#childsifoundation

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Dive Deeper into Social Platforms

Presentation from @kirsty of Child’s i Foundation at Digital Edge 2014.

DIVE DEEPER INTO SOCIAL PLATFORMS Quality vs. quantity – gain a clear understanding of which social channels are for you and how to extract maximum value from them

Third Sector Digital Edge Presentation from childsi

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Child’s i Foundation is the only charity to reach the first ever Social Brands 100 ranking, achieving the highest score for social engagement.

The Social Brands 100 study was unveiled on March 11 and conducted over a three month period by the social brand consultancy Headstream, with data and analytics by Brandwatch. The study defines a social brand as a brand which engages with the public by demonstrating a willingness to listen and communicate, while being "driven by what the community needs, not simply what the brand wants."

[thethinkingsector]

Kirsty Stephenson, digital strategy and marketing manager, explains how Childs i Foundation went mobile on a minimal budget.

Child’s i Foundation is a small and relatively young organisation, and as such, has had the opportunity to embrace new technologies without resistance or obstacles created by old systems or processes. 
The free social channels have been an obvious choice for connecting and bringing together our community of supporters - particularly when budgets are slim and resources are minimal (we have three members of staff in the UK, with only one full-time). But it also seemed logical to us to embrace mobile technology, too; after all, 95 per cent of the UK population uses a mobile phone. We know our existing and potential supporters are increasingly reliant on their phones and devices in all aspects of their lives, and while we don’t want to invade someone’s personal, family or professional lives with an over-abundance of charity messaging, we do want to harness the power of mobile for communication, as well as fundraising.

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How small charities can make a big impact with social media

The charity is making a name for itself through digital media and has a reach that most small charities can only dream about. The "i" in the name stands for interaction: "The premise behind the charity from the very first thoughts has been about transparency and forming a connection with supporters," says volunteer digital strategist Kirsty Stephenson. It is the interactive nature of the charity that has encouraged donations, most notably in the appeal for Baby Joey which raised over £10,000 in 38 hours entirely online (see case study).

Launched in 2008, the small charity – with just one paid member of staff in the UK – has an annual income of approximately £340,000, 28% of which is generated online using sites such as JustGiving, where supporters can donate and arrange fundraising events.

But their use of interactive media is part of a wider strategy. Stephenson, who met Buck when also working at Endemol, says they view Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and the blogs as, "channels integral to our communications and engagement strategy and not a pure source of fundraising". So supporters can, for instance, trace the charity's development – from the first child to be adopted to the building of the children's centre – through videos posted on the website before choosing to donate.

[thethinkingsector]

Audioboom - Kirsty Stephenson

Prior to her Q&A session for soundtalks, sounddelivery's Jude Habib caught up with Kirsty Stephenson, freelance creative planner and volunteer for the Child's i Foundation. She speaks of her joy at the placement of the foundation's first child Joey in Uganda and talks of the merits of social media for the organisation, "We wanted to contact people, create a community". She is also on hand to give advice to other companies looking to spread their voice through social media.

listen to ‘Kirsty Stephenson - Child's I Foundation’ on audioBoom

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#100forChildsi

Yahoo, this storify I put together of #100forChildsi - the brilliant brainchild of @LondonKirsty has just appeared on the Storify homepage. The campaign idea is getting the attention it deserves!

Hands down this is the BEST use of @Storify I have ever seen https://t.co/dZBuPDyBlr (totally not biased) and no, it's not mine

— Kirsty Marrins (@LondonKirsty)

July 10, 2014

[View the story "#100forChildsi" on Storify]

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This is why #mumsrock

To mark Mother's Day in the UK and other countries later in the year we have been celebrated the joy of Motherhood at Child's i Foundation. We wanted to help our supporters remember why it is so important to have a family, what family and parents mean to a child by thinking about our own mother or indeed being a parent.

This is a storify I put together of the activity surrounding the campaign.

[View the story "This is why #mumsrock" on Storify]

[thethinkingsector]

In this guest post, Kirsty Stephenson, digital strategist and project planner for Child’s i Foundation, explores how web-based and mobile technology are giving charities new and exciting ways to engage with supporters and increase donations.

Kirsty Stephenson is Digital Strategist and Project Planner for Child’s i Foundation. Kirsty will be exploring digital strategy in more detail at the Institute of Fundraising iFundraising: Digital and Mobile for Fundraisers two-day conference, 22-23 September, London.

Child’s i Foundation is a small charity with a big ambition and a huge responsibility to do the right thing by the parents we support, the children we help and the community of donors and supporters who enable us to exist and continue our work.

But when it comes to (digital) fundraising we’re a gnome in a field of giants. We can’t use the same strategy and tactics as the big players – we would simply be defeated. So, we have to think differently, know who we are and play the game to our strengths ...