Street People Interview

My experience finding people to interview on the street proved to be difficult. Most people did not want to have their response recorded or posted to the internet. Of the people that were willing to participate interview, I found that mentioning the Bronx elicited different responses from the respondents. The respondents from the Bronx had more to say and evoked passion in their answers. The woman from Manhattan did not have the same enthusiasm. Off camera, the woman from Manhattan mentioned that if the cause was more generic and did not involve the Bronx, she would have provided a more spirited answer. She also stated that because she is not from the Bronx or has any business there, she found it hard to get enthused about helping out a Bronx organization.

Another finding was the importance of face to face interaction. The two Bronx respondents had mentioned the importance of having face to face events and involving local partnerships in order to get them energized. This would imply that the goal of social media is to get people off their devices and participate. While the Bronx man did not mention new power, he was trying to allude that it is better to have people tell their own story since it comes off as a more genuine connection. The Manhattan woman did not make this connection, however, she mentioned the importance of good online presence. A cause or an organization without an easy to use, clear online presence will struggle to pull in stakeholders outside of their existing area of influence.

Lastly, the woman from the Bronx mentioned that is was extremely easy for her to be engaged in the cause because she grew up in a low income household. If BronxWorks does not have a grateful patient program, it should look into establishing one as a way to find donor prospects and brand ambassadors.