profiles. This also adds to the conversation and builds the community of Trout Unlimited.

Unique Email Address Each User Account on the new.tu.org requires an unique email address to login and for member identification. Improved security features will no longer allow shared email addresses. Check with your email provider for information on email aliases.

An unique Email address is also required for the Leaders Only Section (LOS) on new.tu.org. All volunteer leaders must update their User Account by 9/23/13 in order to maintain access to the LOS tools. Please login to your User Account or create a New User Account on the new TU site. Take a moment to tell us about yourself and join the conversation.

Group Pages

Joining Chapter and Special Interests Groups allows you to add content, comment on other member’s posting, and participate in the online community of these groups. You can still post content as an individual. However, joining a group lets you do more. Each chapter and council are represented by a group page but there are also many groups that represent interests. There are fly tying groups, home river groups, conservation groups, photography, projects and so on. Notice that group pages are represented by their chapter number as in Maryland - 167. A member can even create their own group and ask like-minded members to join it. Members can also link to stream reports, fishing reports, weather stations, stream gauges and so forth ultimately building personalized TU resource.

When you join a group, you can add content to the group page. Visitors to the group can find out about events, projects and meetings from the content you and other group members add. Be sure to map and tag your content which also helps to share about group events.

Group Thumbnail Image Send an image to DAgee to be used as the thumbnail image for your group page. The image should highlight the flavor or brand of your group.

Here are some group pages for you to see how they look and the content that has been posted.

• Wisconsin Council group page
• Mid Atlantic Council group page
• Coosa Valley Chapter group page
• Hokendauqua Chapter group page
• Mid Missouri Chapter group page

TU Chapter Sites

Trout Unlimited offers a microsite for Chapters and Councils that is a subdomain of the main TU site. This site is fully hosted by TU and is maintained by the Chapter’s volunteer leaders. Here are some examples of Chapter Sites that are using the tool to share their story.

• MidAtlantic Council
• Wisconsin Council
• Maryland Chapter
• MidMissouri Chapter
• Hokendauqua Chapter

Gather Content for Chapter Sites

When a chapter is ready to move forward with their own TU Chapter or Council site, it's time to gather content for the Chapter sites. Taking the time to gather content ahead of time will allow you to start using the tools and provide a good foundation of content in your new Chapter Site following your introduction webinar. We have some pages that will help understand the different types of content you can use.

Getting Started Checklist to help prepare for your new Chapter/Council Site

The Adding Content page shows how to add your content

Commonly Used Terms in TU Chapter Sites

Chapter Site Roles

Each Chapter Site is managed by volunteer leaders that have the roll of Site Admin and Site Content Editor. The Chapter Site will contain all the important information – who, what, when, where, and key project information.

The Chapter Site managers can post blogs, events, photos, discussion and so forth. You can choose to broadcast your news from the Chapter Site to your Group Page, and to any other group that the managers join. For example, you can post a blog in your chapter site and then share this content with all the chapters and the state council group page on TU.org. This content will flow to the main TU site to show all the good your chapter is doing. And, it helps the other chapters by providing content on their group page.

Chapter Site Administrator Rolls In addition to the members who join you Chapter’s group page and Chapter Site, each chapter will need to identify an Chapter Site Admin and Chapter Site Content Editor. We suggest one or two Site Admins and a few Content Editors to get started. When you have decided on the members that will hold that roll, contact Doug Agee at dagee@tu.org with the User Profile name of each member.

Chapter Site Tools Webinar

Once your Chapter has appointed the Chapter Site managers and gathered the starting content, it’s time to contact Doug Agee at dagee@tu.org and let him know that you are ready for your new Chapter Site and Training Webinar. The Webinar provides the Chapter Site managers an orientation and information on adding content. These seminars are offered several times per week.

• Mon PM | 4 PT, 5 MT, 6 CT, 7 ET
• Wed AM | 8 PT, 9 MT, 10 CT, 11 ET
• Thur AM | 8 PT, 9 MT, 10 CT, 11 ET
• Thur PM | 4 PT, 5 MT, 6 CT, 7 ET