A Social Media Christmas

As Christmas will be celebrated around the world and each country giving it their own flair like Winterfest in Hong Kong, Noche Buena in the Philippines, Orchard Road Christmas Light Up in Singapore and shopping, presents, and family get-togethers everywhere else; social networks will also experience a lot of traffic this season.

Christmas is generally a religious holiday, with the beautiful story of the nativity (See it told through a social network perspective here) and the birth of Christ. Although Philippines is probably the only Christian-dominated country in Asia, other countries have their own way of getting into the Christmas spirit of love, joy, hope, and giving. This is why Christmas is still a very social holiday for almost everyone around the world.

For this season, it is only apt then to center social media campaigns towards giving back as the following companies have done

Hanes. The virtual sock drive of Hanes in partnership with the Salvation Army is now on its third year. By visiting Hanes’ Facebook Page and clicking the “Donate Now” button, the company donates a pair of socks for those in need as these are the most requested among homeless shelters.

Kraft. Kraft foods, through its Huddle to Fight Hunger Campain, aims to educate Facebook users about the hunger epidemic. Every Like for the Fight Hunger Facebook page plus a two minute trivia game, donates money towards meals for their partner organization, Feeding America. Kraft’s Fight Hunger Campaign is now on its second year.

(Learn how to make your own Facebook fan page here)

Yahoo. Last year, Yahoo launched the How Good Grows program with the goal to create a ripple of kindness around the world. A pool of influencers are provided seed money of up to $100-400 to encourage them to do a kind act, and these influencers can update their status on Yahoo, Facebook and Twitter to inspire their friends to do the same. Up to 400 influencers have inspired a total of 1,100 + acts as of last year.

Now that you have been inspired by the social good campaigns of the companies above, the following tips can be useful as you set up your own holiday campaign:

Gather knowledge. Not everyone celebrates Christmas the same way, it is important to get to know your audience and beneficiaries and make sure to not offend any practices or beliefs.

Be consistent. Be committed to your cause. Stick to what your company is known for and do not just capitalize randomly on the holiday season. And if you have had social good campaigns before, think of ways to tie those causes into the holidays instead of adding new ones.

Make it a regular thing. Just like Hanes, Kraft and Yahoo, make your cause a regular thing. This gives people something to look forward to every year, with the spirit of giving on Christmas. It doesn’t have to be exactly the same, you can expand the campaign to increase beneficiaries or follow up from last year’s campaign.

Start giving back this season with a social media strategy, as social media has always proven to be a great avenue for relationships, togetherness, and community.

Have a Merry Social Media Christmas from Moonlight Marketing.

Sources:

http://mashable.com/2011/12/01/holiday-giving-campaigns/

http://mashable.com/2011/11/08/holiday-charity-tips/

http://mashable.com/2010/11/29/social-good-campaigns-holidays/