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This article first appeared as a post on Wild Apricot's Nonprofit Technology Blog, which covers social media tools and Web technologies geared in the direction of the nonprofit sphere.
I am fascinated with social networking sites like MySpace, Twitter, and LinkedIn. But recently, I've been spending quite some time on an additional social site which I've found to be quite important of my time and yours.
If you haven't guessed it yet, I'm talking about Facebook. This powerful networking service is not just for individuals like me to keep in touch with friends. It's a very effective networking tool for nonprofits to create awareness and connect with their community.
Below, I'll take you through a beginner's guide to getting your nonprofit on Facebook and ways to effectively use this tool.
This is not meant to be an exhaustive list of features, but it may help get you started.
So What Exactly Is Facebook?
Facebook is a social networking site that allows users to connect and share information.
Facebook is an Internet site that allows users to post online profiles (including photos, information about themselves, etc.) and then connect to other users who share the same interests, experiences, etc.
Founder, Mark Zuckerberg threw up Facebook while he was a student at Harvard to provide an online avenue for students to find one another. It has since morphed into a social network for everyone.
Facebook is built around groups and is made up of many networks, each based around a company, region, high school, or college.
Many nonprofits already have accounts and are reaping the benefits for their organization and their cause. One reason why it's so popular is because it's very easy to use. Adding friends, updating your profile, changing your status message ¯ whatever you do takes just minutes.
Sign up and create a Facebook Account.
To get started, go to Facebook.com, click "Register" and fill out a short online registration form. Once you're signed up, you'll need to have a profile to share information and photos about your organization with others.
What to include in your organization's profile? Photos, links to your Web site, and videos can all be added. And remember, when creating your profile, you can include as little or as much information as you feel comfortable.
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