Rummaging through a number of “how to do not-for-profit social networking” posts, I came across one rarely cited but vitally important piece of advice: Be prepared for the big moment.

Typically it takes time for a message to percolate when it doesn’t have a supporting marketing budget. But whatever your effort is, there will come a moment that puts you in the news. Will you be able to retain all of the people that show up at your door? For nonprofits, a example scenario is the Red Cross web site after Hurricane Katrina hit. For a consumer Internet vendor, it could be a great mention in digg. (christine.net)

I suspect there are a lot of government communicators and marketers trying to scrape together the money, the infrastructure and the political support for social media projects - without giving thought to the strain that a truly successful outreach or marketing effort could place on your project and your shop as a whole.

Ever heard of a national political party sponsoring a race car? Now you have.

And why don’t I get crate after crate of Cadbury’s creme eggs delivered to my office? Oh - because I work for the government.

Don’t you feel a slight sense of embarassment when colleagues and neighbours ask if your office has any tchotchkes for charity auctions? Environmentally sustainable, low budget, low profile office supplies never leave much of an impression.

(cross-posted to my old (but still running) blog, Canuckflack)