Day in day out, new social media platforms and apps are released. As more people are joining social media platforms, more businesses are turning to social media sites to get connected to their customers.
According to the Global Digital Report 2018, 4.021billion out of the 7.593 billion people on earth uses the internet. Out of these, 3.196 billion people worldwide are social media users. The number of social media users has increased by 13% since January 2017. Currently, Facebook has 2.167 billion active users, followed by Google’s YouTube with 1.5 billion active users. Whatsapp follows with 1.3 billion and Facebook messenger with 1.3 billion. Twitter has 330 million users and Instagram has 800 million active users.
There is no doubt that social media platforms provide an equal platform for businesses to strive. Whilst businesses are making good use of social media platforms to connect to their customers, activists are also using it to connect to donors or promoting their cause.
Outside social media, it might be very difficult to get your campaign or cause across to 10,000 people unless you decide to use the traditional media, that is, the televisions and FM stations. But on Facebook, you can have a lot of views on a single post or video without spending much. YouTube can also help to boost or promote your video content. Even Whatsapp status is another good way to sell your ideas across. Since Facebook has a lot of users, let me take you through some basic ways to do advocacy without breaking your bank.
In advocacy, when people trust you, they will trust your cause. Create a likeable brand and be true to your cause. It will make it easier for your friends to follow or like your page when you invite them to. I have 493 of my Facebook friends following my page and I believe it’s a good start if you don’t have any funds to promote your page.
After creating a page to promote your cause, be consistent in what you post. Don’t post football news on a page dedicated to helping or supporting people with cancer unless its a charity game for cancer patients or it is somehow related to your cause.
You might have few followers on your page but there are other general groups or health groups on Facebook with a lot of members. Some could have less or more than 50,000 followers. When you make a post each day, try to share them to these groups. A friend told me he got 100 followers for his page in a day after listening to my advice to share his posts to other groups. So it works! Your advocacy will reach more people and attract other people interested in your cause.
Research has shown that, social media users interact more with posts with images. So be sure to always include catchy or captivating images to your posts.
Social media platforms are making billions of dollars every year due to our presence on their sites. We can decide to continue helping them to increase their revenue without us making nothing or we can decide to make our stay on these platforms worth it by fighting for the vulnerable in the society, tackling social issues or promoting our businesses.
