30 Oct 2010

Everyone needs a social media role model. One of mine is speaking Nov. 10.

PRSA's Connecting for a Cause
Wednesday, Nov. 10
8:30 a.m.-3:15 p.m.
Seattle Center, Northwest Room

View the line-up and schedule

For the last year and a half, I've been feeling my way around social media, trying to figure out how my nonprofit organization, Swedish, can be involved in it, what my role as a corporate voice for Swedish should be, and how to interact and engage with the community. It's a brave new world, and there's advice galore out there. But when it comes right down to it, every organization needs to find their own way, find their own unique voice. And like any journey in life, it always helps to have role models.

One of my social media role models is Evonne Benedict (aka @gabbycat) of KING 5 News. (Evonne, if you're reading this, you're probably having a good laugh right now. But it's true.) Just by watching her on Twitter and Facebook, I've had a chance to see how she "works the crowd" on social media. Like a good hostess at a party, she draws people out, introduces them to one another and creates relationships both for herself and the station.

On Twitter, I've seen her toggle back and forth with ease between her official KING 5 account and her personal account. Somehow she always seems to know which conversation is most appropriate for which account, a skill I have still not figured out. Likewise, she always seems to know when it's time to take a conversation off line. It's fun to see her break stories on Twitter or sleuth out sources, ideas and info through her social media networks. She has a knack for selecting just the right things for KING5 to retweet, which are always interesting and often support others in the community. (I always feel pretty good about my skills as a tweeter whenever KING5 retweets something from Swedish.)

So now that I've embarrassed her enough, I am super excited that Evonne is speaking at PRSA's daylong seminar for nonprofits on Nov. 10. This is her first-ever speaking appearance on the topic of social media. She is speaking on a panel discussion called "Media Relations in the Digital Age." My friend and colleague Aaron Blank graciously agreed to organize and moderate this panel. He’s also recruited Linda Thomas of KIRO Radio who is another phenomenal voice on social media paving the way for others, and Paul Balcerak, a Web producer for KIRO TV and an active blogger whose exploring the boundaries of new media and journalism.

 

The nonprofit community is in for a real treat with this panel. It'll be a great opportunity to see how the news business has changed as a result of social media and how to work with reporters, editors and producers to raise awareness about your cause. This panel is one of many great sessions planned for Nov. 10. We have a terrific line up so if you work for a nonprofit and haven't signed up yet, please be sure to register this week. You won't want to miss it. Register online today.