March, 2007

I’m still getting over a bit of a head cold (read “man flu”), but this cheered me up.

Deborah Weil flagged this single-page parody of Second Life, Get A First Life.

Second Life - compare this page - is the virtual world that a handful of not-for-profits have dabbled in over recent months, which I have been following on this blog.

I meant to mention that journalist Peter Davy interviewed me for his alternative realities article [not sure how long this will be available online], which appeared in the Jan/Feb issue of Charity Times. The jury is still out on Second Life, of course.

And did you read that apparently avatars consume as much electricity as your average Brazilian (is there such a thing?).

I’ve got as far as creating my avatar (”Joe Boa”), but I’m with Amy Gahran: Second Life: I’ve enough going on in my First Life, thanks.

I wish ;-)

Thanks to Hugh :: http://www.gapingvoid.com/

I can’t really sign off without pointing you to Michael Baler’s Blogs And CRM for non-profits piece published in the NonProfit Times last May, but (still) one of the best introductions to this topic.

PR Blogger Stephen Davies thinks we’ll start to see a fragmentation of social networks. As people begin to tire with the vast, general nature of MySpace et al, they may migrate to niche social networks that are more relevant to them, their passions and their lives.

He asks:

So what does it mean for brands? Niche social networks can be tapped into for more relevancy in online engagement. For example, which platform makes the most sense for a brand like Pedigree? Bebo or DoggySnaps?

Stephen continues…

But identifying the right platform is just the minor part. It’s how you engage with the users in a creative, respectful and non-intrusive manner which will be the key to a successful online PR campaign…

Spot on, Stephen. I’ll come back to that.

Interestingly, there is already some activity in the ’social networks for change’ space. Change.org launched last month, and Cauzoo.com will be “a space where you can promote your passion, rally for a cause, and raise money for charities in a variety of different ways.”

And then there’s Carebadges… who do it with widgets.

It’s early days, but I’m not totally convinced that these social networks are themselves authentic enough: they seem a little forced… activism for activism’s sake (not that there’s anything wrong with that particularly). I’m not sure about the lack of focus though - well, unless you’re an activist first, and something else second.

You need to get close to where your supporters are (and their distributed network)… which is why DoggySnaps is so good.

Moving on… I’ve harped on before about how I registered the mycauses.org.uk domain and how I hoped one of the players in the social networking space would create a “My Causes” tab in their members’ profile pages.

Well, I’m pleased to see that LinkedIn has moved a step in this direction, and should be applauded - thanks to Kerri Karvetski for the tip-off.

LinkedIn for Good

The first not-for-profit to benefit from a presence on LinkedIn is Médecins Sans Frontières.

It looks pretty good… up to a point! I feel it’s only a start though, as this still has the feel of what you might call a “networked giving” and nothing more - in other words, too much focus on fundraising.

The implementation on a member’s profile page (see below) could be improved. I’m not sure that “Member” is entirely accurate in this context either.

What if I want a different kind of relationship with a not-for-profit… or with a cause with which I identify for some reason?

LinkedIn members are - on the whole - accustomed to having more of a voice. In fact, I believe that LinkedIn will discover that members will desire a 360 degree relationship with not-for-profits.

LinkedIn feels entrepreneurial. There’s real potential here I think for the not-for-profits to engage members of the LinkedIn network in a relationship that goes beyond giving. Think of members of LinkedIn as potential ambassadors for your cause.

I might be able to indicate in my profile that a preference for becoming a virtual volunteer and trustee.

As Jeff Brooks writes, donors can also give:

• Information: ranging from market insight to specialized professional knowledge.
• Voice: the ability to speak for you in many ways.
• Influence: the ability to help things go your way.

And of course, donations will surely follow.

The 9m+ members of LinkedIn must carry a fair bit of clout between them. You’d think it would be pretty unstoppable if this collective intelligence - already into thinking about network-building and showing leadership in a networked world - could be harnessed to support individual actions through the social network, even to find solutions to problems.

I can actually foresee new agile social enterprises springing up from a network like LinkedIn… united by their ability to connect to others with shared passions, complementary skills, and a vision to change things. And I’m sure there’s a link here with the creation of like the Omidyar Network and Kiva.

There, I’ve just this minute received an email from LinkedIn’s Dave Sanford (thanks for getting back to me, Dave), so this post should serve as a good discussion opener!

Returning to the DoggySnaps example… what started as a photo-sharing community has the potential to evolve into a dynamic social network.

Niche, yes… but it can extend the reach of the Dogs Trust, the not-for-profit behind it.

(Related post: my DoggySnaps interview).

Update: See Dave Sanford’s response, below…

My daughter Nelly was shuttled off to infant school this morning dressed as “Super Nelly” with a pocketful of loose change. Yes, it’s that time again: Red Nose Day.

But did you know that 100 British bloggers have contributed to a book to raise funds for Comic Relief? You do now.

The book, “Shaggy Blog Stories: a collection of amusing tales from the UK blogosphere”, is the idea of Mike Atkinson who writes the ‘Troubled Diva’ blog.

The book went from idea to finished product in a “ridiculously short” seven days, using the latest publishing-on-demand technology.

To ORDER THE BOOK - it’s less than 10 quid - visit Lulu.com.

Take a look at Mike’s blog for the background story on how “Shaggy Blog Stories” came about.

Finally, after the laughter dies down, remind yourself here, and here, why all this silly stuff every two years.

Oh, and finally (finally)… I’ll be publishing an interview with Martin Gill, Head of New Media at Comic Relief, sometime next week. Hopefully.

We can learn a lot from our kids… and how they say thank you. I’m no exception.

But Whitewater’s Steve Andrews says it perfectly:

Saying ‘thank you’ is one of the best opportunities you have to inspire your donors, to make them feel fantastic about their decision to give.

I urge you to read Steve’s post.

Another ‘must read’ blogger, Jeff Brooks, touched on a similar theme recently:

If you want full value from donors, you need to engage them in a relationship and conversation.

Treating donors as human beings. There’s a concept.

Reminds me of something a kid once said to me at youth club. He fancied himself as a bit of a bully. He said something to me in an attempt to provoke a response. I ignored him. He got huffy, got his words muddled up and barked, “You’re talking to a brick wall”. I think he meant to say something else. Anyway, we were teens. It was a long time ago.

People have long memories.