Tag Archives: Web 2.0

Are You a Change-Agent? User-Experience Inspires Environmental Change

Timberland + Changents provide an innovative platform, strategy and user experience for change

What do a bus, a canary, an artist, a rocker and a college grad have in common? Getting green. and inspiring others to follow suit.

Today, Timberland, the outdoor company, and Changents unveiled a new online experience where individuals can be catalysts for change by teaming up with environmental “Change Agents” from around the world to advance the green revolution.

Engage ::

Watch broadcasts of firsthand experiences from the field through blogs, videos, photo albums, Flickr streams, phoned-in podcasts, Twitter dispatches and more.

Back a Change Agent by assuming the roles of:

  • “Fan” (a shout-out of support),
  • “First Responder” (being on-call if their Change Agent gets in a pinch),
  • “Buzz Builder” (promoting a Change Agent’s stories and Action Requests through viral sharing),
  • “Angel” (helping fill their Change Agent’s piggy bank) and
  • “Advocate” (influence policy makers with respect to a Change Agent’s cause)

Plug in to ‘Earthkeepers,’ where you can follow and interact with 5 extraordinary Change Agents, dubbed, “Earthkeeper Heroes.

  • Big Green Bus (12 Dartmouth students travel the country this summer in a tricked-out school bus converted to run on waste vegetable oil);
  • The Canary Project (an artist couple convey the story of human-induced climate change and potential solutions through media, events and artwork);
  • Agent 350 (a recent college grad and his scrappy team sprint to build a global, online/offline climate action movement from scratch);
  • Reverb (a group of rock and roll road warriors green summer concert tours for Dave Matthews, John Mayer and Maroon 5/Counting Crows while engaging fans around environmental sustainability);
  • POWERleaper (A 23-year old designtrepeneur created a blueprint for urban flooring systems that generates electricity from human foot traffic).

Become an Earthkeeper Hero yourself! Nominate yourself or others to compete for a chance to join the ranks of this amazing group.

About ::

Changents.com is an entertainment-driven Internet destination that connects innovators of social and environmental change – Change Agents – with a global network of people who want to help them. In 2007, Changents was founded by two social entrepreneurs, Alex Hofmann and Deron Triff, who set out to engage a digitally-connected, socially-conscious generation on its own terms.

“We started Changents to give a new generation of social and environmental problem-solvers the tools they need to build teams of active followers and help them become ‘rock stars’ of change through the Internet,” said Changents Co-Founder and CEO Deron Triff.”


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Blogging: Finding Magellan in an Identity Crisis

After my last post, I received an email asking how other non-profits or social causes could also use blogging technology for its purposes. Below, I list someways blogging can be used by non-profits as well as some strengths and limitations of the technology.

First Things First

I come with the view that like in the commercial sector, finding an umbrella term to put all non-profit marketing and advertising under is difficult. Research studies have been explored, textbooks written, debates held and still universal definitions are lacking. Some used to think a few years back the IMC, Integrated Marketing Communications would be the end-all classification system for advertising. Yet, this debate still continues. Do we put public relations under this? Why the term marketing? Where does viral belong? etc.

Therefore, just like the commercial advertising arena suffers from an identity crisis, so does the community of non-profit/health communications/social causes/etc. Though, I might classify many of these as social marketing. But then, where do we put corporate social responsibility or cause marketing? (These both have profit aims…) So, yikes! Is there overlap? Is overlap the right word? What are we to do? The questions and debates continue. In discussing these terms and looking at definitions, I am going to offer up that is depends largely on your end objective. I agree there’s more to this debate, but for practical considerations (and when looking to use blogging technology) I say, first determine your end objective to decide if, and what type, of blogging is right for you.

Examples of Blogging Being Used by Non-Profits:

Citizen’s League in Minnesota. They have two blogs. One that is updated with public policy news, trends and updates. The other who is from the point of view of a person which has similar content, but the first person point of view adds relevance and personalizes the stories.

Children Matter. A Christian non-profit ministry who uses a blog for its message.

Strengths of Blogging

1. A blog can provide an outlet for stories to be told regarding the issue or project. This can also be created as a way to get more involved and to increase participation. It can also make the message for personal and relevant. Interplast has their volunteers upload information and share stories about their experiences regarding their work site.

2. Helps build an online community. This includes expanding your traditional media lists to include other bloggers, online social networks, websites and more.

3. Blogging has no geographic limitations unlike a lot of traditional media (tv, radio, magazine, newspapers).

4. Requires small tangible finances. But, may require more employee/volunteer hours and time to manage.

5. Can boost media coverage by expanding your traditional media list to include fellow bloggers, social networks, online communities, websites and more.

6. Put your already-drafted press releases to good work by setting up an RSS feed on your blog to provide up-to-date news about your organization. this allows others to know what the organization is up to, gives those interested more information to talk about and can increase your media coverage.

7. Provide information and resources via a blog. A blog is one way to provide the same information you could on a website or brochure, but in an interactive, fun, and personal manner. For example, instead of telling what the participants do throughout the year. Have the voice of your blog be told through the ‘Volunteer Sarah’ and give it a diary feel.

8. From your blog, you can also provide information on how to get involved, donate, volunteer, and participate. This could include a sign-up page for the weekly email blasts.

9. Blogs also are a way to track, organize and build a resource for an organization/cause. If it comes time to write a report, you can search your blog for all relevant information regarding ‘XYZ’ and poof- you have all the information you need already written.

10. Use a blog as your organization’s website.

11. For good feedback, use your blog as a sounding board or discussion forum. Also, blog stats and analytics could help you find more target audiences interested in your cause.

12. Add your blog to the Nonprofit Blog Exchange using this form to automatically get plugged into an online community and to increase traffic.

Limits of Blogging

1. If you use a free service (blogger, wordpress, etc.), sometimes you are limited with the type of content you can post. Examples including: limitations for customizing options including how you organize content or the design unless you have someone with the expertise to do so, or upgrade your blog service.

2. The domain name can be tricky. Unless you want to purchase a domain, your domain name will (usually) include the blog service you are using. However, domains can be purchased for something like $10/year. This blog also provide many helpful tips and resources for creating your own domain.

3. Must provide quality information at a consistent rate.

More Sources

Should Your Non-Profit Launch a Blog?

10 Ways Nonprofits Can Use blogging

Have Fun * Do Good

Blogs for Non-Profit Orgs

5 Tips to Starting a New Blog

Web 3.0: Is it just semantics?

The answer is yes…and no.

The difference between Web 2.0 and Web 3.0 goes beyond a semantical argument and is a legit and growing concept despite groups that classify it as just the latest web-marketing diction craze. Like many terms (including the recent discussion on the social marketing list serv in trying to define social marketing from social media marketing, there are many different opinions defining the perimeters of Web 3.0 and different hypotheses on how the future of the web will progress.
Since I began this blog a week ago, I’ve had a couple inquiries asking: What is Web 3.0? This post hopes to explain this concept to those who are hearing of the term for the first time.

Web 3.0 is an extension of the web evolution from Web 1.0, to Web 2.0 and now, to the growing Web 3.0. Web 1.0 is usually described as ‘read-only’ content, while Web 2.0 was officially launched at the first Web 2.0 Conference in 2005. In brief, Web 2.0 describes a website’s capabilities as collaborative, customizable, interactive and can be shared. Web 2.0 can describe technologies such as blogs, wikis, tags, RSS feeds, user generated content and sites such as del.icio.us, Facebook, Flickr, MySpace and YouTube. Tim O’Reilly’s article describes Web 2.0 in great detail and is an excellent source to begin understanding the Web 2.0 world. The article also includes a diagram outlining the differences between Web 1.0 and Web 2.0.

Web 3.0, on the other hand, describes the next level. PC Magazine gives a full article on this topic, but I will try to summarize it in brief. Some describe Web 3.0 as being 3-D, having artificial intelligence components, new web service applications, and more. Web 3.0 may also be referred to as the Semantic Web (hence, the play on words…). The idea is that machines and services will be more advanced and better equipped to help consumers read, understand and navigate the web. Another term describing Web 3.0 is the Pervasive Web, meaning web technology is everywhere. This means taking the web beyond computers, cellphones, PDAs and other hand-held technologies to more, everyday life technologies and situations.

Feel free to comment on how you personally would define Web 3.0 according to your view/experience. Or, offer your prediction on which way the wild, wild web may go.

Web 2.0 Wednesdays

With the growth of Web 2.0 (and the up and coming uses of Web 3.0), I plan to showcase an organization/cause that’s using great Web 2.0 strategies to further its mission within its social marketing strategies.

Today’s Web 2.0 Wednesday honors The National MS Society’s site centered around its latest re-branding for raising awareness and support for MS, their micro-site Join The Movement.
Changing MS Logo

On this site, they have ‘The Wall’ and the option to ‘Create Your Mark.’ Here, users of the site can literally draw their own statement against MS, including the cause’s new logo and rebranded mission. Then, it can be submitted to The Wall, with hundred’s of other users’ drawings. This not only reenforces the newly packaged mission, but allows for customization, interaction with the cause and shows how the disease affects others.

Props to the MS Society! PS: They also have another cool micro-site they use to share and submit various personal stories about the effects of Multiple Sclerosis, http://www.faceofms.org/.