Facebook is a critical tool for nonprofits, because it is a great way to connect with other organizations that you might not have had visibility to. It makes great sense to create a presence on of the top 5 Web sites on the web where people are already regularly visiting rather than expecting users to find you. If an organization has video content, podcasts, interviews, or documents just languishing, creating a presence on Facebook provides them with an easy way to upload this media, without needing the time or resources required for the updating of a website. It will allow orgs to plug into an already installed audience of organizations that have opted into similar interest groups. It will also help organizations collaborate and connect easily and increase their volunteer and support network.
Facebook allows organizations to quickly broadcast a message to a large list (their opt-in network) without getting blacklisted by the ISP or having their message get caught up in a spam filter. In addition, the event posting capabilities allow organizations to post events easily and efficiently. Finally, the way that Facebook interacts with other social media tools, like Twitter, blogs and Flickr, enhances and grows and organization’s network and provides a simple interface to consistently and easily update the community with news of an organization’s status and activities. All nonprofits considering creating a Facebook presence should read CauseWired by Tom Watson, as it demystifies web 2.0 community tools, like Facebook, and helps activists and social change agents mobilize and raise awareness about their missions.
Click below to see all of tech Soup’s easy to do tips, tools and links in their article for non-profits!
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