Wikimedia's fundraising efforts have been successful in getting more and more funding each year, so what's the problem? Well, Wikimedia's social media efforts have a lot of potential for improvement.
Here's some context.
Challenge
Wikipedia is the leader of 16 projects provided by Wikimedia. As the number one performer of organic search results on Google, Wikipedia is one of the most powerful websites on the planet. It has 40 million articles in 301 languages, making access to information available to virtually anyone with Internet connection.
Wikimedia is a global movement whose mission is to bring free education content to the world. Supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation, Wikimedia uses various projects and chapters to bring about a world in which every single human can freely share in the sum of all knowledge. Wikimedia and its projects rely on donations to fund its maintenance and development of these projects, along with the people who operate them.
Wikimedia's 2016-17 Fundraising report stated that it would explore social media as a way to expand fundraising efforts, but there is no mention of it on the 2017-18 report. My goal here is to develop a more effective social media marketing campaign for donations by optimizing presence on existing social media outlets.
Research
Wikimedia Fundraising Reports
Wikimedia's fundraising is most successful in English-speaking countries, particularly Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. These countries alone account for 50% of the the Foundation's fundraising. The average donation size of 2018 was $15.86, but the web banners only ask for a minimum of $3 with the phrase, the "cost of your coffee this Thursday."
Evaluating Social Media Presence
Of all the Wikimedia projects and the Wikimedia Foundation itself, Wikipedia has the strongest presence across Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Past campaigns include a Facebook profile photo frame, #ilovewiki on Twitter, and #WeMissTurkey to bring awareness to the sudden ban on access to Wikipedia in Turkey.
Here's a snapshot of each network:
~5.5M Likes / Followers
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Nearly 5.5 million likes and followers, meaning 5.5M organic reach
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Publishes multiple posts every day
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Question-based posts and popular topics get the most community engagement
421K Followers
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Great interaction on user threads, but does not carry the confident tone of an authority on facts
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Consistently posts multiple times a day, each with a new fact
124K Followers
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Inconsistent posting schedule
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Missed opportunities on Stories feature
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No bio in description
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Includes an off-brand photo of the office cat
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Comments range from positive sentiment to even jokes about the $3 campaign