Thriving and Surviving in Uncertain Times: Digital Marketing Techniques for Non-Profits

Sponsored by the Council of Public Relations Firms Boston

January 14, 2009

Panel Discussion: Nonprofits Tell It Like It Is

Moderated by Jim Cabot, Rasky Baerlein

Panelists:

• Sofiya Cabalquinto, Museum of Science• Jennifer Scott, Boston Center for Adult Education• Peter Spiers, Elderhostel• Matt Shaw, Council of Public Relations Firms

Museum of Science

Sofiya CabalquintoMedia Relations Program Manager

Museum of ScienceMuseum of Science

AT A GLANCE:• Highest attended cultural

institution in New England• 1.5 million visitors per year• Dedicated Media Relations &

Marketing teams• Talented Web team• Eager, new media-savvy interns

Baseball as America (exhibit)

GOAL: • Drive exhibit attendance

– Reach passionate, baseball communities online

NEW MEDIA: • Baseball Stories Project

– Enlisted local celebrities & dignitaries– Public participation– On mos.org and in exhibit

• Baseball social networks and bloggers – Invited to press opening

Colossal Fossil: Triceratops Cliff (exhibit)

GOAL:• Build excitement around unveiling and drive visitation

NEW MEDIA:• Lobby crate with text message screen• “How do you build a dinosaur?” video • Targeted dinosaur enthusiast blogs• Created Facebook persona, “Cliff T. Tops”

Guess What’s in the Box!

“Roaring” crate in lobby and text message campaign

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MOS in Social Media

• Facebook fan page – 1800+ fans– incentives

• Yelp.com

• MOS channel on YouTube

Boston Center for Adult Education

Jennifer Scott, External Affairs Manager

YelpUser generated reviews of local businesses. An “enhanced profile” allows you to contact reviewers directly, manage photos, and make timely announcements at a low monthly cost.

FacebookSet up your business as a business page of which people

can become fans; if you set it up like a personal profile

Facebook will delete it.

TwitterUpdate often enough to keep followers engaged, and only when there’s something of interest. Think of it as an online way to bring people to a specific part of your organization: donation page, new event announcement, etc.

Going A blend of social media and calendar listings, this site lets you make both “friends” and “acquaintances” and join groups as well as post events.

Helpful Hints• Be strategic

You know better than anyone what the needs and abilities of your organization are; don’t be afraid to say no to a social media outlet.

• Try it first Create your own profile to test a site (you need only divulge as much information as you are comfortable with). Once you have the hang of it, you’ll be able to think about the best ways to use each social media outlet for your business, or whether you should use it at all.

• Do what you do wellIf you have the staff and the time to handle one social media campaign, do it and do it well. A Facebook profile that only gets updated once a month or a blog that doesn’t talk about anything interesting or call its readers to action isn’t worth having.

• Smart Brief on Social Media (smartbrief.com)A daily email newsletter that summarizes stories and examples of social media trends and campaigns, and a great source of inspiration.

Council of Public Relations Firms

Matt Shaw, SVP, Director of Communications

ElderhostelPeter Spiers,

Senior Vice President for Strategic Outreach