Social Media - Driver or Bummer? A qualitative analysis of the relationship building on Social Media between student non-profit organizations and volunteers

Abstract: The non-profit sector is reliant on volunteers and strong relationships with volunteers help retain them. These relationships with volunteers always need to be built and maintained. Organizations use Social Media to inform the stakeholders, build a community, and activate volunteers, but the dialogue is often hardly reached. The understanding that communication constitutes organizations allows the exploration of all communication in an organizational setting This research focuses on the relationship between student organizations and student volunteers, as students use Social Media heavily. The Organisation-Public Relationship (OPR) is researched by four dimensions: control mutuality, trust, commitment, and satisfaction. The cultivation of the relationship outcomes is explored in the context of Social Media through interviews with volunteers and management of two student organizations in Lund, Sweden. The OPR model is extended with the relationship outcome belongingness. The results show that the social group aspect of belongingness is a relevant dimension to the OPR and can be strengthened through Social Media Communication. Facebook Groups seem to be especially helpful in building a community and dialogue online. Social Media can be utilised to inform the public, organise the volunteering, raise expectations, increase accessibility, and to support leisure communication, which strengthen the OPR in return.