Geeking For Good

I put the call out on Twitter the other night to see if anyone would be interested in an Australian social good podcast, and had some positive feedback, so I’ve been thinking about how such a podcast could be run. Here’s some initial thoughts to get some ideas flowing: Motivation – Why start a social good podcast? I’d like to see the nonprofit technology and social good types sharing ideas with the digital community at large. I’m seeing a trend where the lines between digital and social good are blending for the better – take #manweek and Perfect Gift For A Man as just one example. Audience – Who would listen? Anyone interested in the intersection of social good and digital. Material – What would we talk about? How to use technology and social media to advance social good; the theory, execution and promotion of nonprofit/social good campaigns; discussion of wider digital trends and their potential application in the social good space. Given the material, perhaps a 15-30 minute runtime would be ideal. What do you think? Is this something you would be interested in participating in or listening to? Would you be keen to volunteer your time and expertise to help get this off the ground? Leave your comments and ideas below!

This week saw the wider public gain access to Twitter lists, and the posts have been rolling in about how nonprofits can incorporate Lists into their social media strategy:

• Geeking For Good: How non-profits can take advantage of Twitter Lists
• Amy Sample Ward’s Version of NPTech: Twitter Lists for Nonprofits
• John Haydon: Why Twitter lists are huge for your non-profit or small business [video tutorial]
• Wild Apricot Blog: Twitter Lists 101 (the original post is older than a week, however it’s a great resource and comments have continued well into this week)

In other news, Causes on Myspace is shutting down due to lack of activity (HT @rootwork). Entries are open for AshokaTECH’s “Blog your way to Hyderabad” competition, for those interested in an all-expenses-paid way to get to the event. The winner will be the official blogger, and will be expected to tweet, maintain a live blog, and interview attendees. Earlybird registrations are now open for the 2010 Nonprofit Technology Conference in Atlanta.

Rumour has it that Twitter Lists have now been rolled out to half of all Twitter users. I believe that the Lists functionality will provide non-profits with some great opportunities for outreach and engagement, not to mention enhance the Twitter experience for organisations and their followers.

Below are just a few List building ideas for non-profits:

1. Your organisation’s chapters and campaigns. If your organisation is federated, with multiple state- or city-based chapters, group these together in one list with any campaign-specific accounts. This will help you and your followers keep track of what is happening across all organisation accounts at a glance. No more hunting through the timeline or Twitter search for the latest news!
2. Related international organisations and campaigns. As above, keeping track of what’s happening will keep you and your organisation connected globally.
3. Organisations that are somewhat related to your organisation. If you work for an animal welfare organisation, you could follow organisations relating to animal therapy. Organisations focussed on poverty abroad could follow organisations that deal with issues relating to poverty, like health or microfinance, both abroad and in your own country.
4. Celebrities, politicians and others with a high profile. Whether you know they are supporters of your cause or not, keeping track of high-profile people could help you easily recognise and act on tweets that relate to your cause.
5. Media. As with celebrities, keep track of what journalists and bloggers are tweeting about. You never know when an opportunity to discuss your organisation could pop up.
6. Volunteers. What better way to keep volunteers engaged than to know what’s going on in their life and keep in contact? You may want to keep this list private.
7. Retweeters and people who have contacted you. As above, this can help you keep track of those people who are influenced by your organisation. An added bonus of this is you can work out just how many of your followers are actively engaged with you online. For example, if you have 1000 total followers, and 300 people in this list, you could gauge that your influence is quite high. Nurture these relationships, as these people – your most important Twitter assets – are reacting to and passing on your messages.

   Now, these lists could take some time to set up and maintain, but I see them as an essential part of non-profits’ social media activities.

   What lists will you be setting up? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

I have been watching Channel Nine’s The Secret Millionaire over the last few weeks, and while I’ve found it to be quite an inspiring show, the ratings have been rather lacklustre. Why aren’t more people watching? Most likely, the timeslot of 9:30 on a Thursday night. Which is a shame, as there are two very important themes that reoccur in the show that it deserves a wider audience:

1. Australia has many amazing unsung heroes – volunteers.
2. To give, whether in time or money, can be so rewarding, not only for individuals, but for the community at large.

When I was growing up, my mother managed the local Meals on Wheels. Every morning before school I would help the kitchen staff with minor jobs, and during the school holidays, I would go out on the delivery runs. Most volunteers were retired, and often helped those who were their own age (or younger in some cases). One particular fellow was volunteering well into his 80s, and even when he could no longer drive, he would still go on the delivery runs as an aide. Meals on Wheels as an organisation is so important, not only for providing food, but contact. Many of the older folk would greet us at the door, and it was clear in many cases that the delivery was their favourite part of the day, because they got to talk to somebody. Many people had had no contact with their own family for quite some time, so the Meals on Wheels volunteers had taken that place, providing a connection to the community. And this is where I think a show like The Secret Millionaire is so important. We get to see a part of Australian society that many will never be exposed to: those in need, and the organisations and people and that are there for them, despite their own obstacles. An article on Philanthropy.com earlier this week shared research by Thomas J. Stanley indicating that “[w]ealthy people who give away 10 percent or more of their income to charity tend to build a higher net worth — and to be happier — than other wealthy individuals who give less” (Most Charitable Among Wealthy Have Highest Net Worth — And Are Happier, Too). What is stopping the average person from giving 10 percent of their income? Could we all be happier if we tithed our income (or even time) in order to give to others in need? I truly hope each of the Secret Millionaires continue their philanthropic efforts beyond the show, and that the viewers take a moment to think how they could, in their own way, give back to the community.

With over 2000 non-profits orgs on Twitter it’s clear that Twitter is growing in popularity as a way to communicate with supporters. This week’s Mashable article 26 Non-Profits and Charities That Tweet highlighted a few of the non-profits that have had success with Twitter. This however, begs the question: how can non-profits use Twitter successfully? Before starting to tweet, I recommend that you learn to use Twitter by signing up for a personal acount. Take as long as you need to learn the essentials like Twitter etiquette, hashtags, retweeting etc. You’l then be better equipped to launch your non-profit account knowing the lay of the land. Don’t follow hundreds of people straight away – let your following/follower count rise organically. First up, you should follow @nonprofitorgs, any other local or overseas non-profits in the same field. Use a directory like Twellow, Wefollow etc to find other people, even do a Twitter search for your brand name. Without actively trying to find new followers, I was able to gain over 450 followers in 4 weeks for the non-profit I work for. So what should you be tweeting about? Remember that Twitter is a conversation. At the end of the day, you should be a person, not a faceless organisation, on Twitter. Contribute to conversations, answer questions, share news of what your organisation is doing and retweet interesting stories from related non-profits. Services like Twitpic will give other further insight into your organisation, while twtpoll will help you gain further insight from your followers.