Nonprofits Digital Toolkit | City of New York
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Nonprofits Digital Toolkit

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Engage NYC

Engage NYC: Social Media for Nonprofits Conference

On September 19, 2013, NYC Digital, NYC Service, GreaterNY and New York City's Department of Cultural Affairs hosted the Engage NYC: Digital Media for Nonprofits conference with a focus on using digital for nonprofit marketing and social good. Communications and marketing professionals representing more than 250 organizations participated in the full-day conference. It was an opportunity for digital media practitioners from across New York City's nonprofit fields to meet each other, discuss shared challenges, observe best practices and engage with external partners from major social platforms. The day began with a welcome from Megan Sheekey, President of the Mayor's Fund to Advance New York City who emphasized the rise of nonprofits adopting digital media; followed by a keynote presentation by New York City's Chief Digital Officer Rachel Haot, who shared New York City's initiatives and path to becoming the world's leading digital city.



Social Media Presentations


Social media partners specializing in nonprofit work from Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and Crowdrise each presented on how nonprofit organizations can use social media to grow online communities, drive marketing and create more fundraising opportunities. A panel on digital storytelling, featuring guest speakers Shelley Bernstein, Brooklyn Museum; Paull Young, charity: water; Anthony Ramos, The Children's Aid Society; and Lane Harwell, Dance/NYC, provided insights on using storytelling to engage an audience. All video presentations can be viewed on the NYCGov YouTube channel.


The New York Public Library, the Public Art Fund and the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation have all identified innovative ways to highlight their missions using social media. See how the New York Public Library uses hashtags like #readNYPL to engage their community and visitors; how the Public Art Fund leverages social media as an information desk by developing different content for different social channels and giving its community a behind-the-scenes glimpse into how works are installed; and learn how an organization as rich in history as the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation developed a robust set of social media streams highlighting photos from the archives and how they use social media in emergencies.






Workshops


Workshops conducted by Crowdrise and General Assembly provided a deeper dive into digital media topics and trends:

  • Marketing Analytics by Katie Iles, Nine Lines (Download PDF)
  • Social Advertising by Matthew Iles, Nine Lines (Download PDF)


Additional Resources

Check back for more content as we continue to update this page. In the meantime, here are links to some additional resources for nonprofits:


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