How to get the basics of social media right

The tools for change

It will come as no surprise that what we’re talking about is the effective and efficient use of Facebook and Twitter. These social tools have changed the face of communication and offer the platform for your digital presence and of what your cause represents.

These tools are such a potent force that they break down barriers and allow you to seek out new cause advocates and supporters, without the limitation of geography. Your reach is global and your cause can touch, engage and motivate a donation in any user that your cause can resonate with. All it takes is the right social strategy…

Creating your social strategy

The tools are free to use but can command extensive time and resource to manage. It’s important to approach your social media channel intelligently to maximise results from your time investment.

It’s a common problem for smaller brands to first embrace their social media presence wholeheartedly, but underestimate just how much time is required, only to drown in a deluge of inbound communications and ultimately damage their brand.

Make sure that you understand the social media channel because it’s easy to become a busy fool in these spaces and constantly play catch-up without really achieving much for your cause. 

• Quality not quantity: Release small, meaningful and insightful snippets of information.
• Build fans and not just reciprocal followers: Numbers aren’t as important as fans. It’s the true fan that will do the work for you and help spread your mission.
• Reward your fans: Make followers feel special and give insight into who you are and what you’re about. Think of it a bit like “the making of” footage on a DVD.

Competitor research

What are your closest competitors doing and who are doing it well? What is it about their channel that engages you and is motivating their user base?

Check out similar sized charities for number of likes, amount of followers, and responses received to posts and determine which medium works best for them. This should give insight into what’s achievable, the level of involvement and resource you’ll need, and frequency of communications.

Experience and training

Try not to underestimate the time it can take to get someone up to speed with managing social media. Ensure the person responsible is fully briefed on how to portray the brand, what your core objectives are, and what the cause represents so that tone is consistent and appropriate.

It can take time to get up to speed with the intricacies and tactics of the social media space and can be quite daunting as you become lost in tweets, likes, hash tags, friends and followers.

Ensure that whoever is chosen to take on this role has time in their schedule to monitor and respond on a daily basis. The ideal candidate is someone personable, with strong empathy and a quick wit, who can multi-task the day job with regular reviews of the social space. 

Understanding your target demographic

You know what your cause is. You know who your key supporters are. What is it that moves and motivates them to support? What topics get the dialog flowing, conversations started, and heated debates in full swing? It’s good to be passionate and at times provocative about what you represent. This can stimulate reactions that draw crowds from the social circle of those that interact.

Make use of social media tools

Keep things interesting and diverse. Don’t think of your social space as just an informative status update. This isn’t simply a news channel for your brand. Actively encourage two-way communication and interactivity with your cause.

You should consider: 

• Facebook polls
• Competitions
• Videos
• Photos
• Discussions

Be creative and test different approaches out and react to how your user base responds.

Transparency and empathy

Use your online voice to make it clear who you are and what you support. Distinguish yourself from the pack and be a cause, not a charity.

There are excellent examples of charities using social media and technology to help people online fully appreciate the gravity of a cause and the impact that they personally can have. Check out WeFeedback.org for an online site created by the World Food Programme which helps visitors comprehend the scale of world hunger, and just how many starving children you could feed for the same price as your favourite meal. These users are encouraged to donate that amount to the charity and then share the experience in their social network for maximum exposure.

“John Smith has just fed 40 starving children using WeFeedback” posted to a social circle of over 2 hundreds friends on Facebook is an impactful and inspirational statement. 

Giving your fundraisers the insight into how their donations are used is key. Always keep your supporters informed of existing fundraising efforts so they know how their donation can really make a difference to the cause.

These simple techniques will result in lifelong fans, long-term donations and organic growth in supporters. Used in the right way your social media presence can be a positive and powerful tool for change.