Last week Matt Collins of Platypus Digital wrote a piece for The Guardian Voluntary Sector Network which caused a bit of a stir. Leading with the headline, ‘It’s time for charities to stop wasting money on social media,’ he pointed out that a report by small business owners which indicated that social media marketing made no difference to their bottom line could also apply to charities and their efforts to fundraise via Facebook et al.
Matt argued that, since organic reach on social media is so low, charities would be better off investing time and money on SEO, email newsletters and Google Adwords, rather than social media.
The premise behind the piece, namely that charities should be evaluating their digital efforts, prioritising resources and developing integrated strategies is quite right, and it’s good that we discuss these ideas openly as a sector. However, there are a few points where I would take a slightly different view.
- Are we comparing like with like? One commentator pointed out that rates of engagement on search and email newsletters are by their definition higher as they are a warmer audience who have taken one step further towards engaging with your charity. In addition, whilst I’ve heard that people are more likely to donate when approached via email rather than social media, the size of the communities may be quite different, highlighting the disparity further. For example, we’ve worked with some organisations recently who have 30k+ followers in their social media communities and relatively small emailing lists (3,000+).
- Not everything on social media is about fundraising. Charities who use social media well aren’t just pushing out fundraising campaigns every day, as Carlos Miranda of Social Misfits Media noted in his response to Matt. They’re dealing with supporters’ questions, building communities, and helping their brands punch above their weight. There are so many things you can do with social media and whilst fundraising is important, it isn’t the sole measure of its success. If you look at Breast Cancer Care’s Facebook page, for example, there are lots of women commenting on posts and supporting each other through breast cancer. Charities are using social media to create safe spaces for people to provide peer and emotional support to each other.
- Whilst it may not work for every charity, there are many who are using social media for fundraising effectively. Check out this case study from St Baldricks Foundation.
- Social search is important. Matt is right that people turn to Google when they need help- but they look on social media as well. I’m in several mums’ groups on Facebook and am always amazed by the variety of issues other members post about –everything from what a child’s illness could be to money worries and domestic violence. I’m sure they google these issues too but sometimes they just want to talk to their peers if they are worried about something.
- Isn’t social media an intrinsic part of many different areas of work that charities cover? For example, one commentator argued that charities should prioritise service delivery over social media. And yet, when done right, isn’t social media a channel which could highlight your services and get more people to use them? The Samaritans , for example, use social media to encourage people to contact them before they reach crisis point. They could still achieve some of this through email/search/Google Adwords but I suspect it might limit their reach.
- Social media is not a cure all. On this point, I agree with Matt. Just being on the platforms is not enough. Before you go anywhere near social media I advise organisations to map out their audience and understand which channels they use and why.
- You can measure a lot of stuff through social media- but not everything. If you’re running a big, short term fundraising campaign, then sure, your analytics will tell you a lot. But what about long term relationships with supporters, where they may support the charity over a period of years, sometimes moving between on and offline channels? This is where mapping out user journeys, talking to supporters and synchronising processes and comms with other teams is invaluable.
In summary, social media is a more complicated beast then we all originally thought. It has many uses, not all of them fundraising related. And no, it’s not a panacea, and it may not tell you everything you need to know either- you might need to dig a bit deeper for that. But if you’re not getting the results you want from it, then it could be time to start asking yourself why, and how you can do it better. It doesn’t mean you need to stop or scale back your use of these channels. Amid the negative news cycle about charities, and a tougher fundraising environment, charities need to be as visible, transparent and proactive about positive stories as possible. I’d argue that we need to do more on social media, not less.