Posts Tagged ‘social media’

Hardly Normal in the Beacon – Day Three

For his final show from the Beacon at South by Southwest, Mark Horvath from invisiblepeople.tv spoke with influential nonprofit blogger and author Beth Kanter on crowd sourcing and Causemedia Group (WhatGives!? parent company) CEO Chris Noble on how to gain the support of local businesses for local charities.

[Note: to see the interviews in their entirety, go to the WhatGives!? Ustream channel.]

Kanter jumped right in with the excellent reminder that people don’t write checks to buildings or programs, they write checks to people. “It’s a long-term relationship. Your first interaction with someone is not to ask them for money or to help your cause or to pitch them,” said Kanter.  “Get to know them and along the way there’ll be some opportunity for that.”  Horvath agreed, adding, “Every moment is a VIP moment.”  Then Kanter reminded the audience of something Peter Dietz once said – “Your donors are not ATM machines!” WhatGives!? Read more »

MjM

Hardly Normal in the Beacon – Day Two

Today in the SXSW Beacon Lounge, Mark Horvath had the opportunity to speak with people who come from different arenas in the social media world, but share a single purpose: to find and build communities that are involved at the local level.

[Note: to see the interviews in their entirety, go to the WhatGives!? Ustream channel.]

Kari Saratovsky is Vice President of Social Innovation for the Case Foundation and publisher of the Social Citizens Blog.  Unlike many other “traditional” foundations, the Case Foundation has opened up their process to try and reach people who might not have had access to grant opportunities in the past.  With their Make it Your Own awards, they let the public be part of the nomination and voting process.  Hoping for 1,000 applicants, they received nearly 5,000 – the majority of whom had never felt able to seek a grant before.  That kind of accessibility is difficult for some more-structured foundations, but Saratovsky noted that this kind of “flexibility” is spreading with campaigns like the Pepsi Refresh nomination/voting/rewarding model, saying, “If we can spend more time really helping people see themselves as being able to apply for these grants and to get this help, then I think we’re in a better position.” WhatGives!? Read more »

MjM

Why Go to a Conference? Especially SXSW?

Here’s the simple answer.

These are two of my favorite people.  I see one or both of these faces almost every day, like this:

And only a few times a year can I see them like this:

Got it? OK.  Here’s the longer explanation. I started writing it this morning, before seeing my friends.

(Go ahead and skip it if you want, you already get the point)

Why go to a conference?  Especially a conference devoted to interactivity and social media?  We’re all connected 24/7 anyway, and most of the good panels and presentations will show up eventually on the web.  You might not be able to get all the content, or the exact answer to a question you always wanted to ask Chris Brogan.  But most of the ideas presented will be out there somewhere and, after all, Brogan is a pretty accessible guy. WhatGives!? Read more »

Noble

Hardly Normal in the Beacon – Day One

This morning we kicked off Mark Horvath’s star-studded, live-streaming, straight-talking, Beacon-Lounge-ified talkfest at SXSW.  Jeff Pulver and Chris Brogan each took a chair on stage and shared their insights about how nonprofits need to embrace transparency and the art of listening in order to raise money and awareness.

Jeff Pulver (founder of Pulver.com; producer of the 140 Characters Conference), reminisced about the hours he spend as a kid talking to people around the world on his ham radio set, comparing it to the connection people get with Twitter.  He would pass along radio messages to others in a kind of radio “retweet”, allowing people to connect on a personal level at an incredible distance.  WhatGives!? Read more »

MjM

Foursquare Check-in for Charity Begins Today at SXSW

Joe Waters is the Director of Cause Marketing for Boston Medical Center and a prolific blogger in the “Cause Marketing” field.  Joe has developed and executed cause marketing programs with several local and national companies, and is a well known speaker on the intersection of business, philanthropy and marketing.  Joe has cross posted this story on his blog, SelfishGiving.com.

Cause marketers and Foursquare fanatics take note: some great stuff is kicking off today at SXSW 2010 in Austin, TX. Get your notepads out and sharpen your pencils because the folks at StudioGood will have some great lessons to share over the next few days.
And I’ll be the one reporting the news! Although I won’t be doing it alone because Boston needs me too much with the Red Sox home opener less than a month away.
Kerrie LeBourveau from StudioGood is on the ground in Austin and promises lots of details, pics and video so I can share with all of you just how this first in location-based cause marketing unfolds at SXSW.
Here are the details of the Check-in for Charity to bring you up to speed.
  • Starting today every time you Check-in on Foursquare in Austin, Microsoft and PayPal will donate $0.25 toward Save the Children up to $15,000.
  • There will be check-in locations around SXSWi.
  • You don’t need to be in Austin to help. Just use the hashtag #sxswHaiti on Twitter and Save the Children and Microsoft and PayPal will make the same donation.
Stay tune for my updates on Check-in for Charity, its progress and my insights on how we can all learn how to combine Foursquare and cause marketing to raise more money for causes.
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JoeWaters

Is Social Media Free?

Many business owners want to know the answer to this question.  It is usually the first question they ask after they get the idea that they need to have social media as a component to their marketing, advertising and public relations or communications programs.  How much does social media cost?  For the most part, social media is free.  Twitter is free to use, Facebook, YouTube, and Flickr cost nothing, and finally, blogging software is free.  Yes, social media is “free”.  The problem is, someone has to pay for free. WhatGives!? Read more »

Genuine

Misguided Media Messages Online & Off…

As a new media mini-mogul, I realize my loyalties should be firmly tied to the online world of instant information and low/no carbon footprint distribution, but I am also an addict.  I love a real newspaper.  For all the same reasons some crotchety old-schooler is always writing about: the tactile nature, the surprising juxtaposition of stories, the snapping as you fold it in half.  Yadda, yadda, yadda.  Sometimes, however, I really believe I see more in print than I would online.

Take Sunday’s Parade Magazine, for example.  They had a great cover story about a recent poll indicating America is giving more than ever before – experiencing a “compassion boom” in spite of tough economic times.  After reading it, I went online to see what additional information might be available in connection with the story.

The main page showed nothing about their Sunday cover story except a link to “this week in Parade” at the bottom of the screen. WhatGives!? Read more »

MjM

Using Social Media for Social Good – A Case Study

When I heard about the earthquake in Haiti I was filled with despair as I saw the images come out of that country showing people’s lives changed forever.  I wanted to do something more than send in my check or give my standard donation.  I wanted to do something more and I wanted to use what I did in my job as a place to start.  The result was the Haiti radio show, which was able to raise funds for Haiti and spread some good in the world.

Joseph Jaffe a marketer and pioneer in the world of social media had the same idea.  He took what he knew and what he could do to help and used that to make a difference in the world. He explains more in his video:

Jaffe works for a company called Crayon, that recently merged with Powered, a company that was very generous in donating to that 24 hour radio show benefiting Haiti earthquake victims.  I join Mr. Jaffe in his call for social media people to do something more than preach to the choir.  I want them to take what they do and find a way to leverage that into a campaign for a cause.  The work we do everyday is easy enough, but it is hard to make a choice to take what we do and give that to others.  Thanks to Joseph Jaffe for making a difference in the lives of those who need it.

Genuine

Mark Horvath & WhatGives!? at SxSW!!

What’s that hum in the air?  It’s all the buzz about South by Southwest, kicking off next week in Austin, Texas.  What began in 1987 as a music festival now includes film and interactive tracks that draw many of each discipline’s most influential people to town for panels, presentations, discussions, and good, old fashioned conversations.

This year, WhatGives!? will be smack in the middle of all the action at the Beacon in Room 8BC on Level 3 of the Austin Convention Center.  This self-proclaimed “Lounge with a Conscience” will kick off each day with our pal, Mark Horvath of invisible people.tv interviewing some amazing people in the social media for social good world. Opinions about social media’s impact on efforts to increase support for charities and causes are sure to be flying fast and furious every morning.  We’ll be streaming on UStream on the WhatGives!? Channel.  Join us in Austin or online between 10:30 and 11:00am! (Central Standard Time*)  You can also follow along on Twitter or through the Beacon website. WhatGives!? Read more »

MjM

From Newspapers To Newsfeeds: Hearst Castle NPO Wants to “Get” Social Media

In 1919 William Randolph Hearst built his fairyland castle by the sea in San Simeon, California. Once a fabulous playground for the rich and famous, it is now one of the top tourist destinations in California and a National Historic Landmark.

Since the Hearst Corporation donated the property to the the State of California in the 1950s, almost one million visitors a years have oohed and aahed at the incredible architecture, art, and antiques once enjoyed by the likes of Winston Churchill, Charles Lindbergh, and Charlie Chaplin. The 115-room main house, guesthouses, pools, and 8 acres of cultivated gardens have been extraordinarily maintained by a few small non-profit organizations.

Friends of Hearst Castle is one of them. WhatGives!? Read more »

kerriebrynn