Analysis, Lessons from Reporters, Social Networking News - by Patrick Thornton on Monday, January 14, 2008 23:45 - View Comments

Is Beat Blogging For You?

This post from TechSoup (a technology blog for nonprofits) looks into why one should or shouldn’t look to social networks. I think the reasons hold true for journalists as well. Check the post for full explanations behind each point.

clipped from www.techsoup.org

Signs that a social networking site might work — or not work — for you

Six Signs that Social Networking Isn’t for You

1. You’re still trying to get a handle on your basic software infrastructure.

2. Your target audiences aren’t using social networking tools

3. You don’t have time to experiment with something that might not work.

4. You’re not willing to deal with technologies that don’t work as well as they could.

5. You’re not ready to invest in gaining a real understanding of the medium.

6. You want clear editorial control over your brand and message.

Opportunities in Social Networking

1. Establishing a simple Web presence.

2. Promoting specific actions or petitions.

3. Consolidating existing, unofficial social networks related to your organization.

4. Informal outreach that blends the personal and professional.

5. Researching VIPs, potential employees, and others.

6. Strengthening relationships between people who already know each other.

7. Encourage and respond to constituent feedback quickly.

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About BeatBlogging.org

BeatBlogging.org was a grant-funded journalism project that studied how journalists used social media and other Web tools to improve beat reporting. It ran for about two years, ending in the fall of 2009.

New content is occasionally produced here by the this project's former editor Patrick Thornton. The site is still up and will remain so because many journalists and professors still use and link to the content. BeatBlogging.org offers a fascinating glimpse into the former stages of journalism and social media. Today it's expected that journalists and journalism organization use social media, but just a few years ago that wasn't the case.

About the Author of this post
Patrick Thornton is the editor and lead writer of BeatBlogging.Org. He is @pwthornton on Twitter.