Scial Media Training fr Staff Cntents What is scial media? Why use it? Prs, Cns, and Cmmn Sense Scial media as a business tl Scial Media Cw-municatrs Training What makes fr a gd pst? Use tls Gals & bjectives Rules Yur rle in Scial Media Page 1
What is Scial Media? Basic idea Scial media is the nline frms f cmmunicating that any individual can emply, which include blgs, micrblgs such as Twitter and scial netwrking sites such as Facebk. Histry Purpse - The purpse f scial media is t allw individuals t cnnect with ne anther electrnically regardless f their physical lcatin. Tday s scial media netwrks allw as few as 140 characters per message and as much as a large paragraph Page 2
alng with pictures and the use f varius apps (such as plling and requesting RSVP s) t enhance the message. This netwrk can include games that peple can play with thers users n the same netwrk with whm they have cnnected with. Users can access their scial media pages frm their desktp r Smartphne s. As a business interested in tapping int this netwrk, we can jin in this nline cmmunity and engage users in cnversatins, invite them t events, and infrm them abut new prgrams and facilities. Frms - There are several frms f Scial Media. Each netwrk has a specific fcus. Here are just sme f thse categries. In many cases, yu culd place ne netwrk in tw (2) r mre categries. 1. Blgging -- Wrdpress, Blgger 2. Scial Netwrk -- Facebk, Orkut, Hi5, LinkedIn, Ggle + 3. Scial Curating Pinterest, Etsy, Stmblupn, Tumblr, Evernte 4. Micrblgging -- Twitter, Snapchat, Vine, Vxer, LinkedIn, Vine, Instagram 5. Scial Bkmarketing -- Digg, StumbleUpn, Mixx, Reddit 6. Vide Sharing -- Yutube, Hulu, Vine 7. Brader Cntent Sharing Slideshare, Scribd 8. Frums -- Yah Answers, Ask, Wikipedia There are many sites which fall int ne r mre f these categries. Sme peple even call scial gaming as a part f scial media. If yu can cmment and reply, it s scial. A few ther tls t mentin that yu might find useful: Mutli-netwrk management tls (free) Htsuite, LaterBr URL Shrteners TinyURL, Bitly Picture filtering apps: Instagram, Tadaa, Splitpic, Pic Stitch, Clrblast, Halftne, CmicBk Why Use It? Mst mass-cmmunicatin tls that the City has used in its histry have been f the ne-way variety. These include, but are nt limited t: newspaper PSA s, flyers, brchures, letters, pstcards, banners, psters, etc. These methds get the message ut there, and unless there is direct mailing invlved, we d nt knw wh sees it. Even if it is a flyer that his sent hme with a child, there is n guarantee that the parent actually received the infrmatin. Likewise with direct-mailings, we re pretty sure the individual received the infrmatin, but the infrmatin may nt have been read (as it may have been thrwn ut like junk mail ). Electrnic cmmunicatin (email, web site) imprved ur ability t share infrmatin, and in a much mre cst effective way, but is ften used fr ne-n-ne r small grup cmmunicatin, and while numbers f visitrs t ur site may be knwn, we d nt necessarily knw wh ur visitrs are. Scial media allws us t cmmunicate with a certain amunt f exclusivity (meaning peple have t Like us in rder t get ur messages (and can Unlike us t stp Page 3
receiving it). When we pst smething it is nt shared with everyne n the netwrk nly with thse fllwing us r wh are ur fans. The challenge is grwing ur fan base in rder t reach mre f ur custmers. Mst f all, this allws us t have tw-way cmmunicatin. We pst infrmatin, peple Like r cmment back, and we can respnd, keeping the cnversatin ging and pssibly increasing the number f fans invlved in the cnversatin. Tw-way cmmunicatin is the bjective here. The very nature f scial media (everyne + everywhere + anytime + every time) means we must be public and transparent. This makes hnesty imperative. Spin will be apparent and we will nt be able t hide ur flaws r errrs by sugar-cating issues r situatins. This als means we have t knw ur custmers, which requires feedback. We need t ask questins and find ut what ur custmers (city residents r anyne purchasing a service r prgram frm us) want and dn t want. We are ging frm the ld web page mind-set f here s what we have fr yu r pushing infrmatin/prgrams/facilities at custmers (and hping they ll visit ur web site t actually see what we have t ffer) t the new scial media, which is a cnversatin in a new media that is nt urs it is simply ne that we are participating in. With scial media (Facebk, Twitter, Yelp!, YuTube, etc.) cntrl shifts frm us t the custmer. We are n lnger n ur turf... we are n theirs. If we are nt engaged in this medium we will becme bslete and ur custmers will g where they can have cntrl. If we d nt respect the custmer and are nt hnest, we will lse them... and they will tell everyne, everywhere, anytime and every time. Prs, Cns, and Cmmn Sense Prs: 1. One benefit is the simplicity with which peple can cnnect with ne anther. It allws peple t make cnnectins with ld friends as well as new. Peple separated by thusands f miles can cmmunicate with each ther and be part f an exclusive grup (family, classmates, clubs, and shared interests). 2. Anther benefit f scial media is the sharing f ne's ideas t a much wider audience. Thrugh scial media, anyne and everyne can spread his r her thughts t the entire cmmunity f their chsen scial media utlet. This makes it s much easier t cllabrate with thers and find where ne really stands n tpics and what t think f what is ging n arund him r her. Cns: 1. The simplicity f being fund can be viewed as a negative affect f tday s scial netwrking. Unfrtunately, there are individuals wh use netwrks, like Facebk, t find peple wh may nt want t be fund by that individual r wh may prey n peple they dn t knw. The naïve r vulnerable, if careless enugh t arrange fr a face-t-face meeting, may find themselves the victim f fraud r a vilent crime. T a lesser degree, a persn may expse themselves t nline harassment, thugh there are methds available t the user t sever their cnnectin with smene they d nt wish t interact with r hear frm, and t reprt such ffending cnduct. 2. In sme instances, the prblems peple experience with scial media are brught upn by themselves with the psting f inapprpriate remarks, rants, and the use f ful language. Wrse are instances where individuals pst pictures r vides f themselves that may be less than flattering r that is clearly scially unacceptable. Page 4
Cmmn Sense: Tday s Internet requires a hint f skepticism, cmmn sense, discretin, and savvy. 1. If it sunds t gd t be true it prbably is. 2. Avid clicking ads, pp-ups, and pening emails and links frm senders yu dn t knw. 3. Newspaper Test If yu re writing smething and yu re unsure hw thers may perceive it, then think abut this befre yu pst r click send: wuld I want t see this in the headlines f tmrrw s newspaper fr the wrld t see (as well as my bss, my mther, my kids, r my significant-ther)? If the answer is n, then dn t pst r send it. 4. Knw when nt t respnd. If a respnse is necessary, be careful hw yu respnd seek the input/advice f thers n hw best t prceed. Scial Media as a Business Tl Scial media is the latest platfrm that is used by bth businesses and the public-atlarge t cnnect electrnically fr the purpse f scial interactin. Initially, scial media was develped t allw individuals t cnnect with ther individuals, but due t its ppularity, a large number f cmpanies are expliting its ptential and are seriusly lking t cnnect t the audience. Scial Media Cmmunicatrs Training What makes fr a gd pst? Being accurate infrmatin shuld be duble-checked befre psting, especially when dates, times, lcatins and fees are invlved. Being relevant it s imprtant that the pst be timely Sunding friendly having an ear fr yur wn wrds Being witty if yur pst puts a smile n their face, yu ve created a successful pst Planning ahead yu may want t keep a calendar f imprtant dates (prgram registratins, event dates, hlidays, etc.) Use tls Pictures Plls RSVP fr events Encurage the Like buttn.... Like = awareness. The simplest frm f feedback. Ask peple t Cmment.... Cmment = engagement. The brass ring! Apps that may prvide pprtunities t pst mre effectively r efficiently Gals & Objectives Scial media is part f ur marketing mix and shuld be viewed as part f a strategy t increase brand equity and awareness. It shuld be viewed as ne f the essential tls fr prmting/marketing ur prgrams, services, and facilities. T engage ur fans and fllwers in a dialgue s that we may have an exchange f Page 5
Rules infrmatin, ideas, wants and needs. This frmat allws fr tw-way cmmunicatin, and we shuld make the mst f thse pprtunities. SPELL CHECK! d the best yu can t make sure bth spelling and grammar are crrect. We suggest creating yur pst in Wrd r an email and using the spell check feature there, and then d a cut-n-paste int the psting bx. Spelling errrs and grammatical errrs will ccur; we just want t keep them t a minimum. NOTE: any captins fr pictures can be edited, s crrect thse errrs when yu find them. OWN YOUR POST! If smene respnds with a cmment t yur pst, be sure t reply. Even if the nly reply is thank yu, yu still need t respnd (that s the whle pint f scial media having a cnversatin). Other ways t respnd wuld be t ask fr any further cmments r ideas, r even redirect them t the department web site (Thanks! Yu can see mre infrmatin n this prgram at ww.westsacfun.rg). We shuld always have the last cmment, as it shws we are willing t keep the cnversatin ging. ALWAYS BE POLITE, especially when respnding t a negative cmment. It s k if smene says smething that stings us a little. Perhaps they are right; the imprtant thing here is that we respnd apprpriately. HOW OFTEN SHOULD I/WE POST? That all depends. One f the bjectives fr putting messages ut n scial netwrking sites is t increase the number f eye-balls that will see this infrmatin. With Facebk, the mre peple see it n their wall (and especially when they click n Like r a picture r make a cmment) the mre likely they are t get future pstings in their Tp News feeds. Fr the Parks & Recreatin Facebk page, tw t three pstings a day is acceptable. WHAT ABOUT INACCURATE INFORMATION? If smene prvides inaccurate infrmatin abut, reply with the crrect infrmatin, but d it in such a way as t nt cause the persn any embarrassment. REMOVE INAPPRORIATE POSTS if smene psts smething that is truly unacceptable (use f ful language, disparaging remarks abut thers, disclsing persnal/private infrmatin, spam pstings Yur rle in Scial Media T be a creative, ambitius, a multi-tasker wh actively stays ahead f industry trends cntributing t the success f the Parks & Recreatin department in all scial envirnments. Help develp brand awareness (Parks Make Life Better!), generate inbund traffic and encuraging prgram participatin and facility visits. Manage scial media campaigns and day-t-day activities. Respnsibilities include nline advcacy, writing editrial, cmmunity-utreach effrts, prmtins, etc. Manage presence in scial netwrking sites including Facebk, Twitter, and ther Page 6
similar cmmunity sites, psting n relevant blgs, and seeding cntent int scial applicatins as needed Becme an advcate f the City f West Sacrament and the Parks & Recreatin department in scial media spaces, engaging in dialgues and answering questins where apprpriate Page 7