How To Make Social Media Work For Your Charity
- 25 Nov
Many charities and social enterprises, are to varying degrees aware of social media's power and potential.
Many organisations have truly embraced social media and have embedded it into their fundraising and marketing strategies while others have not.
According to research by The Guardian:
"More than a quarter of the time you and I spend online is spent on a social media site - this is more than we spend emailing, online shopping, or on anything else."
Individual platforms come and go (for example, myspace) but the hyper-connectivity and functionality common to all popular platforms (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc) are a fixture of modern life.
- Content is the material that determines your success on social media.
- Content can be an opinionated blog post about a new piece of legislation, a photo album of your beneficiaries, an infographic, a video, a podcast, a mobile app, a guide.
- It doesn't matter if your content is professionally produced or more on the amateur side. What really matters when it comes to content is that your stakeholders - donors, beneficiaries, staff, leadership, volunteers, etc - see your content and interact with it in a way that is tangibly beneficial to you and your cause.
- Good content doesn't require a big budget. In fact, content doesn't have to cost much more than time.
- Your organisation can create original content on a shoestring because authenticity and a clear direct message (eg share this, donate here, etc) are the key ingredients for success.
If you are still unsure about how to kick off with content, find inspiration by looking at what others, including your competitors, are doing. Don't worry if you stumble at first, it will always take time to find your way.
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