This past week was one full of lots of social media goodness. Monday I was interviewed by Kami Griffiths of TechSoup, for a non profit webinar on Twitter and Flickr. The recording of the event is located here, in case you weren’t able to attend, and there is a nice round-up here (thanks Philanthropy Potluck!).
On Tuesday, TechSoup followed up the event with an online forum discussing Twitter, which I co-hosted with Marshall Kirkpatrick.
To top it all off, I held my first office hours for NTEN, which incidentally will re-occur every Tuesday from 3-4 pm EST here, if you’re interested in stopping by! In case you have other questions I might not cover, definitely check out the office hours schedule, there are some great folks volunteering their time!
Big thanks to everyone who participated in some or all of these events this week. It was great to have some friendly faces stop by, and awesome to make some new connections with folks dedicated to using social media for good. I am particularly amazed and inspired by organizations who are using both Twitter and Flickr for so many diverse things. I’ve even found my own self reevaluating my thoughts and strategies for these tools based on some of the great topics that were discussed.
In case you missed the Twitter forum, where the bulk of discussion took place, we chatted about:
Continue reading ‘Tweeting and Flickring, the non profit way’
After attending all of these big tech conferences lately - SXSW, NTC, and Women Who Tech - the trend I’ve taken closest to heart has nothing to do with technology at all. It actually involves doing the opposite of what this fast-paced industry has been pushing for years: slowing down.
OK, we’ve all equally enjoyed puttering around on Facebook, uploading images to Flickr and seeing how many comments we’d get, putting together photo books on Blurb, and building our own social networks in Ning, but now the initial “woah” has worn off (or there’s just too much damn stuff to keep track of) and it’s a good reminder to return to the business practices communications folks have been practicing for years: planning, frameworks, and process.
Web 2.0 applications don’t happen in a vacuum. They’re fun, definitely addictive, and continuously challenge us to look at what we do in new ways, but there is one thing they also consume of us - our time. We all know in the back of our heads that using these pieces of technology *should* have a purpose. Granted, I’m sure we’ve all thrown together a blog because the boss said so, or set up a Facebook presence because the folks at *that* campaign did it. The point is, getting the basics together upfront will pay off dearly in spades later on.
Continue reading ‘Girls with Macs conference wrap-up: what have the past few weeks taught?’
A few days ago TechSoup and Flickr sponsored an asynchronous chat discussion about the use of Flickr and photography in non profit organizations. Being an avid Flickrite myself, I popped on over there throughout the day and got involved in a lot of different discussions - from how to choose a camera to uploading photos and color profile integrity. I found that more often than not I had answers to questions instead of ones I wanted to ask.
In the process it occurred to me how I’ve developed a Flickr strategy over the past couple of years - much of which I can attribute to my photo obsession when I was living overseas. After Beth and a few others pointed out that the strategy behind my Flickr behavior could be beneficial to others in non-profits, it seemed only obvious that I mention some of my learnings in a blog post, so here goes:
Continue reading ‘Flickr learning and sharing @ TechSoup’
On the trolley with Rose, Amy, and Laura
I’m still behind on my personal wrap-up of NTC ‘08, but work keeps getting in the way and I’m trying to make sure I don’t forget the big lessons I learned with all you awesome folks down in NOLA. The personal impressions and friendships aren’t going to fade anytime soon, and will be waiting when I have a breath of fresh air.
The following is a summary of my favorite takeaways. The list may seem long, and some items may seem more elementary than others, but I think all have significant value in the success of an organization’s online strategy.
Google Analytics, Know your website, one hour a day
- Never let your data be lonely. Pair up your data with other data.
- Industry benchmarks - when you choose to share your data with the rest of the world, you get to see their data too.
- Goal Conversion tab - segmentation. How well does direct traffic do with “goals” we’ve set.
- Bounce isn’t always bad. If you’re a blog, they read 10 posts and leave. If bounce rate is 100%, you have to take it in context.
- Setup Google Analytics filters to follow the analytics of paths you want your users to take.
For more summaries of Google Adwords, SEO, the new paradigm of marketing, and the joy of CMS, please keep reading :).
Continue reading ‘NTC ‘08 big takeaways [for me]‘
Implementing Sustainable Content Management Systems
Norman Reiss: nreiss [at]nonprofitbridge.com, Jeff Herron (Beaconfire), Andrew Cohen (Forum One Communications), Nathan Gasser (Rock River Star)
The success of content management isn’t based on what product you use, but how you implement it.
What is CMS?
Something you use to update a website. Useful because it aloows you to give non technical people the ability to more easily update content. It should be decentralized.
Does my organization need a CMS?
Not always, but when you have a lot of content and have a desire to spread responsibility, it makes sense.
What product features does a CMS provide? What features does it not include?
Good to know beforehand what you plan to do with it beforehand.
Implementation options
- Hosted, ASP model, lease
- Installed, commercial product (buy)
- Installed, open source (buy) - open source are particularly strong in CMS. This does not mean free. You’ll have to pay for customization and support. Implementation partners are just as important as software choice.
Continue reading ‘08NTC: Day 3, The Joy of CMS’
Kevin Lee, Didit
Are you Geeky? SEO isn’t really very geeky, but a bit of understanding of HTML is helpful.
Who is your target audience?
Your target audience for your site and your SEM efforts may extend beyond the obvious:
- donors
- volunteers
- the press and analysts
- foundations
- government orgs
- non-profit rating orgs
- employees
- potential employees
*Consider the needs and behaviors of all important constituents.
Continue reading ‘08NTC: Day 3, Search Engine Optimization’
Dr. Melissa Flourney (LANO), Deborah Cotton (LouisianaRebuilds.info), and Patricia Jones (NENA)
“If it takes a village to raise a child, what’s it going to take to raise a village?”
Renaissance in New Orleans. 25 feet of water in 23 minutes. Imagine that? Like Dorothy’s home in the Wizard of Oz.
Amazing resurgence where people are bringing their passions to the forefront for the first time in years. YURPES - young urban rebuilding professionals. Imagine this renaissance will feed up as volunteers return to their communities and churches after they get back. No profits are working out of the trunks of their cars.
People don’t say the word “Katrina” anymore. They talk about it as the “storm” or the “thing”.
Continue reading ‘08NTC: Day 3, morning plenary’
What Freud and Buddha Understood (and We’re Forgetting) About Online Outreach
Katya Andreson (Network for Good) and Mark Rovner (Sea Change Strategies)
When was the last time you saw, heard or read something from a good cause (not your own!) that prompted you to donate or act?
Why did you do it? Why did you hear about it? What was the compelling message that caused you to act?
- Green the 9th ward - friend involved in project and the story compelled her to give.
- $$$ to Obama — registered for campaign, email asked for money and gave. Wanted to be involved in some way
- $$$ to Obama — heard Barack speak in a way that she never heard any other politician speak to the public
- JFK center — see the growth and the passion in the people involved. Impact.
- Pet rescue - - was connected as volunteer, a specific ask
- Helped a Friend running for Congress; encouraged friends to donate too.
- Fund for daughter of friend’s brother who died
- Give and help (SVP) — dress for success - “passion, satisfaction of bringing new skills”.
- AIDS clinic in Malawi
- Fire — impromptu fundraiser — reach a goal to HELP FRIEND
Common denominator - personal, specific and tangible, specific goal, compelling story, connection on an emotional level (how the action you took effects you on an emotional level and how it effects the people involved in the cause).
Need to remember how it’s like to be on the receiving end. People aren’t giving because of a very cool “tool”. That’s not what matters, it’s how the ask made you feel and what action is asked.
Why are we here?
Marketing is a lot different than it used to be. We’re at a crossroads. Traditional folks are nervous. A new “tabula rasa” - reinventing new marketing for a new era. Time to “write on the wall”. Traditional marketing no longer works.
Is there a new approach to marketing and communications that might be more suitable for the times. Time to pull back from the technology and determine what we’re doing here. We’ve seen that marketing fear works (Bush), but what we’re seeing is the inevitable response from that. If that’s the dark side of the forest, we’re looking to articulate the lighter side.
Identifying deep human needs beyond Maslow’s hierarchy. This is just the beginning of the conversation. Seven human needs to start us off.
Continue reading ‘08NTC: Day 3, The seven things everyone wants’
Linda Widdop (Director of Tech Services) and Dean Graham (Manager of application services)
NPower Pennsylvania
Strategy, Vision, Communications, Role Model and Team Building for non profit IT staff
Top three takeaways
- IT Leadership isn’t all about technology
- 5 key areas of leadership to focus on
- Tips for developing skills in each of the key areas
“True measure of leadership is influence - nothing more, nothing less. ” - Maxwell
Continue reading ‘08NTC: Day 2, From Techie to Leader’
Frederick Vallaeys, Google
- Many ways to search: Banner ads, search marketing
- Search Marketing reaches users at the exact right time. Best use of your time to achieve your goals.
- Efficient in terms of cost.
- Direct mail - $70
- $8.5 for a direct search
- 10x less expensive than most other mediums
- Measurable
- Concept is getting in front of the right customer, at the right time, with the right message
- Decision and purchase cycle
- “Sponsor a child in India” is likely to reach someone on the verge of spending money
- Retention is key “annual giving”
Continue reading ‘08NTC: Day 2, Intro to Google AdWords’