Radical Trust
I attended a great session today that featured staff from three historic sites in SC, IN, and DC talking about various ways they have incorporated technology and specifically social media to promote visitor engagement. The audience raised the question of how to get the support of the decision makers. One site said her director quickly realized the potential of social media and wanted to experiment. Some audience members shared their frustration with hesitant directors who fear trusting user-generated content or contributions from a variety of staff without a strict vetting process. The term for this, first used from our library colleagues (I think) is radical trust. I think that is such a great term, because it is so descriptive. Yes, that is what is takes to engage in social media. It means asking hard questions about perhaps giving up some authoritative voice in exchange for engaging new audiences or deepening ties to your biggest fans. It’s a concept that merits discussion at each organization, but that discussion should include thoughtful consideration of the benefits.
What do you think are the main obstacles to decision makers agreeing to experiment with social media?
One site that I learned about today that is worth exploring is http://www.21stcenturyabe.org/
from the Rosenbach Library in Philadelphia. It is targeted to 18-25 year olds and was conceived as a 6 month site. It will no longer be interactive as of Monday, but will be archived. It is fillled with user-generated content.
Check it out!
