SocialButterfly.

As the debate on the creation of a National Social Marketing Association continues, future social marketing and SM-related students/practitioners should check out FLiP (Future Leaders in Philanthropy). It is another online community that offers many great resources and connections for those exploring philanthropic related fields. According to the its homepage, FLiP’s mission statement includes:

We are the future leaders in philanthropy. By working together, we will further our careers, serve our organizations’ mission, and change the world. FLiP is dedicated to creating a community and a network where other future leaders can meet, learn, exchange ideas, and contribute to each other’s success.

They offer interviews with young professionals in a variety of social change/philanthropy related careers. They offers resources for further education, career guides, views from fellow interns, opportunities to network, online presence on Facebook, MySpace and AOL and much more.

This community is great for making connections with those who have related interests and goals. In the meantime, there is a Massachusetts Social Marketing Association and WOMMA (Word-of-Mouth-Marketing Association). However, a national social marketing association is still in progress. Nedra Weinreich, on her blog Spare Change, offers a better history about the creation of a professional social marketing society. Weinreich also offers her views on the status of such an organization. The big debate seems to rest on whether or not the SM Association should be underneath the AMA (American Marketing Association) or be its own separate identity.

As this blog has hinted at, I believe this relates to the ‘identity crisis’ that all of strategic communications is facing, whether commercial or not, in seeking universally accepted definitions. How do you draw the lines between what is and what is not advertising, marketing, dare I say journalism, corporate social responsibility, word of mouth marketing, social marketing, viral marketing, sponsorship, etc. I have my own ideas, of course. But, I’m more curious about learning what others think about this topic.

• Should social marketing have its own professional organization?
• How would you decide who could and could not join?
• Should it me under the AMA? If so, then should word-of-mouth-marketing also be under the AMA instead of having its own organization?
• ETC. There are much more questions than answers about this topic. Feel free to leave your own questions as comments.

After my last post, I received an email asking how other non-profits or social causes could also use blogging technology for its purposes. Below, I list someways blogging can be used by non-profits as well as some strengths and limitations of the technology.

First Things First

I come with the view that like in the commercial sector, finding an umbrella term to put all non-profit marketing and advertising under is difficult. Research studies have been explored, textbooks written, debates held and still universal definitions are lacking. Some used to think a few years back the IMC, Integrated Marketing Communications would be the end-all classification system for advertising. Yet, this debate still continues. Do we put public relations under this? Why the term marketing? Where does viral belong? etc.

Therefore, just like the commercial advertising arena suffers from an identity crisis, so does the community of non-profit/health communications/social causes/etc. Though, I might classify many of these as social marketing. But then, where do we put corporate social responsibility or cause marketing? (These both have profit aims…) So, yikes! Is there overlap? Is overlap the right word? What are we to do? The questions and debates continue. In discussing these terms and looking at definitions, I am going to offer up that is depends largely on your end objective. I agree there’s more to this debate, but for practical considerations (and when looking to use blogging technology) I say, first determine your end objective to decide if, and what type, of blogging is right for you.

Examples of Blogging Being Used by Non-Profits:

Citizen’s League in Minnesota. They have two blogs. One that is updated with public policy news, trends and updates. The other who is from the point of view of a person which has similar content, but the first person point of view adds relevance and personalizes the stories.

Children Matter. A Christian non-profit ministry who uses a blog for its message.

Strengths of Blogging

1. A blog can provide an outlet for stories to be told regarding the issue or project. This can also be created as a way to get more involved and to increase participation. It can also make the message for personal and relevant. Interplast has their volunteers upload information and share stories about their experiences regarding their work site.

2. Helps build an online community. This includes expanding your traditional media lists to include other bloggers, online social networks, websites and more.

3. Blogging has no geographic limitations unlike a lot of traditional media (tv, radio, magazine, newspapers).

4. Requires small tangible finances. But, may require more employee/volunteer hours and time to manage.

5. Can boost media coverage by expanding your traditional media list to include fellow bloggers, social networks, online communities, websites and more.

6. Put your already-drafted press releases to good work by setting up an RSS feed on your blog to provide up-to-date news about your organization. this allows others to know what the organization is up to, gives those interested more information to talk about and can increase your media coverage.

7. Provide information and resources via a blog. A blog is one way to provide the same information you could on a website or brochure, but in an interactive, fun, and personal manner. For example, instead of telling what the participants do throughout the year. Have the voice of your blog be told through the ‘Volunteer Sarah’ and give it a diary feel.

8. From your blog, you can also provide information on how to get involved, donate, volunteer, and participate. This could include a sign-up page for the weekly email blasts.

9. Blogs also are a way to track, organize and build a resource for an organization/cause. If it comes time to write a report, you can search your blog for all relevant information regarding ‘XYZ’ and poof- you have all the information you need already written.

10. Use a blog as your organization’s website.

11. For good feedback, use your blog as a sounding board or discussion forum. Also, blog stats and analytics could help you find more target audiences interested in your cause.

12. Add your blog to the Nonprofit Blog Exchange using this form to automatically get plugged into an online community and to increase traffic.

Limits of Blogging

1. If you use a free service (blogger, wordpress, etc.), sometimes you are limited with the type of content you can post. Examples including: limitations for customizing options including how you organize content or the design unless you have someone with the expertise to do so, or upgrade your blog service.

2. The domain name can be tricky. Unless you want to purchase a domain, your domain name will (usually) include the blog service you are using. However, domains can be purchased for something like $10/year. This blog also provide many helpful tips and resources for creating your own domain.

3. Must provide quality information at a consistent rate.

More Sources

Should Your Non-Profit Launch a Blog?

10 Ways Nonprofits Can Use blogging

Have Fun * Do Good

Blogs for Non-Profit Orgs

5 Tips to Starting a New Blog

What does the headcoach of the Green Bay Packers Mike McCarthy, the Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe, philanthropist Dick Trammel and KNWA anchor Matt Turner have in common?

They will all be present at the NWA MS Dinner of Champions.

Believing in transparency, I wanted to share with you a project I am involved with in the NW Arkansas area. Due to a lack of current resources, we’ve made the organization’s ‘website’ be a blog. You can find it at www.msquestforacure.wordpress.com.

The organization is called MS QUEST FOR A CURE, developed under the National MS Society, MS QUEST is the NWA Arkansas branch. I’m not trying to promote any one cause over anything, I just add information I am knowledgeable about, have on hand and have experience with. Being so, two posts now discuss Multiple Sclerosis. A bigger variety of information will be included, but hey, we’re in the blog-land right? We want to talk about what we’re doing and who we are. Our experiences help make us who we are. So, I hope you enjoy the posts, =)

As a girl, I tend to want to give and receive gifts that are personal, meaningful and memory making. Thus, I wanted to highlight some ways to give the literal gift of ‘giving’ this holiday season. (And, judging on my google search of ‘gift of giving,’ many others are feelin’ the same way.) Here are some ideas on giving this season (in no particular order):

1. Make it Fun. Dig celebrity gossip and also enjoy doing good? DO Something magazines lists the Top 11 of ‘Celebs Gone Good’ ideas to donate. Items range from supporting Brad Pitt’s initiative to rebuild a green New Orleans to celebrity auction items to real-life social and environmental issue-focused documentaries and DVDs (Sicko, Blood Diamond, Hotel Rwanda, etc.)

2. Give time, Volunteer! Go to VolunteerMatch, an internet service that allows you to type in your zipcode and bippity, boppity…boom! a list of places needing volunteers appears right before your eyes. Not only can volunteers find places to serve, but non-profits can also place listings for the type of volunteers they need.

3. Go local. Contact your local community center or school and help locate families or communities in need. My family and I, along with a group of friends, took a single-working mother and her two children shopping, so they could feel empowered in providing a Christmas for each other. Needless to say, it was a greater gift for my parents and I that this family welcomed us, and allowed us to spend an evening with their family. Giving doesn’t have to be to a grand, official non-profit or cause, there are those in every community who could use some holiday kindness. And though it may take more time or perseverance than writing a check, the rewards and memory are more than words can define.

One man, reflects on his view of giving:

“Happiness comes from giving, not getting. If we try hard to bring happiness to others, we cannot stop it from coming to us also. To get joy, we must give it, and to keep joy, we must scatter it.” - John Templeton

Happy holidays this wonderful season! =)