Nature Consortium

Nature Consortium in 140 characters or less:

“A grassroots, community-based organization whose mission is to connect people, arts and nature.”

Nestled at the foot of Delridge in the Youngstown Cultural Arts Center, Nature Consortium is growing. This unique non-profit encompasses many subjects – art, underserved communities, the environment – but what ties them all together is a commitment to creativity and organization. What began as one woman’s good idea has become a well-watered machine with a strong social media presence.

Nature Consortium can be divided into three different branches, starting with their Forest Restoration project. This ambitious endeavor is devoted to preserving Seattle’s largest forest, the five hundred acre greenbelt running along the Duwamish River. On any given day work parties made up of school groups, company outings, or simply passionate individuals can be found clearing out blackberries, weeds and invasive species or working to reintroduce native plants.

Although the scope of the project may seem overwhelming (the organization admits to being committed for the life of the forest!), working with other like-minded organizations helps to share the altruistic burden. Nature Consortium has partnered in various ways with organizations including, but not limited to, Earth Corps, the Green Seattle Partnership and People for Puget Sound. Volunteers are always welcome, especially during Earth Day’s National Volunteer Day fast approaching on April 17th. Interested parties can follow news and progress on the restoration effort through their blog at http://restoration.naturec.org and find information about getting involved here or by emailing volunteer@naturec.org.

The second program Nature Consortium runs is focused on training future environmentally friendly generations through their Youth Arts Program. This consists of free classes held at neighborhood community centers and libraries, each run by paid professional artists in various mediums who use art to focus on environmental topics. These projects could include traditional visual arts, drum circles, poetry or “art you can eat” with the focus on creativity and incorporating nature as a part of daily consciousness. This program targets kids and teens in lower-income neighborhoods, with site coordinators organizing classes around the city, including at Youngstown’s own after school program.

Finally, the third event run by Nature Consortium is the founding project that started it all, the annual Arts in Nature Festival. Artists and community members have enjoyed this gathering at West Seattle’s Camp Long where art and nature come together for over a decade. Individual artists transform cabins into art and sound installations while performers wander the grounds in a celebration that insists, “Everyone has an art.” This event is open to the public, held in August, and you can follow information as it becomes available here.

With so many important messages to share, Nature Consortium has embraced social media as a means to spread information and connect a vast community of followers. They maintain a solid presence on Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and You Tube in addition to the Forest Restoration blog and the organization’s website itself. Maintenance of these accounts, excluding the restoration blog, falls into the hands of Outreach Specialist Monica Thomas.

Keeping all of these accounts current does take time, but they each serve very different purposes for different audiences. Monica notes that Facebook has proven valuable for connecting with fans directly on a personal level while Twitter has been a more effective tool to talk to other organizations. She has also noticed that MySpace remains a popular avenue to reach younger audiences, recalling being contacted via MySpace’s instant messaging program by a youth interested in one of their art programs later on that day.

Nature Consortium recognizes the importance social media as an ongoing tool for outreach. After experiencing an initial rush of excitement upon implementation over a year ago, growth of fans and interaction has naturally leveled off. Monica currently devotes the majority of her outreach time to social media, although she admits that it will soon to be supplemented by maintaining a presence at the various festivals and events that crowd Seattle’s summer social calendar. The organization has enlisted the help of social media consultants for tips on analyzing the effectiveness and frequency of posts and is examining a strategy going forward to engage fans and maintain momentum surrounding their many exciting projects.

Nature Consortium has harnessed the power of online tools to connect directly with the community they serve. For information on supporting Nature Consortium and their ongoing commitment to community, arts and the environment, click here.

Nature Consortium
(located in Youngstown Cultural Arts Center)
4408 Delridge Way SW Suite #107
Seattle, WA 98106
206-923-0853
www.naturec.org
Blog: http://restoration.naturec.org/
Facebook: Nature Consortium
Twitter: @NatureC
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/thenaturec
You Tube: Thorn to be Wild

Easy Street Records

Easy Street Records in 140 characters or less:

“Seattle’s record store, the original, the best.”

Easy Street Records maintains a strong social media presence thanks, in large part, to Nandrin Louis. In addition to handling the store's eBay and Amazon transactions., Nandrin maintains the company’s Facebook and Twitter sites - a position he partially created for himself. After mentioning the importance of these mediums to his coworkers on several occasions, he decided to take the initiative and create a Facebook account. With help from the West Seattle Blog picking up on it, this local favorite gained over 100 followers in its first day!

With a social media internship and a few internet marketing classes under his belt, Nandrin is well aware of how to maximize the tools available to get results. He follows lists on Twitter that give him up-to-date information on Seattle music news (great for retweeting). He also changes settings on specific Facebook posts to distribute them to an appropriate audience so that music fans in California aren’t bombarded by notices about a vinyl sale at the West Seattle street fair.

While Nandrin is responsible for about ninety percent of the content on these sites, there is occasional input from fellow employees - always closely monitored by Nandrin. He also pays attention and adjusts to feedback. In response to input from friends, that too many updates can clutter their homepage, he limits Facebook posts to about once a day. His hunch was reassured when he used diagnostic tools to investigate days when fans were most likely to unsubscribe and discovered that they were all days with multiple postings.

Not only do businesses without an online presence miss a chance to connect with their audience, they run the risk of someone else doing it for them. Easy Street’s official Facebook fan page has over 5,000 fans but an unofficial Facebook Group also exists with only 13 members. If Easy Street weren’t online themselves, their audience could easily turn to the unofficial page for information, which could result in a completely different persona being portrayed than the store provides itself. Who knows what the response could be. Fortunately, Easy Street has this covered with social media pages, a blog, in-store performances and a strong community presence. We can all take some lessons from Easy Street on branding and staking a claim for themselves in their neighborhood and online communities. Their sweatshirt is, afterall, one of the most widely seen piece of logo apparel in West Seattle, and beyond.

Easy Street Records (West Seattle Store)
4559 California Ave SW # 200,
Seattle, WA 98116
206-938-EASY (3279)
http://easystreetonline.com/
Blog: http://easystreetonline.com/blog
Facebook: Easy Street Records
Twitter: @EasyStRecords

Clementine Shoes

Clementine in 140 Characters or Less:

"Women’s shoe and accessory boutique offering fun and unique products at a range of price points."

Clementine shoes has found success on social media by sticking to one important strategy – update daily. Owner Linda Walsh admits that this advice from a local professional PR company sounded intimidating when starting the blog two years ago, but proved to be both easier and more effective than expected. She was surprised to witness an increase in both online and in-store sales.

Linda has experienced similar success, on a smaller scale, since adding a Facebook and Twitter account to the repertoire. She can attribute three sales directly to customers who mentioned Facebook, which she considers significant in a boutique setting.

Although daily posting may not be ideal for every business, Linda does have a few strategies that translate into success in any social media plan. First, she makes a point of tackling this task first thing in the morning, having discovered that the longer she waited the less likely she was to make time for it. The amount of time she spends can vary from quickly retweeting something interesting to half an hour putting together a detailed blog post.

Second, she shares the workload with her staff. Clementine is lucky to be blessed with enthusiastic part-time employees interested in fashion and photography. Designated days of the week are devoted to photos of new products or a weekly “look book” showing how to pull some of the pieces together, maintained by an aspiring fashion student compiling a portfolio. Linda considers herself a “conductor” overseeing the various contributors to Clemetine’s social media symphony.

Finally, Linda admits to battling with self-criticism in the beginning. “Who wants to read this,” she worried, "and what if I sound lame?!" Lucky for her fans, she chose to try to put her best foot forward. With persistence and a positive response she moved past these early concerns to create an avid fan base of followers who engage in both online conversations and in-person sales, a true social media community.

Clementine Shoes
4447 California Ave SW
Seattle, WA 98116
206-935-9400
www.clementines.com
http://clementineswestseattle.blogspot.com
Facebook: Clementine Shoes
Twitter: @clementineshoes

Illusions Hair Design

When it comes to maintaining a social media presence consistency is an important element, one that Heather of Illusions Hair Design does well. Their website, Facebook page and Twitter account display the same recognizable color scheme, logo, contact information and links to other social media pages. On the web, visuals can be as important as content in catching a readers attention and leading them to read further.

Although Heather considers herself “technologically comfortable”, it certainly doesn’t require a degree in computer programming to follow in her footsteps. She turned to Google and searched “Twitter background template” to find instructions and is self-taught when it comes to maintaining the company website. She recognized the web early on as a tool to distribute information to her customers while saving the business time and money spent on traditional methods like newsletters and postcards.

One thing Heather is conscious of is not bombarding their fans with online updates every hour on the hour. She prefers the brevity of Twitter as a medium. “Most people don’t read past the first 140 characters anyway,” she insists. Posts are focused on the information most people ask about, from specials to new retail products available or available appointments.

Consistency is a value behind not only Illusions’ social media philosophy, but the business as a whole. They pride themselves on being a non-tipping salon with no “hidden costs” providing the same quality service every time. They work as a team keeping meticulous customer records so that any stylist can help a client at any time or day of the week. This consistency has solidified Illusions Hair Design as a fixture of the neighborhood since 1978 and is inspired by Heather’s final thought in the interview - “We love our community.”

Illusions Hair Design
5619 California Ave SW
Seattle, WA 98136
206-938-3675
www.illusionshairdesign.com
Facebook: Illusions Haird
Twitter: @IllusionsHairD

Capers

Capers in 140 Characters or less:

“Decorating, entertaining and gift ideas tailored towards people in Northwest, urban homes.”

Capers has taken many forms over the years, from coffee to cushions, and their social media approach is no exception. You can find this West Seattle business presence on Facebook, Twitter and Blogger.

Lisa Myers, the woman behind the business, sees social media as simply another platform to spread a message to the community. Although she calls herself “not technically savvy”, she has relied on numerous sources to guide her experience, including a marketing degree, reading books on social media, attending Social Media Breakfasts in Seattle, simple trial and error, and when in doubt, turning to a fifteen-year-old friend for advice. One of the messages she took to heart is the goal to showcase, not sell your product.

Lisa decided to focus her attention on one subject, a “Cute Chair of the Day” or “C2otD”. She wanted one thing that was visually interesting, maintained consistency, and something that she could talk about on a regular basis. This concept exists on their Twitter, Facebook and blog sites, along with regular updates about sales and in-store events, and has generated reader comments, feedback, and even sales. She also recognizes her strengths and limitations. Lisa maintains the Facebook and Twitter sites, but shares blogging responsibility with a coworker with a talent for writing.

Capers has had mixed reactions to their experiments on social media. They have had immediate responses to Twitter posts, to the point where cashiers were unaware that a message had even been distributed, counterbalanced with zero response to an announcement of discounted sales. Lisa recognizes the value of followers, but struggles with the inequity there seems to be between pages that have a lot of activity (like hers) and others that lack an active presence yet have acquired a large critical mass of fans. This is a conundrum that is being addressed more and more in social media; that the number of fans/followers does not equate to more effectiveness, rather, it is the quality that goes the distance.

Amidst these challenges, Capers stays committed to the real goal of social media- connecting the community. West Seattle on Social Media, Capers and a few others are partnering for a “Tweet-up” or a gathering of local businesses and consumers at Capers on Wednesday, February 17^th at 6:30pm. All are welcome, from businesses to community members looking to mingle and get to know their neighbors. We hope to see you there!

Capers
4525 California Ave SW
Seattle, WA 98116
206-932-0371
http://caperscapers.blogspot.com/
Facebook: Capers
Twitter: @CAPERS_home

Angelina's In West Seattle

Angelina’s in 140 characters words or less:
“Big food, big family, big fun!”

Skip and Allison Rich took ownership of Angelina’s in West Seattle’s Admiral District on September 1, 2009 with specific goals. “We wanted to keep the fantastic things that were there and update them for today,” Allison explains. Those fantastic things include comfort Italian food, members of the previous staff, a family friendly environment and a strong connection to the neighborhood.

Angelina’s is first and foremost a family place. Thanks to two young ones of their own, Skip and Allison put careful thought into including kid-friendly features, from chalkboards built into every booth, play dough available for entertainment, and a kids menu easily customizable for particular tastes or dairy and gluten allergies. Even the staff is a family affair with Allison’s father Ken often providing support staff while Skip makes cocktails or Allison serves tables in the restaurant.

Social media came into play even before the restaurant opened. During the two-month remodel Angelina’s started a Facebook fan page to create anticipation and invited the West Seattle Blog to document the transformation. The Facebook presence provides an interactive experience that supplements the basic information and menus posted on their website at www.angelinaswestseattle.com, whose name alone was given strategic thought. They considered AngelinasWS.com but chose the longer address over any abbreviation for clarity to people outside of the area.

When asked how often they update Facebook Allison instinctively replies, “Not enough!” although they maintain a frequent and unobtrusive presence to their fans posting three to four times a week. These updates explain daily specials like Kids Eat Free Mondays, Wii tournaments in the bar, all day Happy Hour on Sundays and an upcoming Super Bowl party. Both Allison and Skip maintain the social media accounts as opposed to delegating the position, allowing them to both share the responsibility and control the message.

Angelina’s involvement in social media is simply a reflection of their larger commitment to community interaction. Their walls were originally adorned with art from longtime customer Bob Elder and they have upcoming plans to showcase many other West Seattle artists. The bar is frequented by employees from neighboring businesses giving it a Cheers-like feeling where everyone knows your name and your favorite drink.

Angelina’s

2311 SW California Ave
Seattle, WA 98116
206-932-4550
manager@angelinaswestseattle.com
www.angelinaswestseattle.com
Facebook: Angelina’s in West Seattle