Genevieve’s Fundraising Social Media ToolKit A guide to help you promote and market your fundraiser using Social Media

Table of Contents Why Use Social Media?....................................1 How to make a Facebook Account………………………...2 Making New Friends on Facebook……………………….3-4 Example Facebook Posts………………………………………...5 What’s in a Tweet…………………………………………………….6 Social Media Best Practices………………………………………7 Make Sure You’re Seen…………………………………………….8

Facebook & Twitter Social Media is Everywhere!!!!!!! Why use Social Media? When it comes to fundraising, social media can work to your organization’s advantage. So spread the word. Use this guide to learn how to promote your Genevieve’s fundraiser using some simple social media tricks. There are a couple of ways to start when promoting your fundraiser on social media. If your group already has social media accounts, simply ask whoever manages the account to highlight the Genevieve’s fundraiser, while you are selling. If your group doesn’t have a Facebook or Twitter page yet, we suggest creating one, even if just to promote the fundraiser. Facebook & Twitter Social Media is Everywhere!!!!!!!

How to make a Facebook Account To make a Facebook page for your organization Log-in to your personal Facebook profile on Facebook.com* To the left of your personal Facebook newsfeed, there is a “Like Pages” section. Click on it. Then click the “Create Page” button. From there, follow the instructions. Be sure to fill out the about section, give your page a customized address and add photos where appropriate *On Facebook, fan pages must be connected to at least one personal profile-not a separate account. If you need to give access to someone else, simply add them as an administrator to the page. You can do this by clicking Edit Page at the top of your page, selecting Manage Admin Roles and entering the name or email of the friend you’d like to add.

Making New Friends Facebook Best Practices Facebook has more than one billion users. With a large captive audience, Facebook is the perfect place to promote your organization’s fundraiser and share details with the people in your organization. Facebook users are looking for content that they want to share with friends and family. The best way to connect with people on Facebook is to post an interesting image, ask your fans questions and give behind-the-scenes look at your group’s fundraiser. For the fundraising audience, the best time to post depends on your groups, but we find the best time is 6pm on Thursday and Friday. Also, don’t overload your audience with too many posts – five times a week is more than enough. Keep it short. Posts under 80 characters often receive more likes and comments.

Be sure to use Facebook to: Announce your fundraiser and share your goals Promote the yummy brand name foods in the Genevieve’s catalog Educate parents on the money collection process Recruit volunteers and publicize details for delivery day Thank all of your supporters and families involved Ask for feedback for next year’s fundraiser

Example Facebook Posts Annouce Your Fundraiser “Purchase goodies for folks on your gift list and help our school at the same time! Help Jackson Elementary raise money for our field trips. Look for brochures to come home this week.” Here are some example Facebook posts for your group’s fundraiser. Posting images with your posts are a great way to stand out, check out the Genevieve’s Fundraising Facebook page for images that are available to download and share to your group’s Facebook page. Promote New Items in the Genevieve’s Catalog “Bring @AuntieAnne’s soft pretzels home for fresh-baked perfection without a trip to the mall!! Ask your favorite youth group member how to order through our Genevieve’s fundraiser.” Details for Delivery Day “Remember to pick up your Genevieve’s Fundraising orders on Delivery Day from 1pm to 6pm on Friday, October 18, at the gymnasium! Message us on Facebook if you have any questions.”

Twitter Best Practices Because Twitter is often used as a news source, it is a perfect site to network and get the word out about your fundraiser in 140 characters or less. If you have access to a personal or an organization’s Twitter account, consider using Twitter to promote your fundraiser in the community, to send quick updates to participants and to thank your community for support. Also, encourage your fundraising participants and volunteers to promote your fundraiser on their personal Twitter accounts as well. Unlike Facebook and Instagram, it is more acceptable to frequently post on Twitter-about two times a day is ideal. The best time to post to Twitter is Tuesday through Thursday from 7-8am, but again, think about what time makes sense for your group. The best way to get your “tweets” shared with new people is using popular hashtags. See “Make Sure You’re Seen” section for tips on how to use hashtags. What’s in a Tweet? Example Tweet: AnneJones@AnneJones Did you know we’re hosting a fundraiser with @GenevievesFundraising? Purchase candles, gifts and yummy foods from any band member! #SanFrancisco

Social Media Best Practices Every social media site is a little different, but there are some overall tips that can help you be successful in promoting your fundraiser on social media: Be Personal and authentic Choose just one or two people to manage your social media, so the posts are consistent. Plan your posts to coordinate with the calendar in your Genevieve’s Fundraising guide Always proofread your posts for errors Keep posts short and sweet Respond promptly to comments or questions Share pictures often--people love them!

Make Sure You’re Seen Promote your fundraiser to more people by using hashtags and mentions. Mentions- Follow any organization pages you have relationships with such as Genevieve’s, your PTA, school, church or other group. When you talk about an organization in a post, “mention” it by adding an “@” sign in front of its name. On Facebook, this shares your post with everyone who “likes” that organization. Hashtags- Find out if your community has an official hashtag (a word or phrase with a “#” sign in front) on social sites and use it to promote your fundraiser. Someone who searches that hashtag on Twitter will see your post, even if they do not follow you. Example: San Francisco locals often use #SF or #SanFrancisco when tweeting something relevant to the community. @To mention someone on social media means putting a “@” sign in front of the users name. On most social media sites, the mention becomes a link and when clicked, users are directed to the social media page that was mentioned. # A hashtag is a word or phrase with a pound sign (#) in front. In some social media sites, the hashtag becomes a link and when clicked, every post with that hashtag comes up in a list.