I responded to Andrea's post wondering just how much social media can have an effect on the non-profit sector. I then researched some articles and found that it has, and will continue to create a huge undertaking. Facebook is not the only way to connect with members of the community. Of course we still see commercials on TV, or hear ads on the radio but those come at a cost. During tough economic times, some non-profits can ill-afford to pay for these ads. You Tube is a great way to advertise for free.
This causes many people to catch up with the times. With the rise of social media, many of the folks leading the non-profit organizations today may not be very comfortable with these new trends. This is a great time for our generation to come to the forefront in the non-profit sector and continue to promote our organizations through the social media. We use so many of these tools in our every day lives to communicate with others and it will be to our advantage to use them as we enter the workforce. Here is an interesting article on this topic.
http://mashable.com/2009/05/22/non-profit-social-media/
-Matt Schofield
Hi Matt,
ReplyDeleteI like the resource you linked to. I have noticed with our Fine/Kanter text for this curse that a lot of successful media campaigns surround a “Cause” or something that has a compelling emotional message. The organizations I am a part of (Tioga County Historical Society, and the Fine Arts Society of the Southern Tier) don’t really help people beyond cultural enrichment. So I think one thing we may need to work on is a gripping by-line. Maybe “Save our Local History!” ? I’m trying no to roll my eyes, but it’s true, if our material isn’t preserved correctly, it will deteriorate and be lost to future generations.
I like the idea of YouTube. I am also an artist and use YouTube and video filming/editing to demonstrate various techniques and promote workshops my colleagues and I teach. So I think making some YouTube "commercials" for upcoming exhibits at the museum I serve on the board for would be great. I wanted to research some basic legal information for filming and searched for about 20 minutes, finding little beyond music licensing. (You can get great royalty free music from: http://incompetech.com/m/c/royalty-free/ I have used it in the past.)
My concerns were with event filming (where children are present) and exhibit filming (where the guest curator may have issue with their collection being filmed). I know WSKG’s “Building a Better Ask” conference from 2009 required everyone to sign a release before attending because the event was being filmed. Also, I work for a magazine and people have to sign release forms stating that their photos, art, and written material are original to them (to legally protect the magazine.) But I can't find information in regard to filming – rights, releases, when you need them, when you don’t, etc. People are so used to whipping out their camcorders and filming anything, but nonprofits have to be more careful. I think I will bring this up at our next board meeting!
Does anyone else here film and edit video? Do you have any legal resources to share?
YouTube actually has a Nonprofit program: http://www.youtube.com/nonprofits The main benefit seems to be the ability to add a Donate button, which is great for encouraging spontaneous giving.
Andrea,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you liked the post and i'm glad you will look into the YouTube idea as well. I have no real background in legal issues regarding filming but I think you are doing the right thing by checking into making sure of what you can and cannot do when it comes to that.
However I think a good resource for that would be to contact the Communications and Marketing Department here at the University. Ryan Yarosh, a former MPA student who works in that department would tell you exactly what is and is not legal when it comes to filming and editing videos.
- Matt Schofield
Matt and Andrea,
ReplyDeleteI agree that the idea of using social media to effectively promote your organization can seem daunting or a bit “outlandish.” All of the great examples I have seen first-hand have celebrity power behind them, which clearly is not an option for the majority of organizations. I took the time to try and seek out some other examples and came across a really interesting article on the Stanford Social Innovation Review (Here is the url: http://www.ssireview.org/articles/entry/the_dragonfly_effect/). I like that the article addresses the fact that not every campaign can have a life or death tag line to grab people’s attention – and that lacking that emotional appeal can make a campaign more difficult. Another thing I appreciate about the article is the first example. These individuals used social media to highlight a lack that simply could have been overlooked, it’s just something that people don’t think to do, that doesn’t come to mind (The group needed to get 20,000 South Asians into the bone marrow registry, immediately.) I had not thought about this aspect, that perhaps, in some cases, people simply need to be told about something, to have a problem brought to their attention.