Tools for your great cause

The need for social services is escalating daily.  As we climb slowly out of one of history’s worst recessions, we see just how fragile we all are--a pink slip away from being a company’s cutback, a paycheck away from losing our medical insurance and even our homes. The bright side is that the growth of technology means news and information spreads instantaneously through the ease of social networking sites, blogs, websites, and mobile applications. What once took days now takes only moments. Technology is intersecting with grassroots efforts like never before, and your cause needs to be prepared to embrace these new tools or risk the chance of getting left behind. Now is the time to adapt to using these free resources to more efficiently promote your organization’s objectives.

In this post we'll take a look at just one of many tools: SMS.

SMS Donations – Endless Reach

Earlier this year, the devastating earthquake in Haiti showed us just how caring and savvy we can be when time is of the essence. SMS text-based donations came of age as an easy, fast way of taking action. Making an appeal to the masses prior to SMS-based donations required slower channels of communication such as emails, phone calls, media reports and word of mouth as compared to the well-known social networking site, Facebook, which interacts with other social media tools like Twitter, blogs, and Flickr. Five simple digits, five simple letters, and the sending of a text message is all it took -- for millions, it made a significant difference. 

Countless tweets, status updates, retweets, and Twitpics flooded the world within moments. Simple messages appeared at the bottom of football game broadcasts before commercial breaks. The result? The Mobile Giving Foundation reported that within the first 36 hours after the quake, "donations made via mobile phones for Haiti earthquake relief ... surpassed $7 million." Though this is only one example of how social media has engaged our society.

Internet Marketing Channels to Power your Cause

SMS campaigns aren't the only tool great causes can utilize, nor should they be (higher carrier fees and long fulfillment periods are two big detractors to the medium). But knowing the tools available to your organization and choosing the right ones can make all the difference. If your organization isn't sure where to start, let HiDef guide you to accomplish your goals more quickly, providing you with a roadmap to continuing success. Over the next few weeks, we will be discussing Social Media, PPC, SEO, and Mobile Applications for your great cause.

Resources