Social Media Strengthens Social Media Strengthens Nonprofit Public RelationsNonprofit Public Relations
Heather WhalingCosta DeVault
[email protected]/heatherwhaling
twitter.com/prtinilinkedin.com/in/heatherwhaling
Getting Social
• 77% of active Internet users read blogs
• Facebook – 250m users• 10 million Twitter accounts • Social networking is
more popular than e-mail• Information sharing via
Facebook surpasses e-mail
A Perfect Match
Nonprofits are in the relationship business
Conversations drive conversions
Social media strengthens relationships
Don’t Be Fooled
Social media isn’t:– Traditional marketing
“digitized”– Easy donations– Free– Stand alone
Social media is:– Insightful– Conversational– Strategic– Valuable … when done
correctly
“The influx of charities and nonprofits to
platforms like Facebook and Twitter could
result in noise, congestion, and outright
apathy. Spreading awareness of a good
cause grows difficult when that good
cause starts to seem like spam. If one
tweet after another is seeking donations,
people might just get fed up.”-- Caroline McCarthy, CNET
Getting Started:Getting Started:5 Easy Steps5 Easy Steps
Step 1: Measurable Goals
• Why social media?
• Support overall communication goals:– Increase volunteers– Strengthen relationships with donors– Influence the conversation/debate – Education
• Create S.M.A.R.T. objectives
Step 2: Research & Listen
• Who are you trying to reach? How are they using social media?– Surveys, polls, focus groups– What are people saying?– Where are they saying it?
• Listen, listen, listen
“If you’re always talking, you’re not listening.” – Chris Brogan
Step 3: Develop a Network
• Choose the right tools
• Start interacting
• Create interesting content
• Stay focused on overall strategy
• Cultivate influencers
• Promote others
• Share, share, share“It’s not how many, it’s how good.”
– Peter Shankman
Step 4: Integrate Online & Offline
• Cross-promote content
• Balance traditional communication with social media
• Enhance media relations– Talk to reporters on social networks – HARO– Distribute social media releases
• Strengthen volunteer/donor appreciation
Step 5: Measure ROI & ROE
• Return on Insight = The New ROI• Return on Engagement
– Twitter followers, retweets and link open-rates – Blog comments and inbound links – Web site and blog traffic– Facebook fans, wall posts and discussion
comments – YouTube ratings or videos embedded on
other sites
• Measuring influence requires research
Tools
• Real-Time Monitoring– Filtrbox – Scout Labs– SM2
• Link Tracking– Bit.ly– Tr.im– HootSuite
• Trend Monitoring– Google Trends– Google Alerts– Trendrr– Tweetbeep – Twilert
• Survey Tools– PollDaddy– SurveyMonkey
Coming Soon …
• You Go Serve – a volunteer social network
• Activates people, connecting them to organizations based on skills and interests
• Website, Twitter and Facebook
• [email protected] for details and to be included
3 FAQs
• Whose responsibility?
• How much time?
• Will people be negative?
Does it really work?
Does it Does it really work??really work??
Community Crisis Center
• Situation: Raise $150,000 or close• Sarah Evans “donated” her massive
online presence to the cause • Integrated approach:
– E-mail & letter to donors and friends of the Crisis Center
– Online appeal via Twitter, Facebook, Seesmic, PRsarahevans.com, YouTube and CrisisOvernight.org
#CrisisOvernight
• Result: Raised $160,000+ in 3 weeks
Social media matters to the Coalition because when they needed extra help, their online network – people who were strangers just months ago – stepped up to the plate.
Coalition for the Homeless
• Overall Goals:– Increase online brand recognition– Reach a new demographic– Increase communication and create a dialogue
with donors, volunteers, advocates and stakeholders
– Position the Coalition as the authority on homelessness
– Encourage active involvement with the Coalition
Connect with the Coalition
• 5-Step Process:1. Research and listen
2. Lay the groundwork
3. Create sites and add content
4. Maintain ongoing rhythms
5. Evaluate success
Connect with the Coalition
• Troubleshooting issues– Local focus– Employee guidelines– Good, bad and ugly comments
Connect with the Coalition
• Sample objectives:– Increase web traffic by 10%– Be mentioned on outside blog posts as least
12 times/year– Obtain bulk donations of specific in-kind items
at least 3 times/year directly from social media “asks”
– Increase number of Twitter followers by 50 per month
– Garner 1,000 blog views each month
Connect with the Coalition
• Measuring results– Web traffic– Mentions of Coalition on outside blogs– Social media “Challenge” results– Number of friends/followers/views
Questions?Questions?
Heather WhalingCosta DeVault
[email protected]/prtini
linkedin.com/in/heatherwhaling
slideshare.net/heatherwhaling
delicious.com/prtini/nonprofits
Shari Orr Coalition for the Homeless [email protected]/cfl_homelesscentralfloridahomeless.org
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