How to Create a Blogging Plan for Your Nonprofit#12NTCblogplan

Britt Bravo@bbravo

1Thursday, April 5, 2012

Evaluate This Session!Each entry is a chance to win an NTEN engraved iPad!

or Online #12NTCblogplan www.nten.org/ntc/eval

2Thursday, April 5, 2012

9 Qualities of a Juicy Nonprofit Blog

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1. Visual

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charity:water post, “recognizing women in the water crisis”

http://www.charitywater.org/blog/

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2. Creative

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dc goodwill fashionista

http://www.fashionofgoodwill.org/blog/

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3. Voice

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volunteermatch engaging volunteers’ blog post, “great volunteers make great pet sitters at rover.com”

http://blogs.volunteermatch.org/engagingvolunteers/

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4. Inspires

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fair trade usa’s post, “fair trade recipe: chocolate covered cherry cupcakes”

http://fairtradeusa.org/blog

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5. Activates

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first book’s post, “let’s read across america”

http://blog.firstbook.org

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6. Educates

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enough post, “congressmen and human rights champions jim mcgovern and frank wolf introduce new sudan bill”

http://www.enoughproject.org/blog

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7. Engaging & search-friendly titles

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Which posts do you want to open? Why?

A. 5 Poverty-fighting Women to Watch

B. International Women’s Day - 8 Mar 2012

C. International Women’s Day 2012: 10 Things You Can Do to Stay Informed and Help Women Everywhere

D. Poor People Don’t Just Need Cash, They Need Bank Accounts

E. Women and Poverty

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8. Updates regularly

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salvation army blog, doing the most good

http://blog.salvationarmyusa.org/

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9. Easy to subscribe, share & comment

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amnesty usa blog: human rights now

http://blog.amnestyusa.org/

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7-Step Basic Blog Plan

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1. Why do you want to start a blog?

A. What goal will a blog help your organization achieve?

B. What would a successful blog look like?

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2. Who are your ideal readers?

A. Think of 3 real people who represent your ideal readers.

B. What blog content would be valuable and interesting to them?

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3. What will your posts be about?

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21 Types of blog posts

1. Answer readers’ questions

2. Ask for help

3. “Best of” lists

4. Challenge (e.g. post one photo a day of x)

5. Comment on current events

6. Click list of other blog posts

7. Guest posts

8. How-tos

9. Interviews

10. Notes “from the field”

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21 Types of blog posts (cont.)

11. Numbered lists

12. Opinion

13. Personal story

14. Photos

15. Podcast

16. Regular column

17. Reviews: books, films, music, products

18. Round-up of news about your field/topic/issue

19. Series

20. Video

21. Your organization’s news

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4. Who Will Contribute to Your Blog?

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Possible staff needs

• Blogger(s)

• Managing Editor

• Outreach/Community Builder

• Web Designer

• Tech Support

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5. What Features Do You Need?

• Will the blog be separate, or a part of your website?

• If the blog is separate, how will you link back to your main site?

• Will you have a customized look, or use a template?

• Will you have subscription by rss and/or email?

• Will you be adding social media badges to your sidebar, or menu (e.g. Twitter, Facebook, Google +, YouTube)?

• Will your About information be on the blog, or on a separate page?

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• How many bloggers will you have? Will they have their own profiles?

• Will you show your post archive?

• Will you have a blog roll?

• Will you be using categories?

• Which sharing buttons will you use on your post (e.g. the ones that come with your blogging platform, or services like AddThis)?

• Will people be prompted to donate on your blog?

• Do your ideal readers need to be able to translate your blog?

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6. How Much Time Do You Need?

• Writing

• Reading

• Commenting

• Sharing posts on social networking sites

• Measuring impact

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7. How Will You Measure Impact?

• Comments • Press

• Community • Referrals from other sites

• Donors • Retweets and “likes”

• Page views • Subscribers

• Popularity of particular posts • Time on blog

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12 Traffic Tips

1. Share your posts on social networks

2. Link to posts in your e-newsletter

3. Comment on other blogs

4. Write posts about current events

5. Participate in carnivals and online events

6. Ask a question; ask for help

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12 Traffic Tips

7. Write numbered lists

8. Write how-tos

9. Share a strong opinion

10. Interview people (especially if they have a blog, or e-newsletter!)

11. Write titles that tell potential readers, and Google, what your posts are about.

12. Notice which of your posts are popular; write more like them!

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Contact me with your questions!

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Britt Bravo

www.brittbravo.com

britt@brittbravo.com

Twitter: @bbravo

http://havefundogood.blogspot.com

http://vegcookbookclub.com

25Thursday, April 5, 2012

Evaluate This Session!Each entry is a chance to win an NTEN engraved iPad!

or Online #12NTCblogplan www.nten.org/ntc/eval

26Thursday, April 5, 2012