Only you can judge if your organization is ready to get involved in social media. Some organizations are hesitant to get involved in social media because they fear losing control of their message. You don’t lose control of your message with social media, you lose the illusion of control. You don’t have control.

New media have changed the face of communication forever. Gone are the days of one-way communication. New media are not going away and they are positioned to impact internet communications for the foreseeable future.  The question is not if your organization will use social media, it is more a question of when. Don’t be afraid to use social media to include people in the storyline of your nonprofit’s work. Your donors are looking for a more personalized relationship with your nonprofit. New generations of volunteers, donors, and clients don’t just prefer to use social media, they demand it. Today’s younger generation communicates with one another using social media and texting, not email and snail mail. If you want to reach them with your message, you would be crazy to eliminate the option of using social media in your nonprofit’s work.

Should your organization get started on social media now? Ask yourself a few questions. If you answer yes to most of them, it’s time to take the plunge.

• Are you committed to keeping your profile updated with fresh content?
• Are you willing to be open and candid about the good and bad in your organization?
• Are you ready to relate to people no matter how receptive or antagonistic they are to your message?
• Are you willing to be patient when results don’t happen overnight?
• Are you prepared to work hard to understand the people in your networks?
• Are you ready to reinvent your use of office time?
• Are you ready to listen and not only talk about yourself?
• Are you prepared to mix a little of your personal life with your nonprofit work?