Beth Kanter (the heavyweight champion in getting technology into the hands of nonprofits) points out some new research to us today. Well, actually it’s more like a sneak preview of new research — which, of course, is even better.
The research shows us that large nonprofits are adopting social media more readily than Fortune 500 companies. They define social media as online video, blogging, social networking, podcasting, message boards, and wikis; and they also note that nonprofits are monitoring their reputation on the web more carefully than businesses are.
It makes perfect sense. Utilizing social media is an inexpensive and trust-driven way to reach lots of people. I hope awareness of how to use these tools effectively is also trickling down to the smaller nonprofits — the ones who need it the most.
You can download the four-page executive summary from UMass Dartmouth.
November 29th, 2007 at 1:42 am
Hey, why I am just discovering you blog now .. very nicely designed. Did the findings surprise you?
This study paints a different picture than a study released earlier this year by the Overbrook Foundation that found nonprofits in a perpetual state of anxiety about which web2.0 tools to pay attention to.
November 29th, 2007 at 1:53 pm
Hi Beth! Thanks for twittering.
And yes, they did surprising me, while at the same time making perfect sense… and the other study you name sort of explains why. My interactions with nonprofits in meatspace suggests that they’re too strapped for time to sit down and learn enough about the web to identify strategies that would work for them.
I see a few more blog posts about this coming on…
February 4th, 2008 at 12:38 am
[…] I talked about in previous posts, Social Media can help you reach lots of people for very little money if you know how to use it […]
February 4th, 2008 at 12:42 am
[…] my last post I talked about nonprofits using social media to reach their audiences — it’s […]
April 30th, 2010 at 10:43 am
Video blogginging is an exciting way to share your daily experiences with your family and friends. I have just started video blogging~~;