SOCIAL MEDIAFOR NON-

PROFITSHow to Use Social Media to Build Awareness of

and Connection to Your Organization

Kaliah Communications, Inc.

PART 1:What Are the Social Media Tools and Who Do They Reach?

Why is social media important?o According to an eMarketer Report, published in 2013, 1.73 billion people

around the globe use social media. One year, from 2012 to 2013, saw an 18 percent increase in usage.*

o According to that same report, that number was expected to rise to 2.55 billion by 2017.

o Social media is how we share news with our networks, make lifestyle and spending decisions, stay abreast of current events and feel a part of our “communities.”

o How many of you use social media? o How many social media apps do you have on your smartphones?o Can you remember what life was like without social media?o In 2014, 67 percent of Americans had a profile on a social media site, as

compared to 24 percent in 2008. (Edison Research, published on Adweek.com, 4/2/14)

*http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Social-Networking-Reaches-Nearly-One-Four-Around-World/1009976

How is Facebook different from LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube?

Who Uses Them for What? Facebook is the largest social media

platform with 1.35 billion followers/users, as of October 2014 - higher than the population of India and roughly equal to China. Used primarily for social, entertainment, and personal relationship building. Trending older (30s-50s)

LinkedIn is for business-oriented networking, job seekers, research on companies (for profit and nonprofit) and business trend news. Builds professional reputations.

Twitter is for news, announcements, updates, what’s trending. 40-characters or less with links to bigger stories. Generates followers among the teens to 30s.

Who Uses Them for What? Instagram (Twitter with pictures) is an

image/video only platform that uses hashtags for analysis and tracking.

Pinterest is for album/experience-building, used with lifestyle, retail, travel and personal sharing with pins, likes and followers. Trends older.

YouTube sports 1 billion users as of April 2014. Video is key and most video links take users to YouTube, which is a repository for branding campaigns, TV, movies, instructional videos, music videos and just about everything else. Create your own channel and build a following of viewers to your own “news” station.

What is a Blog and Why Should You Have One? A blog is a digital news column. It’s your opportunity

to add your news to the online conversation and a way to drive traffic to your site through strategic SEO (search engine optimization).

A blog uses key words in articles that are relevant, original and timely, which readers use to form opinions, share, or use to start other conversations. (Q: What are some key words that you would use to find your organization online?)

Blogs must be maintained with fresh content, much like a website and an e-letter; otherwise, visitors will view the source as out of date or “old,” and Google will rank the site lower in a search.

How Should Your Website Operate? Key elements to a successful website now are:

About Us – a definition of your organization, mission, a brief history, key people

Links to social media platforms – Icons that take users to your Facebook, Twitter, etc., so they can follow you

Video/Link to YouTube channel – Either original video or rebroadcast TV coverage. Video is king.

Blog – Primarily for SEO purposes, but also as content for other social media sites, i.e. LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook.

Great images – The most compelling websites use fewer words and more pictures to tell their story.

What other elements should you consider? Eventbrite? ConstantContact? Onsite donation capabilities?

Working with your webmaster, consider incorporating these additions to your website if they can help make the online experience more efficient and effective.

Eventbrite - Sell tickets to a lot of events? Eventbrite allows visitors to purchase tickets using their credit card.

ConstantContact – a well-known e-letter design and distribution software program. Other clients have used MailChimp.

Onsite donation capabilities

PART 2:What Do You Need? Match your social media needs to your organizational needs

o If you’re trying to build relationships with older donors with buying power – Facebook

o If you’re trying to establish a reputation among the business community – LinkedIn

o If you’re trying to connect with younger donors – Twitter/Instagram

o If you’re trying to tell your story visually – YouTube

o If you’re trying to build a following among shoppers/travelers – Pinterest

Match your social media needs to your audienceo Facebook, LinkedIn and Pinterest – trend older and more conventional

o Instagram, Twitter and YouTube – trend younger and more mobile

o YouTube and blogs reach everyone

o What’s new in social media – trend visionary and experimental

Build what you can maintain wello Most nonprofits face a challenge of resources.

o Pick 2 or 3 social media sites that you KNOW you can maintain with weekly or biweekly updates – this should include your blog

Advertise or not?o Advertising on social media helps users find you.

o If you build it, they won’t necessarily come. There’s too much to see!

o Sponsored posts and ads that click through to your site can be used strategically to drive awareness to campaigns, contests, giveaways, membership drives and special events.

o Most social media sites have easy-to-follow instructions and customer support for advertising campaign questions.

Tie what you have together --o SM can encourage e-letter subscription,

o Link to blog for more detailed information,

o Registration to events, or

o Views of media coverage.

o What you say on one platform – say the same thing on the other.

o Example: A digital analyst told me to pick my message for 2-3 months

and build my content around that message across all platforms so it’s consistent and continuous.

PART 3:How do you maintain it all? (11-11:30)

Assigning responsibilities: Social media needs to belong somewhere and with someone, so the messaging is consistent and continual

Potential pitfalls of social media: Bad reviews, inappropriate comments, profanity and spammers can be limited by understanding your settings. Sites allow you to have limited feedback or no feedback at all. You also have the ability to remove comments or hide them, unfollow friends and delete users. The best policy is policing your sites on a regular basis and contacting Tech Support on user and privacy settings, if you experience negative feedback.

o Have a simple social media policy that enables you to take items down and/or avoid them.

o Anyone with user capabilities for your sites should be trained on how to spot and remove negative posts immediately, from their home or work sites.

How to build an editorial calendar Map out ideas for stories and content at least 3-6 months in advance

Who needs to approve content?

Who is authorized to access the sites?

Plan your SM content and blogs out as you would your PR and regular eletters

Create the pieces of a social media campaign – content, photos, active links, video, organizational interaction, fulfillment of promises Plan to take photos at events

Ask staff to take fun selfies for internal news, like birthdays or new hires

Check all links before you use them and make sure they’re working

Get all video approved before posting

Who is collecting contest entries, if there is a contest?

Who is delivering prizes, if there is a prize due?

Creating online partnerships with other nonprofits, sharing information, tagging, making specific “asks” Just what is a hashtag? A method for tracking audience engagement

Keeping track of what’s next – Tumblr (micro-blog/SM site), Kik, Snapchat, What’s App