LibGuides: Getting Started with Social Media: A Guide for Nonprofit Organizations and Government Agencies: The Case for Social Media

Data Driven Decisions

You can make a stronger case for social media by incorporating data into your decision-making process. See the Social Media Statistics section of this guide for resources.

For Further Reading

A case for Twitter, Facebook, & social media for nonprofit fundraisers
Outlines several reasons for adopting social media for fundraising.
Does Social Media Have A Return On Investment?
Do "likes" and retweets add up to sales? Who knows? And who really cares? We're in the I Love Lucy era of social-media marketing, a golden age of unaccountability. From the June 2011 issue of Fast Company.
Doing Social Media So It Matters: A Librarian's Guide
Drive User Engagement Via Social Media, Day of Dialog Panel Urges
Gear Up For Giving
Social media tutorials from the Case Foundation.
Getting Social Media Right : A Short Guide for Nonprofit Organizations
This report lays out a rubric called the "Seven C's" of social media: Cause, Communication, Community, Collaboration, Costs, Capital, and Competition.
HowTo.Gov > Social Media
Nonprofit Social Media Primer
Having a social media strategy is not its own objective. Rather, social media strategies can support your existing objectives. Reflect on your organization’s current objectives: Do you want to cultivate supporter relationships, build cause awareness, do online fundraising, or connect with new supporters? Those are all goals social media can help support, and this white paper examines a multitude of ways to get started and how your organization can benefit.
Social Media and the Workplace Explained by Common Craft
This video explains how the world of external company communications has changed thanks to social media - and ways organizations can react responsibly
Social Media – Making a Case for Non-Profit use
Links to case studies showing how social media can help improve fundraising.
Ten Ways to Change the World Through Social Media
Many entrepreneurs, activists, and marketers are leveraging the social web for positive change. In the process and by its very nature, they are giving each of us the tools to change the world and make it a better place. There are thousands of examples. Here are 10 worth exploring.
Terrified of Twitter? Here Is the Cure
Think of Twitter as a listening post, a wireless microphone you can toss out on the Internet to learn about what people are saying.
The Benefits of a Social Media Marketing Strategy
A short list of social media benefits for business.
The Case For Social Media In Developing Thought Leadership
Explains the concept of thought leadership and provides a few tips for establishing thought leadership in the digital world.
The Case For Social Media In Non-Profit Strategy
Through social networks, nonprofit organizations can highlight their efforts and share links to articles and events, create dialogue with followers, host contests, and publish updates in order to maintain a following and attract new interest. Through this exposure, those using social media will better understand the climate and culture of the organization and choose how to best aid in various efforts.
Why every nonprofit needs a social media strategy
The handful of nonprofits that are fully embracing social media have the right idea. There's real value to be reaped from this emerging channel, and early adopters are showing that it's worth the investment to establish a strong social media presence.

Why Social Media is Important

Nearly 80% of adults 18 and older are online. Libraries are being innundated by people who need Internet access to research and apply for jobs or apply for government assistance. Teens are even more connected. 93% use the internet. This graph, from the The Pew Internet and American Life Project, illustrates the change in Internet usage in the last decade.

Furthermore, people are using social media to share content. Some statistics:

YouTube exceeds 3 billion views per day. 48 hours of video are uploaded to the site every minute (Source: YouTube).
Facebook = 43% of daily web traffic (Source: http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/facebook.com)
Google = 46% of daily web traffic (Source: http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/google.com)
10% of website visits come from sharing. Sharing also accounts for 31% of referral traffic. Facebook accounts for 38% of referral traffic. Twitter accounts for 11%, e-mail for 17% each (Source: http://techcrunch.com/2011/06/06/sharethis-facebook-38-percent-traffic/)
- People are more likely to click links shared by people they know and less likely to click links when recommended by people once or twice removed from their friends (Source: http://techcrunch.com/2011/06/06/sharethis-facebook-38-percent-traffic/)
People are taking their social media with them
- Facebook is the most download app on iPhones, Blackberrys, and phones running Windows Mobile. It is second to Google Maps on the Android platform (Source: http://www.marketingpilgrim.com/2010/09/nielsen-mobile-study-facebook-weather-maps-and-music.html)
- Manufacturers shipped 100.9 million smartphones to stores around the globe in the final three months of 2010,compared to 92.1 million personal computers, according to a study released in February 2011 by IDC (Source: http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2011/02/07/idc-smartphone-shipment-numbers-passed-pc-in-q4-2010/)

Pew Internet's Generations Online 2010 summary of findings illustrates the popularity of internet activities by internet users in each generation. Some highlights:

Social media is most popular with younger adults, although 10-19% of those 74 and over also use it.
- While the youngest generations are still significantly more likely to use social network sites, the fastest growth has come from internet users 74 and older: social network site usage for this oldest cohort has quadrupled since 2008, from 4% to 16%.
Reading blogs consistently ranks lower than using social media sites across all generations.
- The takeaway: If you’re blogging, you should also be syndicating posts through social media channels like Facebook and Twitter.

The internet has become deeply embedded in group life and is affecting the way civic and social groups behave and the way they impact their communities. Pew Internet has correlated information about group affilation and connectivity to show the percentage of American adults in each tech user group (those who use the internet, those who connect to the internet wirelessly, cell phone users, etc.) who are active in various organizations. You can view the chart here.

Social Media and the Workplace as explained by Common Craft is an excellent video introduction to why social media is important for companies. It works equally well for non-commercial organizations too.

Making the Case for Social Media in Your Organization

What are some of the benefits of social media?

Low cost -- Most tools are free or inexpensive
Build trust and community -- Social media gives your organization a human voice. Producing useful content builds loyalty and improves viral marketing. Learn what’s important to your customers/clients by listening to what they have to say. Build social tools into your web site and encourage people to comment on and share your content.
Become a thought leader and improve your reach -- Go where the people are and engage them. Build your reputation as an expert in your subject. Web pages are static and reactive. Social media is fluid and proactive. Use tools like Facebook and Twitter to push content from your web site to a broader audience.
Staffing advantages --You probably already have people in your organization who are using social media tools. Enlist them in your effort. Demographics are in your favor and you'll likely improve their job satisfaction

The bottom line: Social media is another avenue for telling your organization's story and finding a wider audience for your web content. Why would you not use free marketing tools?