Both not-for-profit and membership organisations rely on their members. There's just no getting away from that fact. And in order to increase their membership base both nfp and membership organisations need to interact with the public to gain support.
Several charities have already turned to social media as a way of engaging people. A recent article from Third Sector reported that charities are using blogs, forums and other social media tools to highlight their key aims and encourage word-of-mouth . Large charities like Cancer Research, Amnesty International and ActionAid are all using social media, in particular, blogging, to increase their online presence. But are they using social media to actively strengthen their membership base or is it just another communication tool?
And what about membership organisations? Membership organisations are traditionally viewed as a source of specialist information and advice. They also provide an arena for networking with people who have a similar interest, profession or background. Today, however, many of these services are offered elsewhere for free. Search engines give people the ability to look up detailed information on the web. Social networking tools like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, allow people to reach out and communicate with people "like them", giving them the opportunity to seek advice and to interact with each other without the need of a third party.
So as more and more people use social media tools to interact and connect with like-minded people, membership organisations need to develop a social media strategy to harness and utilise these connections. Membership organisations need to join the online conversation. They need to use social media to engage with the people who would be interested in joining their group - and often these people are already talking to eachother, so this should be easy to do.
With this in mind, we're running a free breakfast seminar for nfp and membership organisations on how to strengthen your membership strategy with social media. The event starts at 8.30am on Thursday 18th February and will include useful tips, advice and case studies from the likes of Bertie Bosredon, Assistant Director of Services at Breast Cancer Care, and Steve Bridger, Social Media Consultant for nfp and membership organisations.
If you're an nfp or membership organisation and you want to find out how you can strengthen your membership strategy with social media you can register below for the event.
Strengthen your membership strategy with social media
- Location: FreshNetworks, 229 High Holborn, WC1V 7DA London (map)
- Date and time: Thursday February 18, 2010, 08:30-10:30
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