Terri Freeman: Why I Tweet, Blog, and Facebook

By Terri Freeman
President, Community Foundation of the National Capital Region
Vice Chair, WRAG Board of Directors
@TerriLeeFreeman

It’s practically a cliché now that social media is fundamentally changing the way that our society communicates. At the Community Foundation for the National Capital Region, we have embraced this and are tweeting, Facebooking, and blogging away (myself included!). While getting started on all these outlets took some time and effort, I think the payoff so far has been great, and as we learn more and refine our approach, its potential for impact is incredible.

Last month on the CFNCR blog, Giving It Some Thought, I wrote about how the myriad social challenges facing the Washington region require a new emphasis on community-building across the philanthropic, nonprofit, private, and public sectors, and suggested that the philanthropic community needs to be a leader in building these partnerships. In a lot of ways, I think our social media efforts play a small – but important – role in building this community. Our tweeting and Facebooking isn’t just about promoting CFNCR and letting the community know about our work (although it does do that), it’s also about reaching out, building connections, and, perhaps most importantly, learning about what is happening in the community, and sharing that information with our grantees and donors.

The current economic conditions in our region require innovative ideas and effective partnerships. To be the catalyst for change that we need to be, the philanthropic community needs to be ahead of the curve. Social media is not about to solve the serious problems facing our region, but it is a powerful (and not to mention incredibly cost-effective) tool in our collective toolbox that can enable foundations to engage, learn, share ideas, and inspire new ones.

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June 9th – Social Media: How and Why Foundations Should Join the Conversation. Register today!