Athens College Track- You CAN go to college without accumulating debt!

Athens is ranked fifth in the nation for the highest poverty rate! To combat this issue, a team of students at UGA created Athens College Track (ACT) to inform local high school students about financial issues surrounding education after high school. The program offers insight to education costs, the importance of saving for college early and how grades will affect not only what schools students are admitted to but also what scholarships they receive.

My favorite part of the campaign is the creative, interactive event they held this past week. Students at Clarke Central High School were given the opportunity to submit an essay answering the prompt “Why do you think college students graduate with debt? How can you start early to avoid this situation?” to win a chance to play the College Track Game.

While their fellow students watched, essay finalists, Natalya Haas, Natalie Lett and Kalyn Breeding, competed as playing pieces on a life-sized board game modeled after the game of LIFE. The game simulated how good grades, high SAT scores and savings can reduce the cost of college.

Haas rolled her way to victory, earning a $500 scholarship from Horizon Staffing and other donors.

“I learned about saving money and how much college really costs,” said Alan Watson, a senior at Clarke Central who attended the assembly. “I’ve already applied for a good bit of scholarships, but I’m definitely going to look into a lot more now that y’all (ACT) have come and talked to us.”

The team of five students who developed the campaign will compete in the national Bateman Case Study Competition in April. Whether they win the competition or not, they are making a significant impact in the lives of many students in Athens-Clarke County, so that’s a win in my book!

Viral Messages Key for Non-profits

Join Chipper Jones for the 2008 Chipper Jones Invitational Golf Tournament!

NetRaffle.org offers fans the chance to win a chance to play in Chipper Jones’ Annual Celebrity Golf Tournament

Here’s your chance to join the 2009 National League Batting Champion, 1999 National League MVP and future Hall of Famer, Chipper Jones help raise money for the

Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

Tickets are being sold at www.netRaffle.org. One grand prize winner will be invited to play in the 2008 Chipper Jones Invitational Golf Tournament on Nov. 3, 2008 at the Bear’s Best Atlanta Golf Course.

·Winner will receive 4 tickets to the Chipper Jones Banquet/Auction on Nov. 2, 2008 at the Bear’s Best Atlanta Golf Course

·Winner and 3 guests will enjoy a Golf Foursome at the Chipper Jones Golf Invitational on Nov. 3, 2008 at the Bear’s Best Atlanta Golf Course

·Winner and 3 guests will have a group photo taken with Chipper Jones at the Banquet

·Winner will also receive a cash prize in the amount of $242.85 to mitigate the Winner’s tax liability that results from winning the raffle. This prize is withheld and paid, on behalf of the Winner, directly to the IRS ($200.71) and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts ($42.14)

The online raffle will take place at http://www.netRaffle.org with tickets costing $2.00 each and a minimum purchase of 5 tickets. This gives every fan a chance to win this amazing prize. The raffle closes on Monday, Oct. 28, 2008 at 9:00 a.m. EDT.

A portion of funds raised by this raffle will benefit the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.
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So why is the information above posted on this blog?

Well for one, the event supports a great cause and an organization that I have volunteered with for years. I would definitely encourage you all to sign up for the raffle- it you won, it could make a great early Christmas present for a golf-loving (or Chipper Jones-loving) dad or brother!

But, it has a new media connection too! In the world of new media, especially for non-profit organizations, VIRAL is a key word to know and understand.

Viral messages and viral marketing occur when information is spread voluntarily from one person to another. While word-of-mouth is one way to spread this information, because of new media, social networking tools are becoming increasingly important to these marketing strategies. By using technology, viral messages can take on many forms including video clips, interactive Flash games, advergames, ebooks, images, or even text messages, according to Wikipedia.

There are a number of reasons for a company to do a viral campaign:
-there is potential to reach a large number and range of people
-the message is being sent from a personal contact, which makes it much more credible than if it were a paid advertisement
-it can be very cost-efficient

However, it’s important to understand that for people to pass on a message, it must be noteworthy. Many of the same techniques used in paid advertising must be used in viral messages as well, or they will not be sent.

So, in the spirit of viral marketing, please feel free to continue to spread the above message to help increase awareness about the Cystic Fibrosis’ mission and the Georgia chapter’s exciting upcoming event!!

Virtual Fundraising

One area of new media that I am interested in learning about is Second Life. I have never been in Second Life but have heard tons about it. Second Life is a 3-D virtual world in which users create avatars to represent themselves. View the video below for a brief introduction to the virtual world.

I have been especially interested in the use of the virtual world by nonprofit organizations. There have been a number of organizations represented in Second Life since its inception in 2006. They have hosted an array of fundraising events including one of my favorites—the “No-go Gala” held by the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of Canada. According to their Web site, the virtual event raised over $357,000!

The New Communications Review gives a number of awards each year, including a Nonprofit Virtual Worlds award. The winner of this award in 2007 was Converseon for their Plant-it 2020 campaign. The campaign allowed residents in Second Life to buy a tree that would be planted in the virtual world for 300 Linden dollars (approx. $1.50 U.S.). Whenever an avatar purchased a virtual tree, a real tree was planted in an endangered rainforest in Africa to aid in reforestation. Various other social media tools were also implemented throughout the campaign. One reason I think this campaign was so successful is the fact that around 70 percent of the Second Life residents are from outside the U.S. By having a global issue as their platform, it increased its success in Second Life.

The introduction of fundraising and benefits in Second Life really challenges nonprofit organizations to be creative and think outside the box for ways to profit from Second Life.

Text to Give

If you read My Vision for this blog, I said that I would blog about the use of new media in both the travel/hospitality and non-profit industries. So far, it’s been a little one-sided, so here is a post for all of the non-profit lovers out there. We’ve been discussing mobile media in my Introduction to New Media class recently, so I was inspired to learn about the various ways non-profits can benefit from this new outlet.

One of the fastest and easiest giving techniques yet has been created with the use of mobile phones. Virtually everyone has a cell phone on them at all times and most people (even my parents!) have learned the basics of sending a text message. A few non-profit organizations have discovered that the simplicity of texting can earn them quick money at critical times.

In June, Verizon Wireless teamed up with Save the Children to help raise money for relief efforts in China because of the recent earthquake and in Myanmar as a result of Cyclone Nargis. Customers simply texted the word “quake” or “cyclone” to 4SAVE and Verizon would add a $5 donation to their monthly bill. This method prevents customers from having to take the time to write a check, find the address, locate a stamp and then get the donation in the mail. Now, in a matter of seconds all of that is done for them. Although some would argue that it’s really not that difficult to mail a check, in an increasingly fast-paced society, every second counts. In addition, the non-profit organizations receiving text donations receive the gift much faster than if they had to wait for it in the mail and in emergency situations such as the relief efforts in China and Myanmar, there isn’t a minute to spare.

Currently, there are only a few organizations employing the “text to give” strategy. Use the links below to learn more about mobile media giving to help your organization get ahead of the game.

mGive is expecting United Way, PBS, American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), Keep A Child Alive, IFAW and Amnesty International to launch mobile giving campaigns.
http://www.mobilegiving.org/

PayPalhas an area on their Web site to set up mobile giving for three organizations: Amnesty International, UNICEF, and Starlight Starbright.
https://www.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=xpt/cps/mobile/Text2Give-outside