Social Media: Taking It to the Next Level

Social Media: Taking It to the Next Level

Cindy Royal, Ph.DAssociate Professor

Texas State UniversitySchool of Journalism and Mass Communication

[email protected]

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Social Media Musts


Social in Higher Ed• Facebook – most used in higher ed; 98% in 2011 vs. 61% in

2009

• Twitter – 84% in 2011; close to 0% in 2009; allows schools to send up-to-date announcements

• LinkedIn – 47% in 2011 vs. 0 in 2009; used by Admissions professionals and career services

• Close to half of universities continue to maintain a blog and a little more than a third continue to use message boards.

• Social media used by professors in classrooms and out, to foster school pride, to connect with potential students, faculty professional development and networking, general outreach to parents and alumni

*http://mashable.com/2012/02/03/higher-education-social-media/


Twitter: some hidden benefits• Don't need to be a user to see someone's tweets

• Use a widget to repurpose tweets on your site.

• Twitter is one-way, not a reciprocal relationship.

• Real-time search – can see what people are saying about something right now.

• Use a Twitter Alert tool to get immediate updates.


Give it a try


Drake University Pinterest


Keep an eye on


Social Media Strategy• What are your goals for social media?

– Outreach– Engagement/Interaction– Promotion

• How does department/unit/faculty strategy fit into larger university strategy?

• How does it fit into the larger digital strategy? – Web presence– Mobile

• What is the value you are adding to the community?– Thought leadership– Resources– Discussion

• What value is your social media activity bringing to you? How can you measure effectiveness?

• Develop guidelines, support best practices


Key Considerations• Strong website/blog is still important

• Authenticity

• Transparency

• Engagement

• Fostering community

• Thought leadership

• Branding

• Promotion

• Sharing – How easy do you make it?


How are you integrating your social platforms?






Measurement• Traffic

• Followers/Fans

• Retweets

• Replies

• Mentions

• What people are saying about you online – mine blogs, Twitter, Facebook, even Yelp


Google Analytics


Twitter Analytics


Twitter Analytics

Tweet Stats


Twitter Analytics


Twitter Analytics


Facebook Insights


Ustream Analytics


Klout


Klout


Klout


Search Engine Optimization

• Can get complicated, but the basics are:– Incoming Links

• Interaction on social media

• Commenting• Excellent content

– Keywords/phrases


Tips• The biggest mistakes you can make are not trying, not

paying attention

• Have qualified, related person/people working with your social media

• Engage, don't just promote

• Regular maintenance and updates

• Must try tools on your own to understand how you might use professionally

• Emulate best practices

• Have fun; be creative

• Remember, students are making judgments about your schools and programs based on the social media presence.


Best Practices


Best Practices


Best Practices


Best Practices


Best Practices


Best Practices


Resources• Crush It and Thank You Economy by Gary Vaynerchuk• Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh

• Read Tech blogs like Mashable, Read Write Web, TechCrunch, SmashingMag, 10,000 Words; tech section of NY Times and FastCompany.com

• SXSW Interactive - sxsw.com• Links

– http://wiki.kenburbary.com/social-meda-monitoring-wiki– http://mashable.com/2011/10/10/universities-social-media/– http://www.usatodayeducate.com/staging/index.php/the-20-colleges-

making-the-best-use-of-social-media– https://foursquare.com/universities– http://www.studentadvisor.com/top-100-social-media-colleges– http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/articles/2011/11/29/3-

ways-to-use-foursquare-to-connect-with-your-college– http://mashable.com/2012/02/03/higher-education-social-media/– http://www.socialable.co.uk/12-killer-analytic-tools-to-measure-your-

success/– http://mashable.com/2012/02/09/social-media-analytics-spreadsheets

Technology

Social Media: Taking It to the Next Level