How web can be used for effective campaigning.

1. Using Web for Campaigning
BY UJJWAL ACHARYA

2. The Session
• Some examples
• Why web for campaigning?
• Creating blog / website
• Using social networking (facebook)
• Using microblogging (twitter)
• Videos/Audio (podcasting & youtube)
• Emails (mailing list / mass mailing)
• Online groups (Yahoo Groups / Google Groups)

4. BAD is good!
• Blog Action Day (every year on October 15)
• Writing on one topic on October 15
• 2009: Climate Change
• 13,605 Blogs/156 Nations / 18,085,076 Readers
• Govt of UK & Spain, The White House blogged
• From Nepal: 16 blogs registered for participation
• An example of global web campaigning for
creating awareness and buzz!

5. Change.org
• Change.org aims to address the need of people /
organization to work for change in various
problems
• Change.org serves as the central platform
informing and empowering movements for
social change
• Social organization can sign-up for a website
that enlists activities and receive donation
(https://www.change.org/nonprofit_signup)

7. Change.org (contd.)
• Anyone can begin an action or initiate an
petition and ask people to sign in
• Also photos, audios and videos can be uploaded
• Other similar websites include:
▫ http://www.causecast.org/
▫ http://www.avaaz.org/
• Campaign examples
▫ Barrack Obama’s presidential campaign
▫ http://www.gadimai.blogspot.com/

8. Why Web Campaigning?
• Mainstream media not interested!
▫ Or interested in small scale
• Easy and cheap
▫ Easy to begin, get people
▫ Cheap to install and run
▫ Cheap to organize
• Global reach
▫ Both in terms of access and people
• Multimedia possibility

9. Creating blog / website
• I will be covering that in the next session!

10. Using social networking sites
• A social network service focuses on building
online communities of people who share
interests and/or activities, or who are interested
in exploring the interests and activities of others.
• Social network services provide a variety of ways
for users to interact.
• Examples: facebook, hi5, linkedin, myspace
• Specialized: flickr, care2.net, oneclimate.net

11. Facebook
• Most popular social networking in Nepal
• Create a page, invite people to be fan
• Create a user, add as many friends
• Share/ post updates, links and multimedia
▫ Don’t overload
▫ A couple of updates a day is perfect
• Can also be effectively used for mass mailing
▫ Don’t overload
▫ Difficult to use/time consuming than mailing list

13. Facebook (contd.)
• Create events, invite people to join and share
information
• Create causes, invite people to join, recruit and
donate for the causes
▫ Causes in an facebook application!

14. Microblogging
• Microblogging is a form of multimedia blogging
that allows users to send brief text updates or
micromedia such as photos or audio clips and
publish them.
• These messages can be submitted by a variety of
means, including text messaging, instant
messaging, E-mail, digital audio or the web.
• Examples: twitter, identi.ca, plurk, tumblr

15. Twitter
• Create an account and update regularly
▫ As many as you can. No overload here.
• Follow others to get followers!
• Retweet!
• Updates = 140 characters
• Update to
▫ short text message
▫ links to news, photos or videos
• Twitpic for pictures

17. Multimedia
• Requires more equipment, skills & fast internet
• Audio (for podcasting)
▫ Recording (mobile)
▫ Basic editing (Audacity)
▫ Uploading (OurMedia.org)
• Video
▫ Recording (digital camera/mobile)
▫ Basic editing (Microsoft Movie Maker/Wax)
▫ Uploading (YouTube.com)

18. Mailing lists
• An electronic mailing list is a special usage of
email that allows for widespread distribution of
information to many.
• Special scripts can be used for it to install on
own web servers (examples: PHPlist/poMMo)
• Online service available: freelists.org / notifylist
• Benefit: sign-up / opt-out facilities, archives and
automation (sending, removing)

19. Groups
Introduction Example
• A social networking
• Easier for peer-group
discussions; resource sharing
• Beneficial for the use of
administrators of a group
• Better because each member
gets emails of happening
• Examples: Google Groups,
Yahoo Groups & MSN Groups

20. Thank you!
• ujjwal.acharya@gmail.com
• www.nepalivoices.com