Calendar

Kickstarter may be the biggest dog in the crowdfunding world, but nonprofits have raised small amounts of money from large groups of people since the first collection plate was passed. What’s new is five specific elements that make a fundraising effort a crowdfunded campaign, and often brings more success to the nonprofit which engages all five principals in the right Internet tool.

Join Steve Boland, Managing Partner of Next in Nonprofits, for a primer on what makes a successful campaign, and how your nonprofit can take the next steps to bring this new option to bear for your mission.

Part of the full day Minnesota Nonprofit Technology and Communications Conference! Register to get this session and much more!

Crowdfunding: A start-up Nonprofit Case Study
Learn about the challenges and opportunities for a new nonprofit using crowdfunding to both fund capital needs and also build a donor and social support base.  East Side Freedom Library was founded in 2013 and needed to build connections with individuals as they took possession of a new building in the summer of 2014. The building needed work, and one option was to use a crowdfunding campaign to match a grant.  The campaign ran in June of 2014 and helped the Freedom Library go from no individual donors to over 300 with over $21,000 in online contributions and more in offline. This presentation will feature lessons learned from recruiting and training volunteer Team Captain fundraisers, ways to use promoted posts to meet new audiences, and the advantages and disadvantages of different platforms to collect and publicize donations.
Steve Boland, Managing Partner, Next in Nonprofits and Beth Cleary, Co-director, East Side Freedom Library, and Peter Rachleff, Co-director, East Side Freedom Library

Social media management can be a full-time job, but rarely can small organizations afford that kind of staff time. Social tools can really engage donors or customers, recruit volunteers, or advertise a new service or opportunity in sites where people spend their time. Creating a social media team which mixes staff, board and other volunteers can really extend reach. The challenge then becomes managing all that effort in real time for measurable goals (often referred to as conversions in measurement tools like Google Analytics).

This session will dive deep into Hootsuite as one tool to manage scheduled posts, author roles, and monitoring channels for engagement. Ensuring consistent voice across authors and scheduling some posts for review will be discussed, as well as a brief overview of other platforms such as Tweetdeck and Buffer. Steve Boland of Next in Nonprofits will be available for individual tests and troubleshooting following the presentation.

Social media management can be a full-time job, but rarely can small arts groups afford that kind of staff time to really use the tools to engage donors, recruit program volunteers, or advertise a performance in channels where people spend their time. Creating a social media team which mixes staff, board and other volunteers can really extend a nonprofit’s reach. The challenge then becomes managing all that effort in real time for measurable goals (often referred to as conversions in measurement tools like Google Analytics).

This session will dive deep into Hootsuite as one tool to manage scheduled posts, author roles, and monitoring channels for engagement. Ensuring consistent voice across authors and scheduling some posts for review will be discussed, as well as a brief overview of other platforms such as Tweetdeck and Buffer. Recommended Hootsuite primer available here: http://mashable.com/2013/09/18/hootsuite-beginners-guide/.

Social media is a great tool to get the word out about your programs, but that’s only the beginning. Build strong communities through social media by creating meaningful conversations online and providing relevant, consistent information. This session will give you the tools to create your own social media plan, including tools for measuring success and templates for managing it all.

This breakout session is part of the full day conference. Registration for the full day is required.