Your group is sending out press releases, posting to your blog regularly, commenting on other blogs, and maybe even Tweeting.  You want others to listen to what you have to say, but are you listening in return?

Following are some quick and inexpensive (i.e. free) ways you can monitor online conversations and determine where you want to participate and where your own messages could help. 

1. Set up google alerts to grab content about your organization, leaders, and key issues. 

2. Set up a Del.icio.us.account so you can bookmark and tag your favorite sites. Del.icio.us lets you save all your bookmarks online, share them with other people, and see what other people are bookmarking.

3. Search Twitter to find out what's being tweeted about your group and your issues.  

4. Search Facebook to keep current with what other groups and opinion leaders are doing in this social network space.

5. Set up a feed reader or aggregator that will help you streamline web content such as headline, blogs, and podcasts into one location.  A commonly used and free reader is Google Reader, but there are others.

6. Use Technorati, a blog search engine, to check for blog coverage about your organization & spokespeople

Although not free tools, consider investing in services that monitor online conversations such as Radian6, Morningside Analytics and Linkfluence.  These services will map and measure social media trends and tell you where specific online conversations are taking place.

I can't claim credit for these tips... I just compiled a list.  Thanks to Nancy Schwartz and her July 28, 2009 Getting Attention newsletter and to Martin Kearns, our own Executive Director.

Please share any feedback and additional ideas.

Happy listening...