Which Presidential Candidate Is Winning the Social Slugfest?

Are you friends with the president of the United States? Do you Like him? Do you follow him? Maybe you’re just a fan.

The 2012 election won’t just pick the next President, it will conclude some hotly debated issues. No, we’re not talking the 47% or the 99%, nor the debt crisis or the Iraq war. This election cycle seems to have raised the competitive bar, at least in terms of digital savvy: Did President Barack Obama or his opposer Mitt Romney better master the fine art of social media politics?

With one month until Election Day, it’s still hard to determine which candidate gathering more Facebook and Twitter votes. So we’re turning to the experts. Data analysis company SocialBakers analyzed Obama and Romney’s social media habits from May 1 to Sept. 19, 2012 to find the man with the stronger social campaign.

The company concluded that each candidate holds his own in different realms — Obama is a much more frequent tweeter (averaging 14.4 tweets per day to Romney’s 1.7 per day). Yet Romney is a habitual Facebook user, posting 422 times from May to September. During that same time, Obama only created 179 Facebook posts.

SEE ALSO: Can Facebook Likes Predict Your Vote?

SocialBakers also found that, though Obama enjoys higher engagement, Romney’s tweets tend to go viral more often. Socialbakers CEO Jan Rezab attributes this to the consistency in which Obama tweets. Since Obama posts to Twitter often, his followers are less likely to continue retweeting and sharing out his content. Since Romney tweets once or twice per day, his followers are more eager to pick up that content and re-share to their own networks.

The opposite holds true for both candidates on Facebook.

Additionally, on Facebook, Romney’s fan base has grown by 76% since May 1. Obama’s base has only grown by 8.83% over the same period.

The national conventions in mid-August revved each candidate’s social media following. The final days of their respective party conventions represented the largest follower growth for both candidates. Obama’s Twitter hit its peak the day First Lady Michelle Obama spoke at the Democratic National Convention, Rezab tells Mashable. Romney saw a peak of Twitter followers on Aug. 11, the day he officially announced himself as the GOP’s candidate for presidency.

Romney reached a high of Twitter mentions — 927,025 times — on Sept. 17, but Socialbakers says the sentiment of those mentions were heavily negative, as they related to the recent 47% comment Romney made on camera.

Obama’s most tweeted and Facebooked word over the time period was “president,” and he almost never mentions Romney’s name. Surprisingly, Romney’s most tweeted word was @BarackObama, the president’s Twitter handle, which he used to criticize and critique his opponent’s platform. The phrase Romney mentions most on his Facebook is also “President Obama.”

But in the end, Rezab says it might not be an equal footed-fight between Obama and Romney’s social media strategies. President Obama has had an extra four years to build up a network following and, thus, has more time to spare gaining election momentum, Rezab says, whereas Romney has had to engage the social media machine in a much shorter time period to achieve the comparable success.

Which candidate has used social media better in the election process? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.

Thumbnail courtesy of iStockphoto, spxChrome

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Social Media Sacramento

HOW TO: Turn Slacktivists into Activists with Social Media

Lazy Panda ImageGeoff Livingston co-founded Zoetica to focus on cause-related work, and released an award-winning book on new media Now is Gone in 2007.

Throughout the non-profit world, organizations struggle with social media’s impact on the volunteer and donor cycle. The rise of “slacktivism” — doing good without having to do much at all — challenges organizations to rethink the way they cultivate their core volunteers and donors.

There are some important social media strategies for transforming those one-click “slacktivists” into fully engaged activists. Here are five tips from some of the best in the non-profit business.

1. Stop Thinking of Them as Slacktivists

The term slacktivism has its own baggage. While social media can drive action on an unprecedented and exponential scale, labeling this previously untapped crop of casual contributors “slacktivists” punishes them out of the gate for doing good. In actuality, the new era of online cause action should excite non-profits.

“It irritates me that we have invented this term as a pejorative way to describe what should be viewed as the first steps to being involved in a cause in 2010,” said Katya Andresen, Chief Operating Officer of Network for Good. “Let’s not whine that people want to do easy things that make them feel they’ve somehow made a difference. It’s okay if someone’s initial commitment is modest -– and it’s truly an opportunity that it’s easier than ever to spread information, create new initiatives for social good, and take action.”

“What the world needs now is far more engagement by individual citizens, not less, and simple steps such as signing petitions or even sharing opinions/tweeting are steps in the right direction,” said Randy Paynter, CEO and Founder of Care2. “As Edmund Burke once said, ‘Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could do only a little.’ Because small steps can lead to bigger steps, being critical of small steps serves no good. It simply disenfranchises folks.”

2. Steward People Up the Engagement Ladder

Engagement Ladder Image

Social media provides a new first step on the engagement ladder. The methodology of approaching stakeholders and encouraging them to take deeper actions requires acceptance of their current level of activism, and well-crafted approaches towards deeper commitment.

“There are some slacktivists that will become fundraisers, but if you are messaging correctly, they will mostly self-select,” said Dan Morrison, CEO and Founder of Citizen Effect. “But the fastest way to lose slacktivists is to ask them [to do] what they hate doing the most — getting off their butt and [doing] something. My advice? Send out great content targeted at recruiting more fundraisers and driving people to donate, and empower the slacktivists to spread the word for you.”

“It is important to know how to meet people where they are at, and craft your conversation starters and calls to action appropriately so as to match the specific interest and commitment,” said Beth Kanter, co-author of The Networked Nonprofit. “Organizations need to have good processes and strategies for stewarding people toward ever higher levels of engagement with their causes and campaigns.”

Full Disclosure: Beth is a partner of the author in Zoetica.

3. Reevaluate the Donor Funnel

The new volunteer and donor cultivation cycle changes the traditional “funnel” approach to getting stakeholders to act. Instead of sending out messages and expecting results, non-profits need to participate in larger online social ecosystems where hotbeds of activism are already taking place. Initial economic research shows this work is well worth it.

“Non-donors who take action online are 3.5 times more likely to donate than non-donors who have supplied their e-mail address (say, for a newsletter) but haven’t taken action,” said Paynter. “Donors who also take action are better donors. Existing donors who’d taken action online were 2.3 times more likely to donate than donors in the e-mail file who hadn’t.”

“Our current funnel goes something like this: Blast out marketing, see who responds, ask them for money, send them a receipt, ask them for more money,” said Andresen. “The new funnel should work like this: Go out to where people are talking about our issue online, listen, reflect back on what you’re hearing, invite small acts of engagement, thank people and tell them the difference their small acts made, listen some more, invite them to speak, then ask for bigger acts.”

4. Shift Your Attitude

A non-profit’s tie to the casual online participant is a tenuous one at best. Their relationship ties are often personal and emotional, embedded in a social network, and conversational in nature. They are often committed to an issue, but not any specific organization, and thus have little incentive to interact. That means non-profits need a new approach than simply asking.

“Value the whole funnel, not just the top or not just the bottom,” said Kanter. “Non-profits need to get into their stakeholders’ heads and understand what the hot buttons are to trigger their support from one level to the next. Small actions add up … Incorporate some sort of emotional tie – [understanding] that the clicking is a form of self-expression or love or way of helping.”

“I think slacktivists — like anyone else on social networks — need to be cultivated and feel appreciated for their contributions, as small as they may seem,” said Carie Lewis, director of emerging media at The Humane Society of the United States. “We message our cause supporters individually, and respond to (almost) every message that comes into us via social media. It takes a lot of time, but this individual engagement is what has made us successful.”

5. Create New Calls to Action

Protest March Image

Activist behavior and attitudes on social networks challenge non-profits to deploy new forms of engagement. Instead of simple “donate now” links, non-profits must create meaningful and repeatable ways for activists to take small action steps and foster long-term relationship development.

“Nobody joins these ‘I bet this potato can get more fans than seal clubbers’ type groups so that they can be involved in the group,” said Lewis. “They join them to make a statement. Facebook Causes is similar. Yes, some non-profits including us are raising real money. But its more about showing the world you believe in something, and showing your support.”

“Don’t focus on asking them to give, focus on asking them to retweet any and everything you tweet, post on their wall, forward e-mails, etc.,” said Morrison. “Focus on that, because that fits in their behavior pattern. Now, every once in a while, you can make a [money] appeal [to] the ones that [send] you a signal that they may be emerging from slacktivism. If you build a relationship with them, they will naturally graduate up the value chain. You can give them a nudge, but trying to force them will make them leave in droves.”

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Social Media Parenting Sacramento

Social Media Parenting: Raising the Digital Generation

Kids with Laptops ImageWho are your kids friending on Facebook? What are they really texting to their classmates? How much online time is too much?

Too often, parents who are misinformed about the social web (willfully or otherwise) will shut their kids out of it completely, only to find they are logging in anyway. If you’re not taking an active role in your child’s online life, you may be missing important opportunities to ensure they are on the path toward “digital citizenship,” and protected from inappropriate content and people.

To help shrink the tech-culture divide between parents and their kids, we sought advice from the experts, who draw not only from their own research, but their family experiences as well. Keep reading for some valuable wisdom on raising the first fully digital generation.
Take an Active Role, and Do Your Homework

Girl Facebook Image

For kids, social media can no longer be dismissed as a time-waster or distraction. The networks your kids use to rate their friends and comment on photos will eventually become their core business tools and career prerequisites. Those who don’t learn to use them responsibly will face a severe disadvantage.

So how do you grant kids the freedom to explore while still keeping an eye on their safety? Start by educating yourself.

“Parents can’t just decide to keep their kids at a distance from all of this. There’s no way to opt out,” said Melissa Rayworth, a freelance writer who tackles parenting and digital issues for the Associated Press, Babble.com and other media outlets. “Parents need to learn about the sites and devices their kids want to use, and then set strong boundaries. If you don’t know what something is or what it’s about, dive in and start using it.”

“If [parents] engage and have their own experiences on Facebook (Facebook), LinkedIn (LinkedIn), [etc.], they will better understand the attraction, the possibilities, and the issues that their teenagers face,” said Sue Blaney, author, speaker, and teen parenting blogger at PleaseStopTheRollercoaster.com.

One important step, especially when it comes to younger children, is to set up their social media accounts with them.

“Parents should guide their teens through the privacy settings on Facebook and all other social networks on which they participate,” said Blaney. “Make no assumptions here. Instead, invest the time so you can make informed and considered choices about privacy.”

Being a part of the sign-up process from day one will establish you as the gatekeeper of social media, and not a barrier for your kids to inevitably circumvent. You can become part of their online life while learning the ropes yourself.

“Have your teenager show you around the web. Be a ‘curious tourist’ in your teen’s digital world,” Blaney continued. “Ask your son to show you his favorite games, or ask your daughter to share her favorite sites, videos or activities. This can be a pleasant way to engage with your teenager and to learn from her.”
Safety and Privacy

Safety and privacy are probably the two biggest concerns of parents when it comes to social media. While there are some software and profile setting solutions, your greatest asset here is likely education.

“[Kids] need to understand the differences between private sites and those that are completely open to the public and leave them vulnerable,” said Theresa Walsh Giarrusso, who authors the Momania parenting blog for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “And if they can’t tell the difference, then they need to be taught to stay off of questionable services.”

Because social media has become such an integral part of our daily lives, the time has come to merge “online” and “real-world” pursuits of common sense into one educational package for kids.

“We need to teach them as they grow up that ’stranger danger’ exists in the virtual world, as well as the real one — whether it’s the weirdo in our local park or a weirdo following you on Foursquare (Foursquare),” said Giarrusso. “We also need to constantly be hitting home, ‘think before you act online.’ The repercussions can stay with you and be devastating.”

Kids may not always be up for a boring web safety lecture from mom and dad, but there are some more “edutaining” resources out there, like this PSA clip from the popular Disney Channel cartoon Phineas and Ferb. One overarching tenet kids should take away here is, if you wouldn’t do it in real life, don’t do it online.

Fortunately for parents of younger children, many of the brands that seek to engage them online, do so via kid-only games and networks that are a far cry from the content free-for-alls that abound on sites like Twitter (Twitter). Rather, these networks have built-in safeguards that will put most parents at ease. But that doesn’t necessarily mean you should set kids adrift and walk away from the screen.

“Many social media sites for young kids only let them post pre-approved phrases, so they can’t divulge personal info, and no one posing as a kid can say anything inappropriate,” said Rayworth. “But at some sites you need to turn those controls on, so definitely explore any site your child wants to use.”

When Giarrusso discovered her five-year-old son had signed up for the Cartoon Network’s online multiplayer game FusionFall, she not only sat down with him to explore the site, but reached out to the game’s administrators to get the scoop on the safety features. She turned her conversation with the game’s executive producer into a blog post so other parents could benefit from her investigation.

While most parents won’t need to go quite so in-depth, making contact with a real person at the other end of a kids-only social network is never a bad idea.

Rayworth also notes that online safety concerns don’t stop at inappropriate content or strangers. There’s also the potential for invasive marketing.

“So many kids’ products now have a social networking component to their site. A few months back my son went to the Hot Wheels site and he had the option of spending time on the site logging which cars he has, and talking to other kids about them,” she explained. “Things like this are potentially a lot of fun, but you have to keep in mind that your child is being advertised at the whole time … I think it’s really vital to limit that.”

Teens can face a whole new set of safety and privacy challenges on the larger networks, most of which are open to everyone, and are far more public.

“In terms of safety for older kids, every expert I’ve spoken with says, ‘don’t let them have a computer in their room,’” Rayworth noted. “Keeping it in a common space gives you more access to what they’re doing, and a clearer idea how much time they’re spending online. Kids may also make better decisions if they know mom and dad are nearby and can see the screen.

“The complicated thing is figuring out how far you want to go in the name of safety,” Rayworth added. “Some parents aren’t comfortable reading their teenager’s texts or accessing their Facebook messages. Others think it’s important. One option with Facebook is telling your kids that they must friend you … but agreeing that you won’t be posting on their wall or commenting on their posts. Agree to just stay in the background.”
The Fine Line Between Participating and Spying

While it’s important to take an active role in your child’s online life, there are personal boundaries that should be respected and adjusted based on the child’s age, maturity, and earned trust. While public posts on a social network may be fair game, things like e-mail messages and passwords could be considered an important threshold of maturity.

“Parents have a right to have their kids’ passwords, particularly younger teens,” said Blaney. “When teens get into the upper levels of high school, different rules may make sense for teens who prove themselves to be trustworthy.”

Remember, social networks are just that — social. They tend to be an extension of what kids do and say in their “physical” social circles — much of which is not intended for parental consumption.

“During the teen years, they often experiment with various personas. Am I like Britney? Am I like my older cousin Jamie? A teen may change her look, her friends, [and] her activities during this natural and important exploration process,” said Blaney. “It makes sense that some of this experimentation will take place over and through the communication channels that they utilize, including texting and social networks.”

If you’re intruding on your teen’s personal online space, she’s likely to take it underground. Remember, she’ll always be one step ahead of you technologically, so it’s unlikely you’ll win that race. If you’re willing to give up having passwords, you should trust that simply being a part of her online community (from day one, if possible) will be enough to ensure good behavior.

“Be a presence on your teen’s online profile, but in the background,” said Blaney. “Some parents like to post on their kids’ Facebook pages, but that isn’t necessary to do an effective job of monitoring (and may be a real turn-off to your teenager). Often, just letting your teen know that you look regularly is enough.”
Setting Limits Without Being a Luddite

Teen Texting

As with any digital pastime, too much social media use can become a distraction, especially for kids. Yet locking them out of the social web (either partially or entirely) would be doing them an educational and cultural disservice. The key is to find balance.

“It’s stunning how many hours per day kids spend with some kind of screen,” said Rayworth. “I think if most families step back and really do the math, they’ll find a lot of consumption even among little kids. One option is requiring that for every hour your kid spends online … they then spend an hour doing non-screen things and hanging out with live people in person. That can be eye-opening.”

“Technology is changing the landscape, the demands, and the context for [children’s] educational experiences,” said Blaney. “Again, without a real understanding and appreciation for how technology is being used and the fundamental impact that it has on their child’s future, parents run the risk of being a hindrance in their teen’s education.”

Be fair but firm, and have a good understanding of the technologies to know when it’s becoming too much.
Good Parenting? There’s No App for That

When we originally set out to explore the issues surrounding kids and social media safety, we were in search of software or network settings that could automatically filter inappropriate content. What we quickly learned from these interviews was that the challenges for parents are far more nuanced, and solving them takes work.

“Much like driving a car or going off to college, parents have to hope that they have instilled good values and have taught their kids enough to handle situations they will encounter on social media,” said Giarrusso.

There will always be a technology and culture divide between parents and children. But with a little extra effort, perhaps it doesn’t always have to be so big.

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