Tuesday, July 21, 2009, at 12 noon, U.S. Eastern time

Nonprofit workers are spending an increasing amount of time building relationships with supporters on social-networking Web sites such as Twitter and Facebook, on blogs, and in virtual worlds like Second Life.

But as they devote more time and money to such activities, they often do so without a clear understanding of what they are getting out of these tools.

Many are not sure how to measure the value of these interactions. Should they focus on dollars raised, number of online "friends," mentions on blogs, or visitors to their Web sites?

Beth Kanter has been studying how nonprofit groups measure the return on investment in online social networks and has written extensively about the topic on her popular blog, Beth's Blog: How Nonprofits Can Use Social Media.

The Guest

Beth Kanter is the author of Beth's Blog: How Nonprofits Can Use Social Media and a frequent contributor to nonprofit technology Web sites and magazines. She is also a speaker and trainer who was named one of the most influential women in technology by Fast Company Magazine.

A transcript of the chat follows.

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    Welcome the latest installment of the Chronicle's live discussions series.

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    Today, I'm pleased to welcome Beth Kanter as our guest expert. As many of you know, Ms. Kanter is one of the nonprofit world's foremost experts on the use of social media. She is the author of the popular Beth's Blog and a public speaker. Ms. Kanter has also devoted considerable time to the study of how to properly measure activity on social-media platforms.

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    Many of us wonder just how much value we get for all of the time we invest in platforms like Twitter and Facebook. We worry whether anyone is actually paying attention to what we write on our blogs. And we fret over whether these connections and friends will actually bring additional support to our organizations.

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    Ms. Kanter is here to help you answer these and other questions about the return on investment for social media. She'll be available for the next hour to take your questions -- and offer her insights.

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    To ask a question, simply click on the "ask a question" link on this page and type in your query. You are also invited to use the same tool to post comments on what others are saying during this discussion. This is a text-based chat, so there's no need to access audio. This page will refresh every minute with the latest material.

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    With that, let's get started.

Question from Judith Sol-Dyess, YMCA:
    One of the challenges of being part of a membership organization like YMCA's, which share the same mission but operate independently, is that using searches and keywords to listen to our communities in external sites doesn't necessarily yield accurate results. We are often known as "The Y" or "my YMCA", for example, and not the "Lake View YMCA" or "Buehler YMCA". So as we evaluate engaging in social networking, I don't have any good ideas on how to measure our success on sites we do not control (ie Twitter vs. Facebook groups). What advice do you have to streamline our listening strategy and tying it to measured our success so we are wisely investing our staff time in effective social networking, based on data for our Association and not as a tiny percent of the 2,800+ YMCA's across the country?

Beth Kanter:
    This is such a good question. It is also applicable for organizations that have a generate name or nick name because they end catching other threads that do not have to do with them.

It has to get back to your goals and objectives. As the Queen of Measurement, KD Paine says, goals drive metrics, metrics drive results. And to get to results you need to hone your listening to support your goals.

What are you trying to accomplish? Write it down. Make it narrow, make it clear, make it smart. Ask what problem you need to solve - and what the value of solving that problem is.

Then you do the listening -- you need to refine your key words and maybe do some slicing and dicing of your listening streams by geography - to get at conversation threads about your particular Y. This might require a professional listening tool to help you drill down specifically to your potential market area. See http://socialmedia-listening.wikispaces.com/Tools

Also, after you can turn your river of listening threads into insights - you'll begin to identify influencers and important voices that matter for your Y - and those are the folks you want to hone in on. Also, you might consider integrating traditional "listening" techniques like surveys and focus groups to your listening effort.

I've been playing around with the idea of using a Facebook Fan Page as a focus group - if you set it up for your Y - and lead conversations around what you need to learn to support and measure your goals - you gain lots of insights.

I'd also ask a few folks on Twitter about this:
http://twitter.com/ambercadabra
http://twitter.com/acroll

Question from Smile Train:
    Do we need to interact with followers/friends every day? Is that expected?

Beth Kanter:
    Deep engagement with our stakeholders through social media is what leads to a return on investment - whether that is financial (e.g. fund raising) or mission-driven.

Charlene Li from the Altimeter group just released some research on the level of engagement of corporate brands (yes, I know not nonprofits but ...) and they found a correlation between deep engagement and financial performance.

http://www.altimetergroup.com/2009/07/engagementdb.html.

So, what is deep engagement? It's more than simply setting up a presence - it's talking to your supporters, interacting with them, starting discussions. I think of it as a daily feeding and tuning of the network. You're feeding them information, support, conversation related to your goals. And, you're also tuning who you're following so that you're leveraging the networked effect.

Deep engagement moves our relationships with supporters from the impersonal, occasional, and transactional to the constant, loyal, and intimate.

I did a summary of some great posts on the relationship aspects of social media: http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/06/listening-leads-to-engagement-relationship-models.html.

This, of course, is a mind shift from the previous ways of working. The relationship building and engagement piece are so very important, but metric isn't dollars (at least in the early stages) - so it can be hard to convince decision-makers.

And, for those of us on the front line - it can seem daunting to add "deep engagement" to our to do lists - but really, you can accomplish this by allocating a block of time - say an hour or half-hour each day. You don't engage with all supporters deeply every day - but a little bit. It's like tending a garden.

Smile Train - you've done wonderful work in social media and I am wondering what your techniques are for engaging your stakeholders in this deep way?

http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/07/come-join-the-conversation-on-social-media-and-roi-at-chronicle-and-in-the-comments-here.html

Question from Stacie, Health Care non-profit:
    We are considering using Facebook to reach a wider audience. Two concern brought up during a recent meeting: 1-how to handle the potential for negative commentary by fans/friends; and 2- possibly embarrassing situation if we create a FB presence and show few fans/friends for a while. Do you have suggestions on ways to handle these two issues? Thanks.

Beth Kanter:
    Great questions Stacie.

#1:Why did you choose Facebook? Did you do a listening piece first? Are there people talking about your organization or issue on Facebook already? What are they saying?

Here's some great advice from KD Paine about how to do that http://www.themeasurementstandard.com/Issues/12-1-08/measuringfacebook12-1-08.asp

#2: Do you homework and avoid making "rookie" mistakes. There's been quite a lot of knowledge shared and gathered on how to strategically and effectively work in Facebook.

Facebook Fan Pages - Advice from Randi Zuckerberg http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/05/so-you-want-a-facebook-fan-page-.html

Brian Reich wrote a terrific guest post on my blog about Facebook Strategy http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/06/guest-post-by-brian-reich-the-challenge-of-communicating-in-a-connected-society-and-what-that-means-.html and Frank Barry wrote a great guest piece about tactical tips for Facebook http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/07/frank-barry-guest-post-4-facebook-tips-for-nonprofit-success-see-what-others-are-doing.html

If you take the advice to heart in those posts, you won't have the situation of throwing a party and now one shows up.

#3: Dealing with negative comments

First, take negative comments as an opportunity to improve what you're doing. With social media, at least you can hear those comments and take action - the comments may be based on incorrect perceptions or may be real critiques.

Second, Wendy Harman at the Red Cross did a session a while back where she talked about how surprised they were that there were not as many negative comments as they thought.

Third. Have a plan for how or if you will respond to negative comments. Sometimes negative comments come from trolls and you don't need to waste time or energy responding. See the AirForce Response Policy as an example http://www.flickr.com/photos/cambodia4kidsorg/3226367547/sizes/o/

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    At the Chronicle, we're doing a lot of work to connect nonprofit groups with resources that can help them navigate the world of social media. If you haven't already, I invite you to follow us on Twitter (@philanthropy), or join our groups on Facebook and LinkedIN. I spend a lot of time answering your questions and pointing to the latest and greatest info on social media for nonprofit groups.

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    If you know of other good resources to pass along, I invite you to do so throughout this discussion. Just click on the ask a question link on this page to share your thoughts or suggestions.

Question from Bernice, legal aid non-profit:
    Hi Beth, I have two related questions on the subject of social networking. First, how do groups devote paid staff time to social networking tools, either through one paid staff person or spread out among different staff?

Related to that question, how do organizations encourage staff (all staff, not just communications or development staff) to use these social networking tools? And if these program staff are using social networking tools for outreach, what are the costs and benefits? For instance, one perceived cost is the increased amount of time staff spend on facebook doing non-work related things. How do you measure the overall benefit of social networking tools?

Thank you!

Beth Kanter:
    Ah, these are such important questions!

Staffing Positions: I'm seeing a range of approaches in nonprofits in terms of social media. In larger organizations, it may be a full-time job - social media strategist or manager. That position is found in marketing/communications, web department, or in some cases education.

What I'm seeing now in organizations that have been early adopters, that person is also an internal consultant or internal network weaver with other departments that are developing social media strategies.

The best example in nonprofits of encouraging all staff to use social networking tools as part of the work is the manual from the Red Cross. http://sites.google.com/site/wharman/social-media-strategy-handbook

You can ask Wendy Harman more about it at http://www.twitter.com/wharman

It's brilliant.

The perceived cost of staff doing "non-work" on social networks is a management issue - you need operational policy. http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/06/more-on-social-media-policies-and-nonprofits-whats-your-best-advice-for-policy.html

So, in terms of benefits of social networking - that gets back to your goals. What are you trying to accomplish? How is your staff work on social networking sites helping your organization achieve a particular set of goals and what is the metric you're using to measure that?

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    You can get more advice from Wendy Harman of the American Red Cross in the transcript of a recent live discussion we had on social media for nonprofit groups: http://philanthropy.com/live/2009/06/social_networks/

Question from Pat, consulting firm:
    What strategies have been most effective for which kind of non profits - and what is the return on the investment?

Beth Kanter:
    What a great question!

Last March, I did a panel at SXSW that was a Social Media ROI Poetry Slam. Danielle Brigida, NWF, David Neff, American Cancer Society, Wendy Harman, Red Cross, and Carie Lewis, Humane Society presented their social media strategies and results and what the ROI.

This is a great range of examples to answer your question http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/03/sxsw-social-media-nonprofit-roi-poetry-slam-slides-links-and-poems-long.html

Question from Leslie Talbot, Talbot Consulting:
    I provide technical assistance to several education nonprofits (e.g. charter schools, community-based and youth development organizations). My question: what are the best approaches to include social networking as a part of existing staff positions?

Thanks!

Beth Kanter:
    It gets back to your goals, of course. Do you want to incorporate social networking as part of instruction, community outreach, or youth programming?

In schools, there is typically a position called "Instructional Technologist" - a staff person whose job is to help teachers integrate technology into their instruction. This person is a technology steward and works with teachers to provide training, professional development, and support so teachers can integrate technology successfully. Many instructional technologists are experimenting (successfully) and using social networking.

There is a whole community of education bloggers who focus on social media/networking in an educational setting - I suggest that you follow them - or even ask a few of these folks on Twitter.

Two of my favorites are: Vicky Davis - Cool Cat Teacher Blog http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/

Alan Levine Cogdog Blog - he wrote a post recently about using social media at a professional conference for educators http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/07/guest-post-alan-levine.html

Once you know your goals, you have to look at capacity - how much time will you need to implement? Is there a logical place in your organization or staff person to take on this responsibility? Do they have the skills or do you need outside help.

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    Beth is providing some very detailed answers, and some great links. I'll post a compendium of links she offers during this discussion on our Give & Take blog later today so you can find all of these resources in one place. http://philanthropy.com/giveandtake

Question from Kristine, ArtSpark:
    Hi Beth. We're interested in what you think is the trend re: fundraising (esp. micro-funding) via social networking. Including what other parts of relationship building is important to create (besides engaging someone to give $$) so that connections are long-lasting. Thanks!

Beth Kanter:
    Great question. I've written a lot of about this topic of micro-fundraising and a number of case studies over the years.

You can find them here: http://gsp4good.wikispaces.com

With that said, I'm amazed and delighted to see it really beginning to catch on with nonprofits. With that said, I get concerned that some may think that micro-fundraising happens magically! It doesn't. It takes work. Read what Brian Reich had to say about it in a recent guest post on my blog http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/06/guest-post-by-brian-reich-the-challenge-of-communicating-in-a-connected-society-and-what-that-means-.html

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    If you're looking for more examples of effective online fund raising campaigns, check out our recent video on six online fund-raising campaigns that have delivered strong results for their organizations: http://philanthropy.com/media/flash/v21/i14/online/ The Emory University example is particularly creative.

Question from P. VanMaanen:
    The small organization I work with is just venturing into the social marketing world. I would be interested to hear suggestions on how we evaluate the success of our efforts and any tips learned already on what to do and not do when using the online systems. Also, what realistically should we expect from our use of these systems? Thank you.

Beth Kanter:
    Charlene Li recently published this report about engagement in social media of corporations - http://www.altimetergroup.com/2009/07/engagementdb.html

And, yes, I know they are huge corporations - but there is some great advice in terms of best practices that applies to nonprofits of all sizes.

They describe four different frameworks of how organizations can engage on the social web. The different frameworks require different investments, capacities and of course get different results.

The bottom line recommendation is: Engagement can’t be skin-deep, nor is it a campaign that can be turned on and off. True engagement means full engagement in the channels where you choose to invest. Thus, choose carefully and advocate strongly to acquire the resources and support you will need to succeed. If you are resource-constrained, it is better to be consistent and participate in fewer channels than to spread yourself too thin.

So, if you're with a smaller organization - you might want to consider this approach.

In the early stages, you have to take a listen, learn, and adapt approach - and value learning.

Here's more on that particular approach http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/06/are-you-a-listening-organization-.html

Comment from Adrienne; NAN:
    A Facebook Cause is a GREAT venue for micro lending. Especially with the birthday wish application where friends can donate money in your name to a charity the birthday boy/girl selects! Some Non-profit got nearly $90,000 one year in unrestricted funds.

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    Causes recently announced that it has helped raise more than $10-million for about 26,000 nonprofit groups. Based on those numbers, the average group has raised about $385 through Causes. But some groups are raising much more than that: http://philanthropy.com/news/prospecting/8841/facebooks-causes-eclipses-10-million

We're working with the Causes folks to play host to a live discussion specifically on how to use Causes to raise money. Stay tuned for more details on that one.

Question from Timothy Stolz - PartnersInGrantWriting.com:
    What are the "good sense" rules about posting personal information on our organizations web or social networking site?

Beth Kanter:
    If you are referring to how employees should conduct themselves professionally on social networks, I love Wendy Harman's rule -- don't post anything that would embarrass your mother.

And, of course, don't moon anyone with a camera or at least hide your face. :-)

Which, seriously, was the title of a blog post I wrote on this topic http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/06/more-on-social-media-policies-and-nonprofits-whats-your-best-advice-for-policy.html

If you have HR policies and Internet Use Policy, you have some guidelines to start with. Some are common sense.

The problem is the areas that are shades of gray. And those scenarios need to be discussed within your organization and your employees, a policy or philosophy developed, and let people know that if have questions they should ask.

The Red Cross Handbook has some great personal guidelines: http://sites.google.com/site/wharman/social-media-strategy-handbook

Do

Use disclaimers
Reveal confidential information
Be transparent
Be accurate
Be considerate
Respect copyright laws
Tell us about your blog
Be generous
Be a good blogger
Respect work commitments
Uphold the Fundamental Principles

Don't Reveal Confidential Information

Or is your question about personal privacy of an individual? In that case, here's a couple of links from my social bookmarking collection http://delicious.com/kanter/privacy

Question from Anita, FINCA:
    Talking about time, is there an application which would post an update on all main Social Networking Sites at once? I know of some but they would pick my Facebook personal profile instead of the Organization's Page I am admin of.

Beth Kanter:
    Check out this how-to piece from Rising Voices - Global Voices outreach program called "Cross Posting" - they have a method for this. http://advocacy.globalvoicesonline.org/projects/advocacy-20-guide-tools-for-digital-advocacy/cross-posting-for-advocacy/

With that said, I'm not a big fan of cross posting all content to all places and feels like spam to me. In addition to some content that you can automate, it also improves engagement and results if you post manual content - like ask a question based on reading responses. It's better interaction.

I keep my Facebook updates (on my Fan Page and my profile) different from Twitter -- because I've heard from people that the duplication is annoying.

With that said, I have some automated postings and cross postings, but I'm selective in what have crossed posted.

Make sense? I'm curious what colleagues think .. I'm may be wrong.

Question from Mara Miller, Metropolitan Regional Arts Council:
    How would you define the different social media channels in terms of organizational goals that they best serve?

Beth Kanter:
    Have you read groundswell? They do a great job of defining different objectives and social media strategies. We adapted that in the WeAreMedia curriculum (http://www.wearemedia.org) - and it boils down to:

Listen/Engagement
Share Your Story
Spread Buzz
Social Networking

Comment from LaToya Singletary, University Development:
    Just curious how many questions are left to be answered? I submitted a question this morning. Thanks!

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    We've received a huge volume of questions today, so we apologize to all of those who haven't yet received answers. As you can see, Beth provides some very detailed responses, so it takes her some time to answer each question. We will try to get to as many as we possibly can. Thanks.

Comment from @paultofu, community foundation:
    re. cross-posting - I've found that most folks aren't really utilizing Twitter in my local non-profit community, so I do automatically post Tweets to Facebook, and figure that folks can turn off those updates in their feed if they are annoyed. I have different conversations on the same post depending on where folks read it.

Question from Zan McColloch-Lussier, Pride Foundation:
    I feel like it is better to let our social networks grow organically, rather than do a big "get us to 2,000 Twitter followers today" kind of campaign. I tend to see this as a quality over quantity issue. Do you think that is accurate? Does social media only work when you have a significant mass? Thanks so much Beth!

Beth Kanter:
    I totally agree with the quality over quantity. Also, I think that "campaign thinking" when you turn on the relationship building and then turn it off when the campaign concludes isn't as effective.

This is a lot of what we discussed on the #blogchat on Sunday night - I summarized the transcript http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/07/now-that-engagement-is-fully-measured-its-time-to-count-the-treasure.html

Also be sure and read the engagement research from Charlene Li and her takeaway points, they're very important for success.

Comment from Jennifer Tislerics, Gift of Life Michigan:
    Beth - I agree with you about not posting identical updates on all forms of social media. Some cross-posting is good for really important stuff, but I grow weary of reading the same things in multiple places (and will often un-follow to eliminate the issue).

Comment from Josie Fraser http://twitter.com/josiefraser:
    Completely agree with Beth regarding the multiple updates. There are a lot of tools around (and many more currently in production) that will allow you to cross post, or simultaneously update, services. However, the value of social networks doesn't lie in the simple reception of knowledge, and nothing builds trust and reputation like actual conversations as opposed to robotic missives. I've written about the importance of community engagement, being a resident on services rather than just a visitor, here: http://fraser.typepad.com/socialtech/2008/09/being-there.html

Question from Robin Mohr, middle-aged nonprofit:
    Are social media connections becoming something that donors and advocates expect from a non-profit or are they still a nice frill, but not necessary in the same way that having a website has become necessary to appear credible? Has there been any research on this yet? Is there a risk that too much social media presence can turn donors or advocates off?

Beth Kanter:
    There hasn't been any research of nonprofits and this specific topic yet. The closest thing is the recent report from NTEN, The Port, and Common Knowledge: http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/05/port-social-networking-study.html

I think we're moving towards that. The future of social networks is that they will be, as Charlene Li says, like air. I know it's hard to imagine - and there are still skeptics, but really take the advice in this recent report to heart. http://www.altimetergroup.com/2009/07/engagementdb.html

I must quote:

"Doing it all may not be for you — but you must do something. The optimal social media marketing strategy will depend on a variety of factors, including your industry. If your most valuable customers do not depend on or trust social media as a communication medium, or if your organization is resistant to engagement in some channels, you will have to start smaller and slower. But start you must, or risk falling far behind other brands, not only in your industry, but across your customers’ general online experience."

Question from Kate Cox, Talbot Hospice Foundation, Inc.:
    We are a small nonprofit on the Eastern Shore of Maryland (Budget $1 mil) serving Talbot County residents (36,000 population). 22% of our population is 65 and over. I'm wondering if Facebook is worth the effort if many of our older residents aren't familiar with the technology. Or is it important to establish ourselves on Facebook for younger family members? All of our services are supported entirely by donations from the community. We do not receive any insurance monies from Medicaire, Medicaid or private insurance.

Beth Kanter:
    It depends on your goal. Set some objectives, identify the audience you want to reach, establish metrics to measure and then do your listening. Is there anyone on Facebook who is talking about your issue? What are they saying?

Here's study recently released by Pew about generations online http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1093/generations-online

Question from Christine Lin, Asian Liver Center at Stanford University:
    As part of an organization that is starting to venture into social media, what are some hurdles we need to watch out for?

Beth Kanter:
    Great question

1.) Listen before you talk
2.) Allocate enough time
3.) Set measurable objectives and how you'll track your success
4.) Be prepared to experiment and learn and adapt
5.) Quality over quantity - don't spread yourself too thin
6.) Read about what other nonprofits are doing in social media and what they are learning - there are terrific nonprofit social media bloggers out there - recently I hosted a guest bloggers program - over 40 - all really smart and savvy

Question from Catherine Rideau, Foothill Family Service:
    How would you recommend we get started on Facebook? Is there some kind of step-by-step info? Most of us here have little experience with social media but want to learn -- now!

Beth Kanter:
    I have some wonderful posts about Facebook - and how to get started - some I wrote and others from guest bloggers.

Check them out: http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/facebook/

In particular, here are some great tips and techniques about Facebook Fan Page set up:

http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/05/so-you-want-a-facebook-fan-page-.html

I would do some listening first before you set up a presence, get a lay of the land and see who is there talking about your issue. I actually started my own Facebook Fan Page as a focus group - and it is generating some great tips and techniques about using Facebook Fan Pages.

Brian Reich outlines a good set of strategy steps for Facebook http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/06/guest-post-by-brian-reich-the-challenge-of-communicating-in-a-connected-society-and-what-that-means-.html

And for tools and techniques, see this post by Frank Barry - http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/07/frank-barry-guest-post-4-facebook-tips-for-nonprofit-success-see-what-others-are-doing.html

But goals, metrics, audience, listening, and strategy come before tools and techniques.

A good step by step book is "I'm on Facebook Now What?" by Jesse Stay and Jason Alba http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2008/04/congrats-to-bro.html

Question from Irina Patterson, Miami, Advisor to Non-Profits:
    Do you have any creative examples of social media fundraising, such as social games, Second Life, etc.?

Beth Kanter:
    Check out the Nonprofits and Second Life Wiki http://npsl.wikispaces.com/

Also, ask that question to Susan Tenby from Techsoup - she's on Twitter http://twitter.com/suzboop

and check out the Games for Change community - http://www.gamesforchange.org

Also, there's Everywun http://www.everywun.com/ which is based on a games

Question from Danielle & Kate, small Pittsburgh non-profit:
    Have social media discussion boards and groups been effective tools in changing policy decisions and activating interested citizens?

Beth Kanter:
    There's a terrific story about how Apollo Gonzales at the NDRC used online discussion boards for Toyota Prius owners to help stop a bill with less strict fuel standards. (Toyota was supporting it.)

Again, it goes back to listening first - identifying whether or not the conversations are taking place and where - the language they're using, etc - and then identifying the influencers and engaging them.

There are many more examples -- a great way to find out about them is to use the Q/A feature on LinkedIN or Twitter.

Question from Molly, Circle Center Adult Day Services:
    Which blogging service do you recommend where we can own our blog?

Beth Kanter:
    It depends .....

Idealware has a report evaluating blogging services for nonprofits (mostly free and lowcost ones). Read that report it's on their site: http://www.idealware.org

I personally used typepad because I wanted a good look and feel, but I'm not very technical.

I'm hoping you have a good plan for your blog too - because it more than simply selecting a good blogging platform - as you probably know.

Here's some great tips from Britt Bravo and Nina Simon on blogging planning, strategy, and tips http://www.wearemedia.org/Workshop+Day+2+Sharing+Your+Story

Question from Heather Martin (@NSLC), National Service-Learning Clearinghouse, www.servicelearning.org:
    My organization‚Äôs users are diverse in age, internet savvy, and needs. We have found success situating ourselves in many social networking sites in order to reach our diverse user groups. My question is, however, when does the level of engagement on a site fall to such that it doesn‚Äôt make sense to be there anymore? As Facebook trumps MySpace who replaced Friendster, and FriendFeed competes with Twitter, how do you know when to move on? How do you do so without leaving those relationships behind, and what strategies can you use to encourage those users to follow you to a new space?

Beth Kanter:
    Louis Gray has some great advice about reaching out to early adopters who tend to jump platforms http://www.louisgray.com/live/2009/05/early-adopters-and-finding-next-shiny.html

I think you have track what you're doing your existing sites - in other words - set goals, pick metrics to measure - and determine whether or not your engagement on social networking site is bringing value or not. Then decide to move on or not.

You have to remember that while some sites be more "hot" than others, there might be people who remain on - not every one leaves. Are these your most passionate supporters?

I also think you need to think about your capacity and how many outposts you can maintain with deep engagement.

Question from dd, Academic Institution:
    My question relates to liability issues and the posting of private content or inflammatory material on a social networking site. Is the institution that sponsors the page responsible for the content of the posts?

Beth Kanter:
    I'm not a lawyer or do I pretend to be one my blog. So, I can't give legal advice here.

There are some good legal/social networking policy resources in this post http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/06/more-on-social-media-policies-and-nonprofits-whats-your-best-advice-for-policy.html

Question from Meg, Youth Venture:
    Youth venture is an organization that deals with both young people and older, well connected investors; however, we are concerned that these investors aren't necessarily interested in social networking programs such as Facebook and Twitter and that it would not be a good way to dedicate our time. Our facebook pages are mostly targeted at youth for the moment. How would we transform that page to reach out to an older, more sophisticated audience with different needs. As always, we're looking for financial support here... we're a fresh start-up in Seattle.

Beth Kanter:
    Are the "older" people you want to reach on Facebook? Who are they? How do they discuss your issue or what do they know about your organization.

You need to start with a listening phase and than use the insights to inform your social media strategy.

Here's more about listening techniques http://socialmedia-listening.wikispaces.com/

Question from Barbara, national affinity group:
    At my organization, we're discussing the benefits of expanding our website capability/content v. delving into offsite social media such as Facebook. How have you seen member organizations/affinity groups use social media technology most successfully?

Beth Kanter:
    Yes. One recent example that caught my eye was the California Parks Foundation - http://www.calparks.org/

They have a robust Facebook Fan Page (over 40,000 fans) and a fabulous YouTube Channel. They've been selective where they engage on social media and it's paying off for them in terms of advocacy work to hold off state budget cuts. I noticed on Twitter that they people were talking about them - but they don't have presence (at least as far as I can see).

They also have a solid web site presence and CRM/email campaign too .. so they're done a great job of integrating their social media to really support their Internet presence.

I'd also take a look at the Humane Society of the US - they rock. http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/02/how-do-you-measure-the-success-of-dog-to-person-fundraising-on-social-networks-dollars-or-doggie-tre.html

Join the nonprofits on Facebook group - there's lots of examples and ideas being shared there about how to use Facebook effectively

Question from Julie, Foundation:
    How often should an organization post to Twitter or send out updates on Facebook? Is there a fine line between sending too much that's irrelevant vs. useful information?

Beth Kanter:
    Depends on your audience and also I think you can get away with more frequent postings on Twitter because of the brevity.

The point is that you need to be consistent and do a little bit every day. The worst thing you can do is have your Twitter or Facebook become electronic tombstones - where you set them up, do a little bit of updating, and then abandon them. It takes daily feeding.

If you have a Facebook Fan Page, you can experiment and track what you're posting using their insights tool. See what people like, see what prompts people to "like" or comment an item.

Question from Megan, Children's:
    Do you have examples of non profits who have capitalized with social media? How are they evaluating their 'success'?

Beth Kanter:
    One of the best recent example is the Humane Society of the US - they raised over $600,000 using Facebook for their photo contest (along with other Internet Channels)

Here's a case study http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/02/how-do-you-measure-the-success-of-dog-to-person-fundraising-on-social-networks-dollars-or-doggie-tre.html

There many, many, many more too

Question from Evan, New York University:
    It seems like we are always looking for the next big thing when it comes to social networking tools. Twitter is hot now, but what do you foresee being the "next big thing".

Beth Kanter:
    Real Time Web http://delicious.com/kanter/realtimeweb

Also mobile social http://www.mobileactive.org

Honestly, unless your organization's stakeholders are early adopters or your mission is about that - I'm not sure I'd worry about the next shiny object. You want to be looking and watching when the technology reaches the plateau of productivity http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2006/12/technology_hype.html

Here's some tips on how to find the next new thing http://www.louisgray.com/live/2009/05/early-adopters-and-finding-next-shiny.html

Question from Kate, consultant:
    There is considerable talk about how social networking will change reunion giving for higher education. Have you found that this media speaks to a certain demographic, and are there any benchmarks as a result of social network giving?

Beth Kanter:
    Great question. I'm not aware of any studies about benchmarks for higher education reunion giving - although they may exist. Maybe once the transcript is published one will surface.

There's a reflection paper from the Case Foundation about the America's Giving Challenge - you might find interesting (I was the co-author with Allison Fine)

http://www.casefoundation.org/blog/agc-research

Question from Kerianne, university setting:
    Beth, your blog this morning featured an article on the Red Cross and had a link to their social media handbook. Do you have any other examples that might be good for a company to reference in order to develop their own policy?

Beth Kanter:
    I've written about this quite a bit - check out my social media policy posts http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/policy/

They will take you many links and resource collections - like this post http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/04/social-media-in-the-nonprofit-workplace-does-your-organization-need-a-policy.html

I think the Red Cross is the best example from nonprofits though. And they drew from corporate sources.

There is a site in development that is called the social media policy generator - it is based on a collection of policies - and you pick and choose - and get a generic draft. It's not up yet - but stay tuned

Question from Ricky Davis, MetaBody Community Health Center:
    Since American Cancer Society has had a successful fundraising campaign within the virtual world of Second Life, do you see larger nonprofits such as the Red Cross using virtual worlds for education and awareness?

Beth Kanter:
    check out http://npsl.wikispaces.com and ask Susan Tenby from TechSoup. She's on Twitter suzboop - AND ...techsoup has had several discussion thread on the topic as well

Comment from Jane, Consultant:
    What time will the discussion end today?

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    We'll wrap it up before 2 pm, Eastern time. Beth has done an amazing job answering these questions -- and we're thrilled she's been able to stay with us well past our scheduled hour.

Question from Tricia, a nonprofit foundation:
    Hi Beth We are a little different from a direct service nonprofit. We are made up of funds established by donors. Those funds distribute money to the nonprofit community. Our current campaign is to encourage donors to think about the future of their favorite charities and create a bequest through their will that will ensure those charities receive revenue in perpetuity. Do you think there is any room for this kind of message on Facebook? Thanks.

Beth Kanter:
    Don't ask me, do some listening on Facebook and other channels - not just social media - but focus groups, etc. to see if there is an appropriate platform for this type of conversation.

I'm wondering though, is this the type of conversation that best happens face-to-face and on some groups? Death and dying are touchy subjects and bequests. Is this conversation something that needs to take place in a password protected environment - eg. private?

Question from Milt Sharp, Neighborworks America:
    When considering creating a position within your organization for a person to manage your social media info, where might a person be able to obtain a sample job description?

Beth Kanter:
    I'd search through some of the job sites like Monster - and recent postings on LinkedIn. Also, Chris Brogan was written a lot of about this. http://www.chrisbrogan.com

I'd also ask some of the social media mavens from nonprofits who hangout on Twitter if they would consider sharing their job description.

Finally, I did this interview with cc Mains called "Tweeting 9-5" doesn't give you a job description, but can give you flavor of the work involved

http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/03/tweeting-9-to-5-the-social-media-work-routine.html

And some discussion from SHannon Paul http://veryofficialblog.com/2009/07/16/how-important-is-having-social-media-in-your-title/

Question from Eric Pourchot, Foundation of the American Institute for Conservation:
    So, how DO you measure return from social media?

Beth Kanter:
    Wow, that's the 64 million question, literally.

I've written a lot about this - check out my blog posts on ROI http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/roi/

I'd also read every word that KD Paine has to say on the topic. I did a round up of her fantastic slide show on the topic.

http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/05/twitter-measure-what-counts-to-help-you-improve-what-youre-doing.html

Question from Irina Patterson, Miami, Advisor to Non-Profits:
    Are there any real life success stories where younger early adopters(geeks)connected with and taught older generation of non-techies?

Beth Kanter:
    Yes - I actually did a project where I coached a team of folks from different generations. It's going to be a case study in a book I'm co-writing with Allison Fine.

You can find a story here: http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/06/are-you-a-listening-organization-.html

You might find this book of interest too http://workingacrossgenerations.org/

And also read what the younger early adopters have to say - lots of them are blogging http://www.socialcitizens.org/blog/the-whos-who-of-gen-y-bloggers

Question from Jenna, Ashoka's Changemakers:
    We are increasing our social media presence by involving multiple members of our team. Each has their own voice/style. We want people to participate in a way that is authentic for them but also furthers our brand. And we definitely don't want to sound fake. Any thoughts on how to best do this?

Beth Kanter:
    What a great question! Here's some ideas about doing this via Twitter http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/06/managing-twitter-accounts-for-your-nonprofit.html

Question from Christine Beddia, Coastal Community Foundation of SC:
    Ms. Kanter, At our Coastal Community Foundation we dove head-first into the web 2.0 world and are now at the point of measuring results and progress. We are considering focus groups as a means of gathering constituent preferences and qualitative data to figure out if these new channels are where we need to be focusing our efforts. Especially as print publications are under more financial and budgetary scrutiny. Do you have any insight into focus groups and how best to utilize them for measuring alternative communication vehicles like the social media sphere? Thank you.

Beth Kanter:
    I spent many years as a focus group moderator - and a focus group is a focus group is a focus group - what's different is the topic. Best practice is to do the focus group or qualitative piece first to help you gather insights and perhaps create a survey that measure some of what you learned more broadly. Also remember, that you can use listening on Twitter and other places) as a focus group. My favorite example how the Smithsonian is using social media for research http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/05/smithsonian-crowdsourcing-an-institutions-vision-on-youtube.html Someone has to summarize and do the trend analysis of the listening data that you gather. Right now I'm using my Facebook Fan Page as a focus group about how nonprofits are using Facebook! Come join http://www.facebook.com/pages/Beth-Kanter/212577490407

Question from John D, large arts org:
    Is twitter just a passing fad? Is it worth investing time in expolring this avenue of communications?

Beth Kanter:
    It depends on your audience and goals. What do you want to accomplish? How will you measure success? I think Twitter is still extremely valuable as a listening tool http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2009/06/what-are-your-nonprofits-super-power-listening-tips-for-using-twitter.html Perhaps the best answer to your question is to do a little listening on Twitter - after you've identified goals/audience -= and figure out if can bring value

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    We are now out of time. A special thanks to Beth Kanter for taking your questions for two hours -- without even a coffee break. This has been a fantastic discussion. Beth, as expected, provided a bevy of useful materials and resources.

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    Please note that we host our live discussions every Tuesday at noon Eastern time. Next week, we'll focus on how to use donor research to help guide your organization's fund-raising efforts. To learn more about the series, go to http://philanthropy.com/live. There, you will find links to the transcripts of all of our previous discussions -- and get info about upcoming events.

Peter Panepento (Moderator):
    Thanks again.