The local media and social media are powerful tools for raising awareness of your project, as well as calling attention to the results. Many people like to volunteer for the sake of doing something good and aren’t interested in accolades, but telling your story can inspire others to do get involved. That’s what Make A Difference Day is about — inspiring people and communities to serve, even if it’s for just one day. The thing is that one day very often becomes a habit of volunteering.

Following up with a roundup of your project’s impact not only inspires others to get involve, but it also reinforces the personal reward your volunteers get from serving. Use numbers and specific details to really paint a picture of your project’s success. Here are a few ideas for ways to show your community, friends and family to the good that can be done in just one day.

1. Set up a Facebook page or event where people can get more information and follow your progress. It’s a great forum for people to contribute ideas and share their experiences. While your on Facebook, be sure to “like” the Make A Difference Day page and share your posts with us. Twitter is a good resource, too. You can follow @MDDay for updates about the day and share details with us and your followers. Check out all the action from this year at #mdday11.
2. Even if you can’t get the local media to come to your project to cover it, their websites are a great way to post notices and encourage others to participate. Look for local forums, comment on stories, start a blog or submit a letter to the editor. Many websites have ways to upload photos and video, too. Be sure to include links to your Facebook and Twitter pages, so people know where to find you.
3. If you do get local media coverage, share the links! Use social media to distribute the links of local coverage. Use those links in your project update in the DAYtaBANK to show the influence your project had.
4. Take lots of photos at your project and ask others to share theirs, too. Post photos in an online album and put links to them in your social media posts and in your project update in the DAYtaBANK. Make A Difference Day has a photo gallery for volunteers to post in, and Facebook is a great way to share your pictures.
5. Video doesn’t have to be professionally shot to show off your project. Most camera phones and digital cameras have pretty good video capabilities and make it super easy to get them online. YouTube is a great resource and has a quick and easy set up. Facebook allows videos to be uploaded to pages as well. Regardless of what you use, be sure to share your videos via social media, especially with Make A Difference Day. We favorite all the videos shared with us on the Make A Difference Day channel on YouTube.