Social Media & PLN's - Why being online changes the game.

I'm not much for complication.  I believe things should be simple.  Still, there is a struggle there.  Too much stuff to think about, too many ideas and in the end, not enough collaboration with like minds.


What I have found to be perhaps the biggest learning experience this year is that I can collaborate with folks I believe in.  People that seem to be pushing forward in similar ways than I am.

I keep tabs of several educators, principals, edtech folks and of course keep tabs on school fundraising as well as non-profit trends.  Although I know plenty of folks, they may not know me and that's O.K.

That's because my PNL - personal learning network is a group of people that I keep track of and gather insight from on various social media, blog, ning and video sites.   Basically, my PLN is comprised of whomever I want to gain insight from at any moment.

It's all at my fingertips when I'm on the grid.

Do some folks know about me online?  Sure!  But they may not realize that I am the VP of a fundraising company that is not satisfied with the way funding in schools is working tirelessly to change it.  They may not understand just how many boundaries I've pushed to help schools raise more less often while offering quality and value.  I may just be in favor of the paperless classroom and technology in the classroom more then many of the folks in my PLN are.

I may just be the perfect resource for them now or in the future BUT they just haven't realized I would be good for their PLN yet.  Again, it's O.K.!

Some have even blocked me.  Yes!  I have been blocked by some folks on twitter where I have nearly 4,600 followers (Believe Kids on twitter).  I think it's because they think I promote my company online, but I don't and never have.

What I know is that I am a better person as a result of the knowledge and resources Social Media such as twitter and facebook have provided as well as the ability for me to share my ideas on thefundraisingpln.com and my personal elementary school fundraising blog.

I'm a member of The educators pln as well and if you are in education, you should be too!

It's ok that most folks aren't hip to the resources I count on daily or offer up daily.  I believe that with the help of other PLN fans and educators that are pushing the limits, great changes are underfoot!  Education is the key even for educators if that makes sense and parent groups can use insight as to how to effectively fundraise even if they want to do their own thing.

In the end, it's all good.  I enjoy the collaboration, learning, teamwork and like-mindedness I run into daily using easy and free tools that are always there just waiting for me to learn from!  

Here's to the future of Social Media and PLN's!

Take a look at the SlideCast: 7 Easy Ways to Create Your Very Own PLN

Better School Fundraising: Motivation is the Key to Success

Motivation is the key to a successful fundraiser. If you want to get the most from your school fundraiser, you have to motivate parents as well as children. Getting parents motivated and excited about participating is the fastest way to having a better school fundraiser.

Follow these tips and you will more success and have to do less fundraising.

Inform
In order for parents to participate, they have to know why the fundraiser is a necessity for the school. Before anyone can help solve a problem they must know what the problem is. Let parents know why the fundraiser is important to their school. Hold a meeting and address the budgetary needs of the school for the year and clearly explain how the money raised from the fundraiser will go towards helping meet those needs. Send out informative emails detailing the areas in school that the official budget won't cover. Show videos explaining the need for the school fundraiser. Whatever you do, make sure to emphasize the necessity for the fundraiser. Parents need to know that their money is being used for essential educational needs.

Encourage
For the fundraiser to be as successful as possible, you need to encourage everyone to participate. Teachers, parents and administrators need to all lend a hand in making the fundraiser a success. Encourage teachers to do daily announcements to keep their students informed about the fundraiser. Ask principals to send emails to parents asking for support. A principal's email list can generate thousands of dollars in a matter of minutes. Reach out to parents and encourage them to register online with the fundraiser and send emails to family and friends asking for support. Teaming up will take your fundraiser over the top!

Incentivize
Everyone loves prizes. No matter how big or small, kids love walking away from something with a concrete item. Offer one big grand prize that every child will want to get. Then, make all the prizes great. If there is more than just one prize that interests them, they will try to keep selling to reach the desired items. Use a variety of long and short term incentives. Offer a pizza party, limo ride, or ice cream social to the class or grade level that sells the most. Hold daily raffle drawings. Use principal incentives. If the school meets their fundraising goal, the principal can get a pie in the face, have to spend the day on the roof or as a student. Incentives don't have to just be for the kids either. You can have teacher and administrator incentives as well. Offer gift certificates to teachers whose classrooms meet their goals, or limo rides to the administrators if their school meets its goal. Just remember, great incentives will always keep everyone motivated!