Three things I know about the nonprofit annual report: it takes a ton of time to put together beautifully, few people actually read it, but funders require it. The annual report is one of those pieces of communication and collateral that executive directors and development directors dread putting together because it is such a costly endeavor with relatively little return and short shelf life. It doesn't have to be that way in the age of social. We've socialized constituent communication, websites, fundraising, and events...why not rethink the annual report into a social communication? Several nonprofit organizations have done just that, transforming the paper annual report into a video report, and reinventing it in the process.

Share   Infographics are multiplying like rabbits. I run across them everywhere, and about all types of subjects from the power of social fundraising to the what it takes to be an entrepreneur. Some are great, some not so great. The abundance of data we now have to process is fueling the trends towards content [...]

Though it may seem impossible to create a personal relationship with a family of bears, the North American Bear Center has enabled that beautifully through Facebook. All told, Lily the Bear's fans have helped to raise $159,597 from 23,502 fans just this year. In terms of social network fundraising, that's huge. The real question is why. In this blog post, we'll examine what the NABC has done so well that could be replicable by others.

In this interview, Toby Dershowitz of The Dershowitz Group, explains what a SMPR is, how to craft one, best practices, why a SMPR is important, how to distribute one, how to measure success, and the essential "must have" elements of any social media press release.

How do you explain social media to the public, no matter what their level of understanding? This was the issue we faced crafting an "overview" of social media. From this experience, I offer five basic ideas that you have to utilize in order to convey the concept of social media effectively.

Nonprofits can tell the best stories. But why tell them on the same old social media platforms? I'm excited about Animoto, Whrrl, Posterous and Blip.tv. They are easy to use, offer beneficial social media aspects, and spice up your digital storytelling with something new.

How do you raise funds for a project with an eBook? In this interview with Jasmin Tragas, who created the eBook Worldshapers, Extraordinary Women Making a Difference to raise funds for a microloan program in the Philippines. In this post, I interview Jasmin about her experience raising funds through the eBook, putting the project together, and lessons learned.

This 2009 NTEN conference session covered basic issues that nonprofits have telling their stories through a campaign. The post features the case example of Jewish Voice for Peace that turned around its approach to telling stories, using social media, and developing fundraising campaigns.

The multimedia website application Apture is a new tool that helps nonprofits to tell their story better. In this post, I demonstrate the application and its potential. I invite you to tell me how your organization can use this powerful tool to tell its story better!