#TECH: Facebook Timeline Rolled Out-Nonprofits Roll In
Last week a much-anticipated feature was released by Facebook’s developers. No, not the stock IPO (Initial Public Offer), but the Timeline feature/app that can turn one’s activities online into, well, a timeline. In one sense, one’s posts and posts of one’s friends (including organizations) created a proto-timeline. What the new feature offers is the opportunity for one’s activities outside Facebook to be brought into one’s Timeline, a development of what the folks at FB call ‘The Open Graph’.
The paradigm, and the opportunity to develop applications to link your nonprofit/business/media conglomerate/reading circle/music application…, was first presented in mid-January and now some 80+ such organizations have developed apps (the numbers shift periodically as more organizations make such apps, but some are blocked after being reviewed by Facebook). The numbers of nonprofits taking advantage of Timeline are not yet huge, but many are discussing how they might in the near future.
Popularity: 1% | Category Advertising, Branding, Cause Marketing, Communications, Crowdfunding, Facebook, Facebook, Fundraising, How-to, Marketing, Measurement, Media Review, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Permission Marketing, Reviews, Site Administration, Social Media, Software Review, Storytelling, Technology for Nonprofits | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner
#SM4NP: Beware Not Of SM But Of SM Snake Oil & Silver Bullets
Should you? Must you?
If we aren’t careful, we might be entranced to believe social-media networking platforms have been around for quite a while. I mean, if Facebook is valued at $5 billion in its Initial Public Auction, then surely it’s a tried-and-true company that still has room to grow. Right?
Before you jump over to your E*Trade account, you might ask yourself “What has Facebook (or Twitter, for that matter) done for me?” That query, if you are a nonprofit or a small business, can be tricky to answer, unless you started with a plan and with some measurable goals that can be stood next to what you have in fact done. And sometimes, what you want done can get a nice push from social media but social media won’t necessarily do the heavy hauling. And that’s ok!
Popularity: 1% | Category Advice, Blogs, Cause Marketing, Communications, Community Gardens, Facebook, Facebook, Fundraising, Interview, Marketing, Marketing Budget, Marketing Skills, Measurement, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Site Administration, Social Media, Storytelling, Strategic Marketing, Technology for Nonprofits, Tweets, Twitter | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner
#INTERVIEW: Christina Attard, Philanthropic Advisor, Blogger, and Development Director
Christina Attard writes the “Ask Better-Give Smarter” Blog. As a philanthropic adviser, she helps both nonprofits with their development programming and individuals planning tax-smart donations. She has been a Gift Planning Officer at two Canadian universities and is currently the Development Director for a Christian diocese in Regina, Saskatchewan. The interview was conducted by Don Akchin, a principal of Nonprofit Marketing 360 and a frequent contributor to the MKCREATIVE blog.
MKC: How did you manage to get to this place of semi-guruhood from a B.A. in mediaeval studies?
CHRISTINA: How it actually happened is that I was starting university and paying my own way. I had some money saved, but not enough. When I went to see my Dean, a Sister of St. Joseph, she said, how do you plan to pay for your year here? I said, I’ve been praying about that and hoping for an answer soon. She said, that’s very nice, do you have a resume? (Yes.) Go get your resume and go to the financial aid office. I’ll call ahead, go see a woman named Pauline and we’ll see if she can get you through with some cash from a bursary. Pauline saw me and said, we have this bursary and you’ll be eligible for it, it’s still not going to be enough, do you have your resume? (Yes.) Well, go across the street to the alumni office, talk to a woman named Mary Ellen and see if she’ll give you a job. Mary Ellen gave me a job in the fundraising office, and at graduation they said to me, we’d like to keep you, come tomorrow, we’ll offer you a contract and you can come on as a full-time fundraiser. They did a lot to train and build me over a period of several years. Eventually, I followed my partner when his job transferred to Kingston, Ontario and I became a Senior Gift Planning Officer at Queens University, which has one of Canada’s top fundraising shops, and I got to learn from some of the best in the country. I just got very lucky.
Popularity: 1% | Category Blogs, Communications, Community, Cross-Post, Donor Acquisition, Fundraising, Grants, Grants and Funding, Interview, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Perspectives, Perspectives, Resource, Storytelling | | 0 Comments
Written by: Don Akchin
#FUNDRAISING: Impact Of Mobile Donations To Haiti Two Years On?
Two years ago this month, Haitians endured a 7.1 magnitude earthquake that destroyed much of the infrastructure in the capital, Port-au-Prince, and killed over 300,000 people. The outpouring of support from numerous nations inspired faith that rebuilding after the tragedy would bring notable improvements to the poorest nation in the western hemisphere.
Unfortunately, two years on, much of the news concerns not the rebuilding of the island nation but the challenge of simply finding where the promised money and resources went. Much of it simply has not shown up as countries have given less (some news sources state as much as half) than first promised. But of what has arrived has often been diverted to non-Haitian companies or to corrupt local officials who overcharge for minimal services.
And yet we also have the data to show how much non-governmental was raised ($43 million) and how.
Popularity: 1% | Category Case Study, Communications, Community, Crowdfunding, Fundraising, Grants and Funding, Media Review, News and Current Affairs, Newspaper Article, Nonprofit, Publications, Research, Resource, Social Media, Study, Technology, Technology for Nonprofits | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner
#Tech: Apple’s Reputation Gets Pulped – Deservedly So?
Oops...
Tweets often move faster than facts. True, the Apple web store was down for a bit yesterday, but when it came back up, no new iPad or iPhone 5. Indeed, the only notable difference I could see was the prominence of Apple’s report on ‘Supplier Responsibility‘ for 2012.
Which proved to be a ‘fortuitous’ move, given the fact that yesterday The New York Times published a scathing and in-depth report about workers’ conditions at technology-suppliers Foxconn in China. A significant portion of Foxconn’s factory in Chengdu exploded in May 2011, killing four workers. Which slowed output of iPad 2s, which caught peoples’ attention. Which inspired investigations into what was going on at Foxconn. Which are now coming to light and showing the terribly rough conditions at the factory/city. For which Apple is taking most of the heat. Is that fair?
Popularity: 1% | Category Apple, Branding, Campaigns, Civics, Communications, Environment, iDevice, iPad/Tablet, Marketing, News and Current Affairs, Newspaper Article, Public Relations, Technology | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner
#Communications: Postal Rates Raised Last Week – Not For Nonprofits
The United States Postal Service has been struggling financially for the last few years. The Bush Administration saddled the service with pre-paying its future retiree benefits for a decade (2006-2016), a demand uniquely imposed on the USPS. Bush’s policy meant the service went from profits in the $1.4 billion range in 2005 to one that has laid off thousands of works, closed numerous branches, and still needs to raise postal rates in an effort just to stay open. So what he did to the postal service he did to the country.
This past Monday many postal rates changed. For example, first-class mail went up by a penny and its guaranteed one-day delivery (depending on distance) was removed. Or perhaps you didn’t notice?
Popularity: 1% | Category Advice, Campaigns, Civics, Communications, Community, Direct Mail, E-Mail, Fundraising, Interview, Marketing, Marketing Budget, Marketing Skills, Measurement, National/International, News and Current Affairs, Newsletter, Newspaper Article, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Politics, Publications, Strategic Marketing, Web and Print | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner
#interview: Simone Joyaux, Nonprofit Consultant, Author, and Columnist
Simone Joyaux is an internationally recognized consultant to the nonprofit sector on fund development, board development, and strategic planning and management. She writes a column, “Unraveling Development,” for the Nonprofit Quarterly. She is the author of Strategic Fund Development: Building Profitable Relationships That Last, now in its third edition, and is co-author, with Tom Ahern, of Keep Your Donors: The Guide to Better Communications and Stronger Relationships. The interview was conducted by Don Akchin, a principal of Nonprofit Marketing 360 and a frequent contributor to the MKCREATIVE blog.
MKC: I have difficulty maintaining one blog. Why do you have three?
SIMONE: I made a decision that I wanted to do not just a professional blog, but I also wanted my website to talk about the world and social justice issues. Because I have always felt that there isn’t enough speaking out. I decided I would take the risk to speak out about my political and social beliefs on my web page, but that if I was going to do that, I had to distinguish between them, hence what I call “Personal Rants.” And then I thought, I have a lot of peeves about professional stuff, so I thought, okay fine, I’ll do professional, pet peeves and personal rants. Now I can do three posts in 30 minutes. I only post once a week, and you will notice, nobody is allowed to respond. You can send me emails, but you can’t comment. I have a job! I can’t possibly maintain comments from people.
Popularity: 2% | Category Communications, Community, Cross-Post, Development, Donor Acquisition, Fundraising, Grants and Funding, Interview, Marketing, Nonprofit, Perspectives, Resource | | 0 Comments
Written by: Don Akchin
#Development: Listening To Social Networks An Important Investment Too
The field got built only after Ray listened
Yesterday we talked about creating content on your business’s or nonprofit’s website that will bring new readers to your site, deepen the loyalty of those already in contact with it, and turn more of them into customers, volunteers, and donors. The creation of such content requires some investment. Staff – at least some staff hours – have to be dedicated to research and writing. The technological side of blogging is not like programming anymore, thanks to all the great platforms (think: WordPress, Blogger, Tumblr, TypePad…), but it takes some time to get comfortable with the features and quirks of your chosen platform. When your blog reaches out to those beyond your office, you need to budget for unscheduled delays or time to allow your subject to review the interview.
But then what? If you build it, will they come? No. (more…)
Popularity: 1% | Category Advice, Blogs, Campaigns, Case Study, Civics, Communications, Community, How-to, Marketing, Marketing Skills, Measurement, Nonprofit, Public Relations, Site Administration, Social Media | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner
#Communication: Six Tips To Expand Readership On Your Nonprofit’s Blog
We thank you for reading our blog, and we hope to provide relevant, timely, and interesting material for you for 2012. Producing a timely and engaging blog (at least we hope so!) requires some effort. But the opportunities and results they can produce are well worth the investment. If your nonprofit organization has a blog, you want to ensure regular production of high-quality. And if it doesn’t, you’re missing great opportunities to tell your stories, to turn your passive followers into active volunteers and donors, and to benefit from the multiplier effects of readers sharing, tweeting, and faving your nonprofit’s good work.
Plenty of advice about how to raise your blog’s readership exists in the same blogosphere your organization is already working in. A recent post by Jeff Ogden at SocialMediaToday.com particularly caught our eye because he keeps the advice clear and simple and because he stresses quality over quantity. And let’s face it: the internet largely encourages the latter over the former. So what is on his short list?
Popularity: 1% | Category Advice, Blogs, Campaigns, Cause Marketing, Communications, Community, How-to, Marketing, Marketing Skills, Measurement, Media Review, Newspaper Article, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Public Relations, Reviews, Social Media, Storytelling, Twitter, Web and Print, Writing | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner
#Communication: SOPA & PIPA Bills Are Dying, But Not Dead
Yesterday, a couple of the most used and best-known websites on the internet willingly shut themselves down: Wikipedia and Reddit. Google, you likely noticed, ‘redacted’ its daily Google Doodle. These efforts were to call attention to and protest against the Congressional debates over the ‘Stop Internet Piracy Act’ (SOPA) in the House and the ‘Protect Internet Protocols Act’ (PIPA) in the Senate. And they seem to have worked, as support for either bill has drained away: ”We can find a solution that will protect lawful content. But this bill is flawed & that’s why I’m withdrawing my support. #SOPA #PIPA,” Republican Sen. Roy Blunt wrote on his official Twitter page. (Quote from CNN Tech report earlier this morning).
But the concern over online piracy of entertainment and software remains, and SOPA’s political supporters promise to refine new legislative efforts.
Popularity: 2% | Category Blogs, Civics, Communications, Community, Copyrighting, Marketing, National/International, News and Current Affairs, Nonprofit, Nonprofit, Opinion, Politics, Reviews, Site Administration, Social Media, Technology | | 0 Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner
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