NYC Nonprofit Boot Camp - Social Networking for Nonprofits?

More from Craigslist Foundation's recent NYC Nonprofit Boot Camp;  Big Duck's Farra Trompeter offered an engaging session on social networking - is this a tool that nonprofits should be taking full advantage of now?

If your organization does take the plunge, expect that it will require a 2-3 hour investment daily.  A recent feature at Philanthropy Journal confirms this, also describing who is best suited to fit this role:

• Knows and enjoys social media
• Is tech savvy (but doesn't have to be a geek)
• Knows your organization and is committed to its mission
• Has a personable, outgoing writing style

Is your main goal is to raise funds or to attract and interest current / prospective constituents?  So far, few nonprofits have successfully been able to prove that the potential return is definitely worth the dedication of resources to social networking activities.

Farra recommended these first steps in Facebook:

1. find out whether other organizations with compatible missions are already there, and what they are doing
2. create fan page
3. create cause

Some nonprofits have been also to receive donations through text messaging, although this also is a relatively new initiative.  Twitter is already used by nonprofits such as Red Cross and ASPCA to distribute information.

Starting and maintaining a presence on social networking sites confirms the trend that your constituents may never find your organization's web site, so why not go to where they already are?

Other good resources on this topic:

• Beth's Blog - How Nonprofits Can Use Social Media
  
• Media Rules - book & blog 
• Nten's We Are Media Project - social media starter kit for nonprofits