 Web 2.0SM is a phrase coined by O'Reilly Media in 2004. It refers to the perceived or proposed notion that a second generation of the Internet has evolved based on social networking sites that emphasize online collaboration and sharing among its users.
These social sites are built to encourage sharing, and few things are more effective and inexpensive than viral marketing. While maintaining your own Web site will always be a priority, there are other ways to spread your organization’s story via the Internet. Below are some of the more popular Web 2.0 sites and trends, along with ideas on how to use them to give your nonprofit an edge in 2007.
MySpace®
As one of the most popular Web sites in the United States, MySpace® has become an increasingly influential part of our culture. Every day, millions of people log on to MySpace® to access an interactive, user-submitted network of friends, personal profiles, blogs, groups, photos, music, and videos. There is no cost to set up a profile, and with the use of templates, you can have a page set up in minutes that is tailored to your organization's unique image and culture.
Your donors are getting younger, or at least they are acting younger… and so should you. Reach out to them via MySpace® this year. Set up a page for your organization; gather friends; blog about issues facing your organization and community; post bulletins of upcoming events and volunteer opportunities; post photos of staff, donors, and events; and point people back to your online donation page. The opportunities and ideas for using MySpace® to promote your mission are endless.
YouTube®
YouTube® is a widely popular, free, video sharing site that lets users upload, share, and view video clips of just about anything. In its short time on the Web, YouTube® has received an enormous amount of attention and was recently purchased by the most popular search engine today: Google®.
You can benefit from the YouTube® online video technology by engaging your donors with real-life moving pictures. YouTube® has put the whole world in the director’s chair, and that includes you. Get your promo videos out there, start a video blog, and begin to integrate new videos into your campaigns. People like people, and your donors will appreciate seeing you.
Flickr®
Flickr® is a popular photo sharing Web site and online community. The site is popular among bloggers, who may also use it as an online photo library. Flickr® submitters easily categorize their images by tagging them with keywords that allows them to be easily searched.
A picture is worth a thousand words, so even a few can help demonstrate to supporters that you're delivering on your mission. Set up an account at Flickr® and start tagging! Add desktop wallpaper and posters that your supporters can download.
Start your own blog
It is estimated that there are 100 million blogs currently being maintained and another 200 million former bloggers who have ceased posting. Those numbers are astounding! The term "blog" is derived from "Web log." A blog is a user-generated Web site where entries are made in journalistic language and displayed, usually in a reverse chronological order. Blogs provide commentary on almost any subject matter you can imagine.
It’s 2007, which means it’s time to start a blog! Your donors are doing it, the organization down the street is doing it, and your kids are probably doing it. You can get one set up and running in a matter of minutes with the free tool Blogger®.
Wikipedia®
Wikipedia® is the biggest, multilingual free-content encyclopedia on the Internet — it has more than two million entries, and its growing daily. It is unique because the content is written and edited by its users. Wikipedia entries are constantly updated with thousands of edits per hour.
Do a search at Wikipedia®— is your organization there? Get it added as soon as you can. Not only are Wikipedia® entries becoming the go-to reference source, but they are showing up very high in organic search engine results at Google® and Yahoo!®.
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