Debra Askanase · Storify

Developing Fiercely Loyal Communities

Debra Askanase — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 15:15:04 GMT

Our #CommBuild chat this week was about developing fiercely loyal communities, with guest Sarah Robinson (@SarahRobins. Sarah is the author of Fierce Loyalty: Unlocking the DNA of Fiercely Loyal Communities. Debra Askanase (@askdebra) of Community Organizer 2.0 was the volunteer moderator this week.

Storified by Debra Askanase · Wed, Nov 07 2012 07:15:04

Welcome everyone to today's #CommBuild twitter chat. Our guest today is @SarahRobinson, and we'll be talking about building fierce loyalty
— CommBuild Chats · Tue, Oct 30 2012 10:01:58

Q1: Sarah, how do you define a fiercely loyal community?

A1 A Fiercely Loyal Community is made of people who are as committed to your success as you are. #commbuild
— SarahRobinson · Tue, Oct 30 2012 10:06:57

Q2: What types of stakeholders are likely to be committed to the success of the community?

@CommBuild a2 - volunteers, donors, corporate sponsors, grant funders - anyone who supports your orgs vision. #commbuild
— SarahRobinson · Tue, Oct 30 2012 10:08:39

A2)People whose voices are heard through participation in our community's efforts want to see us succeed! #commbuild (if that's the question
— Jay Pellis · Tue, Oct 30 2012 10:13:59

Q3: Sarah, how did you develop the Fierce Loyalty Model?

@CommBuild A3 - TONS of research. Not only into the comms I've built but into other wildly successful communities. #commbuild
— SarahRobinson · Tue, Oct 30 2012 10:10:23

In my research I found a very strong connection between happiness and a fiercely loyal community. We crave meaningful engagement. #commbuild
— SarahRobinson · Tue, Oct 30 2012 10:20:24

Good community question from Laura Norvig: What moves a community to action?

@SarahRobinson all those folks may support the vision in their hearts, but what gets them to take action? #commbuild
— Laura Norvig · Tue, Oct 30 2012 10:10:29

@askdebra @LNorvig when the community becomes an integral part of who they are & how they indentify themselves, action follows #commbuild
— SarahRobinson · Tue, Oct 30 2012 10:13:34

@SarahRobinson I agree - I have one community I'm a part of that is such an integral part of who I am (shout out to Friendfeed!) #commbuild
— Laura Norvig · Tue, Oct 30 2012 10:16:37

@LNorvig exactly! #commbuild
— SarahRobinson · Tue, Oct 30 2012 10:17:17

Q4: What is the very first step toward building a Fiercely Loyal Community?

@CommBuild A4. Being completely honest about why you want a community & what you want that community to do. #commbuild
— SarahRobinson · Tue, Oct 30 2012 10:15:14

how would you answer the question "Why do you want a community?" #commbuild
— SarahRobinson · Tue, Oct 30 2012 10:16:21

A4) A clear vision of what can happen with community loyalty will help build loyalty. #commbuild
— Jay Pellis · Tue, Oct 30 2012 10:17:55

@JayPellis Could you offer an example of giving the ctty a clear vision of what can happen with community? Have you tried this? #commbuild
— CommBuild Chats · Tue, Oct 30 2012 10:19:11

Our community has members vote in polls advising how they would like to see their US Rep in Congress vote.They can impact votes #commbuild
— Jay Pellis · Tue, Oct 30 2012 10:20:49

Online/Offline Commuity Building #CommBuild 9/11/12

Debra Askanase — Wed, 12 Sep 2012 18:26:37 GMT

This week's lively #CommBuild Twitter chat explored the relationship between online and offline community-building, success and struggles, examples within organizations, and organizations that are doing both. Thanks to all who participated! Read on for some great advice, tips, and insights.

Storified by Debra Askanase · Wed, Sep 12 2012 11:26:37

Welcome to @CommBuild chat! Today's topic is online/offline community-building. Let's start by quickly introducing ourselves. #commbuild
— CommBuild Chats · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:02:20

#commbuild is beginning now - welcome everyone. I'll be tweeting from the @commbuild profile during this chat.
— Debra Askanase · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:01:17

I’m Bea, Local Impact Map Curator @TechSoup. Looking 4 #nonprofits to share stories of #TechInAction. http://on.fb.me/OXJSJs #commbuild
— Bea Dominguez · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:05:49

Hello again! I'm Susan with @JuniorLeague & @TechSoup. #commbuild
— Susan Chavez · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:07:30

Hi! Michael DeLong joining late from @TechSoup @emergingarts. In a meeting, but listening, learning. =) #commbuild
— Michael DeLong · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:13:21

Question 1: Does your online community meet up OFFline? Or, does your offline community meet up ONline? Please share what you're doing.

The @TechSoup Online Community & Social Media Team brings it offline during monthly #OCTribe meetups #commbuild
— Susan Chavez · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:10:30

Offline action for @JuniorLeague happens at regional & association-wide conferences #commbuild
— Susan Chavez · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:09:50

A1. I work with @emergingarts & @HubBayArea as well. We have both. Making online connections taking them off and viceversa #commbuild
— Bea Dominguez · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:10:36

A1: Combo of both is key, plus it's fun to meet those folks you "know" online in person #commbuild
— Megan Keane · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:12:59

Question 2: What is the benefit of connecting online and offline, to community-building? Why?

Q2: I think online cmty building is important to turn weak ties into stronger ties and also to sustain strong ties #commbuild
— Sue Anne Reed · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:13:32

@chrisbrogan just recently wrote a post / email about the Dunbar number and it really struck me how true it is (cont...) #commbuild
— Sue Anne Reed · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:15:55

We all have these amazing connections online, but it's still a small number that you can build meaningful relationships with #commbuild
— Sue Anne Reed · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:16:43

@Sue_Anne That's a really good point. Does online-to-offline also nurture member-to-member relationships more than online? #commbuild
— CommBuild Chats · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:18:00

Making sure to take the time to move those connections offline helps build and nurture relationships both personally and with org #commbuild
— Sue Anne Reed · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:17:13

A2. Deepening relationships, ideating in "real life" & making usernames come to life ;) #commbuild
— Bea Dominguez · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:13:57

A2. Bonds are strengthened when people meet the person behind the avatar/handle. #commbuild
— Susan Chavez · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:14:24

A2: Puts personal face on community, lets more people see value of getting involved w/ your community, builds evangelists #commbuild
— Megan Keane · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:16:00

Seems all agree that the offline strengthens online. *Does it work the other way around, with online strengthening offline ties? #commbuild
— CommBuild Chats · Tue, Sep 11 2012 10:15:40

Using Facebook Groups to Build Community #CommBuild 7/2/12

Debra Askanase — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 16:23:09 GMT

Tuesday's chat topic was "Using Facebook Groups to Build Community." This was the most active #CommBuild discussion to date, with almost 30 participants. We discussed how organizations are using Groups, what value individuals are getting from them...and more.

Storified by Debra Askanase · Mon, Jul 09 2012 09:23:09

Welcome everyone to #CommBuild chat! Today's chat is on using FB Groups to build community. Please introduce yourself! (@askdebra tweeting)
— CommBuild Chats · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:01:28

Q1 for #CommBuild chat- Are you using Facebook Groups for your #nonprofit? If so, how?
— CommBuild Chats · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:05:37

This was, by far, the most-answered question of the chat. Both individuals and organizations are using Facebook Groups in a wide variety of ways. One thing that most agree upon is that Groups are being used to build community, exchange knowledge, and create connections.

@CommBuild A1: we don't have any groups on FB exclusive to our org, but actively participate in ones for the sector/topic #commbuild
— Amy Sample Ward · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:06:46

I'm admin 4 several FB Groups for the compound I live on in Saudi. No central organization, but need for internal-only members. #commbuild
— Claire Sale · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:08:08

A1. @emergingarts we have a couple of groups. One to engage program participants and another for the community at large #commbuild
— Bea Dominguez · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:08:12

A1) @emergingarts has a public one for the wider sector & a private one for past and present fellows of the program #commbuild
— Michael DeLong · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:08:43

Our comm is built on Drupal, but comm has developed their own FB groups w/ each other to utilize features our platform lacks. #commbuild
— Jade Frank · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:08:28

.@jadefrank Can you talk about what your FB Groups were developed to do that your platform couldn't? #commbuild
— Debra Askanase · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:09:36

@askdebra Sure! Our platform is built for longer-form content sharing ie. blogging. FB groups allow for short updates & planning #commbuild
— Jade Frank · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:12:28

A1) @TechSoup does not have a group specific to it but we admin one for the #OCTRIBE meetup group #commbuild
— Michael DeLong · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:09:38

I admin a local parent networking group. For a volunteer school committee, debating page + group, or just group. #commbuild
— Kerri Karvetski · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:09:46

A1. originally @anitaborg_org had a @ghc Fb group for each year's conference. moved to a single page w/grps for smaller programs. #commbuild
— Leaping Woman · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:11:32

A1) We also participate in groups related to #nptech & #sm4np to learn from peers, listen to nonprofits, & share information #commbuild
— Michael DeLong · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:11:53

.@MichaelDeLongSF What differences are you finding in community bldg with your public vs. private FB Groups? #Commbuild
— CommBuild Chats · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:12:33

The private group isn't incredibly active yet, but our vision is to use it to help current fellows get most out of program #commbuild
— Michael DeLong · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:14:47

Also as a way for core program people to plan smaller meetups, outings, etc. and share oppys to a smaller group. #commbuild
— Michael DeLong · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:16:14

A1 Fb page was better for year-round engagement; groups better for peer discussions, pre-conference networking #commbuild
— Leaping Woman · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:14:54

FB groups is easier because everyone is there anyway, but you don't "own" the relationship, emails. Def. tradeoff. #commbuild
— Kerri Karvetski · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:16:36

@CommBuild A1) I'm finding closed/hidden FB groups one of most valuable things on FB. Great place to ask q's & share btw peers #commbuild
— kristy graves · Tue, Jul 03 2012 10:16:50

The Future of Nonprofit Storytelling #12NTCStory

Debra Askanase — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 21:57:26 GMT

Session panelists: Cara Jones, Founder, Storytellers for Good; Rob Wu, founder, CauseVox; JD Lasica, Socialbrite; Jenna Sauber, Case Foundation

Storified by Debra Askanase · Tue, Apr 10 2012 14:57:26

Outstanding panel of #nonprofit storytellers at #12ntcstory http://pic.twitter.com/IS81u7zV · Foundation Center

About to listen ~ RT @cajunjen: About to speak with @jdlasica and @stories4good on the future of nonprofit storytelling. #12NTCstory
— Kristin Johnson · Thu, Apr 05 2012 13:32:53

Rob Wu, founder of CauseVox, moderated the storytelling session #12NTCStory. He began by asking, "what is storytelling?" @RobJWu

Cara Jones of Storytellers for Good The best way to tell a story is to whittle it down to one person that the audience can care about. Making your audience care is the most important goal. Finding the person who resonates is what NP storytelling is all about. - Cara Jones, @stories4good

RT @askdebra: Nonprofit storytelling is "giving the audience a reason to care." from @stories4good #12ntcSTory
— James Howe · Thu, Apr 05 2012 13:45:49

Jenna Sauber of the Case Foundation: "Some of the best stories are the ones that you remember." There is something about these stories that move you, inspire you to take action and move. @cajunjen

"NonProfit Storytelling is making your audience care" - Cara Jones @stories4good #12NTCStory #12NTC
— NAPT · Thu, Apr 05 2012 13:44:51

JD Lasica of Socialbrite: Ever seen a photo of lions hunting bison on a cave in France? One of the earliest stories told by man. "To tell stories is to be human." - @JDLasica

Rob Wu asks: How is storytelling different than marketing communications?

#Nonprofit Comm/marketing has really grown to garner attn from a broader audience. More than press releases #12ntcstory @cajunjen
— Foundation Center · Thu, Apr 05 2012 13:47:30

Cara Jones: Fundraising is an opportunity for people to get involved. Nonprofit storytelling has the power to appeal to people's hearts. People will forget what you've told them, what you've done, but they will never forget what you made them feel. Viewers and readers want to engage with something they are feeling.

People will forget what u told them. They'll forget what u did. But they'll never forget how u made them feel. Tell stories. #12ntcstory
— Elise Glaum · Thu, Apr 05 2012 13:49:29

@MayaAngelou "ppl will forget what you said, ppl will forget what you did, but ppl will never forget how you made them feel" #12NTCStory
— My Dutch Uncle · Thu, Apr 05 2012 13:52:34

Nonprofit stories have unique ability to allow people to feel & want to be a part of something bigger #12ntcstory @stories4good
— amanda levinson · Thu, Apr 05 2012 13:48:58

JD Lasica: You will find storytellers in your nonprofit in surprising places.

Think outside the org. There are great resources that advance your cause but may not have your name on it via @jdlasica #12ntcStory #12ntc
— elefint designs · Thu, Apr 05 2012 13:58:27

RT @nonprofitchapin: Don't make your story about your org, make it about you cause & clients. #12ntcstory #12NTC
— NAPT · Thu, Apr 05 2012 13:52:45

Rob Wu asks: How do you shift your nonprofit into a culture of storytelling?

Cara Jones: create a Google doc within your organization and ask people to contribute stories from across the organization. This will create a story bank. Storytelling "is just a practice;" it becomes a practice if you do it enough. Another idea is to gather people from within the organization to tell stories as an event.

Any tips for making a story bank as usable for staff as possible? We're trying one but it isn't getting as much pickup as hoped #12ntcstory
— Kristin Johnson · Thu, Apr 05 2012 13:53:17

SXSW Interactive: Keeping it Real Online with Personal/Personnel Boundaries

Debra Askanase — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 20:38:27 GMT

A compilation of tweets from #SXKeepItReal panel at South By Southwest Interactive. Panelists Amy Sample Ward, Debra Askanase, Vanessa Rhinesmith and Jess Main discussed challenges of negotiating the line between personal involvement and personnel involvement when managing social media communities.

Storified by Debra Askanase · Fri, Mar 16 2012 13:38:27

Prepping #sxsw session Social Media Boundaries: Personal/Personnel Policy. Live tweeting in 30 min. #sxkeepitreal http://twitpic.com/8vtbtk · Amy Sample Ward

This was the subject of the panel: what is the line between merging the personal with the professional community as a manager?

Majority of people in room feel like their personal social media accounts also represent their orgs. #sxkeepitreal #sxsw
— NTEN · Tue, Mar 13 2012 09:09:28

Jess Main offered the example of a nonprofit social media manager who connected to followers personally on Twitter, through the organizational account, and shared very personal details of her life. The organization's followers connected to that account, and more so to the person. The danger was that the brand message was muddled. There is an inherent danger of community loyalty to a person rather than to the organization or brand.

Danger is merging personal/company Twitter account is that brand message can become muddled, lose way. #sxkeepitreal #swswi
— Kate Voth · Tue, Mar 13 2012 09:14:11

Should be interesting: how do you as a Tweeter for your org keep it authentic and warm but still rep the org? #sxkeepitreal
— Maureen Kearney · Tue, Mar 13 2012 09:12:20

Danger of one person is when loyalty is to the person not the company #sxkeepitreal
— Maureen Kearney · Tue, Mar 13 2012 09:33:19

If using personal identities to serve customers, are you building loyalty to those ppl or the company? #sxkeepitreal #swswi
— Terry Westrum · Tue, Mar 13 2012 09:36:02

The flip side: Debra Askanase shared the story of an organization that is prohibited from expressing opinions online, only the support of the organization's mission, which is to promote a dialogue process. The organization is not allowed to put its humanity into its social media accounts and, as a result, the social media spaces are not gaining traction.

Community is an art of negotiation. "It is very hard to be a rabid fan of a process." - @askdebra #sxkeepitreal #SXSW
— Carissa O'Brien · Tue, Mar 13 2012 09:15:42

@askdebra says it is important to keep social media personal. Think about how you can bring your humanity in. #sxkeepitreal #sxsw
— NTEN · Tue, Mar 13 2012 09:17:30

Educate. Entertain and Engage. Advice from @oxfam with 250k followers. Good advice. #sxkeepitreal
— Christie Campbell · Tue, Mar 13 2012 09:38:01

An audience member mentioned that, as an utility company, the company cannot publicly discuss customer service issues on Twitter. Vanessa Rhinesmith offered the advice of showing the company's "humanity" by tweeting that it just resolved an account or spoke with a customer.

There were a lot of customer service issues, including how to use it for customer service, and how to respond when the company is attacked online.

Not just a marketing tool, social media is a customer service tool. - librarian audience member #sxkeepitreal #SXSW
— A Geek Mom (Shannon) · Tue, Mar 13 2012 09:25:16

How do you deal with personal attacks/ugliness on social media? #sxkeepitreal
— Maureen Kearney · Tue, Mar 13 2012 09:25:55

Deal with it, make sure staff is trained on how to respond. Own your mistakes because otherwise fallout will be worse #sxkeepitreal
— Maureen Kearney · Tue, Mar 13 2012 09:28:27

Respond online as if someone is in front of you and don't be scared of "customer service" & other for-profit concepts. #sxkeepitreal #sxsw
— Amy Sample Ward · Tue, Mar 13 2012 09:24:21

If customer attacks all company pages/handles/employees, make sure most relevant person responds, not necessarily "big wig." #sxkeepitreal
— Kate Voth · Tue, Mar 13 2012 09:32:30

Crazy idea: ask unhappy customer to write an (honest) blog post for your site. #sxkeepitreal #swswi
— Terry Westrum · Tue, Mar 13 2012 09:30:27

Google+ Pages: What's the Story?

Debra Askanase — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 01:09:57 GMT

Google+ just opened up to allow brands, groups, and organizations to create Pages on the site. With so much information out there, I'm curating the pros, cons, critiques, and opinions on the web, especially about how nonprofits could use Google+. Let me know what else should be included!

Storified by Debra Askanase · Thu, Nov 10 2011 17:09:57

Google+ announces that companies, groups and organizations can create official Pages on Google+. Heather Mansfield at Nonprofit Orgs immediately walks us through the process of setting up a Page.

HOW TO: Create a Google+ Page for Your Nonprofit

Exciting news! Nonprofits can now create a "Page" on Google+. If you are new to Google+, then first please read carefully my Google+ Best...

A good primer on Google+ best practices for nonprofits, as they think about opening up nonprofit Google+ Pages.

Google+ Best Practices for Nonprofits

Now that Google+ is open to everyone and brand pages are live, all nonprofits need to paying attention to Google+. Your first step is to ...

Janet Fouts offers some great page examples and also a ton of tips to help you administer your Google+ business Page. Tips include creating a short URL, finding your own Page again, and finding other business Pages to follow. She also offers a free four-part recorded webinar about creating Google+ Pages for businesses here.

Creating Google Plus Business Pages

Everybody's been arguing over the value of Google Plus lately. Some say it's only for geeks and others say it's a waste of time. Well, Go...

Nice summary of pros, cons, and editorial thoughts on opening a Google+ Page.

#SocialNetworks: Google+ For Business Is Now Open! | Nonprofit Marketing 360

Yes, the release of Google+'s Business Pages is the biggest news in social media this week. And in business news. And in design news… The...

SEO. Peter Stringer gives us the SEO angle, supported by documentation from Google: "Google+ pages, unlike your Facebook fan page, will actually generate traffic, because of a little thing called, um, Google."

Why a Google+ Brand Page Could Be More Important Than Your Facebook Page « Peter Stringer

If you think Google+ will never be able to compete with Facebook in social networking, guess what? You're right. Google is more intereste...

"Watch out! Google+ will not let you run any contest or promotion on Google+ brand Pages, under any circumstances. "Google retains the right to block or remove Pages that violate these terms. Repeat offenders will be eligible for account suspension." This article by SproutSocial also notes that Google+ Pages that are inactive for over nine months may be removed.

Contests and Promotions Not Allowed on Google+ Brand Pages

According to Google+‘s policies, Google doesn't allow brand Page owners to host contests or promotions directly on the social network - w...

Robert Scoble lambasts Google for rolling out Pages with so many issues - lack of multi-user administrators, confusion over personal/brand posts, lack of access to good analytics, and more.

I wish I had never heard of Google+’s brand pages — Scobleizer

Robert's post shines a light in the general direction of a fundamental weakness in modern software/system tech far more troubling than "I...

Mashable compiles a list of features Google+ brand page admins are already clamoring for.

Top 10 Features Users Want From Google+ Brand Pages

These are the top ten functionalities users want from the new Google+ company pages. What's on your wish list?

The Chronicle of Philanthropy and Beth Kanter begin to create lists of Nonprofit brand Pages. Nonprofits have jumped oin and are experimenting with these Pages. Already there are 158 on The Chronicle's circles and 86 in Beth Kanter's Nonprofit Pages Circle.

The circle of nonprofits that have created brand pages continues to expand. Thanks to all who hav...

The circle of nonprofits that have created brand pages continues to expand. Thanks to all who have helped build this list. Let's keep...

Updated the Nonprofit Brand Pages Circle

Sylwia Presley at UK fundraising raises the issue: how do brand pages meet your goals? "How can we make the most of this new tool? It once again depends on the goals of your organisation."