If you didn’t already know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. It’s the time of the year that pink starts showing up everywhere. Pink ribbons are tied onto lampposts, NFL players are wearing pink on the field, and newspapers are being printed on pink paper, all to raise awareness for breast cancer. Social media has proven to be an extremely effective way of raising awareness for any cause.
There have been several creative campaigns that have brought people on social media together to raise awareness for breast cancer. Do you remember seeing “I like it on…” Facebook statuses last year? That was a social media campaign to unite women against breast cancer. There was also a campaign where women posted the color of their bra as their Facebook statuses. Earlier this month, #nicknamesforbreasts was trending worldwide on Twitter to raise awareness for breast cancer in a fun way.
One campaign for cancer awareness actually set a world record: the Guinness World Record for the “Most Widespread Social Network Message in 24 hours”. The record was set in 2009 by Everywhere from Atlanta, Ga. for having 209,771 unique mentions of #beatcancer on Twitter, Facebook, and blogs. Sponsors donated a certain amount for each mention, raising more than $70,000. In 2010 they attempted to beat their own record and while they did not succeed, the website still displays new mentions of #beatcancer on social media.
Besides raising awareness about breast cancer, social media is also a resource for people fighting breast cancer. There are countless blogs about living with breast cancer and raising awareness. There are also forums to connect and inform people, such as the weekly #BCSM Twitter chat.
One unique website discovered is Cancer Be Glammed, offering resources on everything from mastectomy fashions to blog posts. The website is dedicated to finding stylish fashions for women undergoing cancer treatment. The site also has a guide that addresses the challenges of dressing and looking your best to help you feel your best during cancer treatment. The owners of the site also provide advice and inspiration through the site and it’s social media channels.
As social media continues to gain even more momentum it will become an invaluable resource for those affected by cancer, from patients to friends and family. Have you heard of any other great online communities that have to do with cancer awareness?
Tags: breast cancer awareness, breast cancer awareness month, social good, social media
[...] Social for the Cure: Building Communities – In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, a look at how social media can be used to build support communities. [...]