Blue Sky Mutual Aid Community

(Insert Table of Contents Soon)

Updates & Additions by @QuyetPawz.bsky.social / @QPMutualAid.bsky.social

Suggestions? Tag QuyetPawz on BlueSky or E-Mail Qp.Needs.Help@Gmail.com

Want to support this work? ko-fi.com/qpthepurplesnep

Do not tag or DM users on the platform to ask for boosts or donations. This is how accounts get blocked, added to block lists en masse, reported as spam to the platform, and their account gets suspended. This is how people lose their accounts.

To be clear on qpmutualaidbsky.social in the profile it says “do not tag me to boost MA posts, you will be blocked” AND in the pinned thread it says “Do not tag my accounts in mutual aid requests & do not reply to my posts with mutual aid requests.” I will enforce this boundary by extending my break by 2 weeks & if necessary the person will be blocked.”

Beware - Makraev - click here for more info

Beware AtlasTalos - known for using mutual aid to seek out victims to harm.

How to add alt text to images: https://youtube.com/shorts/zp6ofBaGeYU?si=0QKb497DqAOGuw0-

Alt text tool (handy for those unable to write alt text or who want to improve their alt text): https://actuallyusefulai.com/alt/

Mutual Aid Threads & Lists

Useful Blocklists

Feeds & Lists

Post Tips & Tricks:

The goal of these tips and tricks is to increase the likelihood of someone choosing to spend time reading, interacting with, and boosting your post. You and the mutual aid community want to build good relationships with potential donors and boosters.

  • Whether someone donated or shared your post or not, doesn't give them a right to have access to you, to make demands of you, to have specific expectations of you that you didn't agree to. Use the mute, or block features if someone is making you feel unsafe or uncomfortable. Please tag qpmutualaid and ask to DM if the person is acting in a way that could harm the community.
  • Tag @fairshare.help in reply to your mutual aid post. The bot will then promote your mutual aid request as well. To remove your post, tag fairshare again and add “!help” (without quotes)
  • Keep in mind you're speaking to an international audience. Example: ODSP (Ontario Disability Support Program) won't be reliably recognized or understood by anyone outside of Ontario however if you say “disability benefits” most folks worldwide will have some understanding of what you mean.
  • Make sure your account has a user picture, profile filled out, and pinned post (introduce yourself & tell people what you post about). These often indicate it's an actual person and can help humanize you.
  • 15 likes is the quota for your post(s) to hit the Discover feed on BlueSky so once your post hits that either make a fresh post OR Quote Post your original post.
  • Text in all caps is read as yelling. Yelling at people you want to get donations from doesn't work. All caps text is read letter by letter in some screen readers.
  • -Always- include how to send you money in your actual post with direct links to your payment methods. Include payment links in quote posted updates as well.
  • Directing people to your pinned post or “link in my profile” makes it difficult for donors to find how to donate to you. The least steps a potential donor has to take to donate the better.
  • Posting that you haven't received a donation in X period of time deters donors.
  • Strong emotion in posts such as fear, desperation, or rage deters donors and make people not want to share your post.
  • Be cautious of the intensity and amount of religious or faith related references as it can deter people from wanting to donate.
  • Statements such as “Stop Scrolling!” “Don't Ignore!” and similar orders do the opposite and cause people to scroll away, losing you potential donors.
  • Graphic images or videos  of people or an animals suffering will result in less shares because the images are distressing and people don't want to share distressing posts on their timelines. If you use these kinds of images label them in Blue Sky as graphic so people can opt in to seeing it.
  • Quote Posting your Mutual Aid Request with updates regarding your situation, thank yous that a donation was received, push your request back out, provide more information and generate more engagement.
  • Repost your Mutual Aid Requests many times a day - As in hit Repost, and an hour or two later undo your Repost and re-do it. This pushes your post back out at a different time to a different set of eyes.
  • Posting an image or several along with your Mutual Aid Request will get more eyes on your post.
  • Use alt text! How to add alt text - https://youtube.com/shorts/zp6ofBaGeYU?si=0QKb497DqAOGuw0- . If you post an image or any media (GIF/Video) make sure there's alt text. Alt text is searchable on this platform so it can make your MA request more findable AND images do make your post way more visible. Alt text is a description available to screen readers so those who can't or have difficulty seeing get a description of your media so they can interact with it.
  • Do not comment on other people's mutual aid requests with your own – it is viewed as rude and spamming.
  • Do not DM random users with your mutual aid requests as this is viewed as rude and spamming.
  • Do not tag random users with your mutual aid requests this is viewed as rude and is spamming.
  • People like to know “why” so give them your story and show photos if you can.
  • Use the following tags: #HelpSky #MABoost #FundSky #MutualAid #HelpFolksLive2024 💕💸 Use #TBNC if disabled, neurodivergent, or/and BIPOC
  • Don't use emojis in your bluesky display name. Emojis don't get read well by screen readers and for those who can see can be very annoying. Don't use more than 2 emojis in mutual aid posts because emojis don't get read well by screen readers and for those who can see the visual clutter is annoying.
  • People are avoiding buying from Amazon so Amazon wish lists aren't being used as much by people donating or buying. Alternative is Throne wishlists.
  • Potential donors often won't go looking for how to send you money. Link tree and similar links that have a list of links for someone adds steps and makes it take longer which will deter donors. Post direct links to payment methods and wish lists.
  • “Why are you ignoring me???” and similar statements assuming people seeing your post have ill intent will deter potential donors. Statements like this in a mutual aid post drives and builds negative feelings towards mutual aid posts and the specific poster. It harms the entire mutual aid community.
  • Listing multiple goal amounts for different purposes confuses donors and deters donations. Keep goals simple, straightforward and easy to understand. Encourage people to ask questions should they wish to know more details.
  • Asking donors to add notes to payments to identify which need they are donating to deters donors.
  • Fundraising for something viewed  as a luxury (special event, luxury item, etc) when you have a goal ongoing for necessities to live appears to potential donors that you're not prioritising survival. This can impact whether donors choose to donate to you at all.
  • Some people are wary of shortened links (bit.ly) because they don't know what site it will take them to and they sometimes are used to lead people to malicious links (viruses, hacking, etc) so keep this in mind when choosing the links to use in your post.
  • Mentioning weed, cannabis, marijuana or MMJ in the post can deter donors because of how some people think it's just another substance being abused. Mention you need medication which could change how people view your mutual aid request & increase donations.
  • When you do receive a donation, quote your post with an update. Express thanks and convey excitement in that update. This lets the donor know that you received it. This can potentially generate more donations as people love to get on the hype train.
  • Sometimes people delete a request after receiving a donation without posting anything, this can make donors feel that you didn't appreciate the donation and it could impact whether they choose to donate in the future.
  • Deleting mutual aid posts whether the goal was met or other reasons isn't a good practice. It is better to reply or quote your post with an update saying the goal was met.
  • Posting “Please help please help please help” or similar messages will cause people to scroll away from your post. People actually choosing to read mutual aid posts already understand that you need help. This approach comes off as pressuring and demanding people to help.
  • Video updates get scrolled by as they can feel intrusive. Captions often aren't included on the video so1 they often must be watched with volume up.
  • Having other people put up mutual aid posts for you often results in less or no donations because people are significantly more suspicious of a third party.
  • If you're an SW, you should consider making a version of your mutual aid post that has no adult content or references on it. Many don't feel comfortable or shouldn't (minors) share adult content so this limits the reach of posts with adult content.
  • Do not post images or videos of animals or people that are clearly in the stages of actively dying. It can be triggering and traumatic for people with effects impacting multiple days. If you want to use media like that include a trigger warning.

Images for MA Requests:

  • Make sure there's enough contrast (difference) between your background color and text color. Without significant contrast, it can be difficult or impossible to read.
  • Limit your text on your image - people often will not enlarge an image when it comes to mutual aid posts so make sure it can be quickly read as someone scrolls.
  • Limit your text on your image - people often won’t read multiple paragraphs of text on an image. We recommend quick bullet points to get information across quickly.
  • Don't include images of people or animals suffering in your graphic as people often will be triggered or won't share them as they don't want to distress others.
  • Images designed to be looked at quickly as people scroll will increase visibility on your post.