A Trend Toward 'Choose Your Own Adventure'

This post was originally published on fasthorseinc.com

Gamification is more than a growing trend in new media. It’s a cultural shift in how consumers expect to interact with content. And within gamification, there is booming demand for the customization of storylines.

For many, the video game of the year for 2012 was “The Walking Dead,” which allowed players to tailor a story and make choices that affected characters based in the same world of the hugely popular AMC show. Another example is the new show on the Syfy network, “Defiance,” will be placed in the same world of an online multi-player game, with the player’s actions influencing the plot of the show.

It makes sense that video games would be able to easily integrate the appeal of customized storylines, but the more interesting question is how do other forms of entertainment leverage this highly interactive and participatory model of engagement?

Last night’s “Choose Your Own Adventure” extravaganza at the Paper Darts +Minneapolis Institute of Arts Third Thursday event is an example of one answer to that question.

Paper Darts, a Twin Cities literary arts magazine, invited four authors (Ed Bok Lee, John Jodzio, Maggie Ryan Sandford, and Katie Heaney) to write original choose-your-own-adventure stories incorporating various art exhibits throughout the entire museum. The MIA estimates about 2,000 locals showed up to experience the once-in-a-lifetime event (literally, it is impossible to recreate the event as was experienced last night).

Each CYOA story came with customized maps and cards to guide participants through the museum.

The result was a suspense filled adventure through centuries of different art forms and styles, with participants in the driver seat customizing the content of their stories and experiencing outcomes tailored to their choices.

As this trend towards customized gaming continues to grow and leak into mainstream entertainment, it will be interesting to see who keeps up and who falls behind. Just this past week, the TV show “Hawaii Five-O” allowed viewers to call in and vote on the ending they wanted to see, just like the readers at the Paper Darts + MIA Third Thursday, the TV show fans were able to shape their own story and receive an ending tailored to their choices.

Enjoy these photos from the Paper Darts + MIA Choose Your Own Adventure event!

The Choose Your Own Adventure stories pulled inspiration from and incorporated more than 60 art objects throughout the museum.

The choose-your-own-adventure theme carried over into an “exquisite corpse” activity based on a drawing contributed by the artist Jennifer Davis.

Paper Darts, the MIA and more than 2,000 art + lit lovers prove that choosing your own adventure stories don’t just belong in video games or books from your childhood.

Could A 'Sexting App' Revolutionize Photo Sharing

This post was originally published on fasthorseinc.com

There’s an app called Snapchat, perhaps you’ve heard of it. If you’re older than 21 and haven’t heard of Snapchat, you can thank me later for serving up another “Ugh, I feel old” reference.

The app allows you to take photos and send them to a controlled list of recipients. Then, POOF, after up to 10 seconds the photos self-destruct — disappearing from your phone and the recipients’ phone, too.

I know what you’re thinking: “Man,Anthony Weiner should have had this app.” Yes, most tech writers have dubbed this the “sexting app.” So why do I think what others call a “sexing app” could revolutionize how we create and consume online media? Hear me out.

We spend a lot of time uploading the perfect photos, with the perfect captions, creating the perfect versions of ourselves. It’s exhausting. I don’t claim to be above the fray and not partake in this online-persona crafting, but for the first time, I feel like there’s a way to be the real mewithout worrying about the judgment, guilt and fear that comes along with the permanency of posting online media.

I don’t use Snapchat to send dirty pictures to random internet dweebs. I use it to send funny, reactionary, timely photos to my close friends. Photos that would not make the cut for my carefully crafted online reputation management happening on my Facebook page, but photos that are less perfect, more lighthearted, and more real—more me.

Here’s an example of some trivial snaps by me and my friends:

Yes, I committed the highest Snapchat crime by screenshotting these. Somehow, Snapchat is even able to notify the sender when someone screenshots their photo.

So, if everyone calls it the “sexting app,” but I don’t use it for that, I got wondering, “Are me and my not-so-youngish-anymore friends the only ones not using Snapchat for sexting?” Where would I go to find the answer to such a question?

Omegle.com, where else! (Reference “Ugh, I feel old” #2.) This is a one-on-one online chat room that pairs you up with random strangers (like Chatroulette but more texted based). Yes, more often than not you’ll find creepers only interested in having conversations that are, well let’s just say, NSFW. Lucky for me I found some nice strangers willing to answer my, “Do you use Snapchat? If yes, how and why?” question.

This may not be respectable journalism at its best, but to prove my point, let’s look at a response from an anonymous 18 year old male:

Case in point.

For those thinking, “Well I use Instagram for all my photo sharing,” yesterday’s big change to Instagram’s privacy policy and terms of service, especially the “Rights” section which now poses the “you could star in an advertisement – without your knowledge” clause might be enough to make users think twice about sharing their photos. And this worry about how a user’s data and photos will be capitalized on by mega-social sharing sites is nothing new. And it’s a worry that, as of now, Snapchat users don’t have.

It might be hard to envision a world without permanent photos, but just 10 years ago it would have been hard to imagine a world without printed photos. While digital has allowed us to take a gabillion more photos, we also put less stock and importance into the photos we take. Way beyond my own use of the app, my Omegle research taught me that teenagers are using Snapchat to take and share hundreds of trivial photos aday – with zero attachment to the importance and permanency behind the photos. It’s a complete shift and evolution in our relationship with photography – not far off from what we saw with the introduction of digital.

So I’ll say it again, I think there’s big opportunity for Snapchat to move more into the mainstream as a go to tool for obsessively communicating about trivial, fun things without the weight and baggage that comes with the permanency of other channels.

So, how about you make my day; send me a snap at LizardBrain86.

*Really not sold on the mainstream-ability in this app? Maybe this news released a few days ago about Facebook launching its own impermanent messaging application built directly into the site will have an impression.

This Year's Most Creative 'Give To The Max Day' Campaigns

This post was originally published on fasthorseinc.com

It’s a good day to be a Minnesotan.

Give to the Max Day…keeping Minnesota nice since 2009.

Most Minnesotans know by the number of emails flooding their inboxes that yesterday was Give to the Max Day. And that’s exactly what happened — people gave to the max. More than 50,000 donors supported their favorite nonprofits and schools, donating a draw-dropping, record-smashing $16.3 million.

While it’s a fun and inspiring day that reminds everyone about the importance of philanthropy, my marketing mind can’t help but think, “Man, more than 4,000 nonprofits all asking for donations on one day. Ouch.” When you have that much noise in a space, it’s difficult to stand out — unless you get creative.

And that’s exactly what’s happening. More and more nonprofits are bringing a creative flare to their GTMD campaigns and it couldn’t be more welcomed.

I always have fun trolling the GTMD campaigns and this year I picked out five of my favorite, most creative, most refreshing strategies.

And remember, I’m only one person. I’m not capable of seeing everything on the internet and I only have so much space in my little blog post, so if you saw an innovative campaign yesterday, please (please!), let me know why you liked it in the comments.

College Possible
Never heard of a “Thank-You-Mob” before? Yeah, me neither — until yesterday. College Possible sent flash mobs of volunteers to surprise and thank donors at work, home, etc. after making a contribution. Talk about taking donor stewardship to a new level. Here’s a photo of my friend Lars Leafblad, who was surprised at work yesterday by a College Possible “Thank-You-Mob” after he made a donation to the organization.

Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy
Not all missions are easy to instantly connect with (like when you see a cute kitten from an animal shelter nonprofit), but that doesn’t mean you can’t exploit cute kittens. The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (and trust me with a name like that you better get a little creative to stand out) communicated the importance of their mission through a medium all can understand: the cat video. Inspired by the winning video from this summer’s Internet Cat Video Film Festival, “Henri 2: Paw de Deux,” here is IATP’s  “Chiko, Le Chat Politique.”

Children’s Theater Company
GTMD lasts for 24 hours. So how do you keep an audience engaged and sustain a fundraising stream for 24 hours? How about by offering one-of-a-kind prizes each hour to a donor who contributed during the time period? Not only did the Children’s Theater Company come up with 24 interesting and unique prizes to reward and motivate their donors, but they also did a great job of showing their GTMD story through creative photos on their Facebook page.

Rainbow Rumpus
While GTMD is focused in Minnesota, a lot of the nonprofits participating serve national audiences. Rainbow Rumpus caught my eye for their intentional efforts to receive gifts from across the country with a goal to get folks from all fifty states to support their work. They updated an interactive map hourly showing the national gifts rolling in.

Springboard for the Arts
Known for having fun and being creative, it’s not surprising Springboard would make this list. However, one thing they did this year that I loved is not only did they have fun with GTMD, but they also brought their programs to the forefront (sometimes it’s tricky to do both and you get lost in the fun). Introducing Power Hours, Springboard highlighted four different program areas for four different times of the day—each with matching grants.

Skewed Visions (honorable mention)
You know the way to a lady’s heart? Meme parodies. Thanks Skewed Visions for keeping me entertained throughout the day with countless, hilarious GTMD inspired memes.

 

Thanks to all who participated and gave during the “Great Minnesota Give Together.” And don’t worry, if you’re feeling left out, there’s always GTMD13.

Breaking the nonprofit salary silence

This post was originally published on ynpntwincities.org

There is something taboo and mysterious about salaries. When I decided to do a salary survey of young nonprofit professionals, it was my hope to start breaking down walls of discomfort around talking about our salaries. I expected 10-20 responses and ended up getting over 100. If that’s not a sign that we’re ready to start talking about salaries, I don’t know what is.

It’s obvious from my survey, which is not scientific by any means, that there is a collective sense of feeling undervalued and underpaid throughout the sector—strongest in those with less than five years experience.

As I’m settling into the beginning phase of my career, I’m starting to notice a collective absence of discussion around salaries. I grew up in a household where family members openly discussed salaries, mortgages, bills, etc. Money wasn’t a sensitive topic, it was just a matter-of-fact issue. The lesson I learned from that upbringing? The more transparent and open we are about money, the less control and power money will have over us.

If we can remove the discomfort and hyper-sensitivity when discussing salaries, we might be able to start having meaningful conversations with our employers about salaries and benefits.

I don’t just mean conversations like, “I deserve more money because my friend makes this much.” I mean being able to sit down with your supervisor and talk candidly about the salary range for your position, what’s possible, and what you believe your skills are worth. If you don’t believe that your supervisor is your number one cheerleader and wants more than anything to cultivate and retain your talent, then you might as well begin looking for a new job anyway.

Ideas to help break the salary silence:

Don’t talk about salary in vague and meaningless terms. When we say things like, “I should be making waaay more at my job, I’m so underpaid,” we’re not constructively moving the conversation forward. Build relationships with peers and mentors who you can have meaningful conversations with. Instead, you could say something like, "It's frustrating that my starting salary was $36,000 and I haven't seen a yearly increase over 3%. I think it should be closer to 8% because x, y, and z." 

Make a salary pact with a friend. Whether we like it or not, it’s a fact that for most people talking about salaries is awkward. Try being upfront and candid with a friend or mentor that discussing salary is something you would be interested in. 

Discuss the full picture. I couldn’t agree more with the comment of one respondent: “I think it's pretty complicated to try to get a full picture of everyone's true compensation levels.” This is where there is a huge opportunity to have rich conversations with a group of friends. If you have a close peer mentor group and are all able to discuss the different aspects, values, and frustrations of your salary and benefit packages, think about how much you could learn and possibly bring back to your employer for a discussion. 

We have a lot to learn from each other. If we truly want to advance the salaries in our sector to retain the best talent, we must begin to remove power and fear from the salary equation.

Ok, let's talk numbers:

Here are the findings from my first ever, experimental, non-scientific, nonprofit salary survey!

Less than 5 years experience in the nonprofit sector:

Average salary is $36,915 (they think they should be making $43,772)

Are people with less than 5 years of experience in the nonprofit sector satisfied with their salaries?

Are people with less than 5 years of experience in the nonprofit sector satisfied with their benefits?

Between 5 and 10 years experience in the nonprofit sector:

Average salary $42,085 (they think they should be making $50,143)

Are people with between 5 and 10 years of experience in the nonprofit sector satisfied with their salaries?

Are people with between 5 and 10 years of experience in the nonprofit sector satisfied with their benefits?

Over 10 years experience in the nonprofit sector:

Average salary $55,125 (they think they should be making $65,421)

Are people with over 10 years of experience in the nonprofit sector satisfied with their salaries?

Are people with over 10 years of experience in the nonprofit sector satisfied with their benefits?

Download all the data:

There's a lot more information captured in my survey than represented in the above graphs. Here you can download a complete PDF or Excel spreadsheet. Have fun doing your own number crunching and making your own conclusions. And again, this survey is in no way meant to be comprehensive. A lot of factors go into determining someone's salary: subsector, being a male or female (harsh, but true), size of organization, etc. 

Other resources about salary: 

• Myth busting: Nonprofit executive salaries
• Minnesota Council of Nonprofit's Salary and Benefits Survey (costs a pretty penny)
• The Nonprofit Job Market: Explore Salary Range by Position

How can you use this data to start sparking your own discussions about salary and benefits?

photo credit

Myth Busting: Nonprofit executive salaries

This post was originally published on ynpntwincities.org

Most young nonprofit professionals are not yet executive directors, but the policies and attitudes around nonprofit executive salaries already affect us. Negative perceptions and underpaid talent devalue our entire sector and make it an undesirable place to devote one’s career.

Recent data from the 2011 Daring to Lead report supports the sentiment that most executives are underpaid: the median nonprofit CEO salary falls between $50,000 and $75,000 a year, an average of 20–40 percent less than his or her foundation/government/business sector counterpart.

At the same time, there’s an unhealthy obsession outside the sector about nonprofit salaries. The Trust and Charitable Giving in Minnesota survey conducted by the Charities Review Council in 2007 reports that almost half of the Minnesotans surveyed believe nonprofit staff should make less than their for-profit counterparts. Media exposés often ask “how much is too much?” for a nonprofit executive director to make, focusing on rare cases of overpay.

It’s time to bust the myth that paying for salary hurts a nonprofit’s potential to provide more services or detracts from important programs. Moving public perception requires each of us to step up when we hear these sentiments from strangers, friends, and family.

MYTH: “I don’t want my donations paying for nonprofit executives’ salaries.”

BUSTED: Yes, it’s important for a nonprofit to efficiently and effectively use funds to achieve its mission, but the most crucial aspect of that is hiring experienced, competent staff to oversee and implement the organization’s programs. Expecting a donation to be effective without going toward salary is naïve. While 65 percent of a donation might go toward a nonprofit’s programs, the other 35 percent going toward administration and fundraising is critical for an organization to best fulfill its mission and be sustainable.

MYTH: “Nonprofits should be run by volunteers after they retire from the for-profit sector.”

BUSTED: It’s surprisingly common to find individuals who believe execuitve directors should work for less than their for-profit counterparts—or even for free. These opinions are rooted in the misconception that nonprofits are not businesses worthy of paid staff. Leading a nonprofit isn’t a hobby. It’s a real job with real responsibilities, like managing a 10 million dollar operating budget and overseeing dozens or hundreds of staff. Nonprofits are important economic engines that require competent, experienced leaders with market-sensitive pay.

MYTH: “If a nonprofit CEO gets a big salary, then not as many needed services will be provided.”

BUSTED: Nonprofits produce a social return—a return that benefits our communities. Most wouldn’t blink an eye at a for-profit trying to hire the best CEO it can find, at the most competitive salary it can afford, in exchange for the CEO leading the company to increased profits. Why should a nonprofit be any different? Is the importance of social return and betterment of our communities less critical than monetary return? (Not to mention the real monetary impact improved communities have on our society.) If a board of directors is able to hire the best executive director with aggressive compensation, and they produce an increase in financial and social profit for the organization, then it was well worth the investment.

As my own executive director says, “We all benefit when good leaders are attracted to oversee nonprofits that improve the lives of individuals and the community.” Instances of overpay are bad, but underpay is the chronic condition holding the nonprofit sector back. By confronting these misconceptions head-on, young nonprofit professionals can strengthen the value and respect of our sector.

photo credit (dare you to buy this shirt)