Non-profits rely heavily on their communities. Despite this, many still lack a coherent social strategy. As cause marketing grows, connecting non-profits to the benefits of social media and online community building is imperative to these initiatives.
Banyan Branch wrote up a great example of a non-profit in this exact situation. El Centro de la Raza, “a Seattle-area group whose mission is to build unity across all racial and economic sectors, to organize, empower, and defend the most vulnerable and marginalized populations and to bring justice, dignity, equality, and freedom to all the peoples of the world.” Big mission!
They had haphazardly set up some social pages, but had no coherent strategy or designated community manager. Banyan Branch had these tips for non-profits who want to do social media correctly:
1. Be Strategic – Whatever your mission, there are communities on social media that support you. But not every social network is ideal for your cause. Start by finding where the community is, then engage.
2. Stay Organized – Your social strategy needs organization. Create a content calendar and have it correspond with your traditional communication channels and activities.
3. Measure your Success – There are many tools available for free to measure success. Facebook, YouTube and Google have free services that work well with cash-strapped non-profits.
Read more about social non-profit success at Banyan Branch
———-
Blake Cahill, Principal at Banyan Branch, will present a Clarisonic case study at WOMMA Summit 2011 that shows how they developed, executed and measured a cause marketing campaign. More on his session.
