part II: blogging is for us
Posted on | September 30, 2009 | No Comments
Nonprofits typically take one of two approaches to blogging, as many have noted: they either shy away from it because it’s out of their control and they don’t understand how to make it work for them, or they set up a company blog and begin posting press releases. Neither is effective, and neither takes full advantage of the power of community on the web to catalyze action.
Many before have written and spoken about this with more authority than I. Lately, I have been promoting Seth Godin’s excellent thoughts on the subject as captured on his blog in this post and others; his blog is often highly informative and useful for multiple sectors. Another recent example is Jeff Jarvis’s recent post about “Googley philanthropy,” which he says should be “transparent, networked, collaborative.”
Here’s my take: the web (and blogging in particular) offers a tremendous opportunity to motivate a small group of people who would otherwise be extraordinarily hard to reach – because of limits of time and physical space – and to make them feel personally engaged and empowered to do something about the problem a nonprofit is set up to tackle. But the only way to engage people as a small, relatively unknown organization is to make them feel like they have a personal connection to the organization. Press releases never do that.
Smart, talented people in small organizations should have blogging in their job description, and not extended, well-researched pieces, but short pieces about the work the organization is doing, why they’re excited about it, and how people can get involved. Someone who is organizing a conference can talk about the fantastic speakers with whom they’re collaborating. Someone who is researching for a policy report can talk about the importance of the topic and the potential conclusions. This should be an expected, regular part of the organization’s work, and not because it in itself will bring donations or grants, but because it allows you to become a voice in the community of people who care about your issues. Those people will seek you out.
More than that, though, provide a place for those people to talk to you and to each other. Because platforms for your message are no longer scarce, but attention is, so cultivate it, and then use it wisely. Don’t take for granted the wisdom in the informal community.
When you empower people, value them, and enable them to engage with the organization in a concrete way – by hosting a local event, meeting with their elected representatives, or serving as evangelists for your message – they will work with you to make things happen.
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