I feature an interesting website, blog, Twitter feed, Facebook page or other online destination related to Waterloo Region on CKWR with Randolph J. Johnston called #WRawesome Online, Mondays at about 12:30. Here is the Midday with RJ’s Facebook page.
I hope by doing so that I’ll help people find places online that help them to connect to their community–online and in the real world. By doing so, I hope to help people find online places that they might not find otherwise and make our community a better place to live.
For folks looking for communications advice, you can get tips from each selection featured. I’ll highlight at least one example in my weekly post.
#WRawesome Online: Van for Dan on Facebook
Dan Lajoie, a local advocate for people with mobility challenges, has been nominated as a local hero in a contest that will award a wheelchair accessible van to the winner. Dan was getting plenty of support already but an article in Saturday’s Waterloo Region Record gave him a great boost in the contest.
I would suggest that social media could make the difference in the final result so I am happy to see Dan’s friends and family using it to support him in the contest. I particularly like the Van for Dan Facebook page. His supporters need to be encouraged to vote daily but they also need to know the daily code. The Facebook page is a great way to spread the word virally. Most importantly, it’s a permission-based way to be in front of people regularly to remind them to vote and what the day’s code is.
The page is also a great way to share content related to the campaign such as the Record article. Doing so helps to inform people about the campaign, about Dan and why their support is needed. It helps to avoid just posting requests for support.
Hopefully, even more information will be posted before voting ends May 13. Since not everything posted on a page is seen by all or even most of its fans, it’s important to post content that people can like, share or comment on. When they do so, the page’s content is more likely to show up on their news feeds. It’s also more likely to make it into their Facebook friend’s newsfeeds.
As a result, more people are likely to see and act upon the requests for support.
The Facebook page can also help Dan build up social capital that win or lose, he can use to support his advocacy work–both for the Independent Living Center of Waterloo Region and on a personal level.