Non-Profits Using Social Media: Get Your Constituents Involved


Posted by ajlovesya

I read a lot about how non-profits can incorporate social media into their marketing strategies. Most of it boils down to not being boring and writing in a way that your target audience can understand (i.e. no jargon!).

What makes social media exciting is that it allows people to communicate directly with your organization. What makes social media difficult is figuring out who you want to communicate with and the best way to reach them. So many options can lead to confusion and half-assed attempts to engage constituents.

But what if constituents were actively recruited to help build the organization’s social media presence from the very beginning? Not just surveyed to see what they like and don’t like, but involved in the planning and execution of social media?

Our school’s student council (which I coordinate) approached me with the idea of designing a web page and blog that provides updates and information about the school and what the students are doing. I jumped on the idea: by using student voices in our marketing we demonstrate the innovative and fun ways that the students develop as learners and leaders at our school.

As we work on the project additional benefits become more apparent:

  • Engaging the community: People feel a greater sense of ownership and commitment to the organization if they are involved in something that can be viewed by the public and is significant.
  • Teaching important skills: Social media certainly has a casual feel to it but managing and using it effectively is anything but! Writing well, designing with the general public in mind, and being deliberate in what, where, and how you use various social media are critical skills that are important to develop.
  • Adding valuable resources to the org: Students working on the blog and webpage are providing our school with exposure and networks we didn’t have previously.
  • Much more interesting and impressive: Who doesn’t love a blog by a 12 year old talking about their community service project?!

I realize that having students makes it easier to implement constituent-led media efforts. However what are some drawbacks or barriers to this approach? Have you seen any examples of this kind of endeavor?


What to Consider Before You Hire that Teen to Manage Your Social Media


Posted by ajlovesya

I came across this article from Cool People Care encouraging non-profits to hire teenagers to manage their social media marketing efforts instead of asking the older employees to learn how.

While I see the benefit of hiring someone familiar with social media to lead social media initiatives it takes time to build an online community that will translate into offline support. In other words, just because I know how to use social media for ME does not mean I will know how to use social media for YOU or know how to build an US.

So before you rush out to the nearest high school and grab a 15 year old with snazziest Myspace page, you should consider the following:

1. What kind of social media tools do you need and why? The wonderful thing about social media is that it allows you to connect with people where they are. Yet the ease of creating social networks means that not every website will yield the kind of support you need. If you are promoting after school programs for teens Myspace may be a great place to start where as NING is great for active online communities that communicate regularly. Who is your target audience and what message are you trying to send?

2. Are they familiar with the mission and will everyone be on board? We have to make sure that teens are part of the team not just there to do work that we feel other people are “too old and out of touch” to do. So take time to familiarize them with the mission and what the needs of the organization are they are better prepared to keep their eyes open to new tools that they may otherwise not be thinking about. And share the new ideas with all staff members—social media is about inclusion so its outcome shouldn’t be a new kind of exclusion.

3. What goals are you trying to accomplish? More volunteers? More advocates on your behalf? How will you measure progress? What I have noticed about many fan pages and groups is that people join them because their friends may be members or they may agree with the cause, yet the organization still doesn’t get much attention because of the sheer number of groups and fan pages that exist in the first place. So map out goals and be strategic.

I am on board with getting young people involved in new ideas within organizations. Let’s just make sure it’s meaningful.


Complaining about Your Job May be a Good Thing


Posted by ajlovesya

Every time I complain about my job I feel a little twinge of guilt. We are being told that the economy is sinking and that unemployment is rising so how could I complain? I should be thankful that I even have a job.

Gratitude is a double edged sword in times like this. On the one hand, it can force you reevaluate your ambitions and appreciate what you have. Perhaps you have been chasing dreams or opportunities because you feel you should, not because you genuinely want to. On the other hand, gratitude can paralyze you. You take fewer risks and invest less in yourself. You just start coasting.

The trick to staying sane in a weak economy is to harness both aspects of gratitude: appreciate what you have but compliment it by still going for what you want.

I still push myself and others in small but significant ways. My organization is paralyzed; we don’t want to spend too much money or move too fast. However, if there is one thing I have learned in fundraising is that people do not save sinking ships—they want to help build castles. So I have started numerous pet projects that have low cost but directly involve the students for greater visibility and impact like my blogging project and the school’s student council. These projects have required me to strengthen my own skills and reach out to others for guidance and support. Anything new is a challenge!

Whatever my job lacks I make up for in other career enhancing activities and I try to bridge the two as much as possible. Outside of the office I am a board member, writer, volunteer, and nerd  I brought my love of blogging to the students and I share volunteer opportunities with the school. My job is just one aspect of my professional development so I compliment it with other things that are both helpful and fun.

I stay on top of changes in my field and try to implement what I learn. I subscribe to key websites (free!) that deal with fundraising and marketing. For example a recent article Nonprofit Communications regarding good interview questions for newsletter profiles has me planning my next interview for our spring newsletter! Additionally, the more knowledgeable you are of what is happening and how you the better you will be able to adapt.

Also, complaining is OK. Things don’t stop being difficult because the economy is worse! Just don’t let the negativity affect your path and that it motivates you to take action.


My Idea for Change in America: New Core Literacies for Schools


Posted by ajlovesya

From Change.org:

President-Elect Obama says he wants to hear ideas from all Americans, so we’re taking him up on his offer. Submit your ideas for how to change America, discuss with others, and vote for your favorites.

The “Top 10 Ideas for America” will be presented to the Obama Administration on Inauguration Day. We will then build a national campaign to advance each idea in Congress, marshaling the resources of Change.org, MySpace, and our dozens of partner organizations and millions of combined members

My idea: New Core LIteracies for Schools

If there is one thing we have learned in the past year is that the old standards of learning (the three Rs) are no longer adequate. We face new challenges–from climate change to growing international debt–and it’s time we prepare our students to face these challenges.

I propose we redefine literacy to address the new issues that we are facing and prepare our students become competent and competitive citizens.

  • Environmental literacy: Being environmentally literate extends beyond recycling and using better lightbulbs.  Increasingly, reducing our reliance on foreign oil and our consumption is becoming a matter of national safety.  So what does it mean to be green?  How can we redesign buildings, cars, cities, and policies to reduce our impact on the enviornment and on other communities while still growing?
  • Legal literacy:  My favorite quote regarding government is “People shouldn’t be afraid of their government, governments should be afraid of their people.”  Too often we are unaware of the various laws that impact our lives and as a result we dont know how to make demands.  Education is key.  What are your rights? What is the legal process when it comes to issues like crime and voting?
  • Financial literacy:  Whereas a year ago we could bury our heads in the sand when it came to financial issues, the growing financial crisis makes it critical that we know the financial ins-and-outs of our government and ourselves. and What does it mean on personal, state, and national levels to have a balanced budget?
  • Technological literacy:  While I appreciate the applause given to my generation for its usage of the internet and social media, that’s only a small step.  We not only need to increase access but also increase awareness of the different ways technology can be used: math support, foreign language support, and allow us to design, connect, and think differently.  What software and hardware are changing how we live both online and offline?
  • Media literacy:  When ever it comes to making any kind of personal change– the first suggestion is to cut out the media.  Why?  Because we are encouraged to consume and be, well, ignorant.  What images impact how we view ourselves and interact with others?

Each type of literacy requires the creation of new knowledge that students must share with their community. Students will master the basic skills of reading and writing and build critical thinking skills. The emphasis is on hands-on engagement, collaboration, and creating new ways of looking at issues. 

The literacies can be combined.  For example media and technological literacies can combined so that students think critically and create new kinds of media using visual and audio recording and editing equipment.

I am currently doing a social media and social issues workshop with students that I work with. Students select a social issue of personal importance, conduct research, interviews, and community service to get different perspectives on their issue and make suggestions on how to solve their issue. They chronicle their learning on a blog which enables them to share their learning with others.   Ami Dar, founder of idealist.org, was so impressed with this idea he offered to work with the kids to emphasize how young people can bring about social change.

I envisioned the literacies be implemented in Obama’s “Promise Neighborhoods”: modeled after the Harlem Children’s Zone, which provides a full network of services, including early childhood education, youth violence prevention efforts and after-school activities, to an entire neighborhood from birth to college.  

I worked for the Harlem Children’s Zone in TRUCE, which is their media literacy program for high school students.  The students examined media issues (I focused on presentations of manhood and womanhood) and had to create a video/audio response to what they were learning.  So clearly this can be done!

So what do you all think?  What are some challenges to implementation and scale? 

If you like, please VOTE FOR THIS IDEA and if you have comments, start the conversation over at Change.org!


"What Do You Do When the Gang Wears Blue?"


Posted by ajlovesya

Whenever the issue of police brutality comes up, the gut reaction is to highlight the good police officers do in order to take away from a few bad apples.

However, police officers are elevated to a higher standard. They are a collection of leaders and just as we would never condone a leader making a mistake that brings great harm to the reputation and capabilities of his/her position (i.e. Eliot Spitzer) then why in the hell should we condone police brutality?

Ever since I moved back to NYC in June it feels as though every other damn week some moronic officer is being investigated for acting a fool. Currently Michael Mineo is a high profile case, claiming he was sodomized by cops. This summer I had to deal with this and this which solicited outrage but were promptly forgotten. 

So what do you do when the gang wears blue?

Police brutality is bigger than fairness to the person or group being abused; police brutality impacts the political system by altering citizens’ understanding and interaction with the police force which is often our only government contact. And the frequency of police brutality in NYC is startling.

Policy brutality is part of the fabric of the city which means that its impact is even more insidious.

  • It weakens government legitimacy: The police force is an extension of the government and the government is the only institution that can legitimately use force. Once the use of force goes unchecked and becomes suspicious, people become cynical and begin to distance themselves from the political process.
  • It makes policing difficult: The infamous “stop snitching” mentality is not the only reason people hesitate to work with the police. It is not uncommon for people to be weary of calling the police for the fear that they will be treated unfairly.
  • It divides the city: People and neighborhoods become unfairly stigmatized and the use of force against them rationalized. Action becomes motivated by anger and reconciliation is virtually impossible.

And of course, such treatment is blatantly undemocratic. You cannot claim to serve citizens and then abuse them. You cannot tax them then use their taxes to hurt them. This kind of behavior is political
schizophrenia.

Thank god for social media which makes it easy to catch gross behavior.  YouTube videos abound of police officers “protecting and serving.”  Unfortunately, how can we move from catching to punishment?