AFCEA Chapters and Social Media Using social networks to boost your visibility and community

By Helen Mosher AFCEA International 4-18-2012 In charge of new media for SIGNAL Magazine and AFCEA since 2007 newmedia@afcea.org

Why social media? Creates a continuum of community: members can stay connected between events Boosts visibility of chapter brand: allows you to share information important to chapter members Outreach: provides another way to talk to potential members, including students and younger people early in their career-talks to them where they are.

Chapter Social Media Who here has a presence on social networks already? Who is just getting started? Who *had* a presence on social networks but gave up when it seemed like extra work? For those with established social networks, we’re interested in hearing what’s been working for you. For those just getting started, we’re hoping we can save you some trial and error. For those who started up on social media but found it too difficult to manage, we have some tips that may be of help.

If you build it, will they come? It takes aggressive marketing to build online community. Link on website. In email signatures. In online newsletters. Be active. Be savvy. Be human. Three elements of successful social: the tech side, the human side, and the strategic side.

Technology Facebook LinkedIn Twitter Google+ Social media isn’t a goal in and of itself. Set your communications goals first; use social media to support them. Don’t go all-in, all-at-once with all four platforms. Get to know one well, move into the next gradually.

Technology Understand the platform Twitter: 140 characters. Hash tags. Retweets. Mentions. Followers/Following. Facebook: Page (more broadcast) vs. Group (more interactive). Timeline. Fans. LinkedIn: Discussions. Jobs. Professional networking. Google+: still finding its way, but thanks to its search integration: discovery.

Humanize Don’t mix professional and personal, but put a personal touch on the professional. Don’t over-automate. Monitor, even moderate, but don’t police. Be pro-active and responsive. This may not be what you think it is. Use pages or groups in FB, not a personal account. Similarly for other platforms. Overautomating can lead to twitter streams and FB pages that look contrived. If every post is trying to “sell” something, people will tune out. This is less true of straight-up information sharing, so try to bring in some news feeds in addition to what you’re trying to promote. It’s good to have policies in place on what’s spam and what’s allowed, so that different moderators can maintain a consistent level of administration. Generally, AFCEA members are not interested in being disruptive. Did you know that there were three other AFCEA International LinkedIn groups before the official one was registered?

Strategic: Goals that can be supported by social Event promotion Content distribution/link sharing “Scrapbooking” events by allowing attendees to share photos “Virtual” events such as Tweet chats or webinars Scholarship appeals and promotion Question forums

Challenges Who do you give the keys to? How do you allocate the time? Where’s the accountability? What’s the Return on Investment? Someone who has a good understanding of all three legs of the stool. Too young a person might be a little too human, for instance. But this can also be an opportunity for a younger person who wants to take on a leadership role and allow them to do so. Allocating the time: Helpful to maintain an “editorial calendar” of when items should be published to social networks. Tie it in with production of email blasts. Some email services allow you to cross pollenate your email marketing message with social media. Be sure to create a process that anyone can follow and track. Don’t have just one person handling the social reins. This also ensures that there’s continuity if there’s a change in leadership or if someone steps down from managing social. Social media is not a high-cost investment but it can be a high-time investment, especially when you start putting metrics into the mix. Are you currently tracking web traffic on the chapter website? See how much is coming from Twitter and FB and see how much it grows over time.

Opportunities New leadership positions Coordinate with AFCEA HQ social media Join the Chapter and Regional Officers subgroup on LinkedIn (http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=3914758)

What’s next? Social site? We’re the hub! Let us know. Use AFCEA or chapter logos Transfer administrative status Respect copyright and fair use Understand platforms terms of service

What’s next? Create guidelines for social conversations. For instance: 1st person should be acceptable, but posts should be “signed.” Use a professional tone. Listen. Act on feedback. Keep posts brief and give them links.

Resources www.socialfish.org www.geoffliving.com http://www.asaecenter.org/ “Technology

hmosher@afcea.org or newmedia@afcea.org Helen Mosher 703-631-6196 www.linkedin.com/in/helenmosher www.twitter.com/hhmosher hmosher@afcea.org or newmedia@afcea.org