2015 Nonprofit Technology Conference

The smart use of social media is increasingly critical to successful legislative advocacy. A recent Hatcher Group survey of Maryland legislators showed that 96 percent of respondents were on Facebook and more than half were on Twitter— and more than half said that those platforms have an influence on legislative actions.

In this session, we’ll showcase ways you can use social media to advance your legislative goals, using real-life examples from the 2013 and 2014 Maryland General Assembly. We will take participants through the basics of what makes a robust social media presence, looking at best practices for each platform, and providing a checklist of do’s and don’ts. We’ll explain what a Twitterbomb is and why you might want to use one.

Based on real examples, we’ll show how social media has helped move the needle on specific state advocacy campaigns. We’ll give some practical tips for audience development, and explore our favorite social media apps that can help you make the best use of your time.

Finally, we’ll give you some quick ways to see how effective you’ve been. Participants will walk away with a step-by-step guide to kickstarting their own social media campaign.