The power of communities : Facebook content that's meaningful

PCE had the privilege and responsibility this week to be the MC for The Warwick Cancer Foundation http://thewarwickfoundation.org.au/ Australian Rules Football finals series lunch to raise awareness of the great and much needed work that this foundation does.

Decidedly nervous as being self aware (PCE are most comfortable presenting on client engagement psychology) as an MC PCE realises they are not funny (proven on previous MC attempts!).

But that did not matter. What really mattered was the expression of a community, the inclusion of people, cancer patients aged 18 to 40 who don't have a formal support network and the telling of their stories to spread the word and create something bigger than ourselves and something positive out of the trauma of a cancer diagnosis.

One of the key messages of the day was : tell the story. That is share it, spread it : the power of social interaction that defines our identity and creates new social structures that challenge the staus quo and changes, positively changes the society in which we interact.

Without the social interaction foundations such as the Warwick Foundation can not do the work to change the lives of people for the better.

So often when PCE is asked about social marketing and in particular Facebook campaigns, the starting point is wrong. The message that is trying to be portrayed is a sales message that defines content as something that is a saleable commodity, a service ...what the company wants to sell rather than what clients need or value.

In financial services that leads to articles on the latest superannuation or investment legislation or ideas with the call to action being "for more information make an appointment with us".

It is no wonder these pages and posts have few "likes" let alone responses to action.

Posts like these miss the essence of what it is to be human. They fall short of what individuals are looking for in a postmodernist society.

Being an individual means we interact and associate with that that makes us human. We are drawn and driven to bond with things and people that inspire, motivate and connect us to something greater than ourselves.

Facebook content then for any business should be that which is an expression of who we are and what our values are. It means exposing your vulnerabilities and your humanness.

The Warwick Foundation is a reminder of what it means to be human. In the rawness of a cancer diagnosis it is our humanity that defines us. Nothing else matters. And our humanity at that moment is stripped back from any social structures or protocols and comes back to simple and complex basics : emotion, support, bonding, love.

So for those looking for Facebook content with meaning then checking out https://www.facebook.com/thewarwickfoundation is a good start to remind us of what it means to be human and what is important.

Connecting with and sharing this community might just be your first step in helping create something much larger than we as indviduals could do alone.