We have been focusing a lot on social media this week so hopefully you have gained insight into these varying opportunities. To wrap things up, let’s pull this back to the bigger perspective and look at some of the over-arching thoughts.
1) Jump in. Now.—It is a pretty simple idea, but not enough people are catching on to this. The organizations that have had the most success with social media have been those that joined early and kept moving forward. Heather Mansfield, a blogger for Change.org, notes that “early adopters […] now more than three years later […] are recognized leaders in the field.” Social media is one area where taking risks does pay off. Vision needs to be acted on.
2) Don’t be afraid of jumping in.—It is safest to enter into social media with lots of pre-cautions and worries, but this is beginning to hurt organizations instead of help. Social media provides a relaxed atmosphere, a chance to bring a face to your organization. Mansfield writes, “social media is all about letting go of control and being open, provoking conversations, and building community through vibrant and sometimes controversial opinions.”
To have success, your goal needs to be engaging people. It is hard to connect with people if you are just worrying about rules or what is the right time of day to post. Let go. Relax, and just share your story. Ultimately, your story is what is most powerful. Focus on that, and then you begin to have the chance to inspire people.
3) Don’t be afraid of people—A lot of people are afraid of getting negative responses to what they are doing so know this: it happens very rarely. When it does happen, you just have to brush it off. Social media offers so many ways to control privacy that it is easy to keep those people from detracting from your work. Mansfield encourages this idea, even if at first it might seem rude. She writes, “At first, I tried to engage them, but over time, I realized indulging in their negativity was a big waste of my time and mentally draining. I now ignore them completely and delete or block them without a second thought. They are exceptionally rare.”
It might seem harsh at first, but things are different in an online world. If your goal is to engage people, then by all means pursue that. Find the best ways to do this, rather than being held back by the few nay-sayers.
4) Connect with people—One of the great benefits of social media is its viral nature. Through comments, ReTweets, blog-posts, you have a huge array of opportunities to connect with people. You can build friendships and begin networking all entirely online now. It just requires a little work. Think about how you can demonstrate thoughtfulness or what will draw others in.
5) Connect people to community—Social media is all about this idea of a vibrant community. Of course, it is up to you to build such a community. It is essential that as you manage your social media that you are optimistic as you use it, willing to engage others, and willing to learn. Community cannot thrive without a leader who is just as passionate about it.
If you are just jumping in to this social media world, invest some time in learning and listening. Connect your own staff with this community. Managing the social media is a job for someone who enjoys innovation and is willing to try out different ideas.
6) Reach out to everyone—It is easy to focus on just one audience, but in social media everyone is listening to you. Think about it. If you are wanting to get teenagers excited about your cause, having a profile on LinkedIn (a social networking site for business professionals) or using Twitter is not the way to reach them. LinkedIn and Twitter are great ways to reach groups older than the 18 and younger. If you are attempting to involve people from different races, there are other sites like BlackPlanet.com that would be helpful. It just takes some researching, but the important thing is to put your voice out there.
7) Be committed to your efforts—Jumping is a big step and you should be commended for making the effort. Once you jump in though, you have to keep going. Getting started is the hardest part because you are waiting for the strategy to produce results, things are slow, and it does not look like social media is worth all the long posts we’ve written on it.
Don’t stop though. It always takes time to develop your voice and to use your resources to their potential. Keep the right perspective. This process is about growth, and that is not just in the sense of numbers.
8) Know how to use these tools—Having worked with social media myself, the biggest thing I can encourage nonprofits to do is to know how to use the social media tools they choose. Facebook pages can be used for much more than just displaying contact information. Organizations on Twitter need to know how to ReTweet, write concise posts, etc.
There’s a lot to know, but it is very easy to learn. There is a super-abundance of resources on how to use social media—webinars, calls, books, blogs, etc. Just make the time to do a little research.
9) Know what is up ahead—Social media is a big change, and the rest of the online world is increasingly changing. It is a lot to keep up with, but it is well worth it. Nonprofits need to understand about the Web 2.0 donors, the next generation of givers, and how to connect with people. It goes back to that first idea, the first people to adopt these ideas know how to use the tools best and have the most success.
10) A sneak peek ahead—There are so many social media sites, so nonprofits are asking what could possible come next. In addition to these sites being online, how about accessing it all from your mobile phone? It is predicted that in coming years almost all of the world’s population will have cell phones. Look at how your social media choices are compatible with phones. Twitter and Facebook are big choices among mobile phone users.
This is a lot of information. You need to take some time to think on it, but never just stop there. Now is the time to do something with it.
Additional information taken from Heather Mansfield’s blog for Change.org
-- Jessica High is a Research Assistant at Christian Foundation Grants (www.christianfoundationgrants.com) which is a subscription database of foundations that provide grants to faith based organizations. iDonate.com is a website (www.iDonate.com) that allows ministries to receive non cash gifts online