The book "The Dragonfly Effect" outlines how small, focused social media campaigns can drive social change through a "ripple effect". It presents a model called "The Dragonfly" which has four parts or "wings" - Focus, Grab Attention, Engage, and Take Action. Each wing contains design principles for effective campaigns, such as making the message personal, visual, and action-oriented in order to attract attention and motivate participation in causes through emotional connection and storytelling. The book provides examples of successful social campaigns and encourages readers that meaningful change can start from ordinary individuals pursuing their goals.
2. The Book
• Written by Jennifer Aaker
• Published in September 2010
• Quick, effective, and powerful ways to use
social media to drive social change
• Definitely not “slacktivism”
• Ripple effect / “emotional contagion”
3. The Dragonfly
• “…the elegance and efficacy of people who,
through the passionate pursuit of their goals,
discover that they can make a positive impact
disproportionate to their resources.”
• The dragonfly has four parts:
• Wing 1: Focus
• Wing 2: Grab Attention
• Wing 3: Engage
• Wing 4: Take Action
6. Wing 2:
Grab Attention
• Stickiness factor
• Four design principles
• Get personal
• Deliver the unexpected
• Visualize your message
• Make a visceral connection
7. Wing 3:
Engageof engaging campaigns
• Key characteristics
• Four design principles (TEAM)
• Tell a story
• Empathize
• Be authentic
• Match the media
• Ex: Kiva
8. Wing 4:
Take Action
• Call of action
• Four design principles (TEAM)
• Make it easy
• Make it fun
• Tailor
• Be open
• Ex: Alex’s Lemonade Stand for Action
9. Onward and
Upward
• Last minute tips:
• Create social good
• Remain motivated to pursuing your goals
• Revolutions often start with simple ideas
and ordinary people
• You can’t change the world overnight,
but…
Prompt: What do you use social media for?What if you could harness the power of social media to create social change, make a difference, and impact the lives of others?
Relatively short roadmap that is packed with useful and practical suggestions, and real world examplesSlacktivism: describes feel-good online activism that has zero political or social impactMuch more deeper level of impact; to harness social technology to achieve a single, focused, concrete goalRipple effect: small act can create big changes, and have positive impactEmotional contagion: when your emotions can infect others
The authors use the name the Dragonfly Effect because the dragonfly is the only insect able to propel itself in any direction – with tremendous speed and force – when its four wings are working in concertIt truly illuminates the importance of this integrated effort. Shows the power of social technology, when it’s fully engaged, can be nothing short of revolutionary (aftermath of Haiti earthquake- Red Cross raised $32 million through text messages alone)The same technologies that enable us to poke or retweet friends, are the same ones that can connect and mobilize us to bring about positive change.
National Marrow Donor Program has 7.5 million donors – of those only 1% is South Asian – making the chances 1 in 20,000. So that was their goals.Crafted a campaign that was personal, informative, and direct, and executed like crazy with bone marrow drivesWithin 11 weeks, they registered 24,611 people and Sameer actually found a match. Unfortunately, Sameer passed away a few months after the transplant. But the campaign lives on and 266 more people found matches that year. This campaign is a great example of the heart of a dragonfly. It should embody the heart and soul of the concept, person, or organization you are trying to help.
The focus wing directs your entire campaign. A single focused goal provides direction, motivation, and operational guidance.The campaign had a clear and focused social media goal.
Stickiness factor: ability for something to grab and hold attention
Most engaging campaigns include transparency, interactivity, immediacy, facilitation, commitment, co-creation, collaboration, experience, and trust.
