Twitter is an amazing way to engage donors and potential donors. One of the hardest things to do as a fundraiser is to maintain relationships. Twitter allows you to do that…right in the midst of your normal every day routine.
~You get to meet people all over the world that might be interested in your cause.
~You get to hear what people are really thinking about a wide variety of issues.
~You can follow other fundraisers and get great real-time advice.
~You can even promote traffic to your website or specific fundraising event .
Better still, if you can make your comments effectively understood in 140 characters, think about how all your fundraising writing will improve! Twitter is definitely not just a tool to push your message. It has to be a two-way conversation.
Amy Worley, who manages [H&R] Block’s Twitter program, had to alter her approach: “I went in thinking Twitter was a free way to push our message out,” she says. “Big mistake. We learned to listen. We started winning once we let people decide on their own about our services.”
Facebook For Nonprofits
Facebook can be a critical tool for nonprofit organizing, because it is a great way to connect with other organizations and supporters which might not have known about your organization previously.
It makes sense to create a presence on one of the top five Web sites on the Internet where people are already regularly visiting rather than expecting users to find you. If your nonprofit has video content, podcasts, interviews, or documents just languishing on your desktop, creating a presence on Facebook provides an easy way to upload these types of media, without spending the time or resources required for updating your own Web site.
It can allow organizations to plug into an existing audience of organizations that have opted into similar interest groups. It can also help organizations collaborate, connect easily, and increase their network of volunteer and supporters.
Finally, the way that Facebook interacts with other social media tools, like Twitter, blogs, Flickr, and others can enhance and grow an organization's network and can provide a simple interface to consistently and easily update your community of supporters with news of your organization's activities.
Nonprofits just starting out should consider letting us create a Facebook & Twitter presence. We help activists and social change agents mobilize and raise awareness about their mission.
Managing Your Social Media
If you do not currently have someone on your staff that is fluent in twitter, this is a great opportunity to reach out to new volunteers to request a "Social Media Manager" - this is a great way to attract young volunteers. Having a volunteer manage your social media is also convenient, since they do not require desk space to preform their duties - they simply work on their own time, wherever they are.
If you do not currently have someone on your staff that is fluent in twitter, this is a great opportunity to reach out to new volunteers to request a "Social Media Manager" - this is a great way to attract young volunteers. Having a volunteer manage your social media is also convenient, since they do not require desk space to preform their duties - they simply work on their own time, wherever they are.
