FundRaiser users respond: reaching out to donors in times of national tragedy

This has been quite a week for disastrous and heartbreaking events in the news-- first the Boston Marathon bombing, then the explosion of the chemical plant in Waco, Texas. How does your nonprofit organization handle these kinds of events in your social media outreach?

You might have planned to make a post about some event or topic that seems out of step with the reactions that flood the newsfeeds when such well-publicized tragedies occur. Do you stay the course and make the post? Do you pause the post? Do you make a brief comment of condolence, or use the opportunity to offer some help if the crisis relates to your mission?

Some FundRaiser users quickly went into action with posts related to their mission. Here's how a few of them handled it:

Mary's Place, a Center for Grieving Children and their Families, posted resources to help people address the grief that children might feel.

WRAF Christian Radio posted messages of sympathy and encouraging scripture.

Metropolitan Community Church posted a prayer from their Moderator, Rev. Dr. Nancy Wilson.

All of these organizations have a clear connection through their mission to grief, and support. What if you mission is less obviously connected? 

Experts offer opinions on how to handle social media during times of tragedy

In the past few days, the options for responding, pausing, or ignoring have been suggested, discussed, and plenty of advice  offered. I appreciated reading the discussions, and getting some input in forming my own opinion. Here are some of my favorites--

• The Nonprofit Facebook Guy's question/answer thread "YES or NO: Has your nonprofit updated your Facebook Page in response to the Boston Marathon bombing?"
• Marketing consultant, Jon Loomer's blog post Revisited: Social Media Marketing in Times of Tragedy
• Facebook marketing expert, Mari Smith's facebook thread discussion about pausing scheduled posts
• Nonprofit marketing consultant, Nancy Schwartz 9 step checklist on How to Communicate in the Midst of Tragedy

What did you do? Let us know on our facebook page and post a link to your page!