Social media can be used for all kinds of things in today's world: To promote a good cause, spread awareness of something close to your heart, share your own humor in the hope that others will find it funny and sometimes sadly for the wrong reasons it is used to mock and cause discomfort to others through cyber bullying and targeted attacks.
But for me, I used social media to form my own non-profit organisation. At first, it was most definitely a struggle to find the right chemistry to get people interested and involved, but after a few weeks I began to understand what got others engaged with my tweets and posts. Sharing and posting the vision and mission had drove people to my account, this in turn got them talking and asking further questions. But not just this had sparked interest and involvement amongst my followers, I had provided an opportunity for individuals, for them to gain experience in perhaps a field they wished to peruse in their future career paths. Learning on the job kinda thing.
Right from the beginning I knew that I couldn't do it on my own, like, running a global youth charity, it's pretty tough when you're on your own. This made me think, 'How could I get more people involved and help run the charity?'. This was when I began asking direct questions to my followers, for example:
"Hi guys, hope everyone is doing fine tonight! Anyways, the World Youth Organization is looking for some trustees to join the board. Get in touch."
144 characters.
This would usually end with me having a breakdown and nervous fit due to the character limit being just over on Twitter. After tough decision making on what to keep and delete I would post the Tweet and pray that someone would respond. Sometimes, if I had enough space I would add some kind of hashtag to boost its presence in the Twittersphere, this would, well, sometimes help.
Top tip: Adding pictures increases impressions on Twitter dramatically, so don't forget to add a selfie with your pet cat, Dave.
After sometime from posting, I would usually get a response. Which would always bring a smile to my face. This would then lead to me getting in touch with these people, holding interviews and finally recruiting them as volunteers to my organisation, which was brilliant. It was so simple. I had the perfect gap on social media to promote my cause and let it grow so freely.
This led to me creating a recruitment process, it would make sure we get the right people involved and also do all the necessary checks to grant the individual access to work for a young peoples charity.
After six months the organisation had 30 members of staff supporting the charity in all areas including graphic design, law, press and social media, just to name a few. It had also given me the opportunity to make many new friends which I completely adore and cherish.
It just goes to show social media is such a powerful tool which can create many great things, and all for free too.
Always explore your options, one will work. And remember to never give up, there are so many people out there who can offer help and support with your projects.
Never be afraid to ask.