In today’s #ynpchat on networking I really enjoyed hearing the various ways people grew their networks. Social media was brought up and I personally have found twitter to be wonderful in connecting with great people and exposing me to new opportunities. Here are a few ways young nonprofit professionals can take advantage of twitter:
1. Participate in a twitter chat: Twitter chats allow a free exchange of ideas, resources, and support while offering the opportunity to connect with other people who share your interest. Two of my favorite twitter chats are #ynpchat (for young nonprofit professionals) and #nptalk (for nonprofits). You can discover more twitter chats by checking out this list.
2. Be a network weaver: According to June Holley of Network Weaving,
A Network Weaver is someone who is aware of the networks around them and explicitly works to make them healthier (more inclusive, bridging divides). Network Weavers do this by connecting people strategically where there’s potential for mutual benefit, helping people identify their passions, and serving as a catalyst for self-organizing groups.
By connecting people to each other and to resources that will help them grow their networks, you can position yourself as a valuable resource and someone others want to know. It also allows you to tap into different networks, exposing yourself to more people and more opportunities. So make introductions and answer questions when you can. Learn more about being a network weaver.
3. Ask questions: Invite people to help you and make friends along the way. Ask questions that are relevant to your field to potentially spark an ongoing conversation. Be sure to acknowledge answers by either thanking or retweeting. If you would like the feedback of certain folks on twitter, @reply them in your question to get their attention.
4. Connect offline: Whether it is a tweetup or simply asking someone to meet up for coffee, connecting with folks offline makes the conversations online more interesting and rewarding. Youre more likely to pay attention to each other twitter now that you’ve made face-to-face contact and when you meet offline learn more about each other and opportunities not easily presented on twitter.
How else can you use twitter to develop your network?
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You’ve pretty much nailed it already, Allison, but I’d also suggest forwarding on (retweeting) links and tweets other people send out. That’s part of the networking weaving you talk about, but it also serves as a way to connect to people by making a statement (This is good! Worth looking at!) that is much appreciated by the tweeter and the writer of the link – who may be a whole other person.
What I would NOT worry about is this whole “follower” game that so many people are obsessed about. If you’re looking to Twitter to genuinely connect with people, it doesn’t matter how many followers you have. You find people with like interests and they find you. A few real connections matter a whole lot more than hundreds of people with whom you have nothing in common.
Thanks for another terrific blog!
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ajlovesya Reply:
August 6th, 2010 at 3:22 pm
Thanks for your comment, Alexandra! I’m soooo over the follower game and now I just focus on quality conversations. When folks are just getting started it might help to look for people in your field (wefollow.com or twellow.com) and start sharing their work. Focusing on others is generally the way to go!
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I recently got dragged out to a tweetup called #BATHH by my friend @CaitStuff and now I love them! So many fun connected people there!
I would add: Another way to build your network on twitter is to do hashtags so that people can find you when you tweet about #nonprofits or #charities or #fundraising or #leadership, etc.
Also, give IRL talks about how to find a job on twitter, mentor people into getting on twitter, and then help them find and follow others. That’s what I’m doing, you can read more about that right here: http://wildwomanfundraising.com/free-stuff
And finally, following relevant people and retweeting them, and thanking people for retweets, that’s big.
Mazarine
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ajlovesya Reply:
August 11th, 2010 at 10:02 am
Thanks for sharing Mazarine! Making sure your actions reflect a genuine interest in other people will certainly build your network!
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“Network weaving” is something that I have not seen a lot of people talk about but is so important. We all understand our individual networks and their uniqueness. But within those networks, we can create even more immense value by connecting others.
So many “traditional” networks discuss about how to display your value, but there is an intrinsic value when you take yourself personally out of the networking and connect two people who should no each other.
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ajlovesya Reply:
August 11th, 2010 at 9:57 am
Thanks for commenting, Josh. I think social media makes it easier to be self absorbed but it’s true power is in how you can connect people who should know each other, but may not have ever met before. That’s where I’ve seen the strongest benefits and use of social media.
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