The Livestrong foundation is a non- profit organization in the USA that gives support to the people managing and surviving cancer. The organization was first called Lance Armstrong Foundation, named after Lance Armstrong, the initial founder. However, Armstrong almost tore the organization apart when he confirmed his dishonesty about the secret of his sports career; he told everyone that he had been using performance-enhancing drugs during his cycling. Donors and sponsors had started fleeing in large numbers from giving assistance and support to the organization. It is at this time that Doug Ulman came in handy and saved the group (from the expected downfall) through social media and other forms of internet communication.
Ulman always had a driving force into mobilizing people through the internet and other platforms. He believed that the community is a very powerful tool for the improvement of your business. Initially, Doug never believed there is strength in social media. “Four years ago, I knew nothing about social media. I didn’t believe in social media,” Doug Ulman (Qualman 45). He later realized that social media can be anything depending on how you use it. He came to have a wider view social media as a ‘community.’ He uses this term because he has realized that the members of the social group organizations had realized that they are more of a community since they shared common sufferings. He used Twitter and Facebook platforms to bring together people, especially cancer patients and those who had suffered from cancer before.
In Twitter, Ulman has over one million followers. This makes it easy to connect and share with cancer victims worldwide. People can organize for fund raisings, share encouraging stories and also spread word about Livestrong services. Through a vast social media network, it has become possible for the organization to support cancer research, bring together and encourage cancer victims that having cancer is not and can ever be the end of life (Kanter, Beth &Allison 98). It is in the social media platforms that Ulman gave members of the organization the power to decide and make online decisions that are implemented. Cohesion has been maintained by making sure all members of the organization are at ease of voicing out anything they wish about the organization.
References
Kanter, Beth, and Allison H. Fine. The Networked Nonprofit: Connecting with Social Media to Drive Change. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2010. Print.
Qualman, Erik. Socialnomics: How Social Media Transforms the Way We Live and Do Business. 2013. Print.
