Welcome to the 21st Century

I think that since I’ve made my career as a web developer, sometimes I take technology for granted. In a single day, I probably spend more time sitting on my rear-end in front of a computer than I do sleeping. And when I’m not at the computer, there’s a good chance I’m watching TV on my HDTV, playing XBox, or fiddling with my Blackberry. Even when I make it out to the gym for a quick workout, I’m toting my iPod.

The point is that I’m never not plugged in. And I can’t imagine what life would be (or was) like without all of this gadgetry. I know I existed before this technology — there are photographs on 35mm film out there to prove it — but I can’t remember what it was like.

I also can’t imagine how an organization can survive and flourish in the 21st century without embracing technology. That is something that the Art Association of Harrisburg is currently struggling with.

Recently, I’ve enlisted as a volunteer at the Art Association as a committee member on the AAH Bal Masque committee, and I worked with the AAH on a web project for the previous year’s Bal Masque as well. After being a part of this community for over two years and having interacted and formed relationships with some of the organization’s board members and other volunteers, it’s clear to me that the Association is behind the times.

The AAH isn’t intentionally avoiding the 21st century, but it seems they’re not doing anything to actively participate in it either. This may stem from the fact that a large majority of the board members are from an older generation and probably haven’t been as immersed in (or reliant on) modern technology as more recent generations have. They can not or may not be able to see the value in something as simple as a well designed web site (or an easy to remember URL). This generation gap seems to be a point of friction, albeit minimal, within the ranks of the active AAH members.

Thank goodness for Carrie Wissler-Thomas. As the current president of the AAH, Carrie “gets it.” She may not be tech savvy, but she understands the importance of using technology to remain relevant. Last year, the Art Association added the ability for visitors to their site to pay AAH membership dues and buy Bal Masque through PayPal on their website. The added functionality, so far, has been a success.

But that’s not enough. On it’s own, that’s not going to improve membership numbers or the visibility of the organization. And that’s where myself and fellow AAH volunteer, Julie Bancroft come in. We’ve sort of appointed ourselves the de facto marketing team for the Art Association, and with a budget of approximately $0.00, have developed phase one of a basic plan to improve the visibility and perceived image of the Association.

• Step 1: Get a Twitter account and start following other art/music/theatre organizations from the region
• Step 2: Create a Facebook profile for AAH, sync it with the Twitter account and start adding as many friends as we can
• Step 3: Organize joint events with other HBG organizations like the Midtown Arts Center or Susquehanna Art Museum
• Step 4: Go viral with videos created and produced by local artists to expose some non traditional forms of artwork like video, performance, graffiti and others
• Step 5: Update the existing AAH website

On top of all that, we’re going to try to introduce the Bal Masque committee members to Basecamp in order to improve communication and organization within the Art Association itself.

This seems like quite an undertaking, but the Art Association of HBG is a great organization and is in need of an update. I’m excited for the challenge.

Bonus question:
What are some of your experiences with promoting a business or organization via web technologies or through other low cost avenues?