Blogging Tips

Groundswell includes some great tips for effectively using social media. The authors cover a number of areas related to Web 2.0 and offer ideas for being successful. In this post, I want to share some of their suggestions for blogging.

1) A good first step is to “listen”. What are people already writing about? How can you add to what is already out there? 2) Decide if you want one author versus several. In this blog, I am the only author so it can be a little difficult to find time to blog regularly. In my foundation’s blog, we have several staff involved so you’ll see frequent postings. 3) It is also a good idea to practice some posts before going live. Make sure you get comfortable. 4) Once your blog is out there, how will you let people know about it? Sending an email to your donors? Putting out a press release? Don’t worry too much about a definitive plan. Just think about a few key questions, and then run with it!

Igniting social change in the connected age

Can nonprofits use social media to ignite social change? This is a question Allison Fine addresses in “Momentum”. The key to being effective with social media is creating meaningful opportunities for people to participate. It’s not about being more technical, but rather it’s about using these tools to be more connected. The goal is to increase conversations and not just send out information.

To encourage conversation, focus on building a sense of community where information flows freely and people on the edge are able to provide ideas. A sense of ownership can happen through interaction. It is a different world – not necessary better or worse – but definitely different. The social marketing approach is about more than numbers. It’s about relationships.

Web 2.0 offers good tips on formulating social media plans

This is another review I wrote for CharlestonCurrents.com. If you are considering a social media plan for your nonprofit, I encourage you to read this book!

"Web 2.0: A strategy guide" is a good introduction for users new to the Web 2.0 world. Amy Shuen encourages the audience to ask relevant questions before embarking on a social media plan. How will we draw people to our site? Can we learn from users as they visit us? What is the target group? How will it change our business practices? Shuen gives an overview of well-known applications, such as Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn, along with implications for their use. Web 2.0 tools make it difficult to control content, but more likely to generate interest from users because of its interactive nature. After finishing this book, the reader should be able to begin implementation of a Web 2.0 plan.