How to Become a Welcome Wagon User on wikiHow

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Last Updated: August 5, 2024

Are you familiar with the basic (or advanced) "ins" and "outs" of wikiHow and interested in using the Welcome Wagon to welcome new contributors to the community? Users who are trusted to use the Welcome Wagon feature are called "Welcomers" and becoming a welcomer is easy - all you need to do is take and pass a simple test.

Steps

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1
Get some experience before applying. Your account should be at least a month old, with significant and meaningful editing activity, before you apply. This is because you will need to be able to help users if they come across any problems.
- You don't need to know every policy (like an Admin or Booster does), but you do need to know how to be friendly and encouraging, and point people in the correct direction.
- Try greeting newcomers from the new contributors page, following these guidelines. This will help you to get some experience and pass the test.
- Ask other Welcomers for advice. Welcome Wagon has it's own list on the forums for those who've sent messages with the Welcome Wagon tool - found here though it's a bit tough to read by most, and doesn't show the complete message.
  - However, wikiHow also has a list of Welcomers, but it doesn't list their exact messages. It's used to find links to reach out to these Welcomers to ask them questions. Visit this list for active Welcomers.
- A list of wikiHow's active welcomers can be found here. This list lists Welcomers who've contributed messages with the tool in the last 30 days.
2
Be familiar with your role as a Welcome Wagon user, should you pass the test. Read up on How to Use the Welcome Wagon Tool on wikiHow. It will give you a brief explanation on how the tool looks.

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3
Take the Welcome Wagon test. Visit this page and read the ten provided new user scenarios, then write responses to at least five of them. Make sure they are positive and personalized - don't copy from a template!
- You can write your answers in an email (that you'll send when finished) or Google Doc (no need to include the questions with your responses). Number each answer (e.g. "User2" right above that answer), and make sure the numbering matches the numbers on the test.
- Remember to use steps in the "Writing a Welcome Message" section of How to Welcome New wikiHow Users.
- Use wikiText the same way you would when posting a talk page message. Examples are weaving links and formatting text with bold, italic, and/or underline if you wish.
4
Email your completed test. Send it to jayne@wikihow.com. You should receive a reply in a week or so, letting you know if you passed the test.
- Be sure to include your wikiHow username in the email so that Jayne (a wikiHow staff member) knows who to add the Welcome Wagon rights to if you pass the test.
- Don't lose heart if you don't pass on your first try. You can try again a month later and, in the meantime, you can practice other skills!
- If you pass, you can add yourself to this list of active Welcomers.

Community Q&A

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Question

Am I allowed to take breaks from welcoming people?

Joel

Community Answer

wikiHow is solely a volunteer effort assuming you aren't on the staff, so yes, you're welcome to take breaks anytime you want.

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Question

How many contributions should I have before I can become a welcomer?

Community Answer

There is no set minimum number of contributions to become a welcomer. You should have enough of a contribution history to demonstrate your knowledge of the ins and outs of the site.

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Thank you for your feedback.
If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
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Question

What is the minimum passing mark?

Adam

Community Answer

There is no set passing mark. When you email your completed test, your submissions will be reviewed to see if they match the guidelines set forth in How to Welcome New wikiHow Users. If your answers meet the guidelines, you will be notified and earn Welcomer rights. If you need additional guidance to fully match the guidelines, you'll be given feedback on your answers, and you'll have to wait another month to retry.

Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
Thank you for your feedback.
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Tips

Don't rush the test. You might want to type your responses up somewhere and review them daily for a few days, changing your answers as needed. That way, you'll have fresh eyes between each modification and will probably score better.

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If you want to make any links in your answers look real, you can change the color of them to match the colors of links on wikiHow. The color code is #6ba96b.

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For a complete list of Welcome Wagon Users, please refer to this system-generated list of users - based on who has these rights attached to their name here.

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