Today I received a message during a conversation via twitter from a friend that said: 'Don't let that blog get too dusty.' He's probably right. If I want to keep this up I should write more. So the next question is do I want to keep writing? What is the purpose?
Being a fundraiser in the trenches can be a very isolating and lonely experience. This blog is unique in that I'm not a consultant. My intentions are to simply share my experiences in the hope that it will help you in a small way to earn more money for your cause, perhaps enjoy your job more or probably most importantly feel less alone. What I love about fundraising is that we openly share our experiences to help our competitors get better at what they do.
I have come to the conclusion that I will keep blogging. When I feel I have something to share that might be of value. NOT just to feed the machine and maintain momentum so that you keep seeing me pop up in your twitter stream or your inbox. I think the world is full of enough clutter.
(Although, I admit that my motivations aren't totally altruistic. I obsess over google analytics as much as other bloggers I know. But don't tell anyone.)
As my thoughts about this rambled on, I started to reflect on the momentum in my online community. Fundraisers are socializing with each other online all day and night long. Are we starting to become so distracted by socializing and networking online that we aren't taking care of ourselves or doing our jobs as effectively as we should? How many of us are a lot 'heavier' in real life than we are in our avatars? How many of us are struggling at work and using social media and volunteer work as a welcome distraction?
Don't get me wrong, I advocate for learning this language and understanding how online communications are impacting our sector. I believe we must learn about this new way of talking to each other to be relevant. We need to be comfortable saying 'tweet' and knowing what RT's and DM's are before taking our organizations and donors into the realm of social media. However, I think for those of us fundraisers in the trenches who don't have 'social media guru' in our job description we need to take a pause and ask ourselves: Are there donors I should be writing to instead? Am I getting out of the office as much as I should? Will I deliver my budget this year?
Yes we have a new world to learn about, but let's not forget the good old pillar of fundraising: people give to people. Turn off twitter once in awhile, be disciplined about how many blogs you read and go share a cup of tea with a donor.
Thank you for spending time here.
Excellent - particularly: "Turn off twitter once in awhile, be disciplined about how many blogs you read and go share a cup of tea with a donor."
ReplyDeleteI recently ventured out into the real live population last week, downtown Kitchener. While there I learned things that I did not know, that had been happening for at least 5 years. Also I talked to live people, including a police officer doing a survey - wow!! It was instant feedback, with interaction and no technology required. The police officer was using standard pen and paper.
Discipline - I am going to start practicing that immediately.
Thanks for the terrific post.
That is very kind Darleen. Thank you for your comment.
ReplyDeletePeople are such curious creatures. I love talking to and even sharing the occasional dinner with random strangers. I find we are more open to that online than we are generally in person. Its unfortunate.
K
You've got to have a strategy for what you're doing with blogging and tweeting. If blogging 5 days a week isn't giving you the results you want, then blog more or less, about different topics.
ReplyDeleteSo what do you want? More views? More uniques? More people to buy your services?
Get clear and then ask for what you want, of your readers. At least you can say you've asked.
Mazarine
Dear Mazarine,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment.
Since I am not here to make money off of my 'brand' or business my blog is really just a place for me to share my thoughts and practice writing. The added bonus is that some people find my experiences helpful for their situation.
Pretty simple really. Thank you for reading it and especially for commenting.
Kimberley