WWF Social Media Handbook

What organization uses social media to achieve conservation goals?
What do you need to do to increase your followers?
What does the WWF - US's social media presence do?

Transcription

1 WWF Social Media Handbook Updated October 8, 2012 INTRODUCTION Please reference this handbook if you have been approved to create a new WWF-branded social media presence. If you still need approval, please contact Sarah Robie, David Glass, or your program communications contact to fill out a social media form. This handbook is designed to help WWF-US staff use social media to achieve conservation goals. It is not intended to be an exhaustive overview of social media, rather to prompt strategic thinking around how to use social media to advance WWF s mission. For the sake of brevity, we assume a basic understanding of social media and its terminology. If you require a refresher or want to deepen your knowledge beyond the content of this guide, please refer to the resources page at the end of this document. As a reminder, WWF-US has a strong social media presence which shares programmatic content, institutional communications, and fundraising asks. See page 4 how to share your programmatic content on our existing platforms, and view a full list of these platforms here: Please note that this handbook does not apply to our existing WWF social media accounts. You may contact the Online Marketing team with any questions or concerns about this document. AT A GLANCE Part One: Before You Begin (pg. 2) These are questions to ask yourself to ensure that social media is the right choice for you. Please read these before beginning to create a social presence. Part Two: Getting Started (pg. 4) After you have submitted your Social Media Brief and received approval, here are some ways to plan your social presence, gain followers, and have your resources ready. Part Three: Engaging Your Audience (pg. 5) Learn what types of content to post, what tone you should be speaking in, and how to determine metrics for success. Online Guides and Resources (pg. 7) Here are some great links for following the latest trends in social media. 1

2 PART ONE: BEFORE YOU BEGIN 1. What do I want to achieve? Social media is a communications tool that is best used as part of a comprehensive conservation and communications strategy. Sometimes social media is not the most effective solution for your program. Please ask yourself the following questions to ensure that social media meets your objectives: What is your goal? Will reaching this goal also help you achieve one of your existing programmatic or fundraising goals? Does your goal need constant public pressure or visibility to be achieved? Can your goal be achieved by promoting more on our existing WWF-US social sites? 2. Who am I targeting? Because of its widespread adoption, you may feel pressured to use social networking to make yourself and your program heard. However, your conservation objective is best served by building your online presence strategically. Carefully consider your target audience and whether social media is the right tool to reach them. For example, Facebook allows you to target people based on geographical area, while Twitter gets broadcasted to the world. Do you have an idea of how you might reach this audience to build your fan base? 3. What do I want my audience to do? Once you have clearly articulated your conservation objective and audience, consider how you will engage your targets through social media. How do you get their attention, and what do you want them to do? Asking your fans and followers to support your work (by retweeting or sharing your message) deepens their engagement and makes them feel like an important part of your program. It can also be a powerful tool to achieve your programmatic goals. Keep in mind that results may not be immediate, and that building a relationship and gaining trust with your supporters before making hard asks (ex. to take a specific action) is fundamental to the success of your social marketing plan. 4. Which social media channel is best for me? Each social channel has its own niche purpose and audience. Here are some generalities: 2

3 Social Presence Facebook page Facebook group Facebook event Twitter feed Google+ page Flickr Blog Purpose Sharing information, asking for actions Encouraging discussions within members A one-time event (virtual or physical) Sharing quick info, providing event updates Sharing information, asking for actions Photo sharing (user and WWF) Sharing stories, updates, photos, videos 5. How do I maintain my program s (or my) social media profile? While it is preferable to have a long-term strategy for social media, you may have an end date to your campaign or event. Give careful thought to the duration and intensity of your social media communications before you create a profile, blog, etc. Here are questions to consider: Can I post frequently enough to engage my targeted audience? o Example: The standard protocol for postings is about once a day on Facebook and 4-5 times a day on Twitter. If there is an end-date to my program s social media communications, what will I do with the friends/fans/readers I have earned? o In this case, you may want to evaluate a Twitter feed or Facebook event as channels for your social media presence. Are you ready? Not yet. Has your program discussed the questions in PART ONE and decided you are not ready to create a social networking presence? You can still be heard contact your communications lead to contribute to WWF-US s existing social media profiles. We are ready! The next step is to submit a Social Media Brief to your communications lead for approval. Any WWF branded account must be approved by Sarah Robie and David Glass. Please hold off on creating your social presence until the approval is given. Proceed with caution. Any content dealing with the following topics requires legal review: Lobbying, particularly during an election cycle Complicated topics, such as fundraising or partnerships Third-party content If you are unsure if your content should be reviewed by the office of general counsel, it is usually best to err on the side of caution. 3

4 PART TWO: GETTING STARTED 1. What resources do I need to create a social media presence for my program? Building and maintaining a social networking presence takes time. Assign someone who is familiar with social media or strong in communications to take over the role. Ensure that this person will have, on average, at least 8 hours a week to devote to maintaining and monitoring the account and engaging with supporters. Their responsibilities could include: Managing approvals for any content that needs to be reviewed before posting. Posting content a few times per week to Facebook; blogging at least once a week; and tweeting more than once a day, if you re using these platforms. Monitoring user comments and postings to remove offensive speech and spam links, and flag others for follow-up. Analyzing performance and reporting on traffic and performance In terms of content, how will your program produce web pages, videos and other content for posting? Keep in mind that video and other multimedia content require the support of multiple teams. Be sure to discuss content production with your communications lead. You can also contact the Online Marketing team for advice on how to start your social site. Have a plan ahead of time, because as an example, you can t change your Facebook page s name after you create it and gain 200 likes! 2. How do I get my program s content into WWF s existing accounts? WWF-US has an institutional presence on the leading social networks. If you have not already connected to WWF on some of your favorite social network sites, please take a moment to interact with WWF through our pages on Facebook, Twitter and Google+; watch WWF videos on YouTube; and converse with like-minded activists on our Care2 and Causes pages. You can also join the WWF LinkedIn group and get a badge to add to your profile so that all your connections see that you support WWF. You can find a list of our sites here: Contact your communications lead to find out how to access these tools for your program s social media communications. 4

5 3. How do I attract fans/followers to my program s social networking profile? Attracting followers will take time, and is an ongoing process. Once your site is set up, the Online Marketing team can reach out to our existing fans/followers and publicize, which will provide a good start. From there, here are a few easy steps to keep building your base of supporters: Identify a core group of influentials who can help spread the word for you. These may be people inside or outside of WWF. This is a fundamental part of word of mouth marketing. You can also invite any WWF staff with personal social networking accounts. Reach out to coalition or partner organizations that work on similar issues to your program. your own contacts with a link to your program s social media profile, asking them to interact with you online. On Twitter, a good way to increase followers is to follow anyone who is following you. Your program s social networking profile can also be cross-promoted in your existing programmatic communications: Include a link to your program s Facebook or Twitter page from your program s webpages. List your social networking pages in your signatures. Feature your social media accounts in your outgoing s. Please remember that WWF is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, so your program must not join any political or religious advocacy groups, pages, or causes online. PART THREE: ENGAGING YOUR AUDIENCE 1. What should I post to my program s social media profiles? The Social Media Brief you submitted to receive approval for your program s social media outreach is your blueprint. By articulating your strategy (conservation objective, target audience and call to action), you already have clear parameters to guide your social media activities. Refer back to your brief to make sure your posts are aligned against your strategic goals. In today s social media world, it s all about spreading the word. Some of the best ways to do that are through strong visuals, like photos and video. Interesting facts and quotes will also go a long way. When posting, invite readers to get involved by posing questions or inviting them to share/retweet photos and personal stories or comments. Make sure you are prepared to monitor the responses when you post. The following ideas may prove useful: 5

6 Polls and quizzes: How long will the Amazon last at the current rate of deforestation? (multiple choice) Ask a question: Why are you concerned about tigers? Tell us your story: Share photos and stories of your wilderness travels. Here are more ways to translate your goals into action: Your posts should add value to your targeted social media audience. They should offer information, an action or a close connection to a cause they care about. Share updates about your program s work to build trust among your audience. Keep your posts short. For Facebook, include only one call-to-action within the post. Link back to content on WWF s website whenever possible to provide more information to the reader. When tweeting, use a designated WWF campaign hashtag (#) when applicable. 2. What tone should I use on my social site? The Panda Speaks: WWF Voice WWF s core values of Results, Integrity and Respect guide all our work. As the world s largest multinational conservation organization, it is important that our voice demonstrates our core values to maintain the public s trust in our mission. When engaging your supporters online, speak in the WWF voice while also maintaining a conversational style with your audience. Through our tone, WWF is: Engaging, optimistic, determined and knowledgeable Solutions-focused, constructive and pragmatic Science-based and straightforward NEVER ironic, sarcastic or negative 3. How do I know if I m doing a good job? One advantage WWF programs enjoy is our organization s robust learning culture. You are most likely already using WWF s adaptive management cycle to manage your program s work in the field. The same process is also applicable to implementing a social networking strategy and measuring results. Measuring the impact of your posts can help you communicate more effectively with your supporters. Most social networking sites offer easy-to-use analytics tools to track your progress, such as Facebook insights and HootSuite. Using the goals outlined in your Social Media Brief, ask yourself the following questions to understand how you are progressing towards goals: 6

7 What is our baseline response for content? Note: This will take multiple posts over a period of time to determine. What kinds of content performs best/worst? Videos? Photos? Questions? Quotes? Does performance change depending on the day of the week or time of day that we re posting? How many new friends or members have joined in 30/60/90 days? What is the click-through rate to WWF s website? You may want to create a bit.ly account to track clicks. ONLINE GUIDES AND RESOURCES Mashable - Mashable is a leading source for news, information and resources for the Connected Generation. Mashable reports on the importance of digital innovation and how it empowers and inspires people around the world. Mashable s 20 million unique visitors and 6 million social media followers have become one of the most engaged online news communities. Beth's Blog: How Nonprofits Can Use Social Media - A place to capture and share ideas, experiment with and exchange links and resources about the adoption challenges, strategy, and ROI of nonprofits and social media. Nonprofit Tech Nonprofit Tech 2.0 was created and is managed by Heather Mansfield. Fueled by a strong passion for the Internet, Heather spends her days [and some nights] helping nonprofit organizations utilize the Internet as a tool for social good. Confused? Want to discuss something in this guide? Contact your communications lead or a member of the Online Marketing team for help. 7

WWF Social Media Handbook

What organization uses social media to achieve conservation goals?

What do you need to do to increase your followers?

What does the WWF - US's social media presence do?