Discussion: Orienteering Facebook Group

Hi All, is there an Orienteering Group on Facebook? I tried to search for one but all the ones I could find were based in other countries (different languages). I was thinking of starting one but first wanted to make sure one didn't already exist that I'm missing.

Most US clubs have a Facebook Page and OUSA has a Facebook Page. A 'group' is a little different though

Your blog mentions places in western New England and leads me to believe you're in western MA or Connecticut. NEOC does have a Facebook page (WCOC does not as far as I'm aware). CSU also has one (as well as EMPO centered in Albany NY).

Clubs whose Facebook pages I know about have icons indicating links to them here; the OUSA Facebook page is here which may also link to club pages (see the box there, labeled "liked by this page"). These are all public pages.

If there are clubs with Facebook pages that OUSA hasn't linked to on the Clubs page, please let me know. Thanks!

Thanks Janet, I am indeed based in New England; specifically the Boston Area so I've discovered some local clubs such as NEOC, CSU and UNO.

I went ahead and created a public Facebook group for just general, non-location specific orienteering discussion; it may help newcomers come into the fold a bit more since Facebook has billions of users and Attackpoint is more of an advanced level website.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1239384429453415

I think it's great to have a general orienteering group, and yours is a great start.

Stating that

I ... decided to make one where I can ask all my newbie related orienteering questions. Because, lets face it; Facebook is a slightly more popular website than Attackpoint.

seems a bit off-putting to those of us who joined Attackpoint long before Facebook (or those who are only on Attackpoint; or are not on social media at all) who might be the best ones to answer your questions. Facebook has a larger reach (popularity having nothing to do with it) in the general population, but I like the fact that Attackpoint is really "Facebook for orienteers." ;-)

May I suggest that you skip the comment about popularity and say something about it supplementing/complementing Attackpoint (adding a link would be nice) as a place to get answers? Otherwise you might get a bunch of newbies asking questions no one can answer (though I did see a couple of experienced orienteers have already signed up). :-)

Point taken and I've edited the comment on the FB page. And added a link to AP in the description of the group.

I do understand the value of AP and useful tools it has (just discovering new features everyday), and that many people aren't engaged with Facebook of social media. On the other side of the coin I'm aware that FB is extremely accessible, I've been interested in getting involved with Orienteering for a long time, but not having a platform to easily connect with other folks had been a barrier to me attending meets for the better part of a year.

I'm certainly not looking to steal users or discussion away from AP, just trying to pick a low hanging fruit for an activity who often seems to often ask 'How do we get more people involved?'. The more folks that get involved from any platform will naturally be drawn to the advanced features and rich discussion of AP.

I like your edits. :-) And I hope more folks stumble across the Facebook page.

Interesting trivia item that I like: Attackpoint has been around longer than Facebook.

It's been around longer than most fitness / activity tracking sites as well and shames many of them.

And AP has far less fake news than FB!

There's also a reddit, /r/orienteering. It's not heavily used, but Reddit may reach people who don't do Facebook.

I found a link to a nice video of a sprint relay in Casaleccio, Italy, last month.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhGjcMseMoI

Most US clubs have a Facebook Page and OUSA has a Facebook Page.

Typically, the only purpose of these groups is to spam you into going to events and volunteering. A "take" purpose".

If, however, after all sorts of going to events and volunteering, you fall on hard times and can no longer serve the master purpose of the group, there is no "give" purpose. You no longer exist.

YMMV of course, depending on how deep into the clique you are.

get over it randy

+1

I'm trying to figure out what the context of randy's comment is:

Are FB groups serving individual events or organizations bad, because they are marketing devices (be they for orienteering clubs, trail running promoters, your favorite hobby's events etc.), and that a generic overarching hobby page (trail running in general, orienteering in general) is okay?

In that sense, what is wrong with an organization wanting attendance and sustainability? There uncountable other things, some more and some less successful than orienteering, whose online presence largely serves to drive attendance or revenue (revenue in place of orienteering's volunteering). I don't see that as bad.

Did I get added to the FB group by someone else? I went there and found I was already a member. Of course, I suppose it's possible I added myself without realizing. Don't really get how FB works sometimes.

Looks like Alex added you, Barb.

Anyone in the group can add other people without their permission, but you're certainly free to leave the group.

If you're not added by someone else already in the group, the only way to join to click the 'join group' button and have the group owner approve it.

Zuckerberg's FB has become globalists' tool against the sovereignty of America, a sneaky way to promote their sick agenda.
Even if using it may look convenient in trying to reach those who live in there, the long-term effect is giving legitimacy to the machine of manipulation, lie, censure, facilitating total government control over peoples' lives.
Instead, every true patriot should promote and use All-American AP.

The only time I can remember AP being inherently US-centric was when Ken wasn't storing enough significant digits on GPS traces to handle people who lived >100° longitude.

And since AP is full of annoying Aussies, doesn't that make it part of the globalist hegemony?

ps. Ken's real surname is Rockefeller

Walkerfeller.

I've always had a suspicion that tRicky is the pointy end of the stick for Aussie sourced hegemony. The only thing that has kept my concerns at bay has been that the very nice TrishTash approves of him.

Walkerfeller

That's what we call the M80s.

@Iamstillhungry... for that nice comment I might let you read my AP log. :)

@Juffy... thats what *some* people call the M80s.

Get real. You are talking like Ken is a real person, someone who has developed all this during his spare time outside job, international athlete career and family life. How likely is that? In reality there must be league of developers behind that nick name.

Or an army of robots.

This is Ken:
http://xkcd.com/705/

But getting back to the topic, I think a Facebook group about orienteering generally is a great idea. When I first started orienteering, I scoured the internet in search of information about the sport. A gateway to learning more on a mass market portal like Facebook can only help. It's not clear to me what the content will necessarily be - perhaps it will collect content rather than generate it, like worldofo.com. The Facebook group 'orienteering memes' is often funny, but you only get the jokes if you've already drunk the kool aid.

I think New Mexico Orienteers desperately needs a FB group for outreach in New Mexico. The NMO website is seriously cumbersome and has no "groupware" to speak of. I don't envision a lot of discussion on the FB group, its purpose would be to raise awareness that we exist.

I am trying to decide Public vs Closed group. A Private (aka secret) group would do nothing for outreach, now would it? Thoughts?

We (SMOC, America's Most Likable Orienteering Club) elected to do a Page rather than a Group, because then it would be all open all the time. Photos can be shared with non FB users, etc. If you start your page, I suggest experimenting with advertising, which can be done cheaply, and I believe has been beneficial for SMOC. If you want more details, my email's at my profile.

Advertising as in NMO creates social media ads and pays for their placement? We would need some product then, which currently we don't have. Working on that!

Use a page for your public face. This allows anyone with a FB account to like the page, interact with it, and receive (at least some) of the posts in their news feed. Groups tend to work a lot better for a pre-selected population. I'd use a closed or secret group for club officer or existing member discussion, if there's no other venue for it and you must have it on FB.

GAOC's is a Public Group. That seems to work fairly well for us.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/gaorienteering/

Many other orienteering clubs have Facebook Pages. A few also have Twitter feeds and Meet Up groups. See Quantico O Club for example, on the OUSA club listing page.

If you (or any other OUSA club/supporting organization) would like a link to your social media site/s added there, send a note to the web content manager.

Linda says maybe you are thinking of Kathleen Lennon?

Yes, I confused my L & K named people.

Thanks for starting this discussion thread, jleblanc. Very timely!

The OUSA board has an approved and budgeted plan for linking Facebook promotion at the national & local levels. It would allow every participating club to benefit from FB activity in other clubs, and to nationally showcase the activity across the country--geographically, we are so spread out that one club's slow season is another club's peak season. Nationally, this makes us always-on.

The plan is in the OUSA Library at: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1Ile7XW9JNm5PW0W-.... Right now, we're looking for two small test groups of 3-4 participating clubs---those with a thriving FB presence who are looking to share that wider, and those with FB challenges who are looking for guidance and assistance. And yes, it includes FB ad dollars for top-performing posts. Interested? Contact me here or at bob.forgrave@flatbike.net.

A final word about goals of FB vs. Attackpoint. They are different.

FB is our face to the outside world, where we introduce an active sport that may be of interest to runners, joggers, hikers, adventure lovers, etc.. Discussions are about what the sport is, overcoming fears of the unknown and getting lost, and generally welcoming newcomers into a warm community.

Attackpoint is our face to each other, where we communicate and solve problems among folks who already know what orienteering is. Discussions range from highly motivational appreciation about what just went really well at an excellent event to emotionally charged posts and debates about what desperately needs to be fixed and the consequences of inaction.

Ultimately, expanding FB is not about replacement, but about a welcoming outside presence that can help our sport grow. Thoughts?

Maybe not timely. Just saw the year. But an important discussion nevertheless.