Enter the CiviCRM Marketing Team

Back in May of 2013, Dave Greenberg made a push to improve the marketing of CiviCRM, resulting in a team of partners and contributors working together to help raise awareness and promote the software. Fast forward to 2016 and we’re continuing to market CiviCRM, building upon their initial efforts. Today, we’re taking another step. Consistent with the Core Team’s organizational objective of creating defined project teams, we’re pushing forward with the formalization of a dedicated CiviCRM Marketing Team.

Tasked with scaling the size of the ecosystem, the marketing team will consist of working groups with specific responsibilities and objectives, the culmination of which will result in a coordinated strategy and in its substantive implementation. Why am I highlighting the implementation portion? Because it’s not enough to focus on strategy alone. As a community, we all stand to benefit from greater participation and wider adoption of CiviCRM. In order to achieve both, we have to focus on both a broad strategy as well as the short and medium term steps to get us there.

Today, CiviCRM sits at 10,483 active installations. Our 2016 objective is to scale this to 12,000, and the immediate tasks of the marketing team will be focused heavily on achieving this goal.

Why ‘Project Teams’?

We referenced the formation of project teams above and cited it as an organizational goal of the Core Team. The purpose of a more defined project team structure is to clarify not just how the project operates, but to clearly demonstrate how to get involved and to communicate where the project is headed. If successful, the project teams will 1) improve contributor recruitment, 2) better recognize contributor support and 3) more efficiently coordinate the entire project.

We occasionally use the term ‘doacracy’ in this community, with the implication that if you’re doing something for the project, then it must be good. In reality, that assumption may or may not be true. The purpose of defined project teams is, in fact, to better align what each individual is doing with the project’s central objectives, thereby ensuring their success. Consider it a more structured ‘doacracy’ intended to efficiently manage the complexities of producing and promoting CiviCRM.

Enter the Marketing Team

This initiative to revive the marketing team is intended to recruit individuals, be they partners, members or contributors, with a range of skills and to coordinate them such that we build awareness of this incredible open source CRM for nonprofits. It will require an ongoing commitment from participants, including a commitment of time and hands on work. If you want to help grow CiviCRM, then it’s time to get involved! If you’re interested in participating, email me directly.

Want to help, but don’t have the capacity? You don’t have to be a part of the marketing team to promote CiviCRM.

Here are 3 ways that you can help right now:

The CiviCRM Marketing Team will continue to form and hit the ground running within the next 30 days. Questions, comments, feedback, encouragement and participation are all welcome!

Let’s hit that 12,000 active site mark this year!

• Join the conversation online
  CiviCRM is active on Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+ and Facebook. Follow, friend and share, and help promote CiviCRM through social media.
• Share your experience
  Write a case study on your experience with CiviCRM, and share your views on popular software review sites such as Software Advice, Capterra and G2 Crowd. Your reviews do make a difference!
• Get involved in a local event
  CiviDay is right around the corner. Attend a local event or host your own. Mark your calendars for major events in 2016 as well!

The CiviCRM Marketing Team will continue to form and hit the ground running within the next 30 days. Questions, comments, feedback, encouragement and participation are all welcome!

Let’s hit that 12,000 active site mark this year!