Sites like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+ have become a part of most American’s daily life, and nonprofit donors are starting to expect more social engagement from the organizations and causes to which they give.

Recently, PR Daily listed 10 reasons why nonprofits should be active on Twitter. We couldn’t agree more! Here are a few reasons that topped our list:

• You have something to say. You care about your company’s mission, have passion about the life-changing work you’re doing for the community, and others care about your causes. Now, spread the word about it.

• Your donors are on Twitter. If you start engaging on Twitter, chances are you will find donors. You’ll get to tell them about the great work their donations are helping to do for the cause– inspiring them to give more or spread the message to their own networks.

• You can build authority. By tweeting about your work and spreading awareness of your cause, you not only spark inspiration, but you also establish yourself as an authority on the work your company does.

Do you agree that nonprofits should be active on one of the world’s fastest-growing social media sites? Leave us a comment below.

Bolt PR | Public Relations | Social Media | Marketing | Crisis Communication

Raleigh, NC | Orange County, CA

It’s safe to say that 2011 was a year surrounded by social media buzz. PR Daily recently listed 8 social media trends that should be on your radar as we approach 2012. Here are just a few of our favorites:

• Social TV convergence – You can now “check in” to a TV program and then have conversations with people around the world who are watching the same thing. You can review the shows, talk about what’s happening, and listen to what others are saying. It works for movies and music, too. Plus, if the rumors are true and Steve Jobs’ last project was iTV, this will become huge next year.
• Social commerce – You can now check into Apple on Foursquare and pay for an in-store purchase using the Apple app on a smartphone. Starbucks also does this by using your phone at its at-register scanner. You’ll see more of this next year.
• New social networks – We know, there are already a ton of social networks out there, but there are some cool platforms, such as Pinterest, that are gaining traction. It’s still too early to see any results, but you should be aware what others are doing with new social networks.

What social media trends are you looking forward to in 2012? Leave us a comment below.

Since launching a little over four months ago, there has been quite a buzz about Google+. Yet, in a recent report from Net Applications, statistics show that when it comes to driving traffic to websites, Facebook is still crushing the competition.

The report shows that Zuckerberg and company are responsible for two-thirds of all Web traffic referred by social media sites. What does that mean, exactly? Out of every 10,000 links clicked, 66 of them were posted on Facebook.

No. 2 and 3, according to the report, are StumbleUpon and YouTube. The remaining social networks—including big players like LinkedIn, Twitter, and Google+—barely make a blip compared with the traffic that Facebook drives. Facebook now has over 1,000 times the amount of referrals as Google+.

Does this data change the way you view Google+ buzz? Will you choose one social network over the other? Weigh in and leave a comment here.