Social Media

Virtual Conference

A fun Friday strategy.  When professional development money gets tight or schedules do not allow you to attend a conference, consider following the conference using social media.  I have collected the highlights of national and regional conferences by using the conference hashtag.  As an example, I do not anticipate being invited to Davos for the World Economic Forum this year but using #WEF or #davos I am able to view real-time postings from the summit and its auxiliary events.  I found links to a number of video clips and resources that were of great interest and value.  Best of all, I was able to do it on my time.  Although I would have loved the journey to Davos it saved me a couple days of travel and thousands of dollars.

Klout

Interested in the impact of your social media presence?  How likely are your online actions going to encourage followers/friends to take measurable action?  Klout measures your influence using the Klout Score as defined here.  The basic metric runs 1 to 100 with 100 representing the top end of the scale.  Some sample Klout Scores:

Dalai Lama- 91
President Obama- 89
New York Times- 87
Twitter- 82
Lance Armstrong- 80
Facebook- 77
Oprah- 73
Southwest Airlines- 73 
Congressman Joe Wilson- 58 (down from 79)

Checkout your Klout Score.

Leading Practices

Last week’s BoardSource Leadership Forum presented some updates on nonprofit governance that I found insightful:

  • Nomination Committees are no longer recommended as a separate committee of the board.  Governance Committees are the preferred model for handling board nominations, self-assessment, board engagement, and training among other responsibilities.

  • Board terms that run 1-year, 2-year, and 3-year for a total of six years of service are being recommended in place of the classic two 3-year terms.  An initial one-year commitment encourages the candidate to engage quicker and for the organization to empower the board member with meaningful work.  A short initial term provides sufficient assessment for both the board candidate and organization.  

  • Bylaws are recommended to be less restrictive and provide appropriate latitude.  Many committee structures and guidelines are being incorporated in Board Policies, thereby freeing the bylaws of potentially cumbersome organizational definitions.  An example is to provide an organization with greater range in the number of board members, remove arcane attendance requirements, embrace technology, and reduce the stringent meeting requirements (the third Tuesday of the month at 4 PM).

  • Executive Committees are recommended to meet as needed and not on a regular basis.  With an always-on and always-connected world there are few circumstances where immediate action is required without being able to assemble or poll the entire board.  Executive Committees continue to be a great resource to Executive Directors to provide a safe sounding-board and to float initiatives.



 
 

Ghost Writer

If you asked your closest partnering organization write down strategic goals for your organization and then did the same for them, what would be the result?  Would they focus on the same initiatives that you have selected?  Would they define your organizational purpose in-line with how you perceive yourself?  Would they apply your resources in a similar fashion or uncover a new arrangement?


Why not ask them to partner and hold a 90 minute table top session and see what the results reveal?  It could be illuminating or even revolutionary for your cause.


Seth Godin’s blog today speaks to the power of planning with the buddy system.

Convenience vs. Competence

Are you settling for convenience or embracing competence?  Do you position your events and programs to be first to market and easy to duplicate or high quality and difficult to replicate?  Are you one among many or the benchmark by which other enterprises measure themselves?

Many causes can tell me which organization they wish to duplicate- few tell me about how they want to expand upon their lead.

Train Station

A European train station in action is a marvelous example of efficiency.  There is an endless swarm of activity.  Arrivals and departures being coordinated by timetables.  Large boards announce the pending schedules.  The arrival of the Eurostar from Napoli to Roma becomes the departing train for Milano.  Within 30 minutes the passengers have disembarked and the outbound passengers loaded and departed.


Does your cause have a networking hub for great ideas?  A terminal to sort new concepts and determine which track might be best for directing the concept on for further expansion and refinement.  Who manages the station?  How do you creates a culture of inquiry that encourages innovation and treats ideas with respect?

Connecting Your Tribe

I spoke with a colleague today who works for an organization that has traditionally created content.  The business pushed information out.  Recently the company decided to change their brand and position themselves as a key resource for survivors.  Now social media is being used to help survivors connect with each other.  For the first time the members of the tribe can speak to each other.  The organization is suddenly the center of the conversation.

Are you helping your tribe speak to each other?  How powerful would your cause be if you could help facilitate a broader conversation?

The Next New Social Media Think From SXSW?

South By Southwest is the watershed conference in Austin, Texas for the social media world.  Just trying to follow the #SXSW hashtag on Twitter was a workout.  So what was decided, launched, or panned?  It depends on who you talk to and what the possible impact will be on the social media front.  A couple of blogs and reviews that I found fascinating.

  • Twittertoolsbook.com, is offering “how to” articles all this week.  A database of information from getting started to the more technical.

Getting Attention: You Just Missed Conan O’Brien

Seth Godin makes a compelling argument in his book Linchpin that attention is one of the most valuable resources.  With so many entities vying to be noticed it is hard to be seen.  The classic nonprofit refrain is, “we are the best kept secret in town.”  

I am encouraging organizations to think beyond just fundraising when they discuss the development and advancement activities of their organization.  In the same way that corporations link their philanthropic activities with a marketing plan, I think social enterprise organizations need to consider the same tactic with a slight twist.  

Possible scenario.  Conan O’Brien is on Twitter.  He has over a half-million followers and he just started following one person nineteen hours ago.  His tweet reads:

“I’ve decided to follow someone at random. She likes peanut butter and gummy dinosaurs. Sarah Killen, your life is about to change.

Imagine if this first follow had been your cause?  In 140 characters he would have drawn the spotlight onto your enterprise.  Imagine the fun you could have had with this opportunity.  I see an invitation to visit, a parade, a gold plated key, honorary membership, and a YouTube video going viral.  Without asking for a dollar this is a pre-built marketing campaign.

Okay, we all missed the opportunity with Conan.  But who is your organization connected to that might have the ability to bring authenticity and  attention to your cause.  Is there a graduate of your program with 5,000 followers on Facebook?  Does a volunteer’s spouse write a blog with five hundred readers a day?  Is there a film-maker in your midst?  Perhaps none of these individuals would show-up on a screening of potential donor capacity.  But each one is an artists and has a craft to share.  They offer a different philanthropic talent, a chance to move your organization into the center ring of a circus with four thousand other acts competing for attention.


Who do you know?  Do you really know all their talents?  Are you concentrating on the right people and screening for the right treasure?  What could an artist do for your cause?   Consider what one unemployed celebrity did in one tweet.

Social Media Recommendations, Less Valuabel Than Last Year

A current survey shows word of mouth is trending towards a less trust between friends who make recommendations on social media.  Last year the level of trust was 50%  this year it has fallen to 27%.  People were not always satisfied with the recommendations that received online, some of it erroneous.  Now they are looking for 3-5 additional recommendations before taking action or feeling more assured.  The research comes from Ricahrd Edelman who was interviewed on the Marketplace radio program.


With nonprofit organizations initially being the fastest sector of adopters of social media and relying heavily on Facebook and Twitter for marketing the impact of the survey may be noticeable.  How do you make sure you have authentic, transparent reviews of your organization?  Are you getting a variety of view points to give greater assurance that you are everything you claim to be?  Are you using a bullhorn to shout about your great programs or are your fans spreading the word for you?