Blueprint Creative Group

10 Reasons Your Non-profit Should Be Active on Twitter

It still amazes me how a large majority of non-profits are such laggards when it comes to marketing and especially with social media. I know that marketing budgets are especially tight these days, but that’s still no excuse why many organizations fail to create real social media engagement programs.

We moderate a webinar for non-profits on how to use Twitter to fundraise, brand, and connect with supporters. Trust you me when I say there’s a huge potential being missed by non-profit who fail to actively use social media to activate online audiences and connect with prospective donors, volunteers, and brand evangelists.

In a recent study we conducted with CEOs and senior executives at non-profit organizations across the country, we found that non-profits were just scratching the surface with social media with regards to fundraising, building cause awareness, and engaging current and prospective donors and supporters. While there are some organizations who do an outstanding job, this is still the exception and not the norm.


The folks over at Ragan’s PR Daily listed 10 reasons non-profits should be on Twitter, and considering that we our social media training emphasizes using Twitter to connect with donors and drive cause awareness goals, we thought we’d provide our two cents on these 10 reasons.

 

1. You have something to say.

Twitter is your broadcast to the world around you, and there’s no reason why you shouldn’t use it to broadcast your organization’s mission, news, and needs. While you’re at it, don’t just talk about your organization. No self-puffery here. Actually engage your audiences, join conversations already taking place, and network with other like-minded organizations. In our Twitter training, we go into detail on the 7 different social audiences. Your engagement strategy should be tailored to each of these audiences.

2. Your donors are on Twitter.

Yes, Facebook is good but there’s more out there. Why limit your organization to Facebook when the Twitter universe is growing exponentially. In our recent non-profit study and resulting case study, we highlight some non-profits who do exceptionally well fundraising on Twitter. You can stand to learn a thing or two from them.

3. Your potential donors are on Twitter.

It’s pure numbers. There are over 300,000,000 million Twitter users and more than half a million new Twitter accounts created everyday. Go where the people are. Chances are you’ll run into potential donors.

4. You can monitor your brand and reputation.

The power behind Twitter is its effectiveness in brand monitoring. Not only are you able to actively monitor what is being said about your organization, but you can also monitor related conversations to join, industry chatter, and what other organizations are doing.

5. You can build authority.

Twitter allows you to own your voice and strategically craft your messages. You help feed the poor? Own that space by becoming the authority on your cause.

6. You can report back to donors—in real time.

Public relations has evolved thanks to tools like Twitter, which is essentially your 24-hour news network. There’s no reason why your online community (and donors) shouldn’t be kept abreast with all that your organization does. Charity:water was phenomenal in using Twitter to broadcast how donations were being used. Imagine the impact on connecting with donors. We highlighted this amazing organization in our case study and exactly how they raised over $250,000 via Twestivals.

7. You can recognize volunteers and donors.

The perfect example of a non-profit using Twitter to give recognition to volunteers and donors is the Tweetsgiving campaign that raised $10,000 in 48 hours. The campaign used Twitter to publicly recognize those who donated over $100 with “Top Turkey” designation. What a way to make your donors feel appreciated!

8. You can update people on your urgent and ongoing needs.

Again, Twitter is your 24-hour news network. No better way to activate supporters to meet immediate needs than to broadcast it on Twitter. And when your Tweets are Retweeted, it gets broadcasted to that Twitterers followers, and so on and so forth.

9. You can create buzz and excitement around your (fundraising) event.

Charity:water and Tweetsgiving are perfect examples of how to create national (and international) buzz around your online fundraising campaign.

10. You can build relationships with journalists and bloggers.

Think of Twitter as your personal publicist. Not only does it enable you to brand your organization, connect with your public, and serve as your 24-hour news network, Twitter also puts journalists, reporters, bloggers, and other influencers right at your fingertips.

 

How are you using Twitter???

 

(Original posting www.prdaily.com/Main/Articles/10266.aspx)