SPECIAL OLYMPICSSocial Media Training: Take us to the Next LevelMarch 28, 2012

• Framework of Storytelling• Where we are : Where we want

to be• The new toys• It’s about engagement, not

aggregate• Read and experiment• Q&A

Today’s Categories2 |

The Power is in the Story3 |

Throughout today’s session you will see a very consistent theme throughout – STORYTELLING.

Special Olympics has a very powerful story to tell. People want to hear our story. They want to engage with our stories. They want to be driven to action by our stories.

We need to tell our story. Social media is the easiest way to tell our story to the most number of people at the least amount of cost.

No matter the tool, platform, or any other extraneous factor discussed today, there should be the following questions constantly running through your mind moving forward from this moment:

Will this content be interesting to our followers? Does it tell our story? Does it inspire?

So, let’s begin…

Assumptions of What We Know4 |

Most, if not all, U.S. Programs are using Social Media at a basic level that includes knowing how to create an account and post content regularly.

Our Fall 2011 survey of US Programs had 34 Program respondents.

Of the 34 repsondents:• All were using Facebook• 29 using Twitter• 29 using You Tube• 9 using Linkedin

Of 34 respondents, only two said they had a full-time staff member dedicated to social media.

Of the 34 respondents, 33 expressed a desire to learn intermediate skills described as, “I can handle posting and replying and sharing, but how do I really make an impact through social media?”

Let’s Set the Framework5 |

We know we’re here to make a difference. By definition, “making a difference” requires change, which doesn’t just happen naturally. It takes work to create change – education, awareness building, organizing, and fund raising. The dilemma? Most Programs have limited resources and budget.

We also know that social media isn’t just a channel for broadcasting information but non-stop conversations that bring people together, spark excitement, and inspire action. Social media can level the playing field for us because it is where community building and creativity become more important than running expensive promotional campaigns.

Here 7 powerful tips learned from successful non-profits on how to mobilize action with limited resources.Tell the Story

Every day, we are bombarded by a ton of noise and information. To capture people’s attention, there is nothing more powerful than storytelling. Stories promote active listening and interaction, meaning that your message is much more likely to be digested and repeated to others. As Mother Theresa once said, “If I look at the mass I will never act. If I look at the one, I will.” We have the greatest “one” imaginable – our athletes. We should be focused on finding, developing and telling our athlete’s stories one-by-one, no matter the specific platform.

http://www.ning.com/about/resource-center/best-practices/social-media-nonprofit-best-practices-grassroots-strategy/

Let’s Set the Framework6 |

Design MattersLet’s face it – people often judge by appearance and first impressions matter. Whether it’s the Facebook Timeline, your Twitter page, You Tube channel, blog or other platform, an unprofessional, disorganized site won’t inspire confidence, let alone get people involved or inspired to donate. Seek out free tools, engage local volunteers with professional skills to help when needed. (They’ll probably share their work on Facebook too!)

Make social media work for you, not the other way roundSocial media is mainstream and having presence on the social web – Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and more isn’t just important, it’s a pre-requisite. That said, it’s critical that you asses your capabilities to properly manage a robust presence on each site you use and to have goals as to what you want to accomplish on that site. If you can only create a lackluster presence, it is better not to be there at all.Don’t be afraid to askAwareness doesn’t always lead to action. Figure out what your goal is, and ask your fans to help you reach it. The R-word campaign is a good example. On March 27, a Red Sox pitcher used the R-word. After sharing it via FB and Twitter, we asked people to call Red Sox and volunteer to educate the pitcher. In an hour we had reports of more than 50 calls. Within three hours, the pitcher apologized through an official team statement. People connect emotionally with you when they do something tangible for you.

http://www.ning.com/about/resource-center/best-practices/social-media-nonprofit-best-practices-grassroots-strategy/

Let’s Set the Framework7 |

Get 20 influencers to get the word outAccording to the recent Ning Point of View Report, you may have 1000 “fans” who never visit, but it only takes 20 people to evolve from one-way broadcasting from the community leader to meaningful many-to-many interactions. Identify the small group of quality influencers and cultivate them to help get your messages out.Encourage Content CreationQuality content is timely and usually expensive to create. Use your fans to help tell your story! Most people love an opportunity to tell their story. Does your website allow embeddable HTML? Ask people for their story based on a theme and reward them for sharing by embedding it on your website and then promote and share it on social media.

Reward ParticipationWhether it’s the occasional “Trivia Friday” or a call for videos or another specific call to action, figure out ways to reward your fans. Special Olympics Oregon does a great job engaging local business partners by creating activations in which a fan, or sometimes several fans, win a product by doing something they ask. Fans love free stuff, businesses love the exposure and connection to Special Olympics and Special Olympics gets more exposure. Win-Win-Win.

http://www.ning.com/about/resource-center/best-practices/social-media-nonprofit-best-practices-grassroots-strategy/

Where We Want to Be8 |

The social media landscape is changing constantly. Just in the last few months you’ve probably asked yourself:

Do we need to be in these places?

Likes are great, but how we make more of an impact?

How do we decide what is valuable and then measure it all?

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9 |Let’s Explore TogetherGoogle Plus Google+

For those who have not yet taken the plunge into Google+ here is a good guide for the “how to create a page”.http://nonprofitorgs.wordpress.com/2011/11/07/how-to-create-a-google-page-for-your-nonprofit/

http://nonprofitorgs.wordpress.com/2012/02/26/google-best-practices-for-nonprofits/

Your page is set up, now what?

LOOK & FEEL: Create a Google+ banner that makes a strong, positive first impression. Be creative with photo editing to run five photos together to help tell a story. Or use www.GPlusBanner.com to make a customized banner.

CONTENT: Quality should lead the day. Story tell, story tell, story tell. In general, the most successful posts in any social media platform are:

• Success stories• Photos and slideshows• Videos• Powerful stats• Inspirational quotes• Calls to action: sign petition, call Congress, event announcement, volunteer ask, urgent donate appeal

CURATE INFORMATION: Follow NPO and other industry leaders and create a circle called “Nonprofit Resources” so with one click you can stream through what others are doing to garner tips and tricks that you can apply. Do the same for volunteers, athletes, parents, coaches, and any other constituent group you may want to cultivate and engage.

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10 |Let’s Explore TogetherGoogle Plus Google+

http://nonprofitorgs.wordpress.com/2012/02/26/google-best-practices-for-nonprofits/

ENGAGE & SHARE: +1 other non-profit’s content, comment on it. The more you engage, the more exposure you get (and potentially more followers) and you foster goodwill so other orgs will +1 your content. Also, when you share content that is relevant to your fans, but not created by you, it positions you as a “hub” of information or content matter expert that people will begin to turn to because you provide value and don’t just market yourself all the time.

INTEGRATE: See those little icons at the top of this slide? Get them on your website, blogs, enewsletters and anywhere else that you control and post content! Also be sure to download the mobile app so you can use Google+ out at events and competitions.

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11 |Stop Me If You’ve Heard This BeforeGoogle Plus Google+

So by now you are thinking – that sounds pretty familiar. Isn’t that what we do on Facebook and other sites?

The answer is yes, there is a lot of overlap in how you create an engagement strategy and execute. That’s why we just went through the exercise of reviewing what should be the framework of ANY social platform you use to engage.

So, let’s continue with Google Plus. Our innate desire to be in Google+(and other new places) has a name – Shiny Object Syndrome.It is important to remember that if you cannot dedicate the properresources to create a robust presence on a platform in which you can do the Special Olympics story justice and engage fans on a deep level, don’t.Wait until you can.

But waiting does not mean ignoring. Beth Kanter breaks your choices down to three approaches:

Early Mover: Willing to combine risk taking with an understanding that risky investments don’t always pay off.Moderate Approach: Understand the argument for an early investment but will also insist on a sound cost/benefit analysis when new ways of doing things are not yet fully proven.Wait for maturation? If there are too many unanswered questions about the impact of the technology platform,  better to wait until others have been able to deliver tangible value.

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12 |How Do We Move Forward?Google Plus Google+

From our office, we’ve been taking the moderate approach. Here are some things we’d suggest you do on Google+ now, if you have not already.

• Get in there, claim your page with your Program name so it’ll be there when you are ready to dive in the deep end.

• Be transparent in the info on the page and say, “We’re building this out, please be patient with us! Need something right away? You can always find us at www.fb.com/SpecialOlympics!”

• Use the search function and put in “Special Olympics” and create some circles – staff, volunteers, donors, athletes.

• Watch, listen, review.

Behind the scenes, think about why you want to use Google+, who you want to reach that you are not already reaching, and what can be accomplished on Google+ that cannot be done in other places.

This of course begs the question, what sets Google+ apart from other platforms?

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13 |The Google+ DifferencesGoogle Plus Google+

SearchBecause Google is the search engine that rules them all, Google+ allows you to search and find content and people in a way that you cannot on Facebook and other sites. Not just that, but as of the beginning of this year Google has begun pushing search results of Google+ pages that are optimized so they come up first and more often. Read more about that here. One small disadvantage, you cannot follow an individual person when using Google+ as your Page, but you can follow other organizations. You can only follow (and put into circles) individuals who follow your Page.

HangoutsThe video chat feature on Google+ is easily it’s best advantage. As you build out your circles, you can organize a hangout with any of them at any time. For example, let’s say you have a circle with all of your local program staff and you (at the state level) want to figure out what the best way to hold a fundraising event may be in their area. Eliminate 30 emails by holding a hangout chat and talking to everyone as if you were all in a conference room face-to-face.

CirclesBecause you can organize everyone into categories, you can selectively target, engage, market, solicit specific people instead of broadcasting a message they way you might on Facebook. Circles is a very direct, very personal way to communicate with people, and one that done properly can foster deep emotional connections.

Let’s Explore Together14 |

By now you may have heard of Pinterest. Turns out that new data released for January 2012 showed that Pinterest now drives more referral traffic than Google+, YouTube, and LinkedIn combined.

So in looking for a new way to drive traffic and engage, maybe you’ll want to start pinning – or at the very least to sign up and reserve your first choice of usernames (hint, hint!).

Let’s Explore Together15 |

When you do decide to get into Pinterest, remember, you’re still here to tell a story. So approach it by figuring out what that story is and what you want people to do. Maybe you want to create boards that share inspirational images, help people get to know our athletes, raise awareness about a local plunge, the list goes on. Here are some quick tips that other NPOs have found helpful.

Pin your own website and blog content, but only if it pulls up a good photo!As mentioned above, Pinterest is quickly becoming a boon for referral traffic. Tap into that power by pinning your own website and blog content, but only if it pulls up a good, visually appealing photo. Powerful visuals are what is driving the Pinterest community and referral traffic.

Add website links to your Pin’s descriptions.You can add a website link while pinning or you can “Edit” your description after pinning to add a link. It’s worth noting that you do not need to put “http://” in front of the website URL. Keep the URL simple and short, but don’t miss an extra opportunity to increase your referral traffic from Pinterest. Finally, please use proper punctuation and grammar in your descriptions! Most descriptions are a complete mess. Make sure your descriptions give a good first impression.

http://nonprofitorgs.wordpress.com/2012/02/20/five-pinterest-best-practices-for-nonprofits/

Let’s Explore Together16 |

Brand Your PhotosIf you can, brand your photos with a logo. It requires a little photo editing, but you can see to the right how it helps build the brand as pins get shared.

Embed Inspirational QuotesPinners LOVE inspirational quotes like the environmental quote to the right. Pictures of our athletes could soar around Pinterest with some great quotes or messages about unity and dignity.

Add a Price BannerIf you dip into the fundraising waters in Pinterest, you can add a price banner by including a price (donation point) in the description. Imagine a Plunger raising money with a picture of themsevles plunging and a dollar amount linked to a donation page.

http://nonprofitorgs.wordpress.com/2012/02/20/five-pinterest-best-practices-for-nonprofits/

Let’s Explore Together17 |

Many of you use You Tube to some capacity now. But You Tube has taken HUGE strides in helping non-profits use video to tell their story.

Did you know that as of this month, ALL non-profit channels on You Tube have the ability to LIVE STREAM video?

http://mashable.com/2012/03/13/youtube-non-profits-live-streaming/

Let’s Explore Together18 |

http://mashable.com/2012/03/13/youtube-non-profits-live-streaming/

Social Media ROI19 |

Measuring Success

“If you come to me with a request

for budget and resources for social

media, to make it a priority for our

business, you will lose every time…If

you tie social media to our business

priorities and objectives and

demonstrate how engagement will

enable progress, you will win every

time. Social media must be an

enabler to our business, just show

me how.”

- CEO

20 |Engagement, NOT AggregateThe days of bragging about aggregate number of fans and followers are over. Those large numbers still look nice and have their place, but as a social media strategist, they should not be what you are focusing on. You must determine meaningful and measureable metrics for engagement, track them, report them and adjust your strategy accordingly.

21 |Engagement, NOT AggregateWhat we are developing and using in our office right now is a “Q Score” model, or “Quality score.”

So what we do is look at Facebook Insights over a certain period of time – a week, a month – and look at the number of engaged users versus the reach (aka number of impressions). Our goal is to raise that percentage of engaged users to reached users.

Reach will just about always go up as your fan base builds – but engagement can grown and be maximized by studying which content engages more users (hint: photos) and optimizing your content calendar appropriately.

Your ROI, and ability to spend a lot of time tracking ROI may vary based on a variety of factors, so let’s take a quick look through some traditional thoughts and approaches.

• What do you hope to achieve with your social media efforts? What do show to CEOs and senior leaders to convince them to invest in social media?

• Of course, you want to Align your social media goals with the overall communications and marketing objects for your state Program.

• Be specific. Pick a goal and measure it. Report success.• Fans in the stands (benchmark past events, report on growth success)• Volunteer recruitment (incorporate “how did you hear about us?” to track social

web “referral”)• Donations (Google Analytics e-commerce tracking)

• Keep track of goals and set benchmarks to track progress• Which tool best suits my audience? My goals? My message?

22 |Set Goals and Select Channels

Words to live by: Plan for the marriage, not the wedding

23 |Social Media Analytics

Facebook Engagement Twitter EngagementNew page likes New followers

Posted link clicks Posted link clicks

Site Visits Site visits

Comments Mentions

Content likes Retweets

Photo/video views Direct messages

Track metrics/benchmarks that determine if you’re reaching your goals

24 |Social Media Analytics

… and thousands more free and fee services.

The Tools

Engagement Tips for Facebook25 |

Pictures Rule!

WHY?22% more engagement than video posts54% more engagement than text posts(BizReport)

***Statistics are helpful, but don’t forget the audience you’re targeting!

Engagement Tips for Facebook26 |

Pictures Rule!

http://techcrunch.com/2012/02/29/how-to-use-timeline-for-pages/

Timeline• Select a great cover photo, change it seasonally• Make sure your Apps have a good thumbnail• Go through your timeline history and “scrub” content• Highlight milestones or great posts

Engagement Tips for Twitter27 |

Longer tweets produce more clicks, but don’t surpass 130 characters. The reason: people only click on what they feel is valuable. You need to give them enough information so they know the click is worthwhile, but if you go over 130 characters, you make it harder for your followers to retweet your message. (HubSpot Blog)

28 |Back to What’s Really ImportantCreate good content and people will care!

Read and Experiment29 |

It is difficult to express how important it is to constantly read and experiment in the world of social media. It seems daunting to keep up with everything. You don’t have time. You can use your time being more productive. I know.

Challenge: Block out 30 minutes ONCE A WEEK on your calendar to read about emerging trends in social media. Do it as a coffee break.

Time prevents us from going through a lot of what we could today. So to consolidate, I’m going to include a sample of some good articles that, if read, will help you in understanding and implementation.

Challenge: Pick TWO resources for social media news and add them to your Google Reader, bookmark them, or do whatever you do to keep up with your favorite sites and use those 30 minutes a week to look through these sites. I’ll even suggest two for you!

www.mashable.com (particularly their social media section and their social good RSS feed)

www.bethkanter.orgBeth’s Blog: How Networked Non-Profits are Using Social Media to Power Change

Read and Experiment30 |

More Resources and Article Links

Worthwhile websites and communities:

www.nten.org http://nonprofitorgs.wordpress.com/ www.ning.com

URLsPresentations:http://www.slideshare.net/AdamVincenzini/google-pages-activation-frameworkhttp://www.slideshare.net/PewInternet/022612-nfais-newnormalpdfhttp://www.slideshare.net/PewInternet/speaking-the-language-of-the-next-generationhttp://www.slideshare.net/PewInternet/mobile-is-the-needle-social-is-the-thread-how-information-today-is-woven-into-our-lives

Tips and Toolswww.youtube.com/en/us/advertise/content/playbook-for-good.pdfhttp://nonprofitorgs.wordpress.com/2012/02/20/five-pinterest-best-practices-for-nonprofits/http://nonprofitorgs.wordpress.com/2012/02/26/google-best-practices-for-nonprofits/http://www.ning.com/about/resource-center/best-practices/social-media-nonprofit-best-practices-grassroots-strategy/http://mashable.com/2012/03/21/youtube-edit-videos-one-clickhttp://mashable.com/2012/03/19/facebook-marketing-photos-brands/http://www.goodtube.org/GoodtubeGrants.aspxhttp://mashable.com/2012/03/19/hi-res-content-for-ipad/http://mashable.com/2012/03/18/pinterest-brand-attention/http://mashable.com/2012/03/10/employee-social-media/http://mashable.com/2012/03/17/social-media-ethics/http://mashable.com/2012/03/19/facebook-marketing-photos-brands/http://mashable.com/2012/03/13/facebook-sponsored-stories-advertising/http://mashable.com/2012/03/12/facebook-brand-building-tips/http://mashable.com/2012/03/13/one-social-network-rule-all/http://mashable.com/2012/03/16/pinterest-changes/#view_as_one_page-gallery_box4733http://mashable.com/2012/03/13/youtube-non-profits-live-streaming/http://mashable.com/2012/03/19/tumblr-america-underwater/

• Think about what you can offer supporters, and how you can facilitate, not how you can “push out messages”.

• Speak as humans, not as a company.

• There are natural storytellers. Find them, and the best stories your program can tell.

• Find someone really passionate about talking with supporters.

• Create ways for your supporters to actively participate in content

creation.• Always be listening.• The more responsive you

can be, the better.• Building relationships is a

long-term commitment, not just a “campaign.”

• Learn by doing. It’s really the only way.

• Experiment and don’t be afraid of “failure”. If something doesn’t work, adjust and keep trying or try something else.

• Read, read, and read to stay on top of emerging trends.

Final Words of Advice31 |

Ryan EadesSenior Manager, Social Media

Special Olympicsreades@specialolympics.org

@ryan2499

QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS?