HOW TO MANAGE SOCIAL MEDIA

By Massawe Arkadi

You’re online – your supporters, contacts, clients and customers are too. How you relate to them online and offline  impacts on what they think of your organisation and how likely they are to donate, buy or get involved.

·         First thoughts

When using social media, ask yourself…

Do I have the time and resources to maintain a social media space?

Is it for a one-off event or an ongoing initiative?

What am I trying to achieve from it? Sign ups, donations, publicity…

·         Second

Who will I talk to? Who’s interested? How do I find them?

NB please tread very carefully when you make contact. It’s ok to contact a public group but not really ok to contact an individual’s Facebook profile or @reply someone on Twitter if you don’t know them, especially if they are speaking about a sensitive situation. Imagine how you would feel…

·         Third

What are the basics?

Management: at least one person should be responsible for each group/page/account. When they are away/ ill someone else needs to step in.

Commitment: we should check accounts daily, ideally early.

Review: check accounts periodically to determine if they’re needed/ active.

·         Fourth

What will I talk about? How can I make it interesting?

Make sure you’re relevant and appropriate. Please don’t use ALL CAPS!

When talking about your organisation use the right name. Avoid old names or acronyms because they’re confusing

Listen to and engage with supporters/ customers - encourage, offer help

Share stories – interesting activities, stories, key facts, and showcase existing content on your website or your press releases

Take it easy – if you need to mass upload lots of events, try doing it when your page isn’t published yet. Or – if on Facebook - upload them all and publish just one story. That way your supporters’ news feed won’t be bombarded

Share interesting content – photos, video, quotes, links to your website – events, stories, research work

Be clever. When your Facebook page has 25 fans, snag a nice username for it at

·         Fifth

What comments will I get? How should I respond? Are there risks?

Whether the message is encouraging or not, it’s best to try and be encouraging and positive in return. If you include a question or a little detail, this shows you’ve read the message and also helps to further an ongoing relationship.

If there’s a question, try to find an answer but don’t be afraid to say ‘can I come back to you’ if you need to. In some cases, it’s best to reply offline or by private message, especially if it’s a sensitive issue.

If someone has commented about something sensitive, very carefully consider what you say and how your words may make them feel. Acknowledge the situation, but consider holding back on any business/fundraising asks unless they’re seeking this.

If there’s a complaint, try to be as open and helpful as possible. If the person is repeatedly abusive or inappropriate it may not be sensible to ‘argue’ with them or continue to reply.

·         Sixth

Who should I follow – and not follow?

Follow people who are openly talking about your event or activity. Also follow anyone who writes on that subject or any partner organisations, suppliers and sponsors.

If they’re openly talking about relevant subjects, feel free to tweet and reply. Look at other organisations who are active online to get a feel for how this is done.

·         Seventh

How can I keep it going, and keep an eye on what I’m doing?

Content! Think about all the things you could talk about and plan what you’d talk about when.

Social media should complement existing communications activity – so plan it into your wider communications plans. When you launch a new event or product, open entries or tickets, announce some news, share a great story then you can share this on social media as well as on your website or in a news release or e-mailing.

Use pictures, video, quotes, stories, link to events and relevant news stories, ask questions, do countdowns, ask for help, promote, share results, stats and thanks.

Monitor people talking to you and talking about you. Check your page/group and your replies. Use twitter search and set up search columns.