Creating A Social Media Ambassador
Strategy Beth Kanter Master Trainer, Speaker, and Author

Beth Kanter: Master Trainer, Author,
Speaker and Blogger @kanter http://bethkanter.wikispaces.com/donorpath

Agenda • What is heck
a social media ambassador? • The benefits of using Social Media Ambassadors • Why start with “insiders” (staff and board) • Examples • Strategy from Inside Out: Getting Buy-In, Guidelines • How Get People Who Love Your Organization To Be Social Media Ambassadors: Tips and Tricks

Redefining Brand Ambassadors in An
Age of Social Media

Definition • Any stakeholder who
is passionate about your organization • Shares information about your organization on social channels • Asks their online social networks to support to the organization.

Coordinating & Amplifying Social Media
Ambassadors = Impact “When you hear an idea from two people, it counts for twice as much as if you randomly hear it once. And if you hear an idea from ten people, the impact is completely off the charts compared to just one person whispering in your ear. Coordinating and amplifying the evangelists of your idea is a big part of the secret of marketing with impact.” Seth Godin

Start With Your Insiders!! Staff
Board • Believe in your organization • Have the desire to work to make things better • Understand your nonprofit mission and the bigger picture • Already have great stories about your organization • Have networks who may already be interested in your organization • Know your organization and industry really well • May already be using social media channels

Here’s Why: Trust of Nonprofit
Brands Is Eroding

They Are Already Using Social
Media Anyway, Why Not Leverage?

@rdearborn works an organization conservation
organization and she LOVES sharks. How Can You Leverage Staff Passion for Mission?

Organizations of all sizes can
benefit from using insiders as social media ambassadors too boost their fundraising and marketing campaigns …. Let’s look at some examples ….

Wake International

Wake International

Arkansas Advocates

Human Rights Watch • Goal:
Impact policy change • Leverage individual networks of over 200 staff members on Twitter • Social media policy encourages all staff to participate as personal brands • Provide training and support, with social media manager providing support • Internal coordination via listserv • Provides value to staff for content curation and media relations

The Process 1: Buy In
2: Guidelines 3: Support 4: Activate Insiders

I have work to do!
Can finally tweet about our programs from my personal account! Why Getting Buy-In Is So Important What’s the value?

Social Media Policy – Addressing
Concerns http://bit.ly/12-words-dos

12 Word Social Media Personal
Use Don’t Lie, Don’t Pry Don’t Cheat, Can’t Delete Don’t Steal, Don’t Reveal Dos and Don’ts

Objective Value Increase employee engagement
by x% by end of fiscal year Improves internal communications, collaboration Improves loyalty, buy-in to mission Decreases burnout and turnover Recruit XX number of social media ambassadors by launch of campaign Free up communications staff time for more strategic planning versus doing More gets done Less burden on existing volunteers or staff Increase reach by xx% by end of the fiscal year Increases donors to campaign Increases the number of email prospects Change in attitude and increased trust in your organization xx% by the end of the fiscal year Percentage likely to volunteer or donate increases Improve relationships with existing donors and volunteers xx% by the end of the fiscal year Better management, more stable finances Improve engagement with stakeholders xx% by the end of the fiscal year Better feedback and ideas for innovation Better understanding of attitudes and perceptions of stakeholders

Board Members As Social Media
Ambassadors: Support, Activate • Survey of social media use • Review guidelines • Training sessions • Stories • Brand collateral • Brand social media • How to support with personal social media accounts • Fun Contest • Activate and Support for specific campaigns

Social Media Ambassadors Inside 1:
Buy In 2: Guidelines 3: Support 4: Activate Insiders

Your nonprofit also has plenty
of “outsiders” who love your organization Why not put them to work as social media ambassadors and boost your fundraising campaigns or programs? Image: NY Times

Social Media Ambassadors from the
Outside Research Recruit Support Activate Outsiders

• Staff and board as
staff social media ambassadors • Recruited well-known and aligned ambassadors to promote on social media channels • Recruited pro bono volunteers: PR, Video, Photography, Content • Activated board • Reached out to aligned partner organizations and individuals to promote on social media channels

Social Media Ambassadors: Prospect Research

Research: Recruit from Your Database,
Lists, Events • Post invitation on social channels

Social Media Ambassadors: Who is
Most Engaged on Social Channels?

Social Media Ambassadors: Facebook •
Use tool like “Top Fans “ to identify engaged fans and research them on Google or your database • Use tool like ActionSprout to gather email addresses of engaged followers via FB. • Ask board/staff to share link to landing page on their FB profiles and post on Brand Page

Social Media Ambassadors: Twitter •
Review brand account for active verified users • Use a Followerwonk to easily sort and search followers • Create a Twitter list of your best prospects and cross check with your organization’s database. • Tweet links to landing page to sign up as Social Media Ambassador

Social Media Ambassadors: Instagram •
Use a free tool like Social Rank to filter your organization’s Instagram followers by keywords in their bios, hashtags they use, their location, the number of followers they have, and more. • Create a photo or visual invitation about becoming a social media ambassador w/ link.

Social Media Ambassadors: LinkedIn •
If your organization has a group or page on LinkedIn, scan the list of followers to see if any influencers jump out. • Review your network on your professional profile on LinkedIn for potential prospects. Ask board members who are LinkedIn to do the same. • Use advanced search to search by nonprofit interests, location, keyword, or company. • Post a status update on your individual LinkedIn profile or organization page with a link to an invitation for more information about becoming a social media ambassador for your organization

Social Media Ambassadors: LinkedIn

Social Media Ambassadors: Vet Relevant
Relationship Connected Credible

Social Media Ambassadors: Recruit •
Overview of organization and campaign • Role of social media ambassador • Time commitment • Expectations

Social Media Ambassadors: Communication and
Coordination • To make it easy to keep them in the loop • Campaign updates and actions

Provide A Communications Toolkit with
Basics • Overview of organization and campaign • Talking points • Brand and Staff social media accounts • Hashtags • Sample FB Updates • Sample Tweets • Sample LinkedIn Updates • List of collateral materials online – logos, important links, etc.

Mini Site for Ambassadors

Shareable Content: Images and Words

Branded Visual Content Optimized for
Social Media Channels

Visual Content Optimized for Social
Media Channels

Visual Content Tools
http://blog.mainstreethost.com/social-media-image-size-cheat-sheet

Social Media Ambassadors: Activate

Say Thank You

Cultivate the Relationship

Thank you! www.bethkanter.org www.facebook.com/beth.kanter.blog @kanter
on Twitter Resources: bethkanter.wikispaces.com/donorpath