Social Media Outreach. This deck provides an overview of how to develop an online grass roots campaign, with an emphasis on the tactics and strategies employed by Bloggers Unite. Bloggers Unite was one of the first social action campaigns ever developed as a pro-bono cooperative effort for organizations such as Amnesty International, March of Dimes, The Gesundheit Institute, and AIDS.gov. among others. While the focus of the case study relies heavily on the Human Rights campaign developed for Amnesty International, the techniques used by this approach also benefited several smaller, hyper-local efforts as well. The deck is presented as a supplement and course outline for a class taught by Richard Becker, ABC, president of Copywrite, Ink., at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Becker developed the social outreach campaign for all Bloggers Unite benefactors and others. The campaign was then coordinated as a joint-effort by his team, the nonprofit, and the fastest-growing blogger network at the time. The deck will also be featured at richardrbecker.com in the near future with some additional commentary. The class itself requires three hours, which includes open discussion.

1. Social Media Outreach

2. What is it?

3. The strategic process of employing
social networks and digital media to
raise awareness, influence behavior,
inspire action, scale transformation,
and create change.
“
”

4. See
Think
Act
Scale
Change

5. Case Study

6. 20
08
Ask bloggers to write about human rights.
Think about how human rights touched
them.
Publish their story on the same day.
Share stories written by other authors.
Make a positive impact on the world.
see
think
act
scale
change

7. 20
08
Partners developed an inclusive campaign.
Provided specific topics with clear actions.
Bloggers published 1.2 million stories.
Reported on by CNN and other media.
Changed American foreign policy in Darfur.
see
think
act
scale
change

8. “
”
Human beings
are the only
creatures on this
planet who are
capable of
forming flexible
and scalable
cooperatives
around abstract
values, societal
constructs, and
public opinion.

9. audience
People who
are already
interested:
friends,
followers,
customers,
volunteers,
etc.
partners
Organizations
that have an
expressed
interest in
closely related
ideas, goals or
objectives.
influencers
Recognizable
people who by
authority,
status, or
celebrity have
an engaged
audience.
media
Media outlets
that have
captured an
audience by
delivering news
and unique
content.
Raising awareness
is expanding the
reach of the right
message for the
right audience at
the right time.

10. 1770
Newspapers
played a
major role in
shaping the
American
Revolution.
1933
Radio was the
first broadcast
technology
that provided a
means for a
President to
address the
entire nation.
1960
Television
became the
deciding factor
in how the
general public
saw their
presidential
contenders.
2008
Social media
provided a new
level of
familiarity by
fostering
dialogue.
The only difference
between social
outreach and social
media outreach is
the size of the
audience, the speed
of delivery, and
content frequency.

11. 20
08
Existing audience of 170,000 bloggers.
Solicit input to create stakeholders.
Provide incentives for active participation.
evaluate
involve
invite
reward
Audience
Invite loyalists to support engagement.

12. 20
08
The fastest-growing bloggers network.
Find someone with the same objective.
Add credibility with recognized leaders.
principal
benefactor
resources
credibility
Partners
Expand resources with shared interests.

13. 20
08
Look inside your own organization first.
Ask partners for additional suggestions.
Real influence can belong to anyone.
in house
invested
interest
instinct
Influencers
Search for those with shared interests.

14. 20
08
Learn what the media defines as news.
Build a timeline for potential outreach.
Be ready to tell the story you want to tell.
news
timing
relations
ease
Media
Ask reporters with existing relationships.

15. message
Organizations
must clearly
communicate
their message
as well as the
purpose of
the outreach.
values
While a
consistent
message is
important, they
often intersect
with other
interests.
freedom
Bloggers are
often
interested in
personalizing
their subject
matter to their
audience.
guidance
Content
creators are
also interested
in knowing
exactly what to
do and when to
do it.
Influencing behavior
is largely about
determining where
the shared values
might intersect with
your objectives.

16. Messages
“Messages tend to be most effective
when they are derived from the
mission, vision and values of an
organization with an emphasis on
core contrasts within the market, and
communicated as clearly, concisely,
accurately, humanly, and
conspicuously as possible.
”

17. 20
08
Fastest-growing network of bloggers
are uniting to do something good.
and sharing your story on the same day.
message
values
freedom
guidance
Message
Join by choosing a human rights issue

18. 20
08
Some joined for the community.
Some had a stake in human rights.
Some were looking for increased exposure.
community
rights
visibility
interest
Values
Some focused on other special causes.

19. 20
08
Bloggers could tackle any rights issue
or could pick from three main topics.
Most recognized media efforts too.
personal
timely
traction
topical
Freedom
Many wrote about their involvement too.

20. 20
08
Bloggers asked to publish on same day.
Provided ample background on topics.
Shared stories published by the media.
personal
timely
traction
topical
Guidance
Provided with banners, widgets and art.

21. actions
The ability to
clearly define
one succinct
action will
define their
decision to
participate.
objectives
Establish other
organizational
objectives early
to help guide
the overarching
campaign.
benefits
While not a key
component of
participation,
there may be
additional
measurable
outcomes.
crisis
While it doesn’t
always happen,
it is important
to plan for
unexpected
outcomes.
Inspiring direct
action that leads to
one or more
measurable
outcomes is the
intent of any social
media effort.

22. Objectives
“Knowing precisely what you want
to do — whether it is to elevate a
conversation, build community,
change behavior, reinforce
reputation or increase usage — will
determine your ability to change
behavior, perception, or attitude.
”

23. 20
08
Bloggers asked to publish on same day.
Consider covering one topic provided.
Submit their stories for added exposure.
clear
target
traction
engage
Actions
Provide link to select partner websites.

24. 20
08
Demonstrate the power of blogging.
Emphasize the strength of network.
Establish proof of concept for campaigns.
statement
brand
refine
growth
Objectives
Increase membership via the campaign.

25. 20
08
Create a spike in website traffic.
Boost lifetime membership numbers.
Increase cause-specific donations.
aware
growth
fund
engage
Benefits
Drive cause-specific actions.

26. 20
08
Protect partners during the campaign.
Manage detractors and naysayers.
Weather copycats and other false claims.
prepare
prep
fund
engage
Crisis
Mitigate all inaccurate information.

27. monitor
Monitor the
conversations,
actions, and
engagement
taking place
around the
net.
transform
Make
adjustments to
the campaign if
participants
begin to drive
it in a specific
direction.
magnify
Call out best
practices and
promotions,
and take these
conversations
to other social
networks.
update
Share media
mentions and
influencer
promotions on
a regular basis,
providing
evidence that
it is working.
Scaling transformation
is all about taking
advantage of real time
opportunities that
naturally expand the
reach and life of the
campaign.

28. Motivation is determined by intensity
of need or desire, value of goal or
reward, and/or the expectation of
the individual and their peers.
“
”

29. 20
08
Monitor site traffic of all partners.
Count widget and banner installs.
Scan for campaign articles and posts.
clear
target
sentiment
expand
Monitor
Track social network mentions.

30. 20
08
Listen and engage in online dialogue.
Monitor topics with media interest.
Share growing outcomes with officials.
listen
read
involve
discuss
Transform
Reinforce trend toward specific topic.

31. 20
08
Promote early posts and articles.
Start conversations on other networks.
Request proclamations from government.
promote
spread
designate
applaud
Magnify
Forward success with ongoing highlights.

32. 20
08
Provide members with relevant data.
Welcome addition of new influencers.
Ask benefactor to report successes.
promote
spread
impact
applaud
Update
Report on successes for the campaign.

33. quantify
Measure the
impact of the
primary action
by counting
the number of
blog posts
published.
qualify
Highlight some
of the best
contributions,
sharing their
posts and
offering media
examples.
reward
Provide highest
level of
exposure and
other rewards
to outstanding
participants.
report
Look past the
conversation
and toward
longer-term
objectives that
come out of
the campaign.
Creating change may
happen in ways we
least expect it,
growing beyond the
initial numbers and
into actions that far
exceed our own plan.

34. 20
08
1.2 million blog posts on the same day.
250 million readers, all over the world.
10,000 new members joined organization.
numbers
target
sentiment
expand
Quantify
250,000 links to campaign and benefactor.

35. 20
08
Solicit best bloggers for appearances.
Demonstrate commitment to cause.
Share stories aligned to the campaign.
stories
commit
inclusive
research
Qualify
Recognize additional ties to the campaign.

36. 20
08
Feature the best independent bloggers.
Recognize soft campaign contributors.
Build a database for the next campaign.
highlight
cheers
capture
grateful
Reward
Send thank you letters with gratitude.

37. 20
08
Celebrated success as a community.
Collected petitions, donations and actions.
Changed American foreign policy in Darfur.
celebrate
outcome
change
introduce
Report
Introduced people to partner organizations.

38. Measures
“So much emphasis is placed on
quantitative measures that it can
be difficult to recognize that not
every measure is based on quantity.
The most important outcomes
often manifest as singular events
that change the world.
”

39. THANK YOU
for your interest in social media outreach.
Richard Becker (Rich) is an American writer,
educator, and creative strategist. He holds
several executive and board positions, and is best
known for his position as president of Copywrite,
Ink., a strategic communication firm with
experience on more than 1,000 accounts. He has
taught writing, marketing, public relations, and
communication classes at UNLV for almost two
decades. On occasion, he accepts invitations to
present as a guest speaker or private educator.
About Richard R. Becker