You booked a volunteer program and can’t stop dreaming about your upcoming adventure.🤸🏼♀️ You’re brimming with pride because you’re finally going to make an impact! Volunteering abroad is a big commitment and er want you to get the most out it. What if we told you you can easily BOOST your impact? Continue reading to find out how social media will boost your social impact! 💪🏼
Increasing your Social Impact 📱
What if we told you that boosting your social impact doesn’t require much effort? If you’re reading this on your phone, you’re holding the answer in your hands.
You may wonder how your phone is going to increase your social impact. Isn’t our obsession with our phones ruining our lives?
It’s true, social media is a controversial topic. While there are plenty of articles underlining the detrimental effects of social media, there is an equal number of pages highlighting the positive impact of social media. Regardless of your opinion on the topic, social media has become part of our lives.
What we’re trying to get to is that next to volunteering, also sharing your experience on social media will boost the impact of your social journey.
Four Reasons Why Social Media Boosts your Social Impact 🚀
If you already spend a lot of time on social media and are looking for an excuse to do more, you’ll be thrilled to find out that using your phone to document your experience is strongly encouraged while volunteering. For those of you who need a little push, these 4 reasons may will give you that little push to dip your toe in the social media waters.
1. YOU inspire Others 💁♀️
Sharing your experience on social media is going to inspire others. Social media is a powerful influencing tool. This is why it has become a crucial part of business strategy. Build awareness among others by sharing your volunteer experience and encourage them to follow your example. Don’t underestimate your power!
2. Building a Community 🧱
When you share your passions on social media, you’ll find opportunities to connect with others who share your values. Creating a community not only increases the impact of the causes you stand for, but it can also have a positive impact on your wellbeing. If volunteering is something you believe in, join the community. The more people that join, the more impact it will have.
3. Others trust YOU 🙌
People trust you more than organizations. As noble as an organization may be, they always have a commercial motive. People know that and keep that in the back of their minds when they read anything posted by a business organization. When you (an individual), on the other hand, post something on social media, people automatically trust what you have to say more than anything a business would post. You may not know it but you have a lot of impact on social media.
4. Valuable Feedback 👩🏫
What you share on social media about volunteering is also valuable feedback for volunteer organizations. Your feedback helps them adapt where necessary. You’re considered an expert and organizations will be hanging on your lips. This is your chance to raise awareness about topics you’re passionate about.
Now we’ve covered why social media has a positive impact on your social journey, let’s move on to how you can do this.
Four Ways Social Media Boosts your Social Journey
If you’re a social media pro, this may be a no-brainer. You’ll already know the ins and outs of tools that can increase social media your presence. The social media shy may need a bit more guidance in this department which is why we’ve put together the list below.
1. Images 📸
Whether you’re a talented photographer, know how to use filters on your phone or have a great eye for selecting the perfect image, pictures are a powerful tool. The first step would be to take pictures of your volunteer experience, post them on social media channels like Facebook or Instagram. Not hard, right?
2. Hashtags #
Posting a picture for your followers to see is great, but when you hashtag it, it will be seen by others who are interested in that topic and have chosen to follow it. This increases engagement and creates opportunities to connect and form a community.
Whenever you use #volunteerworld or tag us @volunteerworld_com on our Instagram account (click to follow!) we will make sure to check out your post. And we love sharing them!
3. Video and Audio 🎥
Social media channels like YouTube, Facebook and Instagram have started incorporating video content onto their platform. They’re called Stories. This allows users to share video content of their experiences. Video content drives more engagement because it requires more attention than looking at an image. Creating video content can be scary, read this article by content marketing institute on what you should know about creating video content. If you’re good with a video camera and aren’t camera shy, why not start a vlog on your volunteer experience?
Are you a social media veteran? Audio content like podcasts are an excellent way to bring across an in-depth on a topic. It requires a lot engagement from the listener and can be very inspiring. Read the tips in the link to find out how to set up your own podcast.
4. Written Content 📝
If visuals aren’t your thing, but you still want to raise your voice, write about it! Interact with others on social media, comment on posts or blogs, write reviews on organization websites, or write a testimonial or create your own blog post. These are excellent ways to share your experience and opinions.
Consumers base their decisions on the word of mouth. This is why testimonials are so important in this process. By writing a review about your volunteer experience, you can influence others.
Start with sharing your journey with us! Click on the ‘Share Your Story’ button below and answer a few questions about your volunteer experience. We love hearing from our volunteers. Go on, don’t be shy!
Four Other Important Things to Consider
Netiquette 🥢
There are lots of opinions about volunteering. Some are negative and draw attention to the downsides of it. There are 2 sides to every story so we’ll never claim that volunteering is all butterflies and rainbows.
The same applies to social media shares. Even though free speech is a human right, it doesn’t always have a positive impact. Social media is often used to vent frustrations and attack others.
Keep the following guidelines in mind and your social media journey will be smooth sailing.
Credit and Permission 🙏🏼
When you use someone’s pictures, be sure to ask for permission and give credit. It’s common courtesy and you’d want others to treat you the same way.
If you’re taking pictures at your volunteer destination, always ask the person you’re taking a picture of for permission. This is even more important when it comes to pictures of children.
Be Constructive 🌝
Written content is all about expressing your opinion on a subject. There are many people on social media expressing themselves in a negative and aggressive way.
Don’t attack people personally and keep your comments constructive on social media. Draw attention in a positive way as you build awareness on a topic you care about.
Are you ready to pay it forward? Do you also believe that the world would be a better place if more people would volunteer? ABSOLUTELY! Start sharing your incredible experience on your social media platform and inspire others to start a social journey of their own!
We can’t wait to follow your social media journey! Don’t forget to ‘hashtag’ us #volunteerworld or tag us @volunteerworld_com when you post anything about your volunteer experience. [Yup, we’re going to be one of your biggest follower] Post on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook [Update: Oh wait, we love TikTok as well].
I totally agree with this article. Creating creative content is the best way to boost you social impact.