Summer 2010 | Volume 108 | Number 656
Join Thrivent Financial Online
Like many organizations, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans is connected to the world of social networking, with our own Facebook page and steady stream of Twitter tweets. But did you know Thrivent Financial was a bit of a pioneer in social networking? Twelve years ago, Thrivent Financial started Lutherans Online, an active Web community featuring forums, message boards, free website hosting and free greeting cards. "We had that space long before anyone heard of social networking," says Gene Smaciarz, Thrivent Financial's director of creative services. "Now we're working to take that energy into these new forums, too."
Besides campaigns like the Facebook fundraiser for Lutheran World Relief – which encouraged site users to become Thrivent Financial "fans" by donating $1 per new fan, up to $10,000 – Thrivent Financial uses its social networking presence to spread the word about financial education and in-house events and news, and to highlight members' volunteerism. According to Smaciarz, the services also allow the organization to have some fun. In March, for example, a Thrivent Financial Facebook post solicited members' thoughts on that month's big college basketball games.
"What we're really trying to do with the social networking sites is engage with more people, and encourage them to engage with us and each other," Smaciarz says. "We really want to listen to what people have to say, and we're still learning how best to use these avenues. As a membership organization of people who share a common bond, we look at this as another way to bring people together."
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