ASB social media editor Tenani French is making the ultimate first world sacrifice of giving up social media for a week to support its sponsorship of St John.
The bank has taken to crowdfunding site Give A Little to raise awareness of St John’s work and $2000. Donors have been full of helpful advice and sympathy, telling French to knit a scarf to while away the time and assuring him nothing much is happening in social media at the moment other than talk of the royal visit.
French and head of corporate content and social media Simone McCallum say the social media silence was a relevant way to fundraise because the bank’s team use social heavily in and outside work.
“Tenani is the most active and had the most to lose,” says McCallum. “It was a bit of a sacrifice.
“We wanted to profile not just the personal sacrifice but also St John and the work they do in the community.”
French says he uses accounts on Twitter, Google+, Four Square, YouTube, Instagram and others every day, but this week will spend his time helping St John instead.
He’s joined an ambulance shift and will be involved in the organisation’s street appeal collecton tomorrow, when one winner will take over ASB’s Instagram and Twitter accounts for the day. But ASB won’t be handing over the reins entirely, says McCallum.
“People have said, ‘are you giving over the keys to your accounts?’ It won’t be like that.”
She likens the initiative to Sir John Kirwan’s recent guest editorship of the New Zealand Herald, but on a smaller scale.
“[The winner will] post using their own tone and personality, but it will be as part of a team.”
The chance to take over the accounts could appeal to someone interested in digital marketing, someone from an agency or from a smaller business who wants to get insight into the processes and variety of content at a big corporate.
Image: Blog.asb.co.nz
