Your group sounds really impressive Rob - great work!
We've taken a number of approaches here at NAVCA, or which I'll just mention a few:
Discussion groups/forums - navcaboodle
We launched NAVCA's very own social network - navcaboodle - a few months back and already have more than 600 members. It is aimed at people working in local infrastructure organisations, but is also open to anyone that works in partnerships with or is interested in the third sector.
The challenge we face on navcaboodle (along with community managers everywhere) is the same one that you mention Rob - getting people to go online to ask their questions. I think that the main response we have to that is simply that the proof should be in the pudding. I work hard (along with many of my excellent colleagues and some fantastic members of the navcaboodle community) to respond to questions posted asap with useful, relevent answers. Hopefully, people will remember reading a great response to someone else's question and think about posting their query on navcaboodle next time they are at a bit of a loss or want to pick people's brains on a burning issue or technical problem.
Email networks
We have traditionally had a number of email networks along the lines of the one that you mention Rob. Again we have mixed success as many people are worried about the volume of emails that they might receive etc. Some of our email networks are, however, very successful (for example VCANet and COIN) so we have no plans to replace them - if it ain't broke etc! Others simply received no traffic and we have therefore closed them down and moved activity to navcaboodle.
Twitter
We have a number of NAVCA Twitter accounts supporting different strands of our work. Our belief is that Twitter shouldn't just be about broadcasting updates on our work, though we do of course use it in that way as well. We believe it should be about conversations, debate, pooling our resources and promoting good work. I'm a great personal believer in the power of Twitter, particularly the HUGE advantages it offers when you need assistance - sending a question out into the ether and receiving responses from willing experts - a fantastic resource.
All in all, we're very open at NAVCA to developing new strands of communication and discussion. It's essential that we know as much as possible about the experiences of organisations in the sector, and social media has definitely proven to be an "avalanche of opportunity" as Rob so aptly put it!
Sophie
Your group sounds really impressive Rob - great work! We've taken a number of approaches here at NAVCA, or which I'll just mention a few:
Discussion groups/forums - navcaboodle
We launched NAVCA's very own social network - navcaboodle - a few months back and already have more than 600 members. It is aimed at people working in local infrastructure organisations, but is also open to anyone that works in partnerships with or is interested in the third sector.
The challenge we face on navcaboodle (along with community managers everywhere) is the same one that you mention Rob - getting people to go online to ask their questions. I think that the main response we have to that is simply that the proof should be in the pudding. I work hard (along with many of my excellent colleagues and some fantastic members of the navcaboodle community) to respond to questions posted asap with useful, relevent answers. Hopefully, people will remember reading a great response to someone else's question and think about posting their query on navcaboodle next time they are at a bit of a loss or want to pick people's brains on a burning issue or technical problem.
Email networks
We have traditionally had a number of email networks along the lines of the one that you mention Rob. Again we have mixed success as many people are worried about the volume of emails that they might receive etc. Some of our email networks are, however, very successful (for example VCANet and COIN) so we have no plans to replace them - if it ain't broke etc! Others simply received no traffic and we have therefore closed them down and moved activity to navcaboodle.
Twitter
We have a number of NAVCA Twitter accounts supporting different strands of our work. Our belief is that Twitter shouldn't just be about broadcasting updates on our work, though we do of course use it in that way as well. We believe it should be about conversations, debate, pooling our resources and promoting good work. I'm a great personal believer in the power of Twitter, particularly the HUGE advantages it offers when you need assistance - sending a question out into the ether and receiving responses from willing experts - a fantastic resource.
All in all, we're very open at NAVCA to developing new strands of communication and discussion. It's essential that we know as much as possible about the experiences of organisations in the sector, and social media has definitely proven to be an "avalanche of opportunity" as Rob so aptly put it!