Digital Arts Service Corps - public relations

Marketing Strategies For Your Website

Kevin Bulger — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 16:17:36 +0000

I have been given the task to increase the viewership and participation in www.sflregionalequity.org (a website dedicated to achieving greater equity in the Southeast Florida region through promoting and enabling affordable housing, transit-oriented development, stronger neighborhoods, and equal access to education and health).

I believe in the cause and I think demand for the website is out there. However, I did not know how to best get the word out. At first I spent approximately 60 hours identifying 1800 possible organizations and local activists who would possibly be interested in the purpose of the site. I then went ahead and emailed and snail mailed invitations to the website with very little response. I believe that of the 1800 pieces of mailings I received 2 phone calls and 7 emails. So that tactic did not get the results I was hoping for.

Next, I decided to create an e-newsletter through Constant Contact. The Collins Center already has an account with them so there is no additional cost to the website. Otherwise, It would cost over $300 a year to run the newsletter. However, I can not use my current email list to send out newsletters because if a certain percentage unsubscribe from the newsletter the account will be cancelled, thereby ruining the service for the whole organization (Constant Contact has a strict NO-SPAM policy). So that tactic could possibly produce the desired results, but it could also get me in some hot water with the Collins Center if the service gets cancelled.

After I spent some time reviewing my ineffective attempts, it became clear that the website needs an informed and focused marketing plan. I scheduled a "Marketing for Nonprofits" seminar this week that the Collins Center was gracious enough to pay for, but one seminar can only do so much. The website is in serious need of tried-and-true marketing strategies that work, and I plain have no expertise in marketing.

Therefore my plan is to a) gain knowledge of basic marketing principles; b) identify best practices for marketing websites; and c) choose one or a combination of best practices to implement.

If anyone else has the assignment of increasing participation in a website or project and would like to share your experience let me know! I think working on similar projects and having others share their input really helps, and it makes the whole process more enjoyable.

MySpace as an Organizing/Awareness Tool?

danielle martin — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 21:06:11 +0000

Because this came up in our last Digital Media call and Nettrice's last Digest article, I thought it might be interesting to folks that Tech Soup has a new article "How to Use MySpace to Raise Awareness" (by Eileen Cruz Coleman) about using MySpace as a low-cost p.r. tool. It has a few general ideas about starting a social network online that I'm going to reference in my work in the next couple months, especially around the idea of active seeding and connecting other forms of communication.

Here's an exerpt:

"MySpace (or any other social network for that matter) isn't for everyone. You need to look at your organization and decide if you have the time, resources, and interest – among other things – to really make it work...You need to be constantly active, promote yourself, and keep the dialogue conversational..

Tips for Running a MySpace Campaign

If you decide to launch a MySpace page for your organization, here are seven things you can do to increase your chances of success:

On your MySpace page, ask friends to take specific actions such as "link to our Web site," "subscribe to our e-newsletter," "tell a friend about our current campaign," "contact us to learn about," and so on.

Write blog entries and circulate your entries via your "bulletin board." Invite friends to post comments to your blog; visit your friends' pages and leave relevant and valuable comments; host events; and continue to add friends.

Add videos to your MySpace pages. Images and videos have a way of motivating people to take action.

Update your MySpace page frequently and customize it to resemble your organization's look and feel. Be careful not to make your page appear too stuffy.

Don't make the mistake of staying within your own circle of like-minded organizations. When you add friends, consider reaching out to folks outside of your circle. In particular, nonprofits could reach out (via MySpace) to for-profit companies with strong social responsibility programs that can help spread the word about their causes.

Add your MySpace URL to your email signature line, business card, and letterhead in order to encourage people to visit your MySpace page.

Write articles about how your organization is using MySpace to advance its causes and submit them to both online and print publications. Or publish them on your Web site and ask bloggers to link to them."