Strategies for online measurment and offline action

Introductions

• Riana, Young Invincibles

High degree of online presence, not much engangment on the areas they would like

Monthly analytic reports

No print

Have a written comms plan

• Crystal, Labor Community Strategy Center

Recently started with social media efforts (social media team for just over a year)

Multi-generational

Weekly analytics meeting

Little-to-no print

Does not have a written comms plan

• Yuri, Ccisco

Online presence

Lots of print and face-to-face

Analytics

• Javier, Aspiration

Weekly traffic report (blogs, social media, emails)

Developing a comms plan

No print

• David, California Pan Ethnic Health Network

Launching a new website

Has a comms plan

Monthly analytics report

Media tracked on ad-hoc basis

Email newsletter

Twitter better than Facebook because they don’t share many photos

What to keep an eye now

• Jocelyn, California Latinas for Reproductive justice

Handle mail list (Constant Contact)

New comms person handling social media and analytics

Trying to get more people to their events

• Jonathan, Children’s Hunger Fund

Just listening, but how can IT best support comms needs

• Adam, Mid-City CAN (City Heights)

One-man communications team

Basic metrics

Print newsletter

Social media

Have a comms plan

A Few Thoughts

• Why ask about print?
• The majority of money given is from people over 60 and given by check
• Temper expectations regarding social media
• Have you mapped out a (communications) ladder of engagement? (cf. fundraising ladder of engagement)
• What are the steps to get from social media to higher mediums of engagement?
• Examples of organizations? Surf Rider Foundation DoSomething.org
  • DoSomething.org = various projects to help youth
• Do you do A/B testing?
  • E.g. what text message is going to best reach 500,000 youth? Test version A with 500 people and version B with 500 people. Whichever gets the better response is used for the remaining youth.
• Avoid data silos - comms department needs to share analytics with the larger org
• Comms department isn’t on the field; field workers are and should be informed
• Do you provide translation for your website?
• Even if it’s a single page in a variety of languages with a basic introduction, helps feel connected
• Comms often leads with facts and figures following funding needs, but the story is the better lead

Improving Communications

• Re-consider direct mail
• Asking what form of communications constituents want
• Sometimes people say they only want email (not direct mail), but then respond really well to direct mail
• Hand-written notes, followed up by phone calls
• Sounds like a lot of work; how to justify expense?
• Measure what you’re doing and see what you’re wasting - replace that
• What metrics are you tracking?
  • Separate vanity metrics (TBU - true but useless) from actionable metrics
• Visits and time on site need to be monitored but aren’t helpful most of the time
• Need to know more about content
• How are you monitoring analytics across systems? What single tool can do everything?
• None
• Pull data from multiple systems into spreadsheets
• See Swords to Ploughshares for an example of an org learning to listen
• Curse of knowledge - you know something they don’t and may not be able to relate to
• Website can lead people through something that social media can’t - a "knowledge pathway”
• Use discreet and specific actions in social media
• Let people share (e.g. "What are you having for dinner on Sunday night?”)
• Don’t just pass on a social media post; *curate* it (be selective and comment on it)

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• Try experimenting with print pieces
• E.g. Use different calls to action
• What about save-the-date messages?

John: Probably best to send notifications when registration opens.

Crystal: Send it for a large political event; no call to action, just a light touch to “remember us?”

Make your comms campaigns easy for your staff to do

John: email is generally a lot more effective than social media

Success Stories

• How do you get people to come to your events?
• The web can be a real “echo chamber” - just hearing ourselves
• How do you get your message beyond your current constituency
• CPEHN - has used word of mouth (social media also offers a little)

Fundraising engagement

Surfrider

DoSomething.org – old cellphones victims of domestic violence

Microsteps>videos explaining why you should do it

Dosomething- discrete specific

Why bring me along

Personally, culturally

Letting people share, opinions content

Social media to email landing page with 3 newsletters – links to full newsletters

Short, concise

Closing

• Learn from other organizations
• Use teasers

Around the table

Adam: Curious about examples of other orgs to learn from. “Analytics are like exercise” - we know we should be doing it but…. How much time should we spend on it?

John: At least 15-20 mins/mo to collect the data, and a 1-2hr quarterly meeting

Javier: A/B testing was interesting

Jonathan: Children’s Hunger Fund volunteering good example of getting people from social media to events

Jocelyn: Also found A/B testing interesting. Leading people with personal stories, and following through with valuable information and opportunities of communication.

John: and don’t forget the significance of staff stories

David: Helping the board understand what you’re learning

Yuri: Being transparent across the organization

Crystal: Leading from social media to engagement with the website before the action

John: Give people a picture of what they’re moving toward (e.g. screenshots of your email newsletter)

Riana: Need to focus on email