Weaving Social Media Into Your Communications Strategy

Beth KanterVisiting Scholar, Packard Foundation

June 15, 2010

Experience a social media strategy planning session that integrates social media with overall communications plan and Internet strategy

Address organizational culture and capacity issues that often arise when a new technology is introduced

Identify one thing you can do to change your organization’s practice around social media

Objectives

1:00 – 2:15 Principles of Effective Social Media Strategy

2:15-2:30Spectra Gram and Quick Break

2:45-4:15Small Groups to Play Simulation Game

4:15-4:30Reflection

Agenda

http://socialmedia-strategy.wikispaces.com/

#weavesc

Stand up, Sit Down

Beth Kanterhttp://www.bethkanter.org

@afine @kanter

June 21st Virtual Launch Party

4-5 PM EST

http://bit.ly/networkednp

http://bit.ly/netnongo

Why become a Networked Nonprofit?

Complex social problems that outpace the capacity of any single nonprofit organization

Photo by uncultured

The Networked Nonprofit

BE DO

Understand Networks Work with Free Agents

Create Social Culture Work with Crowds

Listen, Engage, and Build Relationships

Learning Loops

Trust Through Transparency Friending or Funding

Simplicity Govern through Networks

Some nonprofits are born networked nonprofits, it is in their DNA ….

Connect online/offline and not afraid of letting go and letting outsiders in

Simplicity: Focus on what they do best, network the rest

Other nonprofits make that transition more slowly

Red Cross: Making the Transition to A Networked Nonprofit

Listen: Monitor, Compile, Distribute

I took an American Red Cross class I thought was less than satisfactory. […] The local chapter director. called me to talk about it honestly. They care about me and they’re willing to go the extra mile. I am now significantly more likely to take another class than I was before.” - Blogger

Listening Drove Adoption

Relationship building

Customer service issue

Influencer complaining …

Engagement

Scale

Social Media’s Role in Disaster Relief Effort in Haiti

Social Media, do we have

to?

How many of you feel like this?

The Media Landscape: Newspapers are disappearing like Cheshire cats

The internet and social media has not replaced/ displaced traditional media but…It is fundamentally changing the way people consume and interact with information

The “New” Information Ecology

Print local newspaper (50%)

Print national newspaper (17%)

Radio (54%)

Internet (61%)

Local TV news (78%) National TV

news (73%)

Menu of Choices for News on a Typical Day

How people are getting info to make decisions

With my friends

Overall, 71% of internet users get news and information through email or posts on social networking sites – PEW Internet Project – 6/2010

Strategy

Social Media Best Practices

Flickr Photo by toby_maloy

I’ve been watching you

Generate BuzzSocial

Content

ListenEngage

Movement Building with

Multi-Channels

Social Media Strategy Blocks

Integrated with Overall Communications and Internet StrategyDrives Offline Action, Change of Behavior, or Impact Outcome

acticaches

Listen Engage

Movement Building and

Multi-Channel

GenerateBuzz

Less Time

10hr 15hr 20hr

Social Content

Social Media: Picking Tools

Crawl ………..……Walk …….…….. Run ……..…………….Flyl

Photo by Franie

Share Pairs

Are you in the crawl, walk, run, or fly stage with your social media?

What does that look like?

What’s needed to get you to the next stage?

#excelsm

Social media must be aligned with your communications or program objectives.

Strategy

Communications and Program Assessment

• Who do you want to reach?• What do you want to accomplish?• Where can social improve or

supplement programs, services, or communications?

• What’s our available budget/time?• What opportunities to pilot?

Charting: What are your planned events, content, and opportunities for the year? What to socialize?

Uses listening and engaging techniques to develop a deep understanding of the audience

Strategy

Source: Communications Network Listening Presentation OSI Foundation

Uses conversation starters to engage your target audience.

Strategy

Conversation Starters

AudienceTwitter

OBJECTIVE

AudienceFacebook

What are they saying that is relevant to/engages?

What are they saying that is relevant

to/engages?

How can you rework your message as a response or conversation starter?

How can you rework your message as response or conversation starter?

Follow up points

Content Follow up points

Content

Builds relationships with influencers on social media spaces

Strategy

#excelsm

Did you hear something new ?What have you thought about before?What resonated?

Your web content must have a social life

Strategy

Branded

Content

Social Outposts

Co-CreateSocial

Content

The Social Life of Content

Engage Spread Remix

Branded

Content

Social Outpo

sts

Crawl: Link and Recycle

Walk Run

Fly

Social Outpo

sts

Branded

Content

Give yourself some link love

Repurposing or recycling content for different channels

Repurposing or recycling content for different channels

Engage Spread Remix

Engage Spread Remix

Branded

Content

Social Outposts

Co-CreatedSocial

Content

Social Media Outposts

Branded

Content

Social Outposts

Co-CreatedSocial

Content

Curated Social Content

Branded Content

Web Site

Social Outposts

Co-CreatedSocial

Content

Branded

Content

Social Outposts

Co-CreatedSocial

Content

Use social media to close the loop between online and offline action

Strategy

Closing the Loop with Social Media

Tweet Ups

Allocates enough staff time and has the expertise to implement strategy

Capacity

Staffing

Free• Intern• Fans• Volunteer

Integrated• Tasks in Job

Staff• Full-Time• Part-Time

Don’t do this to your intern ….

ADOLAS

Oh Look, A Squirrel!

• Monitor RSS 9:00• Twitter9:30•Content Creation10:00•Social Networking11:00

Squirrel!

Launches small pilots and reiterates using the right metrics to understand what is and what isn’t working.

Learning

Approach Social Media as if you were Thomas Edison inventing the storage battery

storage battery

Results! I have gotten a lot of results. I know what doesn’t work and won’t have to be tried again.

I am not discouraged because every wrong attempt discarded is a step forward.

KD Paine

Pick the Right Result

Tangible

DonationsLeads

SubscribersMembers

Saved Time Saved Costs

Increased page rankIncreased media attention

Signed petitionsCalls or emails to government

officials

Intangible

Insights about what works

Interaction EngagementReputation

LoyaltySatisfactionSentimentFeedback

Objective, Audience, Strategy, Tactics, Time investment,

Identify the most important metric to measure it!

Spreadsheet Aerobics

Testing, Testing, Testing

Squirrel!

Uses social media to engage people inside and outside the organization to improve programs, services, or reach communications goals.

Social Culture

Loss of control over their branding and marketing messages Dealing with negative comments Addressing personality versus organizational voice (trusting employees)

Make mistakes

Make senior staff too accessible

Perception of wasted of time and resources

Suffering from information overload already, this will cause more

Making a strong business case

Make Learning in Public Less Stressful: Worst Case Scenarios & Contingency Plans

Reflection

Leaders Experience Personal Use

Codifying A Social Culture: Policy

• Encouragement and support

• Why policy is needed• Cases when it will be used,

distributed• Oversight, notifications, and

legal implications

• Guidelines• Identity and transparency• Responsibility• Confidentiality • Judgment and common

sense

• Best practices• Tone• Expertise• Respect• Quality

• Additional resources• Training• Press referrals• Escalation

• Policy examples available at wiki.altimetergroup.com

Source: Charlene Li, Altimeter Group

Be professional, kind, discreet, authentic. Represent us well. Remember that you can’t control it once you hit “update.”

Testing the policies: Refining, Educating

Operational guidelines need to be specific and include examples

Don’t moon anyone with a camera, unless you hide your face ….

Summary:

Social Media should be integrated into your organization’s communications plan

You can be successful with small incremental steps

Spectra Gram:

How comfortable are you with social media tools?

Somewhere in between?

VER

YN

OT

AT A

LL

Source: littleoslo.com - Blogpoly

Ready to play the Social Media

Game?

http://socialmedia.wikispaces.com/Social+media+game

David Wilcox

Table CheckLeaderCommunicationsTechnologyNumber

Rules …

• Value of the exercise is the discussion and how you navigate through choices

• Don’t get hung up if you don’t have enough context. Make it up!

• There are no right or wrong answers

• Instructions on paper and knowledge in the cards and other people at table

Each table has been given a number and will work the corresponding scenario.

1= Environmental Advocacy Organization2= Homeless Services Center3= Organic Farming Association4= Conservation Education Program5= Performing and Visual Arts Center

1. Review Scenario

2. Refine Objective

3. Identify Audience

4. Brainstorm Strategy Using Principles

5. Pick Tools

6. Reports

7. Reflection

Reports

• Summarize strategy decisions

• Summarize discussions

How will you apply what you learned to your external strategy?

How will you apply what you learned to your external communications strategy?

What do you need to move forward?

What is the first step you will take?

Reflection

Thank you!http://www.bethkanter.org