Best Practices for Non-Profits Using Social Media

The good news is Nonprofits are doing it right - using Social Media successfully! Many bloggers, thought leaders, and consultants are devoting extensive discussion to the role that social media can play in nonprofits' fundraising, marketing, communications, and programmatic work. (For but a few examples, look to Beth Kanter's blog, the Nonprofit Technology Network, M+R Strategic Services, and many others.

“Check out other nonprofits that are using social media. The Humane Society is a good example of a nonprofit putting social media to work. They are blogging, IMing (instant messaging), grouping, letting supporters rate them. They have a slide show, videos, an online poll and more. Take a look at their profile at MySpace.” http://nonprofit.about.com/od/nonprofitpromotion/a/socialmedia.htm

 Farra Trompeter sites ten best practices for using Social Media: 

1.   Take a deep breath, and let go. You’re not in control anymore.
2.    Stop, look, and listen. Tie your goals to what people need, and meet your audiences where they are.
3.    Build your strategy around reality. Select the tools based on their purpose, your audience, and what you can manage in terms of staff time and costs.
4.    Remember what you learned in kindergarten: be nice, share, and say thank you.
5.    Emphasize the social in social media. Use pictures and videos to share stories. Schedule calls, meetups, and events to connect online communities.
6.    Get personal. Pick the right staff, and let them be themselves.
7.    Be flexible. Your community will move around; the tools are going to change.
8.    Don’t forget your website & integration. Bring all your online communications together and repurpose content.
9.    Change how you define success. It’s about content rather than numbers; relationship-building rather than “marketing”.
10.    Pause and evaluate. Keep listening, and give yourself time to build community, trust, and conversation.

Also, from Wild Apricot’s blog, if you've been thinking of launching or expanding your organization in social media, Slideshare is a good starting point for information and advice.  Also, Beth Kanter breaks it down by explaining:

How To Think Like A Nonprofit Social Media Genius

•    Understand organizational change theory
•    Use the Rule of Thirds (1/3 web presence, 1/3 one-way, 1/3 social)
•    Listen first
•    Build relationships with influencers
•    Make it easy to re-mix your content
•    No instant gratification — results require effort over time
•    Use metrics to discover what works and what doesn’t

Social Network Fundraising is a presentation by Justin Perkins, Director of Nonprofit Services at Care2.com, featuring research on Social Network Fundraising and use of new media for nonprofit marketing — and an excellent analysis of the ROI for nonprofit  social networking campaigns.

It’s great to hear of organizations moving forwardsuccessfully! …  We’d love to hear from you1