CharityComms digital benchmarking snapshot Digital Communications on a Shoestring conference 13 October 2010

CharityComms digital benchmarking snapshot Delegates at the CharityComms Digital Communications on a Shoestring conference on 13 October 2010 used interactive voting technology supplied by LiveGroup to respond to a series of questions on their organisation’s use of digital technology within their communications mix. The following presentation of the survey results reveals a snapshot of the policies and practices of voluntary sector organisations, with accompanying comments by several speakers at the conference.LiveGroup Our thanks to Vikki Chowney, Editor, Reputation Online; Rob Dyson, PR and Social Web Manager of Whizz-Kids; Caroline Ledger, Marketing Manager at Parkinson’s UK; Matthew McGregor, Senior Strategist at Blue State Digital; Jim Raymond, Operations Director at Baigent Digital; and Jonathan Waddingham, Product Manager at JustGiving.

Do you have any kind of strategy for your digital activities? 1.Yes 2.No 3.Don’t know

Do you have difficulty convincing management of the value of social media? 1.Yes 2.No 3.Don’t know

Does your organisation employ people specifically to handle digital communications? 1.Yes 2.No 3.Don’t know

Who has overall responsibility for your web presence? 1.Communications 2.Marketing 3.Chief Executive 4.IT 5.Fundraising 6.Campaigning 7.No one 8.Other 9.Don’t know

Do you monitor the impact of your digital activities? 1.Yes 2.No 3.Some of them 4.Don’t know

Do you have policies to ensure consistent messages across different digital platforms? 1.Yes 2.No 3.Don’t know

How many people in your organisation are responsible for using social media in their communications? or more 7.Don’t know

Are your digital activities integrated with your wider communications activities? 1.Yes 2.No 3.Don’t know

Do you research the typical audiences of particular digital formats eg Facebook, Twitter and adapt your communications accordingly? 1.Yes 2.No 3.Don’t know

What are the main constraints your organisation faces in its use of digital communications? Please select your top three in priority order. 1.Inadequate staffing 2.Inadequate skills 3.Insufficient budget 4.Piecemeal systems 5.Lack of management support 6.Lack of integration 7.Lack of strategy 8.Other 9.Don’t know

Which of the following do you use professionally? 1.Facebook 2.Twitter 3.Flickr 4.YouTube

Which of the following do you use personally? 1.Facebook 2.Twitter 3.Flickr 4.YouTube

How well does your organisation understand what a “brand” is? 1.High level of understanding 2.Medium level of understanding 3.Low level of understanding 4.No understanding

Do you have any of these resources available: video, online area, word templates, other templates, artwork (eg logos), brand guidelines and a photolibrary? 1.All 2.Some 3.None

Does your organisation have guidelines for personal social media accounts? 1.Yes 2.No 3.Don’t know

Does your organisation have guidelines for professional social media accounts? 1.Yes 2.No 3.Don’t know

Are you making use of video and/or audio to enhance your communications? 1.Yes 2.No 3.Don’t know

i. communications with stakeholders? Rate the importance to your organisation of the following: 1.Very important 2.Important 3.Unimportant 4.Irrelevant

ii. Website? Rate the importance to your organisation of the following: 1.Very important 2.Important 3.Unimportant 4.Irrelevant

iii. Social Media? Rate the importance to your organisation of the following: 1.Very important 2.Important 3.Unimportant 4.Irrelevant

iv. SMS? Rate the importance to your organisation of the following: 1.Very important 2.Important 3.Unimportant 4.Irrelevant

Do you have a digital crisis-management strategy in place? 1.Yes 2.No 3.Don’t know

How much time per day do you spend interacting with stakeholders using social media? 1.No time 2.Less than 30 minutes 3.30 minutes - 1 hour hours hours 6.4 hours or more 7.Don’t know

Does the possibility of negative comments in a public forum diminish support of social media within your organisation? 1.Yes 2.No 3.Don’t know