AFTER YOUR PAGE IS PUBLISHED
My job is to create your web page. Your job is to share, promote, and publicize it in every way you can. Just being listed here is not enough. Like a new product that's just been developed on the market, you must "advertise" your page in order for people to find out about it. Passively relying on search engines will bring very little traffic directly to your page.
Just as in the world of advertising, the most effective kind is word-of-mouth advertising. Share your page with everyone you know, and ask them to do the same. Use e-mail, social networking, word of mouth, snail mail, and flyers to spread the word. A clever way to get traffic to your page is to wear a "need-a-kidney" t-shirt or sweat shirt and hand out several donor-search cards to everyone who says something about the shirt.
Listed below are a dozen of the most popular social networking sites on the web. Certainly, you don't have to post on every one, but the more places you post, the more people you will reach...and the more likely you are to find your donor. Try choosing several, and alternate weeks when you post on each one. Remember, all you have to do is make a quick comment and post a link to your page. (To post a link, go to your page, copy the address from the address box, and paste it into the spot where you want the link to appear.)
A very important part of finding a donor is educating people who may consider donating. The general public knows very little about kidney disease, dialysis, donation, or transplant. Most people are especially surprised to learn that the donor surgery is performed via a minimally invasive laporoscopy and requires only 2 days' hospitalization. So, in addition to sharing your own page, encourage people to browse the entire site.
There's a wealth of information here, all of which has been painstakingly researched. Of particular interest to those contemplating donation are stories of people who've donated, so be sure to point those out. By referring people to this site--which answers just about every question one could ever ask about living donation--you make it easier for potential donors to learn and get answers to their questions...making it more likely that they will consider donating to you.
Repost links to your web page every week or two, and provide a brief update to keep people interested. Don’t post too often, or people will no longer pay attention. (Or worse, they may get annoyed.) If you don’t post often enough, people will miss or forget about your post. Be sure to ask people to share your post with others.
Remember, your story will reach thousands more people by being posted both here and on the Living Kidney Donor Search Facebook page. The Facebook page is also the place where important information about this site is announced. If you haven't already done so, you can join the LKDS Facebook page by clicking HERE right now.
You have to keep up with this, or your page will get very little traffic. Just like advertising, people often forget what they've seen until it's repeated a number of times. It's very important to keep your repeat posts interesting by always including an update. Otherwise, people will get bored and ignore it. If you don't have anything new to tell, offer an interesting fact about living donation. You may use any fact you find on this site.
Remember, the more active effort you put into your search, the better your results are likely to be. There are good folks out there; your job is to find them. This is your life, so put your very best effort into making it easy for your donor to find you.
Finally, please keep me updated. I'd really like to follow your progress and share the milestones (good or bad) along your journey. I can also update your story if your situation changes. And, regardless of whether it happens through this site or not, I, like you, will be SUPER excited when you and your donor find each other! Wishing you a healthy future, Suzanne Kloss
