I had a thought yesterday that nearly 10 years ago while sitting in my college dorm room, as a freshman, the closest thing we had to social media was Black Planet. Now according to Mashable.com; One in every nine people on Earth is on Facebook, yes on earth. Twitter is adding nearly 500,000 users a day and Google+ has more than 25 million users! YouTube, Linked In, Four Square and Pinterest are all up in numbers and it’s looking like it will not stop anytime soon.
Social media has become the common denominator amongst literally most of our generation and it’s not just about updating a status or seeing which hashtags are trending, it’s about promoting opinions, ideas, strategies, campaigns and so on. It has become the peanut butter and jelly of any social movement; be it a campaign against bullying, a revolt against corruption, a political election or an attempt to spread awareness. Social media has lent a helping hand whose worth, literally, is inexpressible.
So with that, we say how can we use social media to our advantage and create a buzz for our nonprofit in the social media space?
Here are 5 Easy Tips to Get the Voices Lifted in Your Favor and start creating a social media buzz for your nonprofit. Also be sure to check out the incredible InfoGraphic to see how other nonprofits are using social media!
Tip #1 Get On the Bandwagon.
I am not saying that you have to have a Facebook, Linked In, YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter and Google + presence, but you should be looking at which platforms will work best for you and get to joining at least 2! People can’t talk about what they don’t know or see about, especially as it relates to social media! Be sure to stay tuned to BCG for further posts on this topic!
#2 Dedicate the Time and Energy it Will Take to Grow Your Brand Online.
Sure the big celebrities and brands can easily get hundreds of thousands of likes and followers, but that will not be the case for your nonprofit. Consider using a social media dashboard service like HootSuite or Social Oomph to schedule your tweets and Facebook posts, find people you should follow, measure your social media activities via reports and see what’s trending!
There are no ifs, ands or buts about it: To do social media well, you have to put in work. For example tweet at least once daily, publish content on your website blog and share it, update your profile at least once a week and spend time on social media sites looking for ways to connect. People to follow and people who will follow you back!
#3 Get a Young Person on Board to Help You.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not a spring chicken myself and yes I get social media, but there is no doubt about it that my 18 year old sister gets it 1000% better. This millennial generation is amazing, not only do they get social media, according to a recent article published by Huffington Post, they get giving. For your nonprofit this is a win-win! Start seeking social media interns, offer a stipend $50 a month, you would be surprised who is willing to help you build your buzz!
# 4 Content is King.
It is utterly amazing what knowledge and information is published on a daily basis via social media. People are always looking for interesting news and content that they can not only read, but also share. If your organization services Human Trafficking or Mentoring, consider creating a Google Alert so you will receive news on the topics that relate to your organization. Once you have these stories, share them, discuss them, blog about them or even comment on them and include your social media links! Remember content is published to be shared, you can get known for sharing the best content in your field!
# 5 Find out Which of your Supporters are Already on Social Networks.
So we know that not everyone can give with money, but surely they can support you with a like, a follow or both! Consider sending out a monthly newsletter with hashtags and topics you plan to discuss that month. Ask your constituents to tweet using the hashtag and to tell their followers to follow you on Twitter. Are you on Faecebook, ask your friends and family to suggest your page to others and share your posts. Another great idea is to provide pre-created tweets, this makes it simple for your supporters to copy and paste your story and share it!
the king maker