“Oh no, not another social media platform I need to be on,” I hear you say. Unlike Twitter or Facebook which require constant time and attention, Storify is a tool that can enhance your communications, particularly around specific campaigns.
What is useful and unique about Storify is that it can pull all elements of a campaign into one story, which can then be embedded onto your website or shared socially. These elements are not just your own tweets or videos but can also be other’s views on a topic or question, which gives the Storify added value.
Using Storify creatively
Take a look at how Macmillan used Storify to ‘Inspire Millions’. Staff took to the streets to encourage people to get involved in their work and be part of a team. In London they walked from their offices in Vauxhall to Westminster wearing Macmillan t-shirts, helping to raise awareness of their work.
What is really good about this Storify is that it makes supporters feel part of their journey. It also gives a human face to the charity and you really feel like you’re getting to know the people behind the charity. Unless you were on Twitter whilst this was taking place, or you were one of the people Macmillan passed along their journey, you wouldn’t be able to share in this story. Storifying this event allows readers to feel part of the experience.
Using Storify for campaigning
The British Heart Foundation used ‘National Kissing Day’ to remind people that the greatest kiss of all is the kiss of life, promoting their campaign to get ‘Emergency Life Support’ skills onto the national curriculum.
They used the hashtag #GreatestKiss to get people talking on Twitter and they also tweeted what supporters where saying on Facebook about their ‘greatest kiss’ experiences. They embedded their campaign video and media coverage to bring the Storify back to the serious message of the campaign and to highlight goals and successes.
Using Storify for professional development
Last year I ditched the pen and paper and went mobile when it came to jotting down notes for seminars and conferences. I’ve found using Storify a much more effective and practical way of taking notes and sharing knowledge with my peers and colleagues.
An example of using Storify in this way can be found in my ‘Making the Business Case for Communications’ CharityComms seminar, which was featured in the Society Guardian.
My five top tips for using Storify effectively
1. The Storify must flow chronologically so it makes sense to the reader
2. Use headings to break the story up and give context
3. Use rich content such as photos or videos to make it visually appealing
4. Make it easy for the reader to get involved by embedding a link to make a donation, to join a campaign or sign a petition
5. If using Storify to curate a conference or seminar on a particular topic, add relevant content such as a link to an article, blog post, Audioboo or presentation slides in a text box as an added resource
If you tell me, it’s an essay. If you show me, it’s a story. – Barbara Greene