Posts Tagged ‘Twitter’

What nonprofits can learn from the Old Spice guy.

August 10th, 2010 by Sarah Durham

Have you seen those great new commercials for Old Spice? If you haven’t, check out the ‘I’m on an internet’ channel on YouTube before you read this- and get ready for a good laugh.

I love these commercials because they’re funny, smart, memorable, and undeniably Old Spice. There are lots of ads that make you laugh but are so loosely tied to what they’re selling that you’ll remember the ad but not the product behind it a day or so later. Entertaining, perhaps. Good for sales? Probably not.

Old Spice did a several really smart things with this campaign that any business–including a nonprofit–can learn from.

  1. They didn’t ignore their reputation. Old Spice embraced their reputation as an old-school manly cologne/product, and all of the possible clichés that come with it. Then they turned them on their head–making it current, funny and hip. Your organization’s reputation is key to your brand’s success, and it’s hard to control or shape. Why not admit what’s working and what’s not and use it- rather than fight it? (more…)
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Take a dip in the refreshing waters of social media

July 21st, 2010 by Sarah Durham

As part of my summer reading binge, I’m just diving into Beth Kanter and Allison Fine’s important new book, “The Networked Nonprofit”. Beth and Allison couldn’t be a better-suited team to write about how nonprofits can use social media: both have been blogging on the topic (Beth writes Beth’s blog while Allison writes A. Fine blog), writing other books on networks and social change, and doing all sorts of neat related things.

The preface of their book includes this sage advice to its readers:
“…we ask for one thing in exchange: for organizational leaders anxious to jump into the what and how of social media, please practice using the tools yourselves. It’s the only way to discover social media’s power to change the way we think and work. We also hope you will trust the people within your organization to do the same, and encourage them to connect with the world in positive, creative ways.”

Amen, sistas!

I know from personal experience how important practicing using these tools is. Likewise, I know that you have to entrust and empower your staff to do the same on your organization’s behalf.

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Gosh. Social media are actually social.

June 16th, 2010 by Dan Gunderman

Shady characters lurking in dark corners. Predatory psychopaths waiting to pounce. Strange, sweaty creatures emerging from the alleyways. People who’ve never been to New York sometimes have this idea that the city is only what they’ve seen in Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver.

What you probably don’t know is that Taxi Driver is actually an allegorical film about the internet. Shady characters, predators, sweaty teenage boys. You may try to claim that Scorsese made his film in 1976, back before there was an internet, but I’m telling you: he knew, man. He knew.

And social media has thrown users another wicked curveball. What about privacy? We’re just supposed to put all of our information right out there? And Tweets—Tweets!—are now being indexed by both Google and the Library of Congress. Then the New York Times runs an article like this one, or your best friend tells you about PleaseRobMe.com, and all your fears of stolen identities and home theft are confirmed.

Still, don’t let your privacy fears keep you from exploring the social media. Despite the strangers, curious acronyms, and strange technical mysteries, the internet can be a real community. Every community has its bad apples, of course, but in our travels, we’ve found social media participants to be quite generous.

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Web site or website? | Weekly Roundup

June 4th, 2010 by Elizabeth Ricca

By the way, I’m at the Personal Democracy Forum Conference this week, listening to cool people talk about interesting things pertaining to politics and government on the interweb. Check out the old Twitter feed for tidbits and takeaways, or give a shout if you’re here too.

A weekly roundup of interesting reads from the online world of nonprofit communications. Follow me on Twitter @elizabethricca or check out my Delicious bookmarks for more noteworthy links.

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Twittering away | Weekly Roundup

April 16th, 2010 by Elizabeth Ricca
  • Twitter’s very first developer conference was this week, and the air has been thick with Twitter news. One of the big headlines: sponsored tweets are here (not ads, they insist). Will they fundamentally change the service we know and (sometimes) love? Will anyone click? And when will they roll out a grant program for nonprofits?
  • Google has rolled out some interesting new Twitter search tools: Follow Finder uses public data about followers and followees to recommend cool Tweeple you might like to follow, and Google Replay combs the Twitter archives to tell you what was being said about a particular topic on a particular day and time. Want to see what the Twitterverse had to say about health care reform right before passage as opposed to right after? Well, now there’s an app for that.
  • Speaking of Twitter history, the Library of Congress has announced plans to incorporate Twitter’s digital archive into its collection. That’s every breakfast food update, every off-color spam message, every drunken rant preserved for posterity in all its 140-character glory. So before you hit the button, remember: tweets are forever.
  • Does your organization have a technology succession plan? Andrea Berry on Idealware’s blog shares some tips for making sure your organization’s technological know-how—from database maintenance to email software—doesn’t walk out the door with your intern.
  • And for those of you who are dismayed by the orgy of oversharing that already takes place on Twitter and Facebook, enter Blippy: a growing social networking platform that allows users to publicly share information about credit card transactions. Sounds crazy, but as Sarah Hartshorn points out on Social Media Today, there are plenty of interesting opportunities—what if every time a donor gave to your organization, they could automatically share details of the transaction with all of their friends?

A weekly roundup of interesting reads from the online world of nonprofit communications. Follow me on Twitter @elizabethricca or check out my Delicious bookmarks for more noteworthy links.

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Join the call for Facebook Ad Grants | Weekly Roundup

March 5th, 2010 by Elizabeth Ricca

A weekly roundup of interesting reads from the online world of nonprofit communications. Check out my Delicious bookmarks or follow me on Twitter for more noteworthy links.

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A picture is worth 35.7 tweets | Weekly Roundup

January 29th, 2010 by Elizabeth Ricca
  • They say a picture is worth a thousand words—a rare opportunity in a 140-character world. Are you using social media to share photos of your organization’s mission in action? Social Media 4 Good offers some tips and lessons learned about using Flickr for nonprofits.
  • Twitter trends have gone local, which means that your issue hashtag can get some attention even without hitting the global top ten. Will this change the gameplan for your next online outreach campaign?
  • The carnival is back in town!  The nonprofit blog carnival, that is. This month’s theme: online outreach on a budget, hosted by IssueLab. Meet you at the midway.
  • The disaster in Haiti has mobilized thousands of new donors. But how can organizations turn crisis fundraising from a one-time interaction into a lasting relationship? Mark Phillips examines several organizations’ conversion strategies on his Queer Ideas blog.
  • Steve MacLaughlin shares some thoughts on what not to do when sending an email fundraising appeal. ‘Fess up: is your nonprofit guilty of any of these email “crimes”?
  • Wish people would just look it up instead of asking you? Say it with snark at www.LetMeGoogleThatForYou.com.

A weekly roundup of interesting reads from the online world of nonprofit communications. Check out my Delicious bookmarks for more noteworthy links.

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Good news for nonprofits | Weekly Roundup

January 8th, 2010 by Elizabeth Ricca
  • Blackbaud and Network for Good report better-than-expected results for 2009 online fundraising. Recession, smecesshion.
  • There’s no shortage of lists out there for what to do/expect/avoid in 2010. Here’s one of my favorites: tech advice for nonprofits from Social Ch@nge.
  • And now that you’ve read that tech advice and resolved to optimize your mobile communications, check out this list of tips and resources from Rebecca Leaman on Wild Apricot for making your websites “mobile-friendly”.
  • There’s a new Twitter fundraising service in town: Give a Tweet. Nonprofit Tech 2.0 explains the implications for nonprofits and why your organization should take it out for a spin.
  • Your Facebook page is up and running: time to start measuring how your social networking efforts are panning out. This post from John Haydon walks you through 11 important Facebook stats that you should review, set a benchmark for, and track over time to assess the success of your page.

A weekly roundup of interesting reads from the online world of nonprofit communications. Check out my Delicious bookmarks for more noteworthy links.

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Turkey Time | Weekly Roundup

November 25th, 2009 by Elizabeth Ricca
  • Tweetsgiving is here! Last year’s event used social media to raise thousands of dollars to build classrooms in Tanzania. This year’s goal: $100,000. What are you thankful for?
  • This time of year is all about gratitude. On her blog, Katya Andreson discusses the importance of giving thanks to your donors to build relationships, not just once a year, but all the time.
  • Robert Evans and Avrum Lapin discuss the all-important “thank you” as a tool for nonprofit fundraising. (Noticing a theme here yet?) Taking the time to thank donors, funders, and others is a critical step that many nonprofits are skipping—is yours?
  • Yesterday, the winners of America’s Giving Challenge—an online initiative in which nonprofits compete for award money by attracting as many donations as possible over the course of a month—were announced. Many winners are smaller organizations that successfully organized and motivated small groups of loyal constituents—good news for other small nonprofits thinking of doing more online.
  • In social media, sometimes the line between “friendly” and “spammy” is blurred, especially for nonprofits. Peter Campbell brings up some important points on Idealware’s blog for any nonprofit looking to promote its cause online in a way that doesn’t drive away followers.

A weekly roundup of interesting reads from the online world of nonprofit communications. Check out my Delicious bookmarks for more noteworthy links.

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Is your facial hair doing good? | Weekly Roundup

November 13th, 2009 by Elizabeth Ricca
  • Does your mustache fight cancer? Eric Johnson’s does. ‘Tis the season for Movember, a fundraising challenge in which participants grow mustaches and raise money and awareness for men’s health and an example of the viral potential of clever cause-based initatives.
  • Another year, another New York Times special section on Giving. Check out this year’s articles, which address such topics as the recession’s effect on nonprofits and the implications of online tools (and then check out this post from Brian Reich about why he thinks the section missed the mark).
  • Have you started making Twitter lists yet? In a great post on her blog, Beth Kanter muses on the list feature in the context of Internet history, and offers some suggestions for how nonprofits can use them to best effect.
  • According to Chris Bailey, social media are like a giant refrigerator on which we (and our audiences) can proudly display our work. Wait…does that mean there’s food inside?!
  • Causes pulled out of MySpace late last week in an abrupt manner, leaving its 200,000 users there hanging. Amy Sample Ward reported about the change and its implications for causes online. It’s an important reminder that nothing is forever, and social media tools aren’t even close.

A weekly roundup of interesting reads from the online world of nonprofit communications. Check out my Delicious bookmarks for more noteworthy links.

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