Don’t relegate social media management to cheap labor

Soliciting volunteers for an essential position? You’ll get what you pay for

No organization would ask an intern to manage its communications or marketing departments. So why do many of them put volunteers in charge of their all-important social media efforts?

Recently, an all-too-familiar e-mail went out to participants from last month’s C-BOM blog sustainability meeting. I won’t name the organization it came from, but here is a portion:

“I was wondering if those of you who work with students wouldn’t mind passing the below job description on. The stipend isn’t much, but this is a great opportunity …

We’re looking for part-time interns to help increase the impact of our (Blahbety-Blah) Project. Ideal candidates are snappy writers, have a good grasp of social networks and are self-starters…Please forward this email widely!

… Here are some of the perks:

If you’re based in Chicago, come and work from our comfy (popular neighborhood) office. We’ll supply you with coffee and workspace.

If you’re a nonprofit with no clue about social media, it just might it might sound like a good opportunity.