beautiful bytes: tea, hashtags, apps and some wise words
In this week’s beautiful bytes I get excited by tea, irritated by hashtags, contemplate the next generation of fitness apps and inspired by wise words from a man who sourced Parsnip recipes online…
Tweets for Tea
As a typical British tea lover, this article caught my eye on BBC news. It turns out there is a vending machine in South Africa which offers you tea (iced sadly, no builders brew in sight) in exchange for a tweet. Users simply need to tweet using the hashtag #BOSTWEET4T – although you will need to ensure location data is switched on so it can verify you’re actually in need of a cuppa. The vending machine is also named Bev, which just adds to its charm.
What I love about this story is its creativity – and how Twitter is still insisting on barging its way into everyday life. For example, you can’t watch television anymore without tv show hashtags being promoted – although I wonder about excessively marketing driven ones, like #gleeonsky or #grimmonwatch. Aside from giving you an insight into the kind of trash I watch on TV, I do have to question these branded, and therefore often unnecessarily long hashtags.
The potential of Twitter still excites me as much as it did when I joined back in 2009, perhaps with initiatives like Giv2.it making giving money on Twitter easy, even more so. What is your charity doing with Twitter that excites you? Tell us in the comments below or tweet @beautifulw.
Fitness app the next step for events fundraisers?
This article on the Charity Miles app also grabbed my attention this week. Charity Miles is a free app which allows users to earn money for charity with every step they take – all they have to do is share their activity on Facebook and Twitter for charities to receive donations. It’s funded by corporate sponsors, allowing them to connect with consumers by sponsoring their run or walks – although it’s not clear exactly what this entails. Although it’s only available in the U.S. at the moment, I’m interested to see how this app might look if it makes it across the Pond, and the possibilities for it to integrate with events fundraising.
Some wise words
Twitter is a great way to share your organisations latest news, or campaign but it’s not just a broadcasting tool. Some wise words from Ayr Muir, President of Clover Food Lab – recently praised for his successful marketing and sourcing parsnip recipes on Twitter:
“Twitter’s a neat way for me to hear what people have to say” – don’t forget it’s important to listen too.
NFPtweetup drinks
NFPtweetup breaks for summer but as September is such a long time away we usually have a few drinks to catch up before everyone pops off on their holidays. This time around, it seems NFPtweetup drinks have been in particularly high demand as a few people (Laila, I definitely mean you!) haven’t been able to make it along to events recently. So, please join us as at Bar Music Hall on Wednesday 4th July. There will be no Pringles or presentations but there will be lots of lovely NFPtweetup people, charity chat and possible boasting about lego collections (mainly from the beautiful world team). No tickets necessary, just a few pennies for a drink or two. Hope to see you there!
Until next time,
Teri
Image credits: BBC News