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Engaging with the Community:Social Media for Nonprofit & Service Organizations

A Presentation to Abbotsford Community Services by Danielle Knowles18/02/2013

+What is Social Media?

Internet-based technology

Electronic media with “sharing” capabilities

Available to anyone with an internet connection at no cost

Made up of user-generated content

Reaches a wide audience

Democratizes knowledge and information

+Popular Social

Media

Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Pinterest

Instagram

Tumblr

YouTube

FourSquare

Blogs (configured to share with social media)

Apps (for accessing popular social media services on mobile devices)

+What can Social Media do for

you?

Give your organization, it’s programs, events and causes exposure

Increase awareness of your role in the community

Bring you financial support

Provide you with volunteers

Keep you connected and relevant in today’s technology-driven society

+Why Should you Care?

Virtually everyone is on the internet – Canada topped the world in internet usage in 2012 with the average Canadian spending 45 hours a month online

More than 45% of Canadians also have a smartphone (iPhone, Android, Blackberry) and also access the internet and social media through it

The internet is accessible 24/7

When people want information, they go online

Social media is an easy and free way to promote yourself to your target audience

+2012 Statistics on Social Giving

+Fundraising on Facebook

+Social Media Donors

The average donation amount through social media increases each year – in 2010 it was $38 but by 2012 had increased to $59

Facebook can be configured to accept donations directly through your page, with the use of websites like www.causes.com or services like Donation Application

+Donation Application

+Social Endorsement

If a friend posts an update about a charitable donation or a cause they support on a social media site:

68% of people take more time to learn about the organization if the post was from a friend

58% of people will ask the friend about the cause

39% of people would donate

34% of people would re-post or share the information

+Features of Facebook

Relatively easy to set up and use

Can communicate with large numbers of people

Can create personal profiles as well as separate pages for businesses and organizations

Can create and promote events

Can share photos and videos

+Features of Twitter

Very easy to set up and use

Just write short updates and messages (140 character maximum)

Can create profiles for people, businesses or organizations – some people (like myself) manage multiple accounts

Communicate with very large numbers of people – followings tend to increase faster than Facebook

Can share photos and articles

Great for networking and promotion

Actively used by organizations and businesses

Searchable through # search terms (like #Abbotsford)

+Features of Blogs

Can be as simple or elaborate as you want

Highly customizable

Your own dedicated “location” online – either within your website or separately through a service like Tumblr

Can share virtually endless amounts of text, photos, embedded videos, links and more

Can organize entries by subjects or key phrases

Great for search engine optimization (being found online through Google)

+Features of YouTube

Share videos or slideshows with a global audience through your own dedicated “channel”

Engage with those who may not take the time to read a blog article

Great for showcasing events

Videos can be shared from YouTube to other social media services, blogs and websites

Searchable by key phrases

+Abbotsford Community Services

on Facebook Already has a Facebook page, updated fairly regularly

Needs increased exposure: should have more than 279 “likes” given prominence in the community

Workshops and other events should be posted regularly and shared

Photos and videos (where legally possible)should be posted often

Quick facts about ACS and what you do for the community (assume the public doesn’t know anything about you!) catch people’s attention and are easily shared

Increase interaction – encourage staff, volunteers and supporters to comment on posts and share them to their personal profiles

Don’t be shy! Share the link to your CanadaHelps profile on Facebook now and then and ask for donations!

+Abbotsford Community Services

on Twitter

A profile couldn’t be found

If not set up, should be done – very simple

Facebook can be configured to automatically post to Twitter, saving you time

Additional messages tailored to Twitter (short and with hashtags #Abbotsford #GivingTuesday) should be added

Tweets can be scheduled in advance through programs like Hootsuite and sites like www.Twuffer.com

+Great Examples on Twitter

@charitywater – nearly 1.4 million followers – brings clean water to developing countries

@onecampaign – 671,000 followers – fights against extreme poverty & communicable diseases

@hrw – 540,000 followers – provides timely information about human rights crises worldwide

@tourismabby – 3,100 followers – tweets community events and information

@vibrantabby – 624 followers – generates solutions to reduce poverty in Abbotsford

+Key Points to Remember

Engage, engage, engage! Don’t just share posts and information with others already involved in ACS – you’re “preaching to the choir”

Use social media to attract attention from those not yet involved – your friends, other organizations

Ask questions to provoke thought and encourage interaction

Consistency is key! Update regularly – this does not have to mean constantly – once a day on Twitter, once or twice a week on Facebook

Don’t get overwhelmed – it’s better to use one or two services well than lots poorly

Update “on the go” through Facebook and Twitter apps for smartphones

+Question and Action Time

Setting up profiles or tweaking those already created

Brainstorming ideas of how to better use Facebook and Twitter

Answering any questions about social media that you may have!

+Resources and Further Reading

How the Top 50 Nonprofits do Social Media (an infographic): http://bit.ly/howthe50bestdo

Causes.com: http://www.causes.com

The 2012 Nonprofit Social Networking Report: http://nonprofitsocialnetworksurvey.com

Yes, Social Media for Nonprofits Works (a report): http://bit.ly/yessmworks

Social Media Strategy for Nonprofits (a report): http://bit.ly/socialstrategynp

+For Next Time

Addressing privacy concerns and best practices with social media use

How to set up and get the most out of a LinkedIn account

Foursquare, YouTube, Scribd and Slideshare

Further ideas for social media strategy: conversation starters, fundraising and more

+Presented By

Danielle Knowles:

Communications Professional, Paralegal, Community Volunteer

Let’s Connect!

Twitter: @dkparalegal

Facebook: http://facebook.com/dkparalegal

LinkedIn: ca.linkedin.com/in/danikno/