Last year, the United Nations turned 80. To mark the milestone, the UN Information Centre (UNIC) in Manama, which covers Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, launched UN80, a three-month social media campaign. But UNIC Manama wanted more than likes and shares: it wanted people to actually pause and reflect on what the UN does, and why it matters. The challenge wasn’t the message. It was the reach. A small team can only take an idea so far on its own. So UNIC Manama turned to Online Volunteers through the United Nations Volunteers (UNV), proving that a small team doesn't have to think small. The result, says Ahmed Ben Lassoued, Director of UNIC Manama, far exceeded anything they thought possible.
“The challenge was clear: how do we expand our message in a meaningful way without overextending the team?”
Running a high-frequency campaign across multiple social media platforms for three months takes time, consistency and sustained effort. “Our goals were ambitious. We wanted to educate, raise awareness, convince and inspire people about the United Nations. But our resources were limited,” shared Ahmed Ben Lassoued. Organic reach on social media is hard to scale, especially with such a diverse audience.