Give to the Max Day is Minnesota’s biggest online fundraising event of the year and 2010 was the most collaborative social media effort for this event ever. Join this session to learn GiveMN’s outreach strategy for social media and explore how nonprofits across the state collaborated on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Livestream to make it successful. Learn what didn’t work and why. Mostly, find out how these lessons learned can help your nonprofit create and implement successful social media strategy year-round.

1. Looking back on Give to the Max Day 2010
Reflecting on the Social Media Strategy
Jeff Achen
Interactive Media Strategist
GiveMN.org
@givemn
Nicole Harrison
Social Media and Digital Strategist
SocialeNicole Online Communications
@socialnicole
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2. We focused on…
We did not focus on…
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3. Early Collaboration
• Began early with an informal lunch w/ social media specialists in our
network
• GiveMN Strategy Cabinet came up with Livestream idea, as well as
video ideas
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4. Outreach Strategy
• Created a “Social Media
Guide”
• Used the training webinar to
talk about our social media
efforts
• Created a Twitter hashtag -
#GTMD2010
• Leveraged our networks and
promoted by finding our
advocates
• Sent out request to Minnesota
Bloggers to blog about GTMD.
• Began coordinating with The
UpTake to Livestream the
event.
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5. YouTube Strategy
• Created “how-to” videos
– Gaining Admin Access, Creating a project page, Setting up a
matching grant, etc.
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6. YouTube Strategy
• Created a celebrity public service announcement video
– Drafted an invitation, used our network to see who had
connections, wrote the script and scheduled interviews
– Distributed via YouTube, Facebook & Twitter. Sent DVDs to
news stations & nonprofits. Emailed the video to our mailing
list
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7. YouTube Strategy
• Commissioned Chuck Olsen to create “Dr. Garry” video
– Allowed creative freedom and tapped the power of Chuck’s
personal network/fans
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8. The Message Spread
• Nonprofits spread the Give to the Max Day message
through e-newsletters.
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9. The Message Spread
• Nonprofits began their own promotions through social
media.
– Animal Humane Society created some great videos
– North American Bear Center activated its Facebook fans (over 120,000 of them!)
– Twin Cities Rise! Created template messages for its supporters to use on Twitter
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10. Lessons Learned
• Get an earlier start on celebrity PSA
• Livestream was extremely popular. Managing the sign
up was tricky. Using Google docs not the best.
• Bloggers outside of the NPO community did not pick up
the story.
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11. Turning GTMD into an EVENT!
• Livestream became the hub for activity.
– Nicole guest Tweeted
– Jeff blogged Golden Ticket winners/posted to Facebook
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12. Lessons Learned
• Tweetup wasn’t successful, only 3-4 people showed
• Location was tough to get to and wasn’t high traffic,
public venue
• Never effectively used Foursquare
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13. Managing your online community
• Some North American Bear Center
Facebook fans were found to be
attempting to game the system.
• The NABC as an organization did
nothing wrong, but GiveMN clearly
states in its prize grant rules that a
unique donation is an individual
person making a donation to a
nonprofit.
• After determining there were some
instances of multiple donations
from the same individual taking
place, GiveMN worked with NABC to
review its donations and determine
the number of those donations.
Those donations were removed, and
the final results brought North
American Bear Center into second
place.
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14. Managing your online community
Lessons learned:
• Your Facebook page is
your community.
• Monitor conversations
and set the tone.
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15. GTMD Takeaways
• Strategize with peers and supporters
• Find your advocates and get them to volunteer time
and skills
• Reach out early/plan early
• Educate and be transparent with your plan
• Use a variety of channels for your message: SM,
email, earned media, print publications, advertising,
phone calls
• Monitor your SM channels, set the tone
• Conduct a debrief after the event to evaluate the
strengths and weaknesses
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16. “The Pew Research Center’s Internet & American
Life Project reports that more than 73 percent of
young American adults use social media as a
primary means of gathering information and
decision making—and that includes where and
how to give money.”
What’s your social media strategy?
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17. Give to the Max Day 2011
is Wednesday November 16!
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18. Links
• Social media tip sheet:
http://blog.givemn.org/_asset/3w0hnj/Social-Media-
Recommendations-for-GTMD-2010.pdf
• GTMD2010 Webinar
http://www.slideshare.net/jeffachen/gtmd2-webinar-v4
• GTMD NPO Toolkit http://givemn.razoo.com/p/gtmd-
nonprofit-toolkit/
• GiveMN YouTube channel
http://www.YouTube.com/givemn
• Blog post: “Social Media’s Role in Raising $10 Million in One
Day” http://www.vimm.com/social-medias-role-in-raising-
10-million-in-one-day/
• Blog post: “How Minnesota’s ‘Networked Nonprofits’ raised
over $10M in one day’” http://www.bethkanter.org/mn-
give-2/
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