If you think about it, it really isn’t that long ago that Google wasn’t at your fingertips.  Remember those days? You’d actually have to go to the library and dig through the card catalog to find an encyclopaedia so that you could look smart telling your friends that Nepal is the only country with a flag that isn’t rectangular.  You’d have to haul out the old phone book to find a plumber to fix the leak under your sink and you’d have to make an actual doctor’s appointment to figure out whether or not that funny-looking spot on your kid’s arm is the chicken pox.

I really enjoy reading Jamie Notter’s blog because he’s not afraid to tackle the big questions. Yesterday, he asked his readers what they think the future holds in store for social media.  Big question, indeed...and a good one, given how much the internet has changed things since I really started using it 15 years ago.

Really, it’s anybody’s guess where our connected world is headed. That said, I do have a few guesses on what social media might look like...maybe...along with some food for thought as non-profits get ready for the changes ahead:

Media on the Move:  The idea that social media will be mobile isn’t a new idea, but it’s an important one.  By the end of 2009, an estimated 67% of the global population had a cell phone subscription. That’s a lot of people. What does this mean for social media and for NFP leaders trying to use it to their advantage? It means finding ways to engage stakeholders not only in real-time, but in short bursts.  The race is already on to find innovative ways to connect with people as they sit on the bus or wait in line at Starbucks for their mid-morning coffee, and I think it’s about to intensify.

Being Part of the Story:  Donors, members and volunteers are demanding a tangible, hands-on connection with their organizations.  Social media will continue to evolve as a great tool to let people become a part of the story, instead of making their contribution and then fading out of the picture as the story unfolds.  Despite its ups and downs, I think Kiva is a great example of how this could happen. Maybe in the future, people won’t just be able to choose and provide a micro-loan to an entrepreneur based on a short biography about them on the Kiva website, but tools will exist that allow them to actually connect with these people and become directly involved as the project unfolds.

Fickle Fans:  With so many organizations to choose from, so much information and so many associations to join, people will be less likely to fork out large donations to one cause or pay a full membership fee to just one association.  They will be more likely to pay a smaller fee for a program or service that fits their specific needs at a given point in time.  This will probably mean à la carte program and service delivery models for many associations. It may also mean that not-for-profits will start to join forces with one another to provide packaged or bundled program and service options to stakeholders that they aren’t able to deliver on their own.

Generating Revenue:   So far, most organizations use social media as a marketing and communications vehicle.  This is starting to pay off for many but I think people are going to start looking for more direct ways to generate revenue using social media as their time and financial investment increases. The question for leaders will be what will continue to be free and what people will be willing to pay for.

So Many Apps, So Little Time:  There’s already an app for pretty much everything and more social media tools being invented each day than you can shake a stick at. Deciding what tools best fit their organizational strategy and how many resources they can sustainably allocate to social media will continue to be a key concern for NFP leaders in the near future.  Working to create a social media strategy that is flexible so that it can evolve as rapidly as social media is changing is also an important (and difficult) challenge to think about as an NFP leader.

Convergence:  A lot of people are talking about this and it’s already happening in some spheres. Increasingly, all of the technology we use today (TV’s computers, phones etc.) and all the tools we use (blogs, IM, Video, Social networking sites etc.) will be accessible from one place.  Keeping track and measuring social media ROI is also bound to converge accordingly.

Protectionism:  Think about the reaction of many of the world’s countries in recent history to economic liberalization and free trade. Some jumped on board and others...well, not so much.  To counter the overwhelming explosion of information and resources online, I see an increase in demand for exclusive communities and networks limited to people that fit specific criteria.  Deciding who is in and who is out as the internet and social media blurs the traditional lines of ‘membership’  will be a significant challenge for non-profits in the years to come.

So...what do YOU think is next for social media? Share your thoughts here or on Jamie’s blog...

Photo attribution: Jay Gooby