Web 2.oh? How your membership organization can embrace the web 2.0 revolution. Alex Perwich CEO Golden Key International Honour Society & John Garvie Marketing and Performance Affinity Circles, Inc.

What do we know about Internet Users? Internet use by demographic Gender: -70% of women -71% of men Education: -40% Less than High School -61% High School -81% Some College -91% College + Age: -87% (18-29 year olds) -83% (30-49 year olds) -65% (50-64 year olds) Pew Internet survey March 2007

Where are companies investing on the web? 9% of all web advertising is in community networking sites. This is an indicator of where your people are spending time on the web. $ follows traffic.

What do your members do on the web? 43.5% - Estimate of adult internet users who will use social networks each month in 2008 Up from 37.0% in 2007 Over 70% of current college students & teens report using one or more online community sites This is only part of their daily online experience along with IMing, txting, Virtual world games, online games and using the internet for studying or to find information.

What Makes a Network? A Community Network: –A structure made of nodes (individuals) which are connected to one another through various social relationships Small World Experiment, Stanley Milgram Strength of Weak Ties, Mark Granovetter –6 Degrees of Separation (The Kevin Bacon Game)

The Paradigm Shift in Web Communication One-Size-Fits-All Static Content One to Many Personalized & Relevant Non-Expert opinions OK User Generated Content Relationship-Driven

Even with these changes, are people finding valuable information on the web? 50% of internet users said the internet played a major role as they pursued more training for their careers. 42% said the internet played a major role as they decided about a school or a college for themselves or their children. 14% said the internet played a major role as they switched jobs. Pew Internet and American Life Project

Organizations are asking the question: How can we capitalize on these motivations?

Myth Busters Member Utilities = Risky Inappropriate discussion topics Revealing pictures Obscene language…right? Not Necessarily

Behavioral Norms Behavior is a function of the people and the environment. This is true in off-line as well as online situations. Creating an environment consistent with your brand will result in behavior consistent with your brand. B = f (P X E)

Social Network User Demographics Social network users are maturing day-by-day. How do you decide where to spend your time and energy? MySpace –18-24: 18.1% –25-34: 16.7% Facebook –18-24: 34% –25-34: 8.6% Affinity Circles –18-24: 14.6% –25-34: 44.61% Create a presence on all of them. One community does not have to be used in exclusion of the other. - comScore Media Metrix 2007

facebook

MySpace

Linkedin

inCircle

Where should you put a majority of your resources? Is it user-centric? – Dynamic content – Relevant & Personalized –Offers continuum of university experience –Exclusive opportunities & access to org. DB Is it flexible? – Reconnect with friends –Share Media –Find Value-Added Services –Find Advice & Jobs –Network Professionally Is it private? – Authenticated – Verified – Secure & Trusted Where you getting the most value for your members Affinity Circles: Facebook: MySpace: Linkedin:

Getting Started 1.What are you trying to achieve? 1.Who are you trying to reach? 2.What will you offer them once you reach them? 3.How do your goals benefit your org? 2.Be prepared to invest some time and a little cash 1.Spend at least 20mins/day on your community sites 2.$ is strictly for marketing and promotion & staff time allocation 3.Be prepared to give up control to your members

Once you set your goals, be prepared to stand by them Goals should be along the lines of: – Building relationships and marketing more effectively to your members – Building your member-data quality and quantity – Increasing the value of being a member of your organization by highlighting opportunities or social/professional capital between members Getting Started

Control –These communities must be primarily user run and should be nurtured but not actively moderated – If your attempts appear too institutionalized, it will likely fail – People may say negative things – thats okay! Getting Started

Community Building Techniques Integrate school rituals & special knowledge School customs, special insider knowledge, athletic traditions, etc. Create interesting gathering places online Facilitate member-run subgroups & discussion forums Develop meaningful and evolving member profiles Profile expert & interesting alumni Develop a strong Leadership program Identify leaders in your organization and charge them with engaging other alumni online Promote cyclic events Watch parties, lectures, etc. Building Community on the Web

Marketing You must be prepared to aggressively market and try many different techniques You will need a marketing plan and some money for implementation Dedicated real-estate on your homepage marketing has the highest return but exposure through other channels is also important to create awareness

MyGK Marketing Campaigns Consistent E- Marketing has been the focus After 1 direct marketing initiative the site saw a large spike in registration numbers. Total Registrants as of = 8,721 (growth rate 4k+/month live)

Feeding and Watering Marketing and promotion should be continual Share success stories ie: I got a job on MyGK inCircle or we have 180 members on our Facebook page Allocate resources in your strategic planning Integrate what youre doing into your other online offerings

Finding a Vendor What to look for: Cultural fit & alignment with objectives/goals of your organization Good recommendations Consistent product upgrades Innovation Core competency in social technology User-Centric development approach Streamlined monetization model

Finding a Vendor Alex Perwich CEO Golden Key International Honour Society MyGK Demo & questions

Additional Questions

Thank You! Jarrod Schwartz Account Executive Affinity Circles