Despite limited budgets, nonprofit organizations find great value in their fast growing social networks. Check out the following interesting infographic depicting the social networking growth trends:

How are nonprofit organizations (NPOs) optimizing resources and leveraging their social networks to further their mission?

How are NPOs integrating social media with fundraising campaigns?

What free resources and tools are available for NPOs to build community engagement?

If you are a nonprofit organization looking for these answers, you will find value in the Nonprofit Symposium (www.nonprofitsymposium.com) on May 17, Red Cross Cincinnati, Ohio.

Randal Moss, Author, Speaker, and Social Media Strategist: www.thefutureofnonprofits.com

12 recognized national speakers, hot topics in social media, digital strategies, case studies, networking reception, and much more! We are talking about Cincinnati’s first social media symposium for nonprofits that will bring together nonprofit professionals in our community with innovative digital and social media strategies that can advance their missions.

Randal Moss, the author of “The future of nonprofits: Innovate and Thrive in Digital Age” and a speaker at the nonprofit symposium gives us a sneak peak of what will be covered at the symposium in an exclusive interview.

a) How can social media address nonprofits’ goals? 

Social Media is a great channel for organizations to connect with and engage their constituents. Fundraising, social action, and volunteer organization – Social Media is something that can empower nonprofits to do more with less if they know how.

b) How can nonprofits build deeper engagements with their audience? 

Part of the challenge nonprofit organizations (NPOs) face is that there are so many entities vying for the attention of their constituents. To build engagement, NPOs have to look deeper than their standard best practices and find ways to transfer some of the ownership of the engagement to the constituent. It seems counter-intuitive – asking the constituent to take on more responsibility. However, the reality is that when constituents make the engagement their own, they take deeper interest and exert extra effort to make it the best it can be.

c) Tell us a little bit about your book

Our book takes a look at NPO innovation as it pertains to working in the digital age. The book reviews the history of innovation and then sets out three pillars of Innovation: Awareness, Structure, and Staffing. It looks at upcoming digital trends in the fundraising marketplace and provides a long view on the shifts that NPOs will need to make in their overarching strategy to stay competitive and grow.

d) Where do they make a start? What social media platforms are must and most effective for nonprofits? 

You can always make the case that larger the platform, the more inclined NPOs should be to leverage it. However, some NPOs may find more value in smaller niche social networks that more closely align with their cause. Even then, some organizations may find maximum value in creating their own social network like relayforlife.org or shareyourstory.org

e) Is there a way to track social media ROI? 

Everyone is working on the ROI of social media. Part of that calculation can be assigning a growth in fundraising when you implement more social media channels. If you have a great technology partner, you can begin to track users from social media channels into donation conversions. Track your call-to-action conversion (donate, advocate, volunteer) the same way that e-tailers track sales. The key is to assign value to your conversions on the front end. What is a letter to Congress worth? What is a day of volunteer work worth? Just like in business, there is a value to the branding and awareness that accompany social media campaigns but the value is not as tangible as a donation.

f) How do nonprofits attract social media talent?

NPOs have the same opportunity to attract top talent as for-profit companies. Many candidates will gravitate to the NPO field first because their interest aligns with the NPO mission. The challenge is retaining top talent, and that is where NPOs fall short. Young, digital natives have very specific needs when it comes to retaining them, and the traditional career advancement structure that NPOs have used for 25 years will not keep them around. Beyond the compensation, young digital natives will want a greater share of engagement beyond their daily duties. A savvy NPO will be able to attract, grow, and retain top talent but it will take effort and a new approach to talent management.

Want to learn more? Register for the Symposium and learn from the thought leaders in the industry. Visit www.nonprofitsymposium.com