Notes from the Arts Office sponsored workshop on social networking at the Lynn Valley Library on Wed. June 8 and Sat. June 11.

There’s a PDF of my slides you can download here.

Please feel free to add your comments in the comments section, and if I’ve missed anything let me know and I’ll update.

Key Concepts

Social media

• is a conversation – engage instead of broadcast.
• loves a good story.
• requires a content strategy – mine your organization for content – text, images, video.
• extends your circles – the circles grow over time, not overnight.
• is personal.
• includes e-mail.

June 8th Workshop links:

Case study:
Kneehigh Theatre UK

Facebook
Twitter
YouTube
Flickr

Publish to various networks:

HootSuite for managing updates to multiple social media accounts. A real time saver, and you can create a variety of tabs to customize it to your taste.  A free version and a premium version.

E-Newsletter software via the web:
ConstantContact
MailChimp
ExactTarget

Donate, fund raising:
Paypal.com
Registered charities can use CanadaHelps.org

Website Content Management Systems:

WordPress is free.  Amazingly extensible and feature rich.  You’ll need web serving and a database.  The WordPress.org site outlines exactly what you need and even recommends some service providers.

On Wed. Rob mentioned SquareSpace.

Barb from the Arts Office mentioned Small Box, a Victoria based company that has their own proprietary website content management system.

On Wed. we talked about a tiny HD video camera – GoPro HeroHD. Check North Vancouver mountain bike shops, they stock them.

Things we didn’t get to but you might want to use:

URL shortening:
we didn’t talk about this but handy when you want to add a link to a Twitter post. Takes a long URL and makes it short.

Bit.ly .  Register for free to get metrics.

Event ticketing/invites:
EventBright

Oh, and the Chocolate Blog:  ChocolateApprentice.com

There’s also an iPhone and Android app to help you find chocolate wherever you are.  And it’s free . Details here.

Some work hardly seems like work at all.

I’ve been working with Chocomap.com for a few years now and  last fall we started developing a mobile strategy.

Chocomap.com helps people find fine chocolate shops around the world, and displays them on a Google map.  There are almost 2,000 shops in its database (and growing all the time) and putting that information on a smart-phone makes perfect sense.

We launched the iPhone version, Find Chocolate!,  at the app store just before Christmas.  Shortly afterwards, we started work on an Android version, which was released mid-March on the Android Market.

Find Chocolate! on Android or iPhone both use the phone’s location awareness to hone in on chocolate shops near where you are.  Within seconds of launching the app, you get a list of shops nearest you, in order of closest to furthest.  You can also get the same ‘list’ on a map. Tap a listing and you get store details and directions.

The apps share the Chocomap.com database, so shop listings are synced on all platforms.   And both apps allow you to add a shop right from your phone, as well as upload pictures and rate shops you’ve visited.

For the iPhone app, we worked with Vancouver’s Mod7 Communications.  Android development was by Vancouver’s Ikamobile who specialize in apps for Android devices.

Like the web, apps really are global in reach.  To date, the Find Chocolate! app has been downloaded in 27 countries.