Democratization of Philanthropy: Using Social Media to Interact with Your Audience and Gain Insights Before You Design Your Strategies

Background:  So many communicators are wondering how to incorporate social media into their strategies. But the question they should be asking is, "What does this technology allow me to do that I haven't been able to do before." Essentially, the technology provides the opportunity to engage with our audiences, to listen and to learn before we design programs, rather than after. I call this the democratization of philanthropy. Rather than telling an audience “this is what you need,” we can ask an audience "what would be most helpful" and design programs with those needs in mind.

Program background:  One of the goals of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Vulnerable Populations Portfolio’s (RWJF VP) social media strategy is to solicit input and engage current stakeholders. We do this through online forums that increase the quantity and quality of two-way dialogue between RWJF constituents and team members and allow us to probe for ideas. We recently did an online forum on intimate partner violence. Webinars are a valuable tool for sharing best practices among interested target audiences. We recently hosted a webinar to promote the research study completed by a RWJF VP grantee that proved once and for all that supportive housing works. The webinar was intended to draw attention to the study -- the largest, most comprehensive study ever done -- and to get policy-makers to see how it works and to push for policy changes.

Evaluation Methods and Results:  Ask staff, grantees, potential grantees and recipients of programs what will be most useful in designing programs. Engage in two-way conversation. This creates a bottom-up approach rather than a top-down approach. It also creates more transparency and ultimately a great service to the end user.For too long, we have created programs for the end user without talking to the end user about getting their input. This approach will curtail that practice.

Conclusions: The response so far to this approach has been extremely positive. For sharing information, best practices and creating a two-way dialogue, it has been a valuable tool and has become a best practice itself. For seeking information that will ultimately shape our programming, it also has been very targeted. Our ultimate goal, which is being met with this approach, is to create more transparency and gain more valuable information on the front end.

Implications for research and/or practice: We have seen success with our online forums and webinars. We anticipate that they will lead to more satisfied end users, more targeted funding, and better programming. This approach is also cost effective for reaching large but targeted audiences in a relatively short timeframe.