Organizing 2.0 Conference
Next weekend I am heading up to NYC to be part of the Organizing 2.0 Conference. This is a group compiled of labor, community and political organizers working online. I thought it was important for me to go for a few reasons: 1. There is always something to learn So here is my question: If you can't make it to the conference this weekend, what would you want to know about? Give me questions to pose others and topics for discussions, I will ask and discuss on your behalf.
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As a starter I would ask how
As a starter I would ask how is the effectiveness of online organizing being gaged?
No doubt our online presence is an important one however, I find the retoric on most sites rather tiresome after a while and the true message is lost. If we could somehow measure how our message is being perceived we could certainly adapt to the best ways to get the word out.
Secondly I would ask, what are the most effective ways of generating feedback?
Often when I find a interesting story or article there are no comments submitted which leads me to beleive that either no one is reading it or there is not enough substance to generate feedback. Also most of the blogs or sites I visit are written as statements leaving little room to comment, perhaps framing stories or articles in the form of a question would help??
Thirdly, what is the average amount of time spent working on sites such as this and others?
at any rate, keep up the good work.
CR
These are really good questions
I can tell you from my own experiences that I gauge the effectiveness with stats, both on the sites that I manage and on the messages we push out. Aside from the stats, I check the response ratio on any given message that is pushed out.
The sites and their messaging is always a tricky balancing act. With this site there are so few people commenting that it is hard to know what people want to see. I try to post what I would want to see if I was just a reader here. It is not easy because the feedback on the site has dwindled. Yet, I think that you are right on in saying that there is so much rhetoric that we lose the importance of the message, and I fear I might be guilty of that at times myself.
With Union Review, the site, I used to spend about 5 - 10 hours a day. With the advent of some life changes over the last two years, I am lucky if I get a good hour a day in. For me personally I have found that just because I am not posting to UR, I can still be active by getting the word out there to those not in the choir. For example, lately I have been spending a great deal of time with DailyKos.com and on Facebook. It is the same work, but it is going to where people are, in case they aren't coming to UR everyday.
Still, I am bringing your questions with me to the conference and will get some others to give feedback.
blogging vs online organizing
Hi CR, I'm one of the event's organizers.
Your question is a good one but it points me too an often confused issue.
What you are describing above is blogging, not online organizing. Blogging can be a useful part of online organizing--- it helps you connect to broader audiences, gives you a chance to speak unfiltered with the public, galvinizes readers and makes sure people know what the heck is going on.
But blogging alone is not online organizing. Online organizing is about moving people into action either on their computers or their phones or in the street. Blogging and websites are some of the ways we promote the issues we are fighting for, and some of the ways interested parties find us. But writing a blog post about an important issue for your union membership is not online organizing unless there are steps that the reader can take integrated in to the article to take action.
Some of the best online organizers I know don't blog on their own much. They create tools for folks to use to reach elected leaders, corporations etc. Or they use facebook to track down workers at particular employers who could use some represenation on the job. Or they message people on community sites showing how concern about a certain issue can be turned into a rally at a state assemblyman's office. Or they turn a membership database in to a tool for tracking member participation and building relationships with membership.
The question of how is the effectiveness of online organizing being gauged is a good one. There are clear successes we can point to but each groups milliage will vary. In terms of online fundraising it's a bit easier to guage return on investment but that's not the topic I'm most knowledgable about.
What we do know is that management is trying to organize online and is trying to build communities of fans of their products. We need to be in those spaces talking with workers and educating the public on how they can make these employers more accountable to their workers, the environment and more.
Elana nailed it
I would add that the subject called 'online organizing' is like an elephant, with each person holding a different part and drawing differing conclusions about what actually is.
Charles Lenchner is the online organizer for the Working Families Party in New York State.
you are absolutely correct
I did confuse online organizing with blogging, sorry for the mistake,
I have not had the opportunity to use the the web as an organizing tool but the first question that comes to mind is the comment section(if any).
Should it be anonymous or not?
I see advantages and disadvantages to both also, how about a "rescource" guide for all of us 'puter illiterate organizers, please.
Thanks
CR
Resource Guide of Best Practices
I would like to talk with a few people at the conference about the possibility of us writing and posting a resource guide of best online practices -- for activists. Everyone has their own style online -- some people are still fearful of being known, others are putting up their first and last name, it all depends. But would would the guide say? I think it would ask if you are actively organizing in your work place, you probably don't want to give company trolls more power over you by knowing about your posts, or at least that is my take.
Organizing 2.0 Conference
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
I would love to attend your upcoming conference.
I previously taught at the AFL-CIO Organizing Institute.
I elevated in my Teamster Local from Organizer to Principal Officer
My Local had 2900 members when I started and almost 7000 when I retired in 2006.
I am currently enrolled in law school, with a goal to practice labor law. I mentor young people about the Labor Movement on a daily basis. The Labor Movement has afforded me the American Dream.
My family is living proof that the "Union Way is a better way".
I would definately be willing to speak at your conference.
In Solidarity,
Stu Mundy
30 year retired Teamster
Here is the information
Hi Stu,
Thanks for this comment. If you are interested in attending the conference, please go to this web site: http://organizing20.org and fill out the registration information. I am not sure there is still room for speakers as the conference is this weekend, but I am fairly certain you should participate in the workshops.
-Richard