SOCIAL MEDIA 101 Learn the basics of social media to effectively communicate with the public you serve.
FACEBOOK and TWITTER Which social media platforms, if any, does your County currently utilize to communicate your services and programs?
What is Facebook? Facebook is a social networking website Facebook is a free service that allows individuals to create an online profile, create a page for their business or organization, and connect with individuals from all over the world. On your Facebook page or profile you are able to share pictures, text/messages, videos, etc. You can also create events and promote those events through paid advertising options. Interesting Fact: Facebook has over 200 million users that spend over 3.5 billion minutes on the site each day.
What is Twitter? Twitter is a social networking and microblogging service. Users use mobile phones or computers to send and to read messages, called "tweets". Tweets are messages that are restricted to 140 characters or less. There are currently over 241 million active Twitter users.
Deciding Which Platforms to Use Determine if your County does already have social media outlets in existence. SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY - If your County does not have any existing social media outlets, determine if there are any current policies in place regarding your social media pages. Determine which social media sites the majority of your targeted audience is utlizing, ie. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Periscope etc.
THINGS TO CONSIDER How often will you be posting? Who will be posting? Is the person that will be posting be a non-exempt or exempt employee? What type of device will be dedicated to monitoring and posting items on your social media site? How will you archive your data?
FACEBOOK #1 - A profile page will need to be created in order to manage your page.
Creating a Facebook Page Under the left side of the web page, there's a navigational section for PAGES, where you can CREATE a PAGE.
PAGE PHOTO SPECIFICATIONS
Facebook Posts o A Facebook wall is the area on a profile or page where friends and fans can post their thoughts, views, or criticisms for everyone to see. On a page Administrators can post events, information, updates, photos, and videos.
Scheduling Posts You can create a post and schedule it to publish on your Page in the future. Scheduled posts can be created and edited by other admins and editors who help manage your Page. To schedule a post: Start creating your post at the top of your Page's Timeline Click next to Publish and select Schedule Below Publication, select the date and time when you want the post to publish Click Schedule Make sure to post/schedule posts during your page s most active times.
What is a #HASHTAG hash tag [ˈhaSHtaɡ] NOUN (on social media sites such as Twitter) a word or phrase preceded by a hash or pound sign (#) and used to identify messages on a specific topic Hashtags can be a word or short phrase used to tag a post and when utilized it can make it easier for users to find messages with a specific theme or content. Ex: #throwbackthursday #localgov #mondaymotivation
POST TIPS & TRICKS Tagging Media and active local pages within your post Sharing your post to local group pages Use trending hashtags whenever relevant or possible The more shares you have on an individual post the higher amount of interaction you will receive on an individual post.
Like vs. Share The Facebook Share Button When a user clicks the Facebook Share button on a website, a Post to Profile window appears to confirm the action. The unique element of this window is that it not only attaches the item that is to be shared, but it provides an open text box allowing the user to explain why they ve shared it. That open text box is the primary difference between Share and Like, and can play a major role in adding (or detracting) value from the item being shared. The Facebook Like/React Button The Facebook Like/React button is a bit more straightforward than the Share button. If a user clicks the Like button or chooses to react to the content that they like is added to their profile page and Facebook News Feed, giving it the same distribution as the Share button. But, without the open text box, it s a bit quicker and easier for users to Like an item.
Facebook LIVE Tell people ahead of time when you re going to broadcast Go live when you have a strong internet connection Write an intriguing description prior to going live Comment and reply back to individuals as they are asking questions or commenting. Use their name. Broadcast for longer periods of time to reach more people Be creative and go live often!
Facebook Events To create a private or public event: Click Events in the left menu of your News Feed. Click Create in the top right. Click to choose between a private or public event. If you're creating a public event, you can set the event's host as yourself or a page you manage. Fill in the event name, details, location and time. If you're creating a public event you can: Select a category for your event Add keywords about your event Add a link to a ticketing website for your event Click Create. You'll be taken to your event where you can invite guests, upload photos, share posts and edit event details.
Facebook Verification To verify your Page: Click Settings at the top of your Page From General, click Page Verification Click Verify this Page, then click Get Started Enter a publicly listed phone number for your business, your country and language Click Call Me Now to allow Facebook to call you with a verification code Enter the 4-digit verification code and click Continue
How to Grow Your Presence Interact with your audience and local pages/media and respond to messages promptly If there are events going on that relate to your page search for those events and interact with the individuals posting about the event. Not all individuals will directly tag your page, you may need to actually search for their post. Use humor! Post a mix of different types of posts, ie. direct website links, photos, text, or videos Post interesting content and post often Verify your page
QUESTIONS?