This is it – my inaugural post! I have been meaning to get this blog going for some time now. I have so many ideas, experiences and great resources to share, I just couldn’t wait any longer.

Today I am excited to share some great tips and resources for Periscope and how nonprofits can use this new platform in unique and ground-breaking ways.

Ever wish you could engage your donors from far and wide? Ever feel like you can’t properly convey the power of your work? Periscope has the power to change this!

Periscope is truly a game-changer for nonprofits in telling (more like showing) their story and engaging with their supporters.

Here are some great resources I have found to help you start your Periscope journey.

Periscope for Nonprofits

This SlideShare presentation from Caroline Avakian (@CarolineAvakian) of Social Brite (@Socialbrite) is a great primer. It gives you the mechanics of how to use Periscope and 5 great ideas on how to leverage it for your nonprofit. The one I am most excited about is #1 – Live Streaming from the Field. So many of my clients could use this for powerful storytelling to donors and potential donors. Nothing brings your mission work to life more than seeing it in action.

Bloomerang (@Bloomerangtech) interviewed her for an episode of BloomerangTV that gives more depth on how nonprofits can use Periscope to engage supporters. She includes a review in her post Periscope for Nonprofits: A Quick Guide and Review, including “The Good” and “The Bad” in Periscope features.

Tips for Using Periscope

While Periscope is fairly new, there are early adopter nonprofits that you can learn from. Caroline Avakian did a follow-up post where she interviewed a nonprofit to learn about their experience – read the Case Study to gain insights into the do’s and don’ts.

Wayne Elsey (@wayneelsey) of Not Your Father’s Charity gives a good round-up of tips. Here are some take-aways from both…

  • Try it out first – Before you go live at your event or mission-moment, do a few dry runs without publicizing it. Get the hang of how it works. Then try it onsite.
  • Consider using a tripod – Figure out if using a tripod is needed, particularly if you are trying to broadcast a speaker at an event. It is very hard to keep your arms still for that long!
  • Get close to the action – When you test it out at your site, figure out how close you need to be to have a quality and engaging scope.
  • Promote it – Use social media to get the word out about your broadcast. You can create custom graphics for your website and social media to get the word out.
  • Prepare your speakers – The broadcast is live and interactive – prepare your broadcaster to be nimble on their feet and good at interacting with the audience as they comment.
  • Internet! – Make sure you have a solid internet connection.

While I certainly don’t recommend that nonprofits go join every new social network, Periscope is one that I think has huge potential. I can’t wait to see how nonprofits get creative with it.

Is your nonprofit using Periscope? Tell me how in a comment.

Do you know of other nonprofits using it? Tell me about it.

Happy Scoping!

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