Image by ~ Sandy ~ This year’s Millennial Impact Report shows that anyone doing business in the United States needs mobile communications as part of its portfolio. Without mobile any business or nonprofit’s growth strategy is dead in the water. An astounding 77% of millennials use a smartphone to access the Internet, says the report — well above the general […]
Image by Rod Senna Surely you have seen the many studies, articles and posts (see Gini’s take) — including a couple on this blog — over the past few months about corporate blogging’s decline. In thinking about the matter, I decided to reverse my personal decision to exclude a blog roll here. The best way to support blogging is to […]
The first chapter of Welcome to the Fifth Estate discusses social media empowered people that act independently of traditional media, government and corporate structures. Last Saturday night on WOR Radio’s The Business of Giving show I had the pleasure of discussing this tension with host Denver Frederick. From Syrian bloggers fighting the Assad regime to the anti-Komen Planned Parenthood social […]
It’s been an amazing year. It has had big ups and big downs. In short, life was in session. In hindsight, there is so much to be grateful for as we roll into the holiday season. With Thanksgiving upon us, I’d like to express my gratitude for many things over the past year. First of all this was the magical […]
We like to believe that one person can save the world, win a project, and deliver the lights out performance that will change everything. No culture believes in super heroes quite like America does, and that includes our marketing. Just consider the strong man image of the Marlboro Man. Heck, even the Old Spice guy is a play off this […]
The above infographic — “The State of Influencer Theory” (download here) — was published today as part of a primer on influence theory that appeared in SmartBrief on Social Media. The post updates a section of Welcome to the Fifth Estate to include leaderboard theory, such as Klout and Empire Avenue. Addressing some issues pointed out in “Infographics: Art or […]
Image by DeclanTM As promised, Welcome to the Fifth Estate is being made avalailable to you for free via podcast. Each podcast is roughly 1/2 to 1/3 of a chapter, and approximately 15 minutes in length. The Fifth Estate Podcast will be posted every week by Friday until the book is completed. As the author and narrator, please excuse little […]
This coming Saturday will mark my five year “blogoversary”. A laborious blog post lavishing personal reflections doesn’t feel right. As more time passes, such inward focused accolades tend to make me uncomfortable. Writers write, that’s what we do, and for me blogging is writing, an activity I will likely partake in the rest of my life. It is an honor […]
UPDATE: Robert Scoble believes our comments are taken out of context, and has offered this Cincast on his views about women in tech. We appreciate Mr. Scoble’s participation in this important topic, and wish to encourage all parties to discuss the matter. UPDATE: Robert Scoble has shared his thoughts on Women in Tech. You can view his take here. Image: […]
“When a man assumes a public trust, he should consider himself as public property.” – Thomas Jefferson Image by Leigh Durst The idea of public service dates back to the founding of this country, when people were first elected to represent citizens of the United States. In modern times, people create leaders in various online communities by giving them their […]
Some interesting reads this morning around the social web, which you may enjoy: The New America Foundation breaks down three types of collaborative design for community technology, human centered, appropriate and participatory. Designing a product or service for communities requires thought towards outcomes, approach and research, amongst many other things. Creating social technology products for communities and lasting change really […]
It’s late in another summer, and another thought “leader” has said that the blame for the lack of female speakers (or success) should be laid squarely on the shoulders of women. While there have been several great direct responses to this latest link frenzy, I felt that instead of participating directly (like I did last summer), the best commentary I […]
The following is draft material for my next book, Welcome to the Fifth Estate (the follow up to Now Is Gone, which is almost out of print). Comments may be used in the final edition. You can download the first drafted chapter of the new edition — Welcome to the Fifth Estate — for free. In the past, media relations […]
This weekend’s F@st Company The Influence Project gaff sparked a great discussion about influence. It’s a fascinating conversation because influence means so much to all of us online. Successful online word of mouth or grassroots marketing usually requires community influencers embracing and spreading the message. The discussion about what influence really is has been ongoing since the social web first […]
After one hell of a blizzard and four months, Allyson Kapin, Shireen Mitchell and I are ready to finally host the first ever NonProfit 2.0 Unconference. This sold out Friday June 25th event will be held at SEIU in downtown DC. What better way to kick off the first Friday of summer then with fun wonky chats about change for […]
As co-founder of the NonProfit 2.0 Conference and Beth’s business partner, I was thrilled to get a sneak preview of Beth Kanter and Allison Fine‘s The Networked Nonprofit a couple weeks ago at the Personal Democracy Forum. The following two minute movie provides a synapsis of the book’s thesis. It is a compilation of their keynote and sound bites from […]
So many organizations feel like they need bring causes into their marketing, and similarly, need to add social media to the mix. It’s a bit of a checklist game, and thus the quick drive to add a contest with online voting or simply create a cause purchasing campaign with a popular charity like Komen or a safe one like autism. […]
Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall. ~ Confucius Many folks fail in business, and for a variety of reasons, some more common than others. In American business, particularly on the communications side, there’s a misperception that failure is bad. In fact, failure often creates the seeds of future success. Many, many […]
Right before 10 NTC comes the release of #SOCIAL MEDIA NONPROFIT tweet, a book that has 140 bite-sized ideas for nonprofit social media engagement. Authored by Janet Fouts with fellow Zoetican Beth Kanter, book proceeds directly benefit the Nonprofit Technology Network, NTEN. From the description, “Virtually every nonprofit realizes that, pretty soon, social media will no longer be optional. Already […]
During SxSW, Beth Kanter, Kami Huyse and I posted our first team thought leadership piece, “Cause Marketing That Leads to Social Change.” It encompasses our 21st century view of CSR-based cause marketing initiatives in social environments (Image by Tom Fishburne). Key components include: Cause Washing Leads to Cynicism (need for authenticity) Leading with Social Outcomes (theory of change) Authenticity in […]
In a great ongoing conversation with Amy Sample Ward about Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and whether companies can authentically engage, we discussed whether they can simply create marketing fanfare or tell a genuine story. Authenticity must be something that truly reflects a culture, not some mechanized program designed to bluff stakeholders. This is particularly true of companies who have been […]
Brian Clark (@copyblogger) Presents at SOBCon 2009 On Sunday May 2nd, SOBCon 2010 will highlight four charities (501c3) that have volunteered themselves for a social media coaching session from its attendees. I have the great honor of serving the conference as the NonProfit Give Back facilitator. Each of our four charities — Anixter, Ashoka, InvisiblePeopleTV and Vitamin Angels — will […]
And so Zoetica begins. Together with top-ranked nonprofit blogger Beth Kanter and PR maven Kami Huyse, I am proud to launch Zoetica. Zoetica, a social enterprise, provides superior communication consulting, training, and strategy to help mindful organizations affect social change. As part of our mission, the consultancy will allocate 10 percent of our annual profits to organizations selected by Zoetica’s […]
Bodhisattva: Term for the historical Buddha Gautama prior to his enlightenment as well as for other individuals destined to become buddhas. In Mahayana Buddhism the bodhisattva postpones attainment of nirvana in order to alleviate the suffering of others. The number of bodhisattvas is theoretically limitless, and the title has been applied to great scholars, teachers, and Buddhist kings. Today is […]
Everyone always seems fascinated with Twitter follower counts. Friend Beth Kanter was recently added to the official Twitter recommended list, which in turn added more than 100,000 new followers to her account. We decided to see what kind of impact the new following brought with it. We did this by retweeting a link to the above photo featuring her and […]
The highlight of last week’s YNPNdc briefing on the Obama Administration’s nonprofit policy was Macon Phillips, Director of the White House Office of New Media (pictured above). Phillips detailed how the White House was using social to engage stakeholders online. As you can see, the White House site is very social, playing with every tool possible. While there are forays […]
Continuing our informal series of interviews with BlogPotomac speakers at the Final BlogPotomac (October 23, at the State Theatre, register today!), our keynote Beth Kanter answered our questions about the future of social media. Beth is the author of Beth’s Blog: How Nonprofits Can Use Social Media , one of the longest running and most popular blogs for nonprofits. A […]
In this video, Kristin Ivie provides background on The Case Foundation’s Gear Up for Giving Tutorial Series every Tuesday and Thursday. The sessions aim to help nonprofits better understand social media. Upcoming sessions include: Tuesday, September 22 – 1:00pm -NetSquared’s Marnie Webb Thursday, September 24 – 1:00pm – NTEN’s Holly Ross Tuesday, September 29 – 1:00pm – #1 Changeblogger Beth […]
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Image by Judy Carson Many styles of engagement exist in social media. From pure content marketing to commenting on every post, we see many companies and personalities successfully market. I gravitate towards thanking and serving. There is no absolute right way. One thing I have learned over the years about social: The most important thing is to represent your personality […]