Social networking and community engagement technology made easy

I was driving yesterday. It was a busy day as it often is. I looked down and noticed it was time to fuel up my car. I have to say I felt a little inconvenienced. I was annoyed at the fact that I had to take time out of my busy day to do this necessity. However, what I realised was that I wasn’t as annoyed that I had to fuel up. I was more annoyed that I didn’t plan ahead.  I didn’t think about how crazy my day was going to be and make it so that I wouldn’t have to fuel up during the day.

When I came to this realisation, it made me think of how some people may view social media and social networking.  I have had countless conversations with people about how they know they need to be engaging with their community online and growing relationships, but one of the issues people have is that they don’t have the time.  I also hear this: “There are just so many of them.” Which one would be best?” “I don’t know how to.”

When designing Community Engine, we asked ourselves questions pertaining to making a social network as simple as possible. We wanted something that would be easy for clients to understand and simple to participate in.

Paul McLeay

When deciding on a social networking platform, what are your needs? What do you need to communicate online in order to fuel your engine? What is your plan? Let’s take The Hon. Paul McLeay M.P. for example.  When we created his social network, he had specific goals in mind:

• McLeay wanted and needed to get to know his constituents. He wanted to turn them into supporters. He knew that this was a way to fuel his engine. He wanted a way for them to be able to communicate their specific needs and wants. And he wanted their input on how their money was being spent.
• McLeay needed a way to share his dozens of community projects. He needed space to list and explain the projects, post photos, and communicate how people could support and become a part of these projects. By participating in community projects and sharing in other people’s needs, these steps were part of fueling his engine.
• He needed a place to give you news. New things happen daily. With the space he created, he can easily add to the news page to keep you informed. Keeping you informed and up-to-date on news is a way to fuel his engine.
• Ultimately, he needed a place to help create community. Whether for information or involvement, there needed to be a space to share. He needs community to fuel his engine, and he wants to help his community fuel their engine.

All of our social networking platforms provide a variety of different functions. However, it takes commitment on your behalf. If you take time out of your day in order to work on communicating and engaging in an online forum, you are creating relationships. This goes for the political and the non-political alike. By taking a little time out to engage on your social network, you are building and fueling an efficient engine.

What are some ways we can better help you with fuel efficiency?

posted by Piers Hogarth-Scott in the category Social Media Social networking
Tags: Paul McLeay, Social Media