TweetsGiving celebrations are kicking off next week – are you ready?

I just found out tonight that Sydney will also be holding a gratitude party – joining Melbourne and Canberra.

In terms of Canberra, our event is planned for December 1, to be held at The Front, Lyneham, after work. All CTUB, SMC Canberra and NetTuesday Canberra people and their friends are warmly invited to attend.

If you can’t attend the event, there’s plenty of other ways to get involved. During TweetsGiving there will be many opportunities on Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and blogs to express your gratitude.

In case you missed it in my tweetstream, I went to Social Media Club Sydney last night to see MC Hammer.

Hammer is an absolute class act. Charming, articulate, and really well-versed in social media. His talk was very engaging and peppered with anecdotes that demonstrated Hammer is actually a major geek. He truly gets social media and has much to teach celebrities, brands, agencies and nonprofits.

Some of the parts talk that resonated with me:

Why would you embrace social media as a brand? … You should never let somebody else tell your story.

I completely agree with Hammer in that brands should be using social media to help control flow of information. That said, in the case of nonprofit organisations (and to some extent, brands), they need to be encouraging other people to tell their stories too – interweaving the stories of an organisation and their supporters can enrich the social media experience for all involved.

Don’t run – engage. The humanising of your product is actually an asset.

Another takeaway that’s perfect for non-profits. Don’t be a faceless organisation – be human, be social – we’re talking about social media after all.

… be disruptive and shake up the world.

While the comment was aimed at entrepreneurs, I think it’s relevant for all – if anyone is to make a difference in the world, you have to be disruptive. Upset the status quo and make things better.

In addition, Hammer talked with us about citizen journalism, social media analytics and gadgets. His talk was such a positive experience, and it was great to hear about social media from someone who lives and breathes it, in a very authentic and awesome way.

Kudos to Social Media Club Sydney for the great night, and thank you MC Hammer for your time!

TweetsGiving, one of the most successful events held that shows how well social media can be used for social good, is on again. Last year during TweetsGiving over $10,000 was raised in 48 hours, which was then used to build a classroom in Arusha (Tanzania).

This year, it’s back. And I’m proud to be organising the Canberra event (details TBC). Part of the proceeds will go towards improving the school in Arusha, as well as funding new projects by other Epic Change partners.

Last night, one of the ‘TwitterKids of Tanzania’ (see #TwitterKids or @ShepherdsJr for related tweets) sent me a message on Twitter. That made my night – and is a perfect example of what I get out of Twitter – the ability to connect with new, interesting people.

So a big “Hujambo!” to Gladys and the other TwitterKids of Tanzania – I’m really looking forward to TweetsGiving and the chance to help you!

Charitwy – Australian Non-Profits and Twitter

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