Social Media for Nonprofits is the country’s only conference series devoted to social media for social good.
As we gear up for our 10/5 return to the nation’s capital, we thought it’d be helpful to share three of the simplest, most practical tips some of our 100+ presenters have shared with the 3,500+ nonprofits we’ve educated and empowered to date:
1. Timing is Everything
With email, the guiding rule is that you don’t want to be unread message number 38 of 62 when someone gets back to work from the weekend, so the best time to blast your email list is mid-morning or mid-afternoon on Tues/Weds/Thurs.
On the other hand, with social media, your Facebook posts and tweets should be timed to catch people in their downtime. 8:45am when they’re on their way into work, 12:30pm when they’re checking their iPhone eating a burrito, 5:30pm on the bus ride home, and according to research, the single best time to post during the week is 9:30-11pm, after the kids go to sleep. Of course you should experiment with your own unique base and see what works, plus bear in mind what time zone(s) they’re in and try out weekends.
2. Ask Questions
Simply put, if your tweet or Facebook post ends in a question mark vs. a period, you can expect about five times the amount of likes/comments/shares, retweets, etc. Why? Well, social media isn’t about monologue- it’s about dialogue. So instead of just making a statement, ask a question and invite your audience into a conversation!
3. Become a Content Curator
Imagine going to a cocktail party and winding up chatting with someone who only talks about themselves, their work and their needs. Time for an imaginary call or text to provide cover while you excuse yourself, right? The same is true with social media. As Kay Sprinkel Grace said, “people don’t give to you, they give through you.”
Your audience may care about your organization a bit, but what they really care about are the kids or animals you serve, and the impact you have in the world. So try and balance your posts by ensuring at least half of them don’t just talk about your needs and updates, but rather about the issue you represent. Establish yourself as a thought leader and the followers and dollars will follow.
At Social Media for Nonprofits, we like to say we’re not doing our job if our conferences leave our attendees inspired – our job is to inspire them to action. The real question is, after a one-day event, what can you do differently tomorrow that makes you more effective and more efficient at advancing your cause?
Hopefully these three simple tips are something you can put to work immediately to drive better results online.
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