Blood center all atwitter over attractingdonors with social media

By LINDSAY TOLER SPECIAL TO SEATTLEPI.COMFind out on Twitter, sign up on Facebook and show up in person.That's the mantra for Puget Sound Blood Center's new social media campaign, designed torecruit blood donors where they spend most of their time -- online.On Thursday, seven people donated at Tweet-up Blood Drive 2.0, the center's second blood driveorganized entirely through social networking media."Social media is not about people being cooped up inside," said Sean DeButts, social mediacoordinator for the blood center . "It facilitates real life action, and that includes blood donation."The online campaign launched earlier this summer, and already the blood center has about 400fans onFacebook and 1,200 followers onTwitter . And the blood center has aYouTubesite for its online generation donators/"This is just one more way to reach people," said Michael Young, the blood center'scommunications director. "This is the way people are communicating today, and it's the way people will be communicating in the future."Joe Kennedy, an entrepreneur from Bellevue who donated during Thursday's tweet-up blooddrive, used social media every step of the way. He signed up for the blood drive on Facebook, put an update on Twitter as he went to donate and shot a YouTube video as he gave blood."Social media is not a scene," Kennedy said, using his hands to put air-quotes around the word"scene." "It's a way of life."Kennedy said it was "very unlikely" that he would have donated if the blood center hadn'tapproached him on Twitter.And he's not the only one."I never thought about giving blood till I first started following the Puget Sound Blood Center onTwitter," said Joshua Wong, an editor from Bellevue.Wong gave blood for the first time in July and credits the blood center's social media accountsfor giving him the idea. Now, he tries to spread the word by copying the blood center's posts ontohis own online profiles.The blood center needs 900 donations every day to manage blood supplies for hospitalsthroughout the Northwest. "It's a bit of a numbers game," said Jeff Shuey, a technologyconsultant and blood donor.Shuey, who has about 6,000 followers on Twitter, and Wong, who has about 400, say theyinspiring just 10 percent of their followers to try to donate blood would make a big difference.The "numbers game" was threatened during last month's heat wave, when Type O suppliesdropped to critical levels as blood drives scheduled for un-air conditioned venues were canceled.