(PRWEB) July 26, 2013 -- The Franciscan Foundation for the Holy Land (FFHL) has launched itself into the digital age with Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest portals along with a daily blog, Google+, a Pressroom and an e-newsletter. The combined social media venues will bring news from the Holy Land to a greatly expanded audience and thousands of new supporters, according to Richard Sontag, FFHL Public Relations Director.
"Social media is inexpensive, easy to manage and gives us instant global exposure," he said. He hastened to add that "Traditional forms of communication such as newsletters are still important – but we must adapt to changing generational needs."
Sontag pointed out that men in their 30s and 40s are the largest consumers of digital media for the Foundation. "They may not be reading the newsletters," he said, "but they are definitely reading Facebook and sharing links and posts." He added that much of the social media information today is read on iPhones and other digital devices.
FFHL set up a Pinterest page to provide a means of sharing photos and videos, particularly for persons who do not have a Facebook page. “This allows us to ‘pin’ photos of everything the Foundation is doing in the Holy Land,” Sontag said.
“In addition to the 14 different programs FFHL is operating, there are pins of numerous pilgrimage sites,” he added, pointing out that the Pinterest page is especially valuable to people interested in but unable to make pilgrimages for financial or health reasons. “Pinterest allows them to see the actual people and places their contributions are benefiting,” he added.
The Foundation’s Twitter account allows for the exchange of quick text-based messages, Sontag commented, which includes sharing links to other media. He added that Twitter is important to FFHL because of its enormous growth around the world. “In 2012, there were more than 500 million Twitter users out there,” he said. “A lot of these are deeply interested in what’s happening in the Holy Land.”
The Foundation’s daily blog offers an informal venue for news and views of the Holy Land, along with photos, links to videos and commentary, Sontag said. “There are some 156 million blogs online today,” he said, “ours is a daily journal of what’s going on in the Holy Land.”
Google+ is a multilingual networking site that has grown to be the second largest in the world, Sontag said. Users create circles of shared interest on the site, and FFHL hopes to build on its “Priests and Religious” circle.
The Foundation has also set up a Pressroom for media to visit that contains Press Releases, featured articles, the Foundation’s Fact Sheet along with Bios on the Board of Trustee members, a link to the Pinterest site as well as current videos.
The Foundation’s e-newsletter, “The Custodian,” allows FFHL to e-mail current news, testimonies and information about upcoming Holy Land pilgrimages and fundraising events to subscribers. It also provides a secure venue for making online donations, Sontag said. Interested persons may subscribe at http://www.ffhl.org, he concluded.
Deborah Roberts, Franciscan Foundation for the Holy Land, (317)574-4191, [email protected]
SOURCE Franciscan Foundation for the Holy Land
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