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Social media is using the Internet to instantly collaborate, share information, and have a conversation about ideas, causes, and organizations we care about powered by technology.
What we do--collaborate, share information, have conversations--is powered by tools. Although the tools are different, it is what we can do with them that is really transforming things.
Social Media is first and foremost about building empowered communities by sharing information and providing opportunities for people to be heard.
Social media tools are POWERFUL because they enable LOTS of people to tell their stories, market products, frame or re-frame social issues, raise money - in short, engage in all sorts of communication on all sorts of issues. This "democratization of communication" means that people who previously had LITTLE or NO ACCESS (that's most of us) to the means of distribution for sharing thoughts, concerns and ideas, now have the same opportunity as credentialed "experts" and mainstream journalists to converse and talk about the issues that matter to us most.
Social media can be particularly powerful for organizations and people who are interested in changing the world and need to connect with people across space and time. By using these tools and working OUTSIDE OF or IN CONCERT WITH traditional media gatekeepers (think of the Obama Presidential campaign) inspired individuals can find each other, join together, solve problems, raise money, and make powerful change in a comparatively inexpensive way.
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Like all successful communications tools and strategies, use of social media must be driven by the goals of the organization and the needs of its audiences. For example, if you need to mobilize 100 seniors to meet your organization's goals you may choose to use different communication tools than if you need to mobilize 100,000 teenagers. You should also understand the limitations of social media. Consider your organization's capacity for change. Before using social media tools or any other communications vehicles, you should answer these questions. Also read, Should Your Organization Use Social Networking Sites
Forrester Research and the authors of Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies have created a tool to help organizations and individuals determine if and where their audiences "live online." The Pew Internet and American Life Project is also an excellent resource for understanding who is online and what they are doing.
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From Jocelyn Harmon--A Primer on Social Media
To use social media, at a minimum you need a computer with an Internet connection and a browser.
Because there is so much multimedia online, the better your connection (we're talking broadband, cable, DSL), the better the quality of the experience. A dial-up modem will work, but will be frustrating.
In terms of your computer browser, most CILs are using Microsoft products, so you're likely to have Internet Explorer loaded onto your computer. Many CILs are using IE version 6, which is 8 years old and is not supported by many websites. Therefore, you should download (or get your IT person to download) the latest version of Explorer, which is available for free through the Microsoft Website. (Download Internet Explorer through Microsoft's website)
Another free browser to consider using is Mozilla's Firefox browser. Most social media geeks use it because it is faster and more secure than Internet Explorer. You can also download mini applications called "plug-ins" that make it even easier for you to do things online. (Download FireFox browser here)
The skills that staff will need to use social media depends on the tools and strategies you select.
At a minimum, staff should be comfortable with using a web browser to surf the Internet. They should also be familiar with the "culture" associated with the tools you will use. For example, if you're using Twitter, then the staff person should be familiar with some of the conventions and culture of Twitter, like how to "retweet" messages. If they will be blogging, they should know how to write a post, manage comments, etc.
Although each tool may require some different skills, these are easily learned. Most can figure it out based on previous experiences using word processing software and other familiar tools. And one of the beauties of social media is that there are large libraries of resources available to help people learn how to use the tools, many of which we've included in this training. Because of the social nature of social media, large communities of practice develop around people who are using the tools, so you can also tap into that network to get coaching, advice, etc.
As for the time it takes to use social media, this too will vary based on the tools and strategies you select. If you're doing a full-fledged social media awareness-building campaign, that could take several hours to plan and execute. If you're writing a few quick blog posts per week, that might take one hour. How much time you want to spend on social media will definitely be part of the decision-making equation.
Remember, though, that social media will often replace work you're already doing. You may spend several hours preparing a newsletter for example, but find that you can replace it with a blog. Instead of repeatedly answering the same questions, you can set up a wiki where people can go to see the answers for themselves. Social media becomes an alternative way of doing work, so thinking of it strictly in terms of "how much time will this take" isn't effective.