using social media for grassroots advocacy
TRANSCRIPT
Please take this quick survey:
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Presenters:
Jackie Taylor, Advocacy Chair, National Coalition for Literacy; President Elect, Commission on Adult Basic Education.Marsha L. Tait, Grant Manager, National Coalition for Literacy
Social Media Strategies for Public Policy Advocacy
How Do You Use Social Media?Survey Results
Social Media: Why You Can’t Ignore It
Video Discussion
How Do You WANT to Use Social Media for your program?
NCL's Use of Social Media: Mobilizing Advocates
The Internet’s Role in Citizen Advocacy
—From the Congressional Management Foundation: http://congressfoundation.org/projects/communicating-with-congress/perceptions-of-citizen-advocacy-on-capitol-hill
More Knowledgeable 41%
More Accountable 57%
More Involved 87%
Form Messages the Worst 90%
In-Person the Best 97%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 120%
Percentage of Staffs Agree
Importance of Social Media for Communicating with Constituents
Why Social Media for Grassroots Advocacy?Email Open Rates are Declining
According to M+R:
Email open rates declined almost
63% between 2004 and 2008.
Social Network Use Is GrowingAccording to Pew:
46%of adult Internet users are social network users – up 6x from 2005.
So many networks…Where Should I Focus?
FacebookNetworking Big Picture
Personal Profiles Program or Class PagesTopic-Specific Pages Post and tag photos Lead and respond to discussions
* Second-most visited website worldwide!
Engaging GrassrootsShare links/media in status updatesEncourage conversationAsk questions & answer every commentPost no more than 1-2 updates/day – or less!Do not automate content and sync FB w/other SN sitesEncourage staff/volunteers to be active on your pageHave more than one adminUse “events” to allow people to RSVP directly on FBCreate topic specific pagesIntegrate your FB page into your website, e-newsletter, blog, print materials and TY landing pages and emails
Engaging Grasstops
Engaging Legislators on Facebook
Example: NCL, Acting on Facebook Alertshttp://www.facebook.com/NationalCoalitionforLiteracy
Acting on Facebook AlertsStep #1: Compose
Message
Select Legislators
Specify Subject
“The Ask”
Insert Talking Points
Using the Online Alert, Cont.Closing
Enter Contact Information
Click Send Message
Examples: Support Adult Basic Ed Arizonahttp://www.facebook.com/SupportAdultEd
Who To Follow on FacebookYour Legislators!Other Examples:
National Coalition for LiteracyAmerican Library AssociationCOABE National Center for Family LiteracyProLiteracySupport Adult Basic Education ArizonaTESOLVALUEUSAPickaway Ross CTC (local program example of interaction with students)
How Do I know I’m Doing This Right?
Facebook Insights
FollowersViewsPost Feedback
Changes in Facebook InsightsFrom All About Facebook, in The Daily Advocate:
http://www.allfacebook.com/facebook-page-insights-2011-10
TwitterMicroblogging Big Picture
140 CharactersShortening your linksReTweets and HashtagsHow to find people to followSearching TwitterWays to receive and send tweets
Twitter.comhttp://twitter.com/#!/ncladvocacy
140 Characters
Anatomy of a ReTweet
User NameOriginal source of information
Link to more information or photo or video
Indicates a Retweet
Avatar / Logo
Hashtag
Shortening Links & Tracking DataBit.lyOwl.ly
Ways to Send and Receive TweetsTweetdeckHootsuite
Hashtags & Archiving Datahttp://archivist.visitmix.com/ for #COABE11
Sample Cut-and-Paste Tweetshttp://www.national-coalition-literacy.org/advocacy/aefl_tweet.html
Engaging GrassrootsTweet 3-5 times a daySpread tweets out throughout the dayConversational tone, but consistent messaging across social media platformsFollow influential people who are likely to be interested in your workReply and retweet at least once a dayUse relevant hashtags; but use sparingly
#adulted #education #literacy #famlit#famliteracy #esl #efl #ell
Track RTs to see what gets the most attention
Engaging With Legislators / Grasstops
Encourage your followers to RT / DM Ask legislators questionsRT their content that aligns w/adult ed; hook adult ed to their interests.Share information and actions from your organization via phone / mail. Repurpose into a tweet:
“Rep. @AnderCrenshaw: thought you might be interested in… #adulted”
Getting StartedGo to twitter.com and set up an account.Keep your user name consistent with your username on other platforms like FB.Do not protect your tweets unless you are using Twitter to create a closed community.Only enable tweet location if you are not tweeting from home. + to increase exposure of your program location.Don’t leave background information blank. You may be perceived to be a spammer.
Who to FollowYour legislators!Lots of great folks to follow! How to find them:
Search for hashtags; follow those who tweet interesting contentLook at their follower list; follow some of their followers who tweet interesting content Search for state/national organizations whose message you support. Follow them.Outside AE: MomsRising CoalitiononHN HalfinTenInside AE:
CAEPA_CO NCLAdvocacy FloridaLiteracynelightful NevadaAdultEd CLASP_DC Flatechgirl Aceofflorida GEDTesting
How Do I know If I’m Doing This Right?http://tweetreach.com/
How Do I Know I’m Doing This Right?http://klout.com/ Looks at:
• True Reach: # of people you influence
• Amplification: How much you influence them
• Network: Influence of others within your true reach
Blogs
Blogging Big PictureCreating and Distributing ContentDifferent PlatformsStrategiesExamples
Blogging Big PictureCentral voice of your organizationDriven by fresh contentConsistent stream of timely fresh content to tweet and post via FB and e-listsMissing piece for building e-lists & driving traffic to website and SM forumsImproves search engine resultsAllows you to grow fans and followers on SM sites
Blogging Platforms
WordPress.org – free, must be downloaded on a serverWordPress.com – free, no 3rd party hosting; theme choice limited; cannot add pluginsTypePad – costs $15 - $30/mo, often used by professional bloggersBlogger, Posterous, Tumblr, EduBlog are other examples
Grassroots StrategiesUse your organization avatar for logoSimple designMake resources easy to find by categoryHave links to related content appear beneath each blog postAllow comments, moderated; encourage participationPost regularly about advocacy campaigns – get info from NCL Advocacy BlogBecome local hub for adult ed advocacy infoCross-link to resources widely used by your readership Ex: NYTimes
Grasstops StrategiesInvite grasstops to be guest bloggersRegularly feature local advocacy projects on blogUse email, Twitter, FB, to invite grasstops to visit and comment on blog
For Legislators:Outline the legislation you supportLink to state / national organization legislative updatesSend them to pertinent blog articles containing policy positions of your organization
Example: NCLAdvocacy Bloghttp://blog.ncladvocacy.org
1. Click on the title of the blog post where you wish to post a comment or question.
How to Post to a Blog2. Enter your comment or question in the Message field below, and click “Comment” in the bottom left corner to submit your “post”.
Your Comment Awaits “Moderation”3. Your comment will not appear right away. Instead, you will see a message like this one: “Your comment is waiting moderation.”
4. The blog moderator will review your message in light of the blog guidelines, and also ensure it is not spam. Once the blog moderator reviews and releases your comment, it will appear beneath the Message box.
How Do I Know I’m Doing This Right?Google Analytics, Urchin
Wikipedia
Create A Presence on Wikipedia
Create a Wikipedia entry *Link to other articles pertaining to adult and family literacyLink to researchLink to related fieldsUse multiple sources (neutrality)Edit literacy-related Wikipedia entries
Getting Started2 minutes: Get Involved.
Sign up for CAEPA + NCL updates. Bookmark the NCL Advocacy ToolkitAct on alerts. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.
5 minutes: Get Others Involved. Share adult education facts and alerts. Get sample Facebook, blog, and Twitter posts you can use to update your status.
Getting Started, Cont.
10 minutes: Educate Yourself & Others. Learn / share more about why adult education is important.Get / share the facts on adult education. Learn / share about legislative priorities for adult education and family literacy at the state/federal levels. Learn / teach the differences between educating, advocating, and lobbying.
Getting Started, Cont.Ongoing: Make a Difference
Browse the NCL Advocacy Toolkit to familiarize yourself with the resources available to you.Write a blog article (guest blog or on your own blog) about the importance of adult education and family literacy in your community. Create your own local network of 5-10 individuals interested in advocating for adult education and keep them informed on adult education issues by forwarding NCL updates and alerts.Invite your legislator to visit your local adult education program.
Intermission30 Minute Break
Break Here If You’d Like!