Getting Started in Social Media OCTS – Andrea Gonzalez Feb. 8, 2013

Agenda Creating a strategy What should you use Do’s and Don’ts Resources

Bookmark this page CAES Social Media Info l-media/ l-media/

Why you need a road map Strategy 101

Why? Need to have a goal A clear direction will help avoid: Wasted time Wasted effort Backlash Burning out

#1. Who? Who is your audience? Kids?Parents?Farmers? What does your audience need? ASK!

#2. How? How much time do you have to dedicate towards updating posts? Once a week? Once a month? Never? Do you have enough people in your office to spend time on social media?

#3. What? What do you want to accomplish? What kind of information do you want to share? Pictures? Event info? Educational info? How will this differ from your county webpage?

Before starting See if an account already exists What other related entities already exist Contact me Read the policies

Questions?

What should I use? Platforms

The bare minimum County webpage s/Newsletters Keep clients in the know

OCTS supported tools FacebookTwitterYouTubeBlogs*

Facebook accounts Three options Personal account PageGroup

Facebook general The person chosen to maintain the page or group should use their personal profile to create the account. Fake profiles violate FB’s terms of service. Group members should not be “friends.” Pages do not link to personal profiles. Privacy settings on personal page protect you. Facebook does not allow users under 13.

Have a co-admin Select a co-administrator and “friend” that person. Important backup if admin leaves. Can unfriend later. Can be co-worker, parent, student, volunteer. Ask Cheryl Varnadoe about Social Media Officer position for 4-Hers.

Facebook page Most popular option Anyone can see, don’t need an account Gives great analytics Post pictures, create events, easy to interact with followers. Create a page:

What to include Category: Companies & Organizations> Education Location: Make sure people know it’s for the county/city in Georgia About info – What is this page about? Include admin names and their contact info Contact info for the organization Related graphics with good logos

Facebook group A must for 4-H clubs – should be CLOSED, members approved by admin Must have an account to view Not just admin posting New posts alerts everyone in group Ability to send messages Create a group:

What to include Identifying information in the description “GA” in the name Can set up a group address Can change thumbnails to picture Admins

What if I’m not doing it “right” Create the correct account for your organization. Make a post with link to new group or page. Encourage others to make the switch After a designated time period, delete the old account. Need help changing something? Contact me and we’ll work through it together.

If a page already exists Try contacting the admin. May be able to make you an admin. May be able to get them to delete it. If you don’t know who runs the page or group: “Like” the page/join the group, post message directing people to official group. May be a lost cause. Designate your page as the “official” one. Best strategy: have the most compelling content.

Questions?

Twitter accounts Fast way to share info with lots of people. Only have 140 characters but can post as much as you want. Good for: News Links to other related websites Upcoming events Events as they happen

What to include Want a short Include the state and contact info in profile info. Make sure more than one person in your office knows the login information. Identifying graphics. 4-H accounts should be protected.

Questions?

YouTube Videos are a great way to share knowledge. Must be captioned. Contact Emily Pitts for more info:

Blogging Currently working on setting up a way for counties to have a blog with uga.edu url. Blogging 101 training on Mar. 15 Contact Emily Pitts for more info

Photos How to share photos? Make sure you have subject’s permission Anything free works fine. Popular choices: Flickr, photobucket, shutterfly Best to have a secure album where only select people have access. Don’t tag or caption pictures of minors.

Questions?

Do’s and Don’ts Do: be proactive about online safety and privacy spread the word about your accounts update frequently Don’t break user agreements or encourage others to create and account and forget about it be afraid to try

Resources Facebook Privacy basics: About pages: About groups:

Resources Twitter: How to stay up to date: See how we do it: ion ion

Related trainings Taking Social Media to the Next Level Feb. 11, 9-10 Navigating Social Media for Youth Programs Feb. 11, 11-10