12.26.2011
Just a month ago, a news story zeroed in on the financial travails of a large non-profit organization we follow.
In order to build new revenue streams, the group's CEO was quoted saying he hired someone to "cultivate a younger, more culturally diverse audience" through social media.
Uh, oh.
We got the impression that the executive didn't really know what that meant. So, naturally, we began following the organization's tweets and Facebook posts.
Our intuition was right.
Over the holidays, through its Twitter posts, we learned that this struggling charity loves ruffled dresses, baked chicken pasta, floral and fruit wedding centerpieces, and would rather be in the mountains.
The group's Facebook posts don't play any better. Bubbly, but with a few too many exclamation points and clichés, we are urged to "do" (buy! click! check out!) but are never really engaged as to why or how this will bring value to our lives or to the lives of others. The organization's Facebook "voice" is one of an excitable BFF.
Earlier this month, while covering a similar "too personal" gaffe made by the Twitterer for an international non-profit, The Globe and Mail suggested a succinct recommendation: "Be careful who you give control to."
With the emergence of (a) an entire generation of self-absorbed who believe that everything they think and do is important and charming and (b) a proliferation of agencies that provide social media services ... "being careful" may not be enough.
So, we would like to add a couple of more thoughts to The Globe and Mail's singular lesson.
To social media staffers or freelancers: You are always representing the organization's image ... not your own. You are always speaking to the organization's current and potential audience ... not your own. And, odds are, your Twitter or Facebook posts are also leaving lingering impressions on other influential opinion-leaders. Like traditional media.
To CEOs, specifically executives of struggling non-profits: Activity – even if it is "free publicity" – does not necessarily translate into effective activity. Just because you do not understand social media does not justify an organizational blind spot. Badly executed moves on Facebook or Twitter may, in fact, encumber your organization with a bigger "out of touch" label than you need right now.
Admit that your online audience is smart, cynical and probably older than you think. If you do not know the power of social media and the persuasive role it can have in measurable online strategies, do not automatically be compelled by a board member or a perky staffer to "do something" with social media.
First, establish a solid understanding of what social media means, how it can help ... and the damage it can cause. Create a "voice" that will resonate with your current or potential customers who are online. Establish specific objectives for social media. And identify measurements that are based on outcomes not outflows.
Because, right now, the lingering impression you're leaving is that you'd rather be wearing ruffled dresses and living in the mountains than drawing me into your cause ... or toward your bottom line.
Randall White, President
Elettore
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