(Follow Up) Fundraising with Social Media
To follow up on my post about fundraising in social media (since I got a lot of comments). I ABSOLUTELY believe that people, candidates, and non profits can raise money using social media. The point I was trying to make is that you can’t expect direct asks to work in the same way that they would in direct mail or email form. Instead, you must be innovative and adapt your strategy for the social media audience (hence the examples of the Pepsi Refresh Challenge and the Twestival).
Hope this clears some things up! (and keep the comments coming!)
Bex
Posted in fundraising, new media, social media
Tagged facebook, fundraising, new media, politics, social media, twitter
9 Comments
Tips on Blogging
What have I learned from blogging?
That if it isn’t your full time job, it is REALLY hard to maintain the motivation to blog on a regular basis! If you are going to start a blog, here are some of my recommendations:
1) Create a lot of content before you start posting it on your networks. Try to post about 4-5 posts on your website, then save 4-5 non time relevant blogs as drafts. This way, as you work through the weeks of posting, you will have back up blogs on busier weeks.
2) Keep it real: Don’t try to be that writer you always wanted to be. Blogging is about personality, so let your personality shine! Try not to get caught up in “writing the right way” instead just focus on making your post readable and interesting. I like to call this: writing like you are talking.
3) Just because you are writing like you are talking doesn’t mean your grammar should be horrible!
4) Try to keep the topics relevant and if you are going to post on something time sensitive, get it out earlier rather than later.
5) Create your own personal brand presence using social media. Instead of just always pushing your content out, become a trusted source of all content online. That way, people will WANT to click your links.
Overall, do it because you want to, not because you think you should. If it is too much of a chore, it just isn’t worth it.
Posted in blog, blogging, new media
15 Comments
We are going to Mars!!!!!hdafdjsk!!!!!
“Space – - – - the Final Frontier.
These are the voyages of the starship, Obamaprise.
Its 30-year mission: to explore strange, new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before.”
According to Obama, by 2030, we will have sent astronauts to Mars and back (well around the planet atleast!)
During a major speech at the Kennedy Space Center, outlining his new policy for the space agency, Obama set this, and many other “challenging goals” for them to live up to.
“Barack Obama says it should be possible to send astronauts to orbit the planet Mars by the mid-2030s and return them safely to Earth.”
Among the other things outlined, were a desire and goal to build a better spaceship and go into deeper outer space.
I have to say, I am kind of geeking out….
But I would love to hear what you think about all this? Is this all smokes and mirrors? and an even bigger question out of that, who cares if it is?
Posted in NASA, Star Trek, obama, space
8 Comments
Anybody hungry?
Behold the power of Foursquare! Congratulations on your mayorship, you are officially a Foursquare addict, and now you have a cute little crown to show it! Foursquare has grown and grown over the last year or so, and although it is no competitor for Facebook and Twitter, it has taken over the “scene” in city and urban areas.
One of the most fascinating things about Foursquare is how directly it links the real world to the digital world immediately. You can see how many people have checked into the area you are in, you can share it with twitter, you share more of your real life experience with your friends all the time…and on top of ALL of this, business, in particular local businesses and chains, have started to jump on the bandwagon that is location based social networking. If you check in on Foursquare, you know what I am talking about (reference: those interesting little “special nearby” notifications that pop up when you check in). For the longest time the reward for checking in was simple a badge, now you can get REAL items for various levels of Foursquare activity.
Friends: I give you snacksquare.com! This great website takes all the specials located on Foursquare, shows you where they are, what they are, and what you need to do to get them.
What do you think? Do you think that Snacksquare will bring in more regular Joe’s to Foursquare? Do you think it gives people more incentive to be a part of the Foursquare world? Or, do you think most people will never know how to find Snacksquare?
Bex
Posted in Smartphones, new media
8 Comments
How to Stay Focused When Social Media is your Career Path
First things first–doing something you love to do is truly never work. For those of us who have realized our passion in life ( for me it is social media/new media) life really doesn’t get ANY better than this! I extend that point to people in politics who love social media and use it in the workplace–for lack of better words, when I get to do social media for social change…my life can’t get any better!
The one issue I am having recently–if you can call it that–is that everyday is like my birthday in the world of social media news. New ideas and innovations are coming out almost everyday, and everything is exciting! It makes it hard to focus on one task at a time!
I became even more aware of this when I read this mashable article: 5 Ways to Reduce Social Media Distractions and Be More Productive.
So how do i curb my desire to always plan for every single new media innovation that comes out?
Here’s how:
1) The blue low priority arrow: If it’s on an email about social media news–don’t drop your current task to look at it! Chances are, you saw it yesterday and/or it just popped up in your Tweetdeck feed. Relax, finish your task, and check it once done.
2) Write your ideas down on a paper as you think of them: Most of us can’t stop thinking about social media even if we try (yes I am part of the category of people who have woken up in the middle of the night and checked my networks on my phone). Instead of sending out an email or gchat/aim/whatever message, the moment you think of something, keep a list of running ideas that you can table until you have a break. This way you will be able to narrow things down to really important ideas to discuss later in the day.
3) Maximize chat systems in your office: If your office doesn’t have a chat system, try to get as many of your social media colleagues to share their gchat/aim name so that you can discuss ideas in a chat stream as opposed to adding 20 more email chains to your Outlook inbox. This reduces your chance of missing important items during the day.
4) If like me, you can’t stop checking mashable.com: Follow mashable on twitter–this way a less invasive message will pop up on the top hand side of your screen as opposed to taking away from your current task.
5) MOST IMPORTANTLY: remember why you are looking at social media in the work place: BECAUSE it is your job…and doing your job is about being efficient, prioritizing, and getting the best product out of the door. Don’t get lost in the cloud of social media bubbles, because trust me, the action of doing social media is so much more fun!
Bex
Posted in jobs, new media, social media
12 Comments
Fundraising with Social Media
What do you think about raising money with social media? I often think that organizations and campaigns have a false sense of what social media can be leveraged to do. To me, social media is about engaging people in action and collaboration as opposed to just being another tool used connect to people for donations. I think that the first instinct of many leaders/politicians is to say “how can we raise money with this?” missing the very important point behind social media and what it can actually do for them: It can make people the biggest advocates for your brand, a brand that you can represent and control online.
That all being said, I think there is a place for money in social media, but it is done in a different way, a way that brings people together. Twestival.com combines the right tools to help raise money. They use an offline/online dynamic to help bring people in and have them become advocates for the causes they associate with. Events happen in cities around the world asking for donations, these events are promoted and collaborated on online—sometimes happening in multiple cities at the same time. This is the perfect way to use twitter—a social media tool that I believe is used best as a “live” tool. Live tweeting has become extremely popular, and is an incredible way to connect the offline world with the online one, letting your event spread instantly to people who are all over the world.
Another great example of how money can be raised with social media is the Pepsi Refresh Challenge. By creating a call-to-action (like “one click to support an organization”), Pepsi has effectively managed to pull in support for organizations and give them money based on their social media success.
Overall, I think social media fundraising is not about a direct appeal to the consumer, but about a collaboration of offline/online interactions and inter-organizational alliances that allows the general public to be actively engaged without feeling like they are constantly asked to give money. In social media, it is about the impact, the sense of community—not about the dollar sign.
Posted in blog, fundraising, social media
12 Comments