Why is Social Media Important to a Brand?

Anna Farmery wants to engage your brand...

Thus asks Anna Farmery, Speaker/Social Media Coach and author of The Engaging Brand Blog (which was recently featured in a Nonprofit Blog Carnival).

She offers 5 main reasons why social media should be part of your organization's brand strategy:

1. Social media can help bridge the gap inside a consumer's mindset of where they are now and where they want to be.
2. Social media empower consumers to be advocates for your brand.
3. Social media enable brands to communicate at all levels and to all emotions
4. Social media engage consumers in a conversation that can help brands evolve.
5. Social media -- particularly those with RSS (Really Simply Syndication) -- keep brands in their consumers lives.

Those are just summaries. Read her complete thoughts here:

http://theengagingbrand.typepad.com/the_engaging_brand_/2009/05/why-is-social-media-important-to-a-brand.html

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Why do most nonprofit PSAs suck?

I sometimes wonder how much more effective nonprofit PSAs (Public Service Announcements) would be if they didn't take themselves so seriously.

Here is a nice example of a lo-fi commercial that spends more time laughing at itself than selling its product. The result? Something very viral that already has nearly a quarter-million views.

Sure, it's for a Cuban gynecologist who is now an American autosalesman... but why couldn't the neighborhood food pantry or city animal shelter have a similar tongue-in-cheek approach to fundraising? Why must philanthropy be so serious all the time?

Consider ways that you can help your donors to have a little fun. At a time like this, maybe that would go a lot further with them than the typical heavy-handed nonprofit doomsday message.

I'm just sayin'.

Enjoy:

UnTweetable: Twitter as Borg

Twitter was launched in March 2006 (source: Wikipedia). Within two years, it had over 1,000,000 total users sending approximately 3,000,000 tweets per day (Source: source: TechCrunch).

Shockingly, over the past year, they have blown these numbers away. It is estimated that by the end of this month (April 2009), they will have over 420,000,000 unique visits per week (source: TechCrunch).

This is a mind-boggling speed of adaptation. The same source above estimates that the impact of Oprah's adoption alone brought 1,000,000 additional users to the site.

As I struggle to grasp the impact that Twitter will have on the communications efforts of nonprofit organizations, I draw back on my childhood understanding of rapid cultural sea change:

"We are the Borg. Lower your shields and surrender your ships. We will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own. Your culture will adapt to service us. Resistance is futile."

Perhaps the attached photo-essay better explains my thoughts.

What do you think?

Follow up: Non-Profit Publicity

"Publicity for Nonprofits," by Sandra L. Beckwith

I recently blogged about Sandra Beckwith's book, "Publicity for Nonprofits. The author was kind (savvy?) enough to drop by and post this:

"Thanks so much for sharing these tips from my book! I also offer a free report with tips for generating publicity for a special event at http://www.nonprofitpublicity.com. Scroll to the bottom of the page and enter your name and e-mail address. You'll get an e-mail message with a link to the report."

Urban Village Newsletter

Central Dallas Ministries' May 2008 Urban Village Newsletter

Central Dallas Ministries just posted an online copy of its May 2008 Urban VIllage Newsletter. You can download a copy here:
http://www.centraldallasministries.org/uv/

I would welcome your comments, advice and critiques!

Blogs to Explore while Avoiding Work

Thanks toi Logic+Emotion: Who Killed The Marketing Funnel? Accidental Marketers. for this amazing list of bloggers on the topic of marketing!

I am going to file this away under the "Blogs to Explore while Avoiding Work" category:

Adam Crowe, Adrian Ho, Aki Spicer, Alex Henault, Amy Jussel, Andrew Odom, Andy Nulman, Andy Sernovitz, Andy Whitlock, Angela Maiers, Ann Handley, Anna Farmery, Armando Alves, Arun Rajagopal, Asi Sharabi, Becky Carroll, Becky McCray, Bernie Scheffler, Bill Gammell, Bob Carlton, Bob LeDrew, Brad Shorr, Bradley Spitzer, Brandon Murphy, Branislav Peric, Brent Dixon, Brett Macfarlane, Brian Reich, C.C. Chapman, Cam Beck, Casper Willer, Cathleen Rittereiser, Cathryn Hrudicka, Cedric Giorgi, Charles Sipe, Chris Kieff, Chris Cree, Chris Wilson, Christina Kerley (CK), C.B. Whittemore, Clay Parker Jones, Chris Brown, Colin McKay, Connie Bensen, Connie Reece, Cord Silverstein, Corentin Monot, Craig Wilson, Daniel Honigman, Dan Goldstein, Dan Schawbel, Dana VanDen Heuvel, Dan Sitter, Daria Radota Rasmussen, Darren Herman, Darryl Patterson, Dave Davison, Dave Origano, David Armano, David Bausola, David Berkowitz, David Brazeal, David Koopmans, David Meerman Scott, David Petherick, David Reich, David Weinfeld, David Zinger, Deanna Gernert, Deborah Brown, Dennis Price, Derrick Kwa, Dino Demopoulos, Doug Haslam, Doug Meacham, Doug Mitchell, Douglas Hanna, Douglas Karr, Drew McLellan, Duane Brown, Dustin Jacobsen, Dylan Viner, Ed Brenegar, Ed Cotton, Efrain Mendicuti, Ellen Weber, Emily Reed, Eric Peterson, Eric Nehrlich, Ernie Mosteller, Faris Yakob, Fernanda Romano, Francis Anderson, G. Kofi Annan, Gareth Kay, Gary Cohen, Gaurav Mishra, Gavin Heaton, Geert Desager, George Jenkins, G.L. Hoffman, Gianandrea Facchini, Gordon Whitehead, Graham Hill, Greg Verdino, Gretel Going & Kathryn Fleming, Hillel Cooperman, Hugh Weber, J. Erik Potter, J.C. Hutchins, James Gordon-Macintosh, Jamey Shiels, Jasmin Tragas, Jason Oke, Jay Ehret, Jeanne Dininni, Jeff De Cagna, Jeff Gwynne, Jeff Noble, Jeff Wallace, Jennifer Warwick, Jenny Meade, Jeremy Fuksa, Jeremy Heilpern, Jeremy Middleton, Jeroen Verkroost, Jessica Hagy, Joanna Young, Joe Pulizzi, Joe Talbott, John Herrington, John Jantsch, John Moore, John Rosen, John Todor, Jon Burg, Jon Swanson, Jonathan Trenn, Jordan Behan, Julie Fleischer, Justin Flowers, Justin Foster, Karl Turley, Kate Trgovac, Katie Chatfield, Katie Konrath, Kenny Lauer, Keri Willenborg, Kevin Jessop, Kris Hoet, Krishna De, Kristin Gorski, Laura Fitton, Laurence Helene Borei, Lewis Green, Lois Kelly, Lori Magno, Louise Barnes-Johnston, Louise Mangan, Louise Manning, Luc Debaisieux, Marcus Brown, Mario Vellandi, Mark Blair, Mark Earls, Mark Goren, Mark Hancock, Mark Lewis, Mark McGuinness, Mark McSpadden, Matt Dickman, Matt J. McDonald, Matt Moore, Michael Hawkins, Michael Karnjanaprakorn, Michelle Lamar, Mike Arauz, Mike McAllen, Mike Sansone, Mitch Joel, Monica Wright, Nathan Gilliatt, Nathan Snell, Neil Perkin, Nettie Hartsock, Nick Rice, Oleksandr Skorokhod, Ozgur Alaz, Paul Chaney, Paul Hebert, Paul Isakson, Paul Marobella, Paul McEnany, Paul Tedesco, Paul Williams, Pet Campbell, Pete Deutschman, Peter Corbett, Phil Gerbyshak, Phil Lewis, Phil Soden, Piet Wulleman, Rachel Steiner, Sreeraj Menon, Reginald Adkins, Richard Huntington, Rishi Desai, Beeker Northam, Rob Mortimer, Robert Hruzek, Roberta Rosenberg, Robyn McMaster, Roger von Oech, Rohit Bhargava, Ron Shevlin, Ryan Barrett, Ryan Karpeles, Ryan Rasmussen, Sam Huleatt, Sandy Renshaw, Scott Goodson, Scott Monty, Scott Townsend, Scott White, Sean Howard, Sean Scott, Seni Thomas, Seth Gaffney, Shama Hyder, Sheila Scarborough, Sheryl Steadman, Simon Payn, Sonia Simone, Spike Jones, Stanley Johnson, Stephen Collins, Stephen Cribbett, Stephen Landau, Stephen Smith, Steve Bannister, Steve Hardy, Steve Portigal, Steve Roesler, Steven Verbruggen, Steve Woodruff, Sue Edworthy, Susan Bird, Susan Gunelius, Susan Heywood, Tammy Lenski, Terrell Meek, Thomas Clifford, Thomas Knoll, Tiffany Kenyon, Tim Brunelle, Tim Buesing, Tim Connor, Tim Jackson, Tim Longhurst, Tim Mannveille, Tim Tyler, Timothy Johnson, Tinu Abayomi-Paul, Toby Bloomberg, Todd Andrlik, Troy Rutter, Troy Worman, Uwe Hook, Valeria Maltoni, Vandana Ahuja, Vanessa DiMauro, Veronique Rabuteau, Wayne Buckhanan, William Azaroff, Yves Van Landeghem

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DoGooderTV is about to get... gooder

I received this announcement from DoGooderTV:

DoGooderTV is excited to announce that we're switching to a new web video provider beginning June 1st... This new and improved platform increases our ability to provide metrics and better services to everyone who is registered with DGTV.

It's been a long time since I posted CDM's videos, but the process was fairly easy from what I recall (no more difficult than doing so through YouTube).

See CDM's DoGooderTV page here:
http://www.dogooder.tv/Orgs/cdm/default.aspx

See CDM's YouTube page here:
http://www.youtube.com/cendalmin

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Blogging From The Top

The NonProfit Times recently released this insightful answer to the question I often receive:

"Should my organization's CEO start writing a blog?"

I would respond, but everything that I have to say is here... along with some nice case studies:

The NonProfit Times
Blogging From The Top
Donors - and everyone else - get access to the boss

Want some inspiration for your blog? Read the Top 100 Blogs in the world here:
http://technorati.com/pop/blogs/

And yes, God help us all, there are even blogs about blogging:
Top 25 Blogs About Blogging

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Mosaic Family Services

Congrats to Mosaic Family Services for starting an organizational blog! This is a great way to promote the important work of your organization.

For those who don't know about Mosaic, download their latest newsletter here.

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Kivi cites Stats on Nonprofit Marketing

Thanks to Katya for connecting us to Kivi and her blog, Bunches o’ Studies and Stats on Nonprofit Marketing. There are some powerful findings cited there.



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I'm it, and now you are

Thanks to the Donor Power Blog for this tag:

1. Pick up the nearest book.


2. Open to page 123.


3. Find the fifth sentence.


4. Post the next three sentences.


5. Tag five people, and acknowledge who tagged you.

For me, the book was "The Elements of Persuasion: Use of Storytelling to Pitch Better, Sell Faster and Win More Business" by Richard Maxwell & Robert Dickman. The book has been sitting on my desk for months, having been sent to me by the publishers in the hopes that I would review it.

I still plan to do that. Honestly. I just have this problem with finishing books... I start them all. Even great ones remain unfinished. Indeed, I would say that I have started some of the greatest books in the world -- and when and if I ever finish them, I will be a better man for it. Besides, Ardath Albee already wrote a fine review here.

But back to the task at hand.

Page 123 lies within Chapter Six -- Sticky Stories: Memory, Emotions and Markets.

After skipping five full sentences, here is what I have for the next three sentences:

"We know we have, though our particular version adds the wrinkle of also not having any pants (we know, don't ask). If you have spent any time onstage -- and the stage doesn't have to be large; a seat in the corporate boardroom, or a room in which you are standing in front of a screen with a PowerPoint running behind you as you make a presentation to clients, or event an office where you are running through a well-rehearsed pitch to your boss for the raise you so richly deserve is more than large enough -- we can almost guarantee you've had some variation of it. As we mentioned in chapter 2, stage fright is a universal."

My God, that was a long three sentences...

Anyway, TAG! YOU'RE IT! Since I was not really tagged by Jeff Brooks, creative director at Merkle, for this exercise... I am just openly tagging all of you.

Come on, Phil Cubeta, I bet you're up for it.
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10-Point Basic Website Checklist for Nonprofits

The Nonprofit Marketing Guide put together this nice 10-Point Basic Website Checklist for Nonprofits

1. Does the Domain Name Make Sense?
   
2. Do I Know Where I Am?
   
3. Is There a Clear Path to Answers or Actions Visitors are Most Likely Seeking?
   
4. Does the Home Page Include Images?
   
5. Can I Donate Online Easily from the Home Page?
   
6. Are You Capturing Email Addresses?
   
7. Are People Featured?
   
8. Are There Stories on the Need or Successes?
   
9. Is It Easy to Contact Staff?
   
10. Are Your Google Keywords on Target?

And while you're at it... don't forget to make your site mobile friendly (thanks to Vitamin Features for this one).
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Expand your Brand

Interesting article in onPhilanthropy, "The Museum Brand Footprint: The Art of Expansion." The article is aimed at museums with an eye towards how they can engage their local civic community so that they become a part of the city's larger brand; however, it also has some relevance for social service organizations ... particularly those in the middle of a significant project or capital campaign.

• Create a Facebook or MySpace page.


• Update the Wikipedia entry for your city to include you.


• Create a YouTube page.


• Open a Flickr account
.

• Enhance the existing web site.


• Build a calendar of events.


• Start a Search Engine Marketing campaign.


• Create materials.

View the article here:
http://www.onphilanthropy.com/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=7459

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Help me Wiki!

I am looking for a few good Wikipedians! It just came to our attention that Central Dallas Ministries has joined the world of Wikipedia. Check us out at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Dallas_Ministries

If you know how to edit Wikipedia, could you help us by:

• Putting a link to our CEO's blog, www.UrbanDaily.org on that site?
  
• Figuring out how to put something on the link with our CEO's name, "Larry James," on it? (the link is currently broken… maybe it should point to http://www.centraldallasministries.org/cdm/management.htm)
  
• Educating us on how we can use this resource to promote our mission?

Thanks for your time!

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Welcome, CBI Attendees!

Welcome to everyone who attended my presentation at today's Community Board Institute session, "How to Build Relationships Using Electronic Communications."

If you would like a copy of the handout that I provided, click here .

If you want the actual PowerPoint that I used, either email me or ask for it in a comment below and I can send it to you via www.YouSendIt.com/

I would greatly appreciate your feedback on the session. Please comment below!

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Destination Home: VIDEO

Featuring the stories of some of our formerly homeless neighbors who now have housing through Central Dallas Ministries. This video debuted at the Urban Ministries Prayer Breakfast with Tom Leppert, the Mayor of Dallas.



This is the second year that we've presented a video at the Prayer Breakfast related to homelessness. Last year, when we were joined by the candidates for Mayor (including Tom Leppert), we presented this video that includes interviews of people who are still living on the streets.


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10 Reasons Why Every Nonprofit Must Have a Blog

I thought that this was worth sharing:

Wild Apricot Blog : 10 Reasons Why Every Nonprofit Must Have a Blog

1. Search engine optimization


2. Expert in the Field


3. Credibility


4. Awareness


5. Negative Comments


6. Events


7. Annual Report


8. Information


• Allowing users to create


• Provide information to supporters


9. Fundraising


10. The “Heart” of the Organization

Intrigued? Read the details here.

You might also be interested in this article from the Donor Power Blog:
"How not to have a boring blog"


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"What's after email?"

I had the wonderful experience of hearing Matt Frazier, CEO of the Pursuant Group, give a presentation at yesterday's meeting of the Dallas Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals. Matt's company -- which he built as answer to the question "What's after email?" -- recently put together a video for CDM that you can watch here:

http://www.neighborstogethercdm.com/

He started his presentation by showing this amazing video, "Web 2.0 ... The Machine is Us/ing Us." I strongly encourage you to watch it here, or click play below.

I am definitely including this in my presentation at next week's Community Board Institute meeting. My presentation is going to be called "How to Build Relationships Using Electronic Communications." You can still register online here.



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It's not about you (It's about the donor, Part III)

Let me begin this article by pointing back humorously to an exchange between me and the now-defamed Holden Karnofsky in the comments on this Give & Take blog, where Holden was ironically arguing that fundraisers should not focus so much on selling their organizations as much as they should focus on trying to help people.

(Ironic, of course, since Holden was caught astroturfing)

Anyway, this is now at least the third article that I've written on this vital idea for fundraisers to understand:

"It's not about you, it's about the donor."

I was reminded of this today when reading Katya Anderson, whose wonderful blog offers some strong advice on how you can improve your fundraising programs, particularly your communications aimed at donors:

Four Questions to Always Answer for Your Donors

1. Why me?


2. Why now?


3. What for?


4. Who says?

Cultivating Donors Online: Becoming Donor-Centric

• Use compelling human interest stories and attach them to donor experience.


• Appeal to values you know your donors have.


• Differentiate yourself and show what will happen if somebody takes action.


• You need to be good at telling your story, the story of those who you have helped and the story of those who have helped you.


• Use large and compelling imagery to connect emotionally with potential donors.


• People can't relate to gigantic numbers and impending global doom. Boil down your message to human faces and stories that people can relate to. Remember, a puppy can outperform a billion people in Africa.

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How to Blog your Way to Wealth

Thanks to Larry James for giving me a copy of a fascinating article by Paul Sloan and Paul Kaihla of Business 2.0 Magazine called "Blogging for Dollars."

The article is actually from 2006, but still bears great relevance today. It is posted here through CNN Money, but I have also posted a portionbelow.

It's not just a hobby - some small sites are making big money. Here's how to turn your passion into an online empire.By Paul Sloan and Paul (Business 2.0) -- Michael Arrington is a partying kind of guy. While showing off his home in Atherton, Calif., he boasts about how he crammed 500 people into his one-acre backyard at a bash in February. Then there are the official parties, like the one he threw in mid-August at August Capital, a nearby venture firm. Arrington posted an open invitation on his website at 3 a.m. By sunrise, all 500 spots were taken; the onslaught of traffic crashed his site. "I knew it would be fast," says Arrington, who houses so many out-of-towners in his ranch home that he often isn't sure who's crashing on which mattress on which floor in which room.

Arrington, a 36-year-old entrepreneur behind a long list of unrecognizable startups, has suddenly become one of the rising stars of Silicon Valley. Why? The answer lies in TechCrunch, Arrington's blog about new technologies and companies. In the year since he launched the site, he has amassed such a strong following that he's become a go-to person for VCs and tech execs looking to leak corporate tidbits or announce news. More than 1.5 million readers regularly check out his site. But here's what gives Arrington real distinction: He's pulling in $60,000 in ad revenue every month. That's 10 times what the site was making earlier this year, which was when Arrington, convinced of the potentially monstrous riches ahead, quit his day job as president of a startup to blog full-time.

With Internet-like speed, blogs have gone from self-indulgent hobbies to flourishing businesses. Real businesses, with real revenue streams from real advertisers--not overhyped next big things with pick-a-number valuations based on selling out someday to some overenthusiastic big-media sugar daddy...

Read the rest "here."

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