Insights
4 min Read
April 14, 2010

Notable quotables — some great things we overheard @ 10NTC

Sarah and I just got back from three incredible days in Atlanta for NTEN’s 10th Annual Nonprofit Technology Conference (aka 10NTC). Jam-packed with lots of great ideas and knowledge sharing, we thought it would be helpful to share some of our favorite quotes from the sessions we attended or followed via the very active twitter stream. We also got some great suggestions from other folks who attended the conference as well. Taking notes at conferences can be fast and furious, so if we’ve lost anything in translation, let us know and we’ll update this list.

  • What people say about their work is marketing. Find a connection between what you want them to say and what they care about. KIVI LIROUX MILLER, Nonprofit Marketing Guide <@kivilm>
  • With social media you need to start by listening. You have to connect to convince. NANCY SCHWARTZ, Getting Attention <@nancyschwartz>
  • Eat your vegetables (website) before you eat dessert. Social media is dessert. JOHN A. KENYON <@jakenyon>
  • Stop worrying about your organization’s bottom line. Worry about your stakeholders’ bottom line and the rest will follow. WENDY HARMAN, American Red Cross <@wharman>
  • Sharing resources is harder mentally than it is technologically. AUDIENCE COMMENT during @ideaencore‘s Ignite presentationYour online engagement strategy should be 90% story, 10% technology. Find your audiences and adapt to where they are. GEORGE WEINER, Do Something <@georgecaweiner>
  • Even Obama can’t replicate what Obama did. AUDIENCE COMMENT in session on slacktivism


Sarah signing copies of “Brandraising” @NTC

  • Data collection cannot be for geeks. If it’s for geeks, you’ve failed. JOSH KNAUER, Rhiza Labs <@jknauer>
  • Techies are as or more passionate about their org’s cause as program staff or anyone else. STEVE HEYE, Chicago YMCA <@steveheye>
  • Hold “joyful funerals” for programs and social media experiments that didn’t work. Mourn, learn, and move on. BETH KANTER <@kanter> and ALLISON FINE <@afine> – authors of The Networked Nonprofit
  • Will you marry me? AUDIENCE COMMENT about nonprofits asking too much too soon
  • Our social media policy in 140 characters: Be transparent. Be responsible. Be Non-Partisan. Be Trained. Be Responsive. TAMMY GORDON, AARP <@AARP>
  • Who do you friend online and who do you ignore/reject/block? One suggested guideline–If I wouldn’t go out for a beer w/ you and pay for a round, then I probably won’t friend you in Facebook. WENDY HARMAN, American Red Cross <@wharman>
  • There’s no real answer on personal vs. organizational voice in social media. It’s a thin line for anyone to walk. SHIREEN MITCHELL <@digitalsista>
  • When approaching communications–think strategically, act tactfully. DEMETRIO MAGUIGAD, Community Media Workshop <@dmaguigad>
  • There is a great deal of “donor” and “supportive” power across all the generations today. Even those that don’t give as much (ie Gen Y and Gen X are very motivated by peer-to-peer and word of mouth) so reaching these groups is a must. JORDAN VIATOR, Convio <@jordanv>
  • It’s time to get more organized when it comes to social media. Get out your Excel spreadsheet or Google doc and create a calendar for the next 12-18 months. DAVID NEFF, Ridgewood Public Relations <@daveiam>
  • So much data, so little time. Rather than measure everything, just pick a few selective metrics and focus on analyzing and improving those. BETH KANTER, Zoetica <@kanter>
  • Don’t feed the trolls. There will always be haters. Pay attention to their tone and influence when determining who to respond to and who to ignore. Also, don’t take it personally. Always be respectful but don’t be afraid to show some personality. CARIE LEWIS, Humane Society of the Unites States <@cariegrls>
  • Monitoring your brand is a 24/7 job, especially with Twitter. Your supporters, competitors and opponents aren’t going to limit their comments to when you are in the office. Some of the worst attacks from trolls and haters come at night and on the weekend. CARIE LEWIS, Humane Society of the Unites States <@cariegrls>
  • Before you build your own online community or “niche network” on a specific topic, location or audience, search and see it one already exists. If it does, join it, introduce yourself to the head of the site and participate. Listen to see which members are most active and what topics generate the most discussion. You can get a flavor for what the community is like by the conversation they are having. DANIELLE BRIGIDA, National Wildlife Federation <@starfocus>
  • Write and publish clear guidelines for your nice network before you even invite people. Even if you think your issues are non-controversial, you want to have guidelines in place before there is trouble. There will be arguments… and they can get hot. MANNY HERNANDEZ, Diabetes Hand Foundation <@askmanny>
  • People don’t hate change. They hate disruption. PETER CAMPBELL, Techcafeteria <@peterscampbell>
  • Donors are lazy! You have to make message and ways to donate super easy. AUDIENCE takeaway from several sessions.

Did we miss any? Tell us in the comments.

And if you want to dig deep into the awesome presentations, check out the handy collection of 10NTC slides on SlideShare.