Share your best blog post from 2009 one more time!

Topic:

What was your favorite, most read, most tweeted, or most commented on blog post from this year?  This is your chance to bring it back into the spotlight!

It doesn’t matter what the topic was or how long or short it is, we just want to wrangled together the best of the best for the last Net2 Think Tank of the year.

Deadline: Saturday, December 12th

How to contribute:

• Tag your blog with net2thinktank
• Email Amy Sample Ward the link to your post!

Be sure to get your submission in by emailing Amy the link to your post by Saturday, December 12th.

The roundup of contributions will be posted on the NetSquared blog on Monday, December 14th.

About Net2 Think Tank:

Net2 Think Tank is a monthly blogging event open to anyone and is a great way to participate in an exchange of ideas.  We post a question or topic to the NetSquared community and participants submit responses either on their own blogs or on the NetSquared Community Blog.  Tag your post with “net2thinktank” and email a link to us to be included. At the end of the month, the entries get pulled together in the Net2 Think Tank Round-Up.

To stay on top of it all, I suggest you create a listening dashboard for your organization – and here’s how to do it!

Getting Started

To create a listening dashboad, I suggest using Netvibes.  This is a free web-based tool that is totally customizeable and can be used both privately or publicly.To get started, just visit http://netvibes.com and create an account.

Finding Feeds

Netvibes will let you track all kinds of things online, all by using RSS feeds or ready-built widgets.  Here are some of the best ways to start listening online:
Google Alerts
This free service from Google let’s you identify key words, phrases, or URLs that you want to track.  Simply visit http://google.com/alerts to get started.  Here are some example searches using NetSquared as the organization.

• “netsquared” or “net squared” – putting this in the search term area of the alert would mean that any time “NetSquared” is mentioned or “Net Squared” is mentioned, I will get alerted.
• NetSquared.org – putting this URL in the search term area of the alert means that if someone wrote out our URL on their blog, for example, I would get alerted.
• “Amy Sample Ward” or “Billy Bicket” – putting this in the search term area of the alert means that any time Billy’s name (the NetSquared Director) or my own (the NetSquared Global Community Development Manager) is mentioned online, I will get alerted.

Try changing out the organization name and key staff names to match your organization’s information and give it a try!

You have a few other options when setting up the Google Alert.  You could choose to monitor only news sources, only blogs, and so on.  I would recommend choosing the “comprehensive” option as you never know where your name might pop up!

As far as the email vs feed option – we are using Netvibes so you can cut down on email!  Choose the “feed” option and then hit save on that alert.  You can then click on the linked “Feed” word that has the RSS icon next to it (the icon looks like a signal).  The URL you are given will look pretty weird (see the screen shot example below). Skip to the bottom to “Add Feeds to Netvibes” for next steps.

Twitter Search
If you want to stay on top of all the conversations on Twitter about your organization or the topic of your work, using a feed from Twitter Search is really useful. To get a feed of the Twitter conversations, visit: http://search.twitter.com.  Similar to a Google Alert, type in some key words or phrases using the quotations, like, “netsquared” or “net squared” – it’s just like the examples above!

After you hit “search,” you will see there’s a “Feed for this query” link on the right side of the screen.  Click on that and copy the URL, then jump down to the bottom to “Add Feeds to Netvibes” for next steps.

Blogs
Using the two tools above, you should get notified whenever a blogger uses your organization’s name or projects, etc.  But another great way to listen and tap into online conversations is to follow blogs about your sector or location and find opportunities where you can contribute to the conversation.  It is great to comment and be visible in the community of thinkers and doers in your sector.  There will even be instances where you can provide information or resources from your organization that may be relevant to the conversation.

Find blogs about your sector and subscribe in the same way, via RSS. A great way to find blogs relevant to your organization is to use Google Blog Search.  You can also follow one of the sector-specific blogs from Change.org.

When you find a blog you want to follow, find the “subscribe to RSS” link or icon in the sidebar, or use the RSS icon in your browser’s URL bar (the icon is a square signal).  Copy the feed URL and then jump down to “Add Feeds to Netvibes” for next steps.

Add Feeds to Netvibes

Now that you have found all kids of RSS feeds you want to track, you need to add them to your Netvibes page.  With Netvibes you can create tabs to help organize all these feeds, too!

1. Copy the full URL of the feed you’d like to add
2. Go to your Netvibes page, and hit the green “add content” button in the upper left of the screen
3. Select “add feed” and paste in the URL
4. When it shows you the preview, click “add” and it will appear in a box below

To move the boxes, simply click on the top of the box (a hand icon should appear instead of your mouse arrow) and drag the box where you’d like it to sit on the page.

To add tabs, click on “add tab” and name it something useful for categorizing the feeds in that section.

Start Listening

There you go!  With your listening dashboard in place you can start monitoring what’s being said about you, your work, and your sector instantly.  You can add to it any time you find another blog or item to follow, just follow the same steps as above!

About Net2 Think Tank

Net2 Think Tank is a monthly blogging event open to anyone and is a great way to participate in an exchange of ideas.  We post a question or topic to the NetSquared community and participants submit responses either on their own blogs or on the NetSquared Community Blog.  Tag your post with “net2thinktank” and email a link to us to be included. At the end of the month, the entries get pulled together in the Net2 Think Tank Round-Up.

This month’s Net2 Think Tank topic focused on user generated content. Have you used a campaign or a project to invite contributions? Do you have tips for successful invitations to create and share content with your organization or the community?  Have you seen community members championing your work online with their own spin?  We have a couple great responses to share this month to keep the conversation going!

Can User Generated Content Create Unique Community Opportunities?

Brigham at SocialChangeNews answers this question in one word: indubitably!

www.socialchangenews.com is the internets’ hub for news on social change that combines original user-created content (UCC) with the latest aggregated news on organizations, and individuals working to transform society.  Since this directly relates to our project, we look forward to sharing and learning as much as we can for the next few weeks.

SocialChangeNews is now live in beta, and open to being a case study in this topic themselves! You can check it out for yourself at www.socialchangenews.com

Ana at JelloBrain has a terrific post discussing the relationship between user generated content and the organizations and infastructure on which that content is posted.

When a user surfs to a website and registers for an event, donates money, becomes a member or writes a blog, this information has become digitized. Capturing this information from hundreds of ‘viral’ users without human intervention or administration (the function of a good content management system), creates an enormous added capacity in the organization.

The current status quo for non-profit organizations is typically one where the information needed to do the work of an organization is kept in a separate database from the database recording user generated online interactions. Typically when a user interacts with a website and fills out a registration form, that information is sent to the organization via email, at which point it is manually input into the organization’s main constituent database. The only tool in the entire world that can perform that transition effectively is the human being.

There are two problems with that. The first is that human beings are (and should be) more expensive than mechanization, and the second is that human beings do their best work when they are creative.

As Ana says, “The solution is of course to integrate the two databases.” You can read the full post and connect with Ana to keep the discussion going on JelloBrain here.

What do you think?

You can still answer the Net2 Think Tank question in the comments here or connect with either of the contributors above.

Be sure to watch for the Net2 Think Tank question for next month! It will be posted in early September.  (Hint: You’ll always be the first to hear about Net2 Think Tank topics by subscribing to Net2 News, the enewsletter with updates, jobs, and more!)

About Net2 Think Tank:

Net2 Think Tank is a monthly blogging event open to anyone and is a great way to participate in an exchange of ideas.  We post a question or topic to the NetSquared community and participants submit responses either on their own blogs or on the NetSquared Community Blog.  Tag your post with “net2thinktank” and email a link to us to be included. At the end of the month, the entries get pulled together in the Net2 Think Tank Round-Up. ]]> https://amysampleward.org/2009/06/29/tweetcamp-online-network-moves-to-offline-community/ https://amysampleward.org/2009/06/29/tweetcamp-online-network-moves-to-offline-community/#comments Mon, 29 Jun 2009 17:16:33 +0000 http://www.amysampleward.org/?p=842 Continue readingTweetcamp: Online network moves to offline community]]> This past Saturday, I participated in an experiment: Tweetcamp! The combination of a Tweetup and a BarCamp.  (Those links are to definitions!)  What this created was a chance for people who use Twitter to come together offline to create community. There is no agenda to the conference as it is co-created by the participants throughout the day.  It is for the community, by the community, all thanks originally to Twitter.

This month’s Net2 Think Tank asks: How do real-world (offline) events fit into social media conversations and campaigns?

I think that my reflections about Tweetcamp are an excellent fit to answer this question!  And I hope they help you think about the way your organization uses opportunities online and offline to create community.

What worked?

Cross-section of participants: It was great to turn up to an event and have every person I talked to have a different line a work, a different reason for using social media tools, and a unique goal for what they wanted to get out of the day.  One way to accomplish this is to ensure you have a diverse set of organizers – you will tap into networks that do, eventually, overlap, but the influencers you target will push a great diversity of participants towards the event.

Space: This is both online and offline.  If you are targeting your online network, you need to have an online space for interested participants to sign up, learn more, and connect with each other. Tweetup used a blog to keep people updated, a Facebook group to gather interested participants, and a Twitter account for communications.  All three outlets linked to each other so people never hit a “dead-end.”  Offline, the space at Gumtree.com’s office in Richmond was terrific for people to gather as a full group, in small groups, and everything in between. Finding an offline space that really creates the right environment for such a loose-flowing day is crucial to not “losing” people to the outskirts.

Food: It’s true.  Your participants will get hungry with all that connecting and talking and excitement.  The Tweetup organizers did a tremendous job of finding sponsors to supply or cover the cost of enough good food to keep all the bellies full.  And in a very tasty way!

What didn’t work?

Timing: It is always the hardest thing to plan out, especially when you are doing something entirely new.  The organizers decided to meld a bit of facilitation with complete open space organizing.  The start of the day had participants in small groups (just puddles of chairs) and asked a question for the small groups to then answer to themselves.  There was some paper to capture notes and then a group representative reported back to the full room.  After every group had a chance to share, people moved about the room to form new groups.  A new question was asked and again the small groups answered internally, then shared to the larger room.  This happened three times and was intended to start conversations with many people so that once the room broke for open space conversations, people had an idea of who they might talk to, what kinds of things others had come to talk about, and so on.  It did accomplish this goal, though often times would feel too slow – groups finishing ahead of time and then moving on to talk about other things that could have been better in open space created groups where people could self select to participate, etc.

What’s next?

This is the part I’m most interested to discuss with those who attended and the organizers who created the event.  Here are some of my ideas:

1. How is Tweetcamp going to move the community? Moving from an online network of Twitter users to an offline community was a big step! It meant people had a chance to be real life friends with their online friends, collaborate in real time about new ideas, and more.  So, what will the ripple effects of this be and how can the Tweetcamp organizers faciliate it?  (Or, if it had been an event organized by a nonprofit organization as a chance for those who found the organization online to come together offline to learn more, get involved, and so on, how can the organization move those particpants and network members up the ladder of engagement as part of the community?)
2. How is Tweetcamp going to empower dissemination? Barcamps and Tweetups happen all around the world.  I think the event struck a great balance between the two and would love to see it replicated in other cities or by other groups.  Documentation is always the key to dissemination and replication; encouraging participants to share their thoughts and stories, but also the organizers sharing the discussions they had that helped create the event and their planning strategies will all help Tweetcamps sprout elsewhere.
3. How will the network maintain the community? Those of us that came together offline on Saturday had seen each other before online, maybe followed on Twitter, or had seen a name here or there.  But for the most part, we had never actually met in the “real world.”  Now that we have, how will we keep it going?  Is there a role for Tweetcamp organizers in assisting in this process? Perhaps by maintaining conversations or other exchanges on the Facebook group and Twitter so users can find each other again.  I know I already have a few coffee dates with people from Tweetcamp and am looking forward to contributing to the community as I can!

What do you think?

Did you attend the London Tweetcamp – what did you think?  If you didn’t, how do you think your organization could move it’s online network to an offline community?  What do you think that network would want in order to participate?

February’s Net2 Think Tank sprang from an interview with Clay Shirky, the author of Here Comes Everybody.  The topic asked: What do you think the role of nonprofit organizations is in the changing world of social media? This month, we also have a book giveaway of a free copy of Skiry’s paperback edition of Here Comes Everybody for one of the contributors.

Watch the interview and check out these responses!

You can watch the video interview with Skirky below.  This month, we asked:

What do you think the role of nonprofit organizations is in the changing world of social media?

How do nonprofits participate online differently than individuals?  How do nonprofits convene groups or create content that fits with the changing online environment?  Which organizations are charting the way, navigating the new tools well?  If you don’t know any organizations to point to that are already succeeding, what should organizations do to get there?

I couldn’t resist this great question so posted an answer, too.  My response included the final thought that, “perhaps the changing role of nonprofit organizations in the online space is not one of playing catch-up to the early adopters and hyper-connected individuals, nor is it one of “friending” big names or joining every platform; but is one of strategically convening supporters to create dynamic connections across the community.”  Read more.

Howard Silverman points out that, “One need not work for a nonprofit to be attracted to the idea of utilizing the Net to spur social change.”  He goes on to leverage Ric Young’s metaphor to compare “watching the online flow of ideas and networks to exploring activity under the ocean’s surface with a scuba mask. The Internet allows us to see patterns that were once hidden.” Read more.

Joitske Hulsebosch says, “In a way social media make it easier for each individual to become a non-profit.”  She goes on to focus her thinking around development organizations and adds a great twist to the original question, by asking, “These private initiatives are not using social media. Are not connected and are not sustainable. So what could be the role of the professional non-profit development organisations?”  Read more.

Laura Norvig’s answer focused on the training provided by WeAreMedia (the first training event recently took place in San Francisco). She provides a lot of great links to examples of organizations and inviduals facing these issues and highlights one idea that I think is really interesting for this conversation: many of her favorite examples of success in this topic are those that don’t make a clear distinction between themselves as individuals and themselves as nonprofit staff members.  Read more.

Seth Horwitz makes a great point that social media, “will continue to create new opportunities for helping nonprofits that we can’t anticipate beforehand. And, if that’s true, then maybe it’s in the “self-interest” of nonprofits not just to utilize social media to help their own causes, but also to promote the use of social media in general.”  This idea adds a great twist to the conversation, especially as we consider the issues around adoption of social media in nonprofits.  Read more.

What about the book giveaway?

Since we had only four brave contributors this month, all four will receive a new paperback edition of Clay Shirky’s Here Come Everybody (with a new chapter!). A big thanks and congrats to Howard, Joitske and Laura and Seth for participating in the February Net2 Think Tank!

Stay tuned for March’s Net2 Think Tank topic!

This month’s Net2 Think Tank question was, “What do you think will be the big changes, new technologies, hot applications, or successful campaigns of 2009?” We had a great collection of contributions this month.  Take a look at the posts below—many great conversation starters to get you thinking and buzzing about what 2009 will bring.

Check out the predictions for 2009 from NetSquared community members:

• Channing’s predictions cover a wide range of areas from cell phones saving lives to our boards going online. There are even predictions for the hottest job skills in 2009. Read more.
• Joe Edelman explains how mobile phones can fix the broken economy in his mobile manifesto.  Read more.
• Britt Bravo thinks iPhone apps for nonprofits will be coming soon – and she even pulls together all kinds of examples of what’s out there now.  Read more.
• Ethan says in 2009 people will begin to collaborate online to build things other than content, but that it’ll just be the beginning.  Read more.
• John Dukovich predicts that 2009 will be the year of online collaboration for nonprofits, whether it’s with free tools or expensive ones, and warns that nonprofits will need to gauge their needs before choosing the tools.  Read more.

Thanks to everyone who contributed this month! You can share your ideas about technology in 2009 on the NetSquared blog or watch for next month’s Net2 Think Tank to be announced (Feb. 5th).

Topic:

This month, your Net2 Think Tank topic asks, “What do you think will be the big changes, new technologies, hot applications, or successful campaigns of 2009?” If you want to read some thoughts before you get going, check out these posts as starting points:

• Social Media Gurus Offer Their Predictions for 2009: A Few That Might Resonate With Nonprofits, by Beth Kanter
• 2009 Web Predictions, by ReadWriteWeb
• Top Internet Predictions for 2009, by Social Computing Magazine

Deadline:
Saturday, January 24th
The contributions will be posted on the NetSquared site on Monday, January 26th.

How to contribute:

• Blog your answer to the question either on your blog or the NetSquared blog. (For directions on contributing to the NetSquared blog, click here.)
• Tag your blog with “net2thinktank”
• Email Amy Sample Ward the link to your post!

We are really looking forward to your answers this month!  Be sure to email Amy the link to your post so that it is included in the roundup on Monday, January 26th.

Photo by Môsieur J.