#ADVOCACY: When A Clever Concept Just Misses, It Misses By A Lot
Sometimes being close really means missing by quite a bit
Sometimes a nonprofit’s campaign can include a fine idea that, alas, doesn’t quite get it right. Like a long fly ball to the 385-foot alley of a ball park that falls in to be caught at 382 feet, the charity can be excited at what seems to be about to happen, only to trudge back to the dugout (or in our cases today ‘back to the glitzy communications agencies’) lamenting about what could have been.
Let’s return this Monday to a theme we led off with last Monday on high-concept advocacy plans that did not quite live up to expectations. The good folks at the Showcase of Fundraising Innovation and Inspiration (SOFII) provide us all with food-for-thought when it comes to campaigns that might have looked good in the pristine world of the conference room, but came up just short in the real world. And ‘just short’ can mean real human tragedy where the fight against hunger is concerned.
Popularity: 1% | Category Advice, Blogs, Campaigns, Case Study, Cause Marketing, Civics, Communications, Community, Crowdfunding, Design, Development, Donor Acquisition, Fundraising, Graphic Design, Health, Marketing, Marketing Skills, Media Review, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Public Media, Public Relations, Publications, Reviews, Social Marketing, Storytelling, Strategic Marketing | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#ADVOCACY: Make Sure Pitch Has Call To Action, Not Just High Concept
What happens when you get corporate assistance to launch a new campaign, or pro bono development from a commercial ad agency? You can get some fabulous ideas and some valuable insights on establishing your brand. You can get your materials into some of the best publication and on some of the most visited sites on the web.
But as some of our colleagues at Sofii.org have discovered, you can also get a good deal of expensive nothing. The commercial backer or ad agency might not be sensitive to the constituents who want to be involved with various types of nonprofits. They might encourage outreach through channels that are quite unlikely to reach the people your charity traditionally reaches. They might give you a fabulous product on the design board (Indeed, I think it’s safe to say that they certainly will give you a fabulous design.) that falls flat in the real world. Let’s look at a couple of examples from Sofii.
Popularity: 2% | Category Advertising, Advice, Advocacy, Blogs, Campaigns, Case Study, Cause Marketing, Communications, Copyrighting, Crowdfunding, Design, Development, Donor Acquisition, Fundraising, Graphic Design, How-to, Marketing, Marketing Skills, Measurement, Media Review, Newspaper Article, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Public Relations, Publications, Publications Design, Resource, Reviews, Sponsorship, Storytelling, Strategic Marketing, Study, Writing | | 2 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#COMMUNICATIONS: Make Your Next Fundraiser An Online Conversation Too
A Twitter Wall adds dynamism to even the smallest event
Though weather in the mid-Atlantic continues to flirt with spring while staying surprisingly loyal to winter, it is the season to be planning summer festivals, fundraisers, and rallies. And if you really want to stay on top of your nonprofit’s schedule, start planning your end-of-year banquet as well (and use Tungle). But in this day and age, a nonprofit’s fundraising festival should be but one component of a multi-media plan to engage constituents, volunteers, and supporters both at the event and in the social networks of those attending.
We have recommended ‘Tweet Tables’ in previous posts, and today we draw on a really useful compendium of ideas from Trevor Jonas at Mashable.com.
Popularity: 2% | Category Advertising, Blogs, Cause Marketing, Communications, Community, Crowdfunding, Events, Facebook, Facebook, Fundraising, Gala, Geo-Location, How-to, iDevice, iPad/Tablet, Marketing, Marketing Skills, Media Review, Mobile, Newsletter, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Public Media, Public Relations, Reviews, Site Administration, Social Media, Social Networks, Storytelling, Technology, Technology for Nonprofits, Twitter | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#FUNDRAISING: 2011 Was A Good Year For Email Outreach By Nonprofits
With all the excitement about all the social networks and all the purchases that Facebook has been making lately, it’s worth remembering that not only do more ‘traditional’ media exist but they also can be of greater value than the newest platform that has all the media and investor eyeballs. Such should be especially remembered by nonprofits who might not have the resources to establish a presence on the latest Pinterest trend.
According to the latest eNonprofit Benchmark Study by NTEN (Nonprofit Technology Network) and M+R Strategic Services, a substantial email list and a well-crafted email campaign remain the most valuable fundraising tools in your charity’s box. Just how valuable?
Popularity: 3% | Category Advertising, Advice, Campaigns, Cause Marketing, Communications, Community, Crowdfunding, Design, Development, Donor Acquisition, eBook, eNewsletter, Facebook, Fundraising, iPad Apps, iPad/Tablet, iPhone Apps, Marketing, Marketing Skills, Media Review, Mobile, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Publications, Report, Resource, Reviews, Social Media, Technology, Web Design | | 1 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#SOCIALNETWORKS: Kony 2012 Covered The Night. Did It Jump The Shark?
Youth cover some of the evening
The sensation that is/was ‘Kony 2012′ has been a part of the nonprofit social-media landscape for six-plus weeks now. The hundreds of millions who made the original video a viral sensation in March were not all supporters of the message, though, and challenges to the drive launched by the San Diego nonprofit ‘Invisible Children’ continue to be made. The original and ostensible goal is to have Joseph Kony and his Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) brought to justice by making Kony ‘famous’ enough that world leaders will be inspired or shamed to dedicate the resources to get him. The effort to make him famous has been done and the culmination of the effort was this past weekend’s ‘Cover The Night’ campaign. How well did it go? Whether the night got ‘covered’ probably depends on where you are and what you want ‘covered’ to mean, but Invisible Children have ratcheted up their campaign with, frankly, the oddest video yet.
Popularity: 4% | Category Blogs, Cause Marketing, Civics, Communications, Community, Crowdfunding, Event Review, Events, Fundraising, Marketing, Media Review, National/International, News and Current Affairs, Newspaper Article, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Opinion, Politics, Public Media, Reviews, Social Media, Social Networks, Storytelling, Video, YouTube | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#HOWTO: Setup A (Free) Scoop.it Magazine For Your Community
We introduced Scoop.it and Pinterest earlier this week because we think these information-sharing sites offer a great platform for nonprofits and charities to share their own news as well as related images or stories in their sectors. As promised we have returned to round out this mini-series with a guide to help you setup a Scoop.it e-magazine site. Unlike Pinterest, you need not wait for an ‘invitation’. In fact, if you have a Twitter or Facebook account, you are already good-to-go. And if you don’t, where have you been these past five or six years?!
Popularity: 3% | Category Blogs, Cause Marketing, Communications, Community, Dashboards, eNewsletter, How-to, Marketing, Media Review, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Public Media, Public Relations, Research, Resource, Reviews, Scoopit, Site Administration, Social Media, Social Networks, Software Review, Technology, Technology for Nonprofits | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#SM4NP: Scoop.it! For Information ‘Curation’ & Social Interaction
Yesterday we explored Pinterest, a social network that puts a premium on visuals and offers ‘pin boards’ of topics collected/bookmarked/’pinned’ by the user. The metrics on the platform show amazing growth over the last few months, and many are still waiting for an invitation to join up. Scoop.it! has, on the surface, a strikingly similar mission: to provide a webspace to present ‘magazines’ of (hopefully) related materials based on a user’s interests and what information she or he has ‘curated’ for his or her site.
Let’s look at Scoop.it, and to do so we must appreciate what this notion of ‘content curation’ means.
Popularity: 3% | Category Blogs, Branding, Cause Marketing, Communications, Community, Design, Marketing, Marketing Skills, Media Review, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Public Media, Public Relations, Research, Resource, Reviews, Scoopit, Site Administration, Social Media, Social Networks, Storytelling, Technology, Technology for Nonprofits, Web Design | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#TECH: Google+ Gets Redesign To Emphasize Visuals & Customizations
This morning Google announced a striking rise in income that beat stock analysts’ predictions for this first quarter of 2012: $10.65 billion for this past quarter. The number represents a 24% increase from last year’s Q1. Just before the search giant released these huge numbers, it announced a redesign of its social network, Google Plus. Though little if any of this influx of cash came from the social network, Google seems to be heavily invested on making their platform a vibrant competitor to Facebook, and the redesign seems geared to emphasize photos and video (Google owns YouTube) just as the new Timeline does on the competitor’s platform.
Let’s take a little tour.
Popularity: 2% | Category Blogs, Communications, Dashboards, Design, How-to, Media Review, Newspaper Article, Resource, Reviews, Site Administration, Social Media, Social Networks, Software Review, Technology, Web and Print, Web Design | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#SM4NP: How Is Facebook’s Timeline Doing In Drawing New Traffic?
We all like to be liked
Now that the Timeline feature has been up-and-out on Facebook’s individual and on organizational and business pages for a week or so, people are starting to dig into the metrics about how useful and/or successful Timeline has been. The proof of most things Facebook is in the metrics of those who visit and interact with the pages. Timeline’s strikingly graphical interface and the ability to feature content certainly seem to be huge draws. In some instances the numbers back the enthusiasm. But in other instances, they don’t. So what do we know so far about Timeline and increased engagement with organizational Facebook accounts?
Popularity: 4% | Category Branding, Communications, Facebook, Facebook, Facebook, Marketing, Media Review, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Public Relations, Site Administration, Social Media, Social Networks, Storytelling, Technology, Technology for Nonprofits | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#TECH: Google Now Designing Glasses And Giving Us A New ‘Play’ Service
Are these Google Glasses?
The good people at Google have been busy releasing new aspects of their services that are meant to augment our muti-media experiences. As is often the case, one’s first blush of these technologies might appear a bit overwhelming or a bit far out on the bleeding edge for most of us. But one of our goals at MKCREATIVEmedia is to keep our readers up-to-date on that bleeding-edge technology and to keep apprised as to how that technology is adapted and adopted by the nonprofit, charity, and small-business communities.
The first, Google Play, will likely seem pretty familiar to anyone using a cloud-based media service like iCloud or Amazon Prime. But Google Glasses seems so far out there that even some tech fetishists are wondering about its appeal. Of course, people scoffed at the notion we would want to travel in a noisy open-air flying machine as well.
Popularity: 3% | Category Communications, Dashboards, Design, Hardware Review, How-to, iDevice, iPad Apps, iPad/Tablet, iPhone Apps, Marketing, Media Review, News and Current Affairs, Public Media, Reviews, Social Media, Social Networks, Technology, Video | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#SM4NP: Kony 2012 Will Get A Sequel & More Context Today
Today is the day. Probably.
As any Hollywood mogul will confirm, when your movie is watched by 100 million people, you need to make a sequel. That market is just too big to pass up. And the renown viral video Kony 2012 has been viewed well over 100 million times. Nevertheless, the reasons the San Diego based firm ’Invisible Children’ will be releasing a sequel to their 30-minute wunderkind seem not really about tapping a market so much as explaining the phenomenon. It has not been released as of this posting, but one can’t help but wonder if we need the prequel/context-setter any more than we needed Star Wars: The Phantom Menace.
What do we know about a movie that has not yet appeared?
Popularity: 3% | Category Campaigns, Case Study, Cause Marketing, Civics, Communications, Crowdfunding, Design, Events, Fundraising, Marketing, Media Review, National/International, News and Current Affairs, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Opinion, Politics, Reviews, Social Media, Storytelling, Video | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#Tech: The Net Is Not Quite Dead, But It’s Not Your Mom’s Web Anymore
First of all, an adjustment/correction to yesterday’s story: Facebook pushed back its rollout of Timeline across all accounts until tomorrow, the 31st. Facebook did this rather quietly and did not state why, but you now have about 20 hours to get your Timeline up-and-running, as we outlined yesterday. (Thanks to Cody Damon of Damon Strategic for the heads-up!)
Today’s tech topic is related in so far as it is about how we interact with Facebook and other online services in new ways. The traditional ‘internet via browser’ model is fading away, to be replaced by a more precise paradigm − one that moves us from our mobile devices directly to the service/platform/medium that we want. The opportunity it presents will streamline, and perhaps redefine, the internet as we knew it. How?
Popularity: 3% | Category Advice, Apple, Case Study, Communications, Desktop Apps, Fundraising, iDevice, iPad Apps, iPhone Apps, Marketing, Marketing Skills, Media Review, Nonprofit, Publications, Report, Resource, SEO, Site Administration, Social Media, Software Review, Strategic Marketing, Technology, Web Design | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#HOWTO: Facebook Timeline Goes Public Tomorrow! Ready?
Are you ready? It goes live tomorrow!
Facebook has been rolling out its new ‘Timeline’ feature for a few months now, and we hope we have given you a helping hand with the changes. Timeline redesigns your social interaction into a chronological sweep that is also distinguished topically and physically (that is, by being placed in different sections of your FB home page). It allows an individual, a nonprofit, or a company to present a visual banner or ‘Cover’ to introduce themselves, and it offers greater opportunity to control the ‘Story’ on the page by giving users means to ‘back fill’ their histories.
And the fact is, Timeline becomes the default interface of all Facebook accounts tomorrow! If your charity is on Facebook, you need to be prepared. We found a couple of great sources to help you tidy up your page in preparation of the final stages of implementation.
Popularity: 4% | Category Advice, Blogs, Branding, Cause Marketing, Communications, Facebook, Facebook, Facebook, Fundraising, How-to, Marketing, Marketing Skills, Media Review, Nonprofit, Public Relations, Resource, Reviews, Site Administration, Social Media, Social Networks, Software Review, Storytelling, Study, Technology, Technology for Nonprofits, Video, Web Design, YouTube | | 1 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#SM4NP: ‘Kony 2012′ Still Stirs Engagement, Controversy, And Embarrassment
Director's breakdown raises further questions
The controversy surrounding the viral video ‘Kony 2012′ continues even as its views on YouTube surpass 85.4 million as I write. The director, Jason Russell, had something of a mental breakdown a week ago, when he was arrested for indecent exposure while ranting almost incoherently about support and friendships. As reported by ABC.com late last week, “According to the National Institutes of Health, brief reactive psychosis is triggered by extreme stress, such as a traumatic event or the loss of a loved one. The symptoms, which include delusions, hallucinations and strange speech, can last up to a month, and the person may be completely unaware of them. … Alan Hilfer, chief psychologist at Maimonides Medical Center in New York City, said the backlash over Russell’s “Kony 2012″ campaign could have been traumatic enough to trigger the meltdown.”
How might disconcerting behavior of the video’s producer shift the discussion of the video and the appeal by ‘Invisible Children’ to raise awareness of Joseph Kony’s ‘Lord’s Resistance Army‘?
Popularity: 4% | Category Advertising, Campaigns, Case Study, Cause Marketing, Civics, Communications, Crowdfunding, Fundraising, Marketing, Marketing Skills, Media Review, National/International, News and Current Affairs, Newspaper Article, Nonprofit, Opinion, Politics, Public Media, Reviews, Social Media, Social Networks, Storytelling, Technology, Video, YouTube | | 3 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#SM4NP: Kone 2012 Video Goes Viral, But Maybe For Wrong Reasons
But will it hold up to scrutiny?
Today is yet another day in the Republican Primary Season. Today is another day many thousands of Republicans will not want Barack Obama re-elected, but nor will they rally around a viable contender. Yet today also is the day possibly the 75 millionth person watches the viral video phenomenon ‘Kony 2012′. The video tells the moving story of Joseph Kony of Uganda who was certainly known (7-8 years ago) for kidnapping boys and forcing them to serve in his Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), and the viral video campaign by Invisible Children to raise money and awareness to have him brought to justice.
But Is Kony even alive? Is Invisible Children truly dedicated to helping youth in war-torn central Africa? The very success of the ‘Kony 2012′ campaign shows us how fraught with challenges our media saturated brave new world is.
Popularity: 78% | Category Case Study, Cause Marketing, Civics, Communications, Community, Fundraising, Media Review, National/International, News and Current Affairs, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Opinion, Politics, Public Media, Public Relations, Reviews, Social Media, Storytelling, Video Interview | | 4 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#SOCIALNETWORKS: Facebook Opens Timeline To Organizations
On Leap-Day Wednesday Facebook took a leap to the social-media future for nonprofits and businesses by opening up features that had hitherto been accessible only to individuals. Those features – of which Timeline is perhaps creating the most buzz – will be hidden until 30 March if you wish, so you have time to play with the features and prepare your organization’s new public face. If you get yours up-and-running early, you can already push the publish buttons, as Livestrong has already done.
Although the announcement went out today, there’s already plenty of assistance to introduce the new features and make them work for your charity.
Popularity: 3% | Category Branding, Communications, Facebook, Facebook, How-to, Marketing, Marketing Skills, Media Review, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Public Relations, Reviews, Site Administration, Social Media, Storytelling, Technology, Technology for Nonprofits, Web Design | | 1 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#PUBLICPOLICY: Online Privacy Becomes Concern For Service Providers
Perhaps the most famous statement of internet privacy from 'The New Yorker' (1993)
Online privacy has been a notable concern for many citizens almost since the inception of the internet, and certainly we have often discussed the issue on our blog over the years. A decade ago, the question of privacy largely was answered with calm warnings to use common sense and with explanations of the averages working against anyone being able to assemble any meaningful aggregate of the real you.
But now not only do companies exist precisely to aggregate your online behavior, millions of us willingly offer our own aggregations via our social-network platforms of choice. Those who strive to ensure some privacy of individuals have been lobbying the federal government to block certain aggregations and pressuring companies to offer ever more powerful privacy controls to customers and members. What seems to be the state of the discussion now?
Popularity: 4% | Category Audio Interview, Blogs, Civics, Communications, Community, Facebook, Marketing, Marketing Skills, Media Review, National/International, News and Current Affairs, Nonprofit, Permission Marketing, Politics, Public Relations, Site Administration, Social Media, Strategic Marketing, Web and Print | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#COMMUNICATIONS: Plan Your Nonprofit’s Story, Then Shoot The Video
Making a video is all the rage in the nonprofit world – and it should be. Videos can engage the eyes and ears and hearts of your audience in ways that can and should complement other means of outreach. Videos can also be presented in a myriad of ways: posting it on YouTube and Vimeo is a given, but with ever faster networks your organization can email them to donors, it can be shown on the big screen of a fundraising gala, and your charity’s website should include a copy as well.
But as video becomes the buzzword-du-jour, remember that it is one tool in the box and the point of all the tools is to expand outreach, interest, donations, and volunteer pools. What will make the video tool successful is not the fancy technology but the careful construction of a meaningful and touching story. Video should be perceived as a chapter of a larger book of outreach, and perhaps not the first chapter.
Popularity: 4% | Category Advice, Campaigns, Cause Marketing, Communications, Community, Fundraising, Marketing, Marketing Skills, Media Review, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Public Media, Storytelling, Technology for Nonprofits, Video, Video Interview | | 1 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#PUBLICPOLICY: Pressure Grows On Apple’s Supplier Foxconn
These are protestors of, not customers for, the new iPhone
The reputation of a nonprofit can make-or-break its efforts. Note the stunning blowback and reversal of the Susan G. Komen Foundation when it quietly tried to back out of its relationship with Planned Parenthood. For a business, the reputation can perhaps take more of a beating and still survive. Note BP’s expanding presence in the Gulf of Mexico despite the human and environmental costs of the corporation’s oil spill in 2010.
And then there’s Apple: perhaps the only company that can have a serious court case against its flagship product (the iPad in China), a publicity firestorm and protests over its (suppliers’) treatment of workers, and can still surpass the $500 share price. How is its PR responding to the oxymorons?
Popularity: 3% | Category Apple, Case Study, Civics, Communications, Community, Marketing Skills, Media Review, National/International, News and Current Affairs, Public Relations, Technology | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD
#HOWTO: Efficiently Monitor Your Organization’s Busy Social Networks
Need help taming those updates and retweets?
So many claims on the time of a nonprofit staff, and only so many hours in the work day. We might be temped to carry our work home with us, but aren’t the lines between work and family already blurred enough? If you want efficient tools for monitoring and updating your business’s social media, we’d like to suggest a few dashboards that can cull your various accounts into one place, allow scheduling of posts, and offer ways to save and/or reply to specific messages.
Let’s start with a couple of freebies, then move to some heavy-hitting services that require payment.
Popularity: 4% | Category Apple, Cause Marketing, Communications, Crowdfunding, Facebook, How-to, iDevice, iPad Apps, iPhone Apps, Marketing Skills, Measurement, Media Review, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Public Media, Reviews, Site Administration, Social Media, Software Review, Technology, Technology for Nonprofits, Twitter | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, PhD