WeAreMedia: Help us Create the Nonprofit Social Media Tool Box and Win A T-Shirt!
Maybe you saw this teaser over at the NTEN blog last week about the WeAreMedia project activites for the month of October wondered what the term fondle the hammer meant. The phrase comes from Jeremiah Owyang in a post titled 'Stop Fondling the Hammer and Focus on the House." It is a stern warning to avoid falling into the trap of playing with the tools first without thinking of strategic outcomes.
The NTEN WeAreMedia project has been hard at work over the last few months building the house so to speak -- focusing on how nonprofits can use social media effectively. We've addressed the strategic and tactical issues. So, now we've given ourselves permission to get our hands on the tools. Why? Because at some point, you need to learn how to use tools effectively and efficiently.
And, we've organized this inquiry into using the tools to match the strategic framework (see below) - so it isn't just random fondling the hammer. We're doing in a thoughtful way.
Starting October 6th and throughout the month of October (see schedule), WeAreMedia participants are going to unabashedly focus on the tools and collectively create the nonprofit social media tool box.
Now that we've laid the strategic framework in the other modules, we can have some fun. So come join us ... it will be easy and quick. And, we'll be awarding special prizes for participation.
Want your WeAreMedia T-Shirt? Help us build the toolbox!
We've organized the tools into different categories that are loosely based on the Conversation Prism from Brian Solis. This list isn't comprehensive, it does NOT include every possible social media tool or category known to mankind - there are literally hundreds, if not thousands. We've narrowed down the categories to the ones that many nonprofits are already using and organized them so they relate to key themes of the Tactical Track.
Listening:
Knowing what is being said online about your organization and the field
you work in.
Tools:
Participate:
Joining the conversation with your audience. By making a human connection with people online, you can influence their perception of your brand and help them find meaningful, relevant ways to support your
mission.
Tools:
(and yes, many of the tools that follow can be used to participate ...)
Share Your Story:
You share the impact of your organization's programs through blogging, podcasting, sharing photos on Flickr, or YouTube or other video sharing site.
Generate Buzz:
Your raising your organizations profile and spreading awareness of your organization's programs or campaigns. What happens is that you share your message with enthusiastic supporters and they in turn may choose to pass it to others with a similar a interest in your organization or campaign.
Community Building and Social Networking:
You build relationships online, nurture a community, engage people and inspire them to take an action, or raise money using social networks and apps.
During the month of October, we'll focus on a tool category per day. For each page in the tool box, we've broken down the tasks as follows:
- Revise the 1-2 sentence definition that describes the category of tools (5 minutes)
- Add links to resources reviewing the tools and specific how-to tips or tutorials (5 minutes)
- Add names of additional tools or links to existing ones (5 minutes)
Of course, if you want to spend more time and share your work flow with a particular or your power tips, please do.
Feel free to add, revise, or edit. Feel free to ignore our schedule and jump in where-ever you want whenever you want.
Don't want to work on the tool box? Check the top of the WeAreMedia wiki for places where we need some specific help.
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