September 14, 2015
Nonprofit visibility on social media is a must in 2015. These days it would be considered “foolish” if your organization was not actively engaging on any of the major social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn. Surprisingly, many members of a nonprofit board of directors are not involved in social media development of their organizations. One role of the Board of Directors and its members essentially includes being a vocal ambassador for their nonprofit. The most expedient and cost effective way to engage a board member more thoroughly is by the use of the social media spaces. Since much of an organizations’ strategic plan for fundraising is online, by integrating board of directors in social media their specific effort is more congruent to the plan and highly effective.
Here are 5 other reasons that should help encourage your board to engage in social media.
In some cases, nonprofits survive off of the connections and partnerships they form within their community. With just one tweet, board members are able to connect with potential donors, but those people the organization serves. Rarely are board members visible(unless they are a part of a “working board” that regularly works in the field at events) outside of their biography on a website. Having board members actively engaged on social media channels validates to the community and other donors a visible commitment to the organization’s mission.
Also, board members are the noticeable ambassadors for nonprofits and their causes. Social media not only magnifies an organization’s visibility locally, but very likely, GLOBALLY. Social media’s newest kid on the block, Periscope allows access to its users’ mobile devices to live stream their surrounding in real time. Think of the impact it would have if a board members made a periscope about their visit to a local community event on behalf of their nonprofit? Millions of social media followers could be instantly aware of the event and the effort the organization made toward their mission.
Millions of people daily scour the internet for job and volunteer opportunities via social networking sites like LinkedIn. Having board members active and engaged only enhances this process as it strengths the connections and relationships organizations may have with key stakeholders, funders, potential volunteers and future board members. When recruiting personnel (especially board members), it’s very important an individual is compatible to a nonprofit’s mission. LinkedIn’s “Board Connect” (http://blog.linkedin.com/2012/09/17/board-connect/) is a great resource for nonprofits to explore and find volunteers, staff or a suitable board member, based on their posted LinkedIn profile.
Fundraising for nonprofits has become easier and easier as the social media space continues to grow. Innovations such as Text to Donate has made the act of charitable giving as simple as a click on the “send” button. In addition to text messaging, nonprofits have seen fundraising success through the use of creative and engaging social media campaigns. The best and most recent example of this would be the ALS Association’s “Ice Bucket Challenge” that swept the country and went viral on social media in the summer of 2014. ALS was able to raise over 100 million dollars for their cause through the ALS campaign while increasing awareness for a disease that, before the Ice Bucket Challenge, many Americans knew very little about (a survey conducted by consumer healthcare insights organization Treato found that 29% of people who participated in the Ice Bucket Challenge said they had never heard of or were not very familiar with ALS before participating.)
A solid social media blueprint should be included in every nonprofits strategic plan. It’s easy to forget to include this in an organizations strategy, however it may now be one of the most important pieces to the tactical operations puzzle. When your Board members are active on social media, it makes it a lot easier to integrate a social media plan into a clear, consistent message. Perhaps, by integrating a social media strategist as a board member would strengthen a nonprofit’s reliable and growing communication to their best audiences?
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We’ve been a member of First Nonprofit’s Unemployment Savings Program since 2011 and highly recommend joining. The program is terrific and allows us to earn interest on our own funds while still meeting the state’s requirements on unemployment payments. In addition, the staff are great and always helpful sorting out any questions we may have. Thank you all!
CCSCT was approached by First NonProfit to discuss its Unemployment Savings Program and ways the program could significantly reduce the amount of unemployment taxes we were paying. At the time, our agency was paying approximately $80,000 per year. First NonProfit conducted an analysis to determine if making the switch would be in our best interest, and it clearly was based on our circumstances. The first year on the program, CCSCT saw a 70% reduction in its unemployment costs and each year, continues to experience further reductions as a result of having minimal claims. Some additional benefits of the program including having a fixed annual cost, an interest-baring reserve account, professional unemployment claims management and representation at all unemployment hearings. This has been one of the best decisions we have made.
We first started using First Nonprofit’s Unemployment Savings Program when we were a small startup nonprofit. We didn’t have an HR department and needed expertise in the event that an unemployment claim was made. We knew we were eligible to be a reimbursing employer, but weren’t sure how to navigate that process. They made it easy to set things up, plan for, and then manage claims when they came at a very reasonable cost. The amount of time and stress they’ve saved us dealing with all this has been worth way more than the cost. We’ve now grown to a large nonprofit and do have an HR department but have no plans to stop using their services. I highly recommend them to every nonprofit I come into contact with!
Throughout our membership in the Unemployment Savings Program, First Nonprofit understood our demands, community dynamics, and the importance of seamless services; that allowed us to serve our constituents better.
Because INCS advocates for the operating conditions that allow charter public schools to provide high quality public education, partnering with First Nonprofit was an easy decision. First Nonprofit’s unemployment programs provide our member schools two operating elements crucial to their ability to provide high quality public education: savings and budget certainty. Capable, committed teachers are the key to student success. By participating in the unemployment insurance savings plan, charter public schools gain peace of mind and are able to invest more money in their teachers.
It has been our sincere pleasure to maintain a strong, vibrant business partnership with First Nonprofit. We greatly admire their strong industry knowledge, technical expertise, constant professionalism, knowledgeable and dedicated staff. They are always extremely responsive, personable and provide us with the necessary guidance and recommendations on a numerous variety of employment scenarios.
NYCON members who use First Nonprofit’s programs enjoy enduring savings and improved efficiency. Our association knows that success, because from the beginning, we achieved the same great benefits. Great savings, seamless technology, and responsive service. NYCON highly recommends First Nonprofit’s remarkable unemployment solutions.
Visually Impaired Preschool Services has been a client of First Non-Profit since it was first offered as a benefit of VisionServe Alliance. We completed a thorough evaluation of cash savings to our agency before taking advantage of this wonderful benefit and it has been a very wise decision. Our experience with the processes from accounting to claims have been professional, expeditious and easy.