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Social media and crisis communications: Lessons from CDC's response to Ebola
Carol Y. Crawford
Chief, Digital Media
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
[email protected] Office of the Associate Director for Communication
CDC’s Social Media Landscape
Why Is Social Media at CDC Important?
Support CDC mission of saving lives & protecting people
Communicate rapidly
Increase engagement
Share relevant content in new spaces
Engage new audiences
Listen and respond in real-time
Complement traditional communications
Translates research and policy into actionable plain
language
CDC’s Social Media Landscape
60 Twitter profiles
27 Facebook profiles
14 Blogs
2 LinkedIn profiles
YouTube channel
Google+ profile
Instagram profile
Pinterest, Flickr profiles
Mobile & tablet apps, mobile web
CDC Social Media Structure
CDC’s Social Media Council Governance
Agency-wide collaboration
• Provides core oversight,
tools, and support
• Manages CDC’s primary
social media presence
Centers and
Programs
Manage and implement
topic-based campaigns and
social media channels
Office of
Communications
Enterprise Social Media Policy
Governance
Channels
Clearance
Employee Use
http://www.cdc.gov/socialmedia/tools/guidelines/pdf/soc
ial-media-policy.pdf
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9
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Top Facebook Top Twitter
World Cup
Ebola virus outbreak
Elections in Brazil
Robin Williams
Ice Bucket Challenge
Conflict in Gaza
Malaysia Airlines
Super Bowl Michael
Brown/Ferguson
#WorldCup - 21.6 million
#Ferguson - 16.8 million
#Ukraine - 9.1 million
#ISIS - 4.9 million
#Icebucketchallege - 4.6 million
#MH17 - 4.5 million
#BringBackOurGirls - 4.5 million
#Ebola - 4 million
#Sochi - 1.2 million
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Key Social Media Metrics for Ebola
@WHO 333,012
@NYTimes 173,497
@AP 144,934
@CdcGov 133,590
@Unicef 115,350
@BBCWorld 96,372
@UN 56,521
@RT_com 50,536
TOTAL for
EBOLA BLOGS NEWS FORUMS TWITTER
53, 844, 272 607,725 1,837,009 1,114,658 51,284,880
TOP INFLUENCERS
On Sept. 30, mentions of Ebola on
Twitter leapt from about 100 per
minute to more than 6,000.
Source: Sysomos
http://time.com/3479254/ebola-social-media/
How Social Media Helps in Crisis
Ability for rapid, authoritative, direct communication
Be right. Be first. Be credible.
Ability to join the conversation & listen to the
conversation
Express empathy
Opportunities to address fears and misinformation
Well suited to simple messages & actionable items that
are needed in a crisis
Promote action
Provides quick opportunities to shift dialogue
The Joint Information Center (JIC): CDC’s Emergency Message Center
24/7 emergency preparedness unit
Activated during public health emergencies
Disasters, natural and man-made emergencies, and disease outbreaks and investigations
Place where public health messages are developed,
cleared, and distributed to the public and at-risk
audiences
JIC Functions
Primary communication center for emergency
response messages to the public and specific audiences
Primary communication liaison with local, state,
federal, and international partners
Ensures the content of health messages is accessible
and distributed to target audiences
Reviews/refines messages and distribution methods
based on the public’s feedback and best practices
JIC Functions
Collaborates with news media, social networks, and
partner outreach to deliver emergency health
information to the public
Translates health messages into easy-to-understand
language for diverse audiences
Uses secure communication channels to deliver health
messages to health officials
Provides technical assistance to health partners in
emergency communication and operations
CDC’s Ebola Social Media Response
Managed by JIC Social Media Team Allowed tight control of social media presence
8-10 staff
Required 24/7 social media support for posting Managing comments
Looking for engagement opportunities
Breaking news & information was round the clock
Over 4000 social media posts Primarily on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram
Extensive work with other Federal agencies and partners to coordinate social media Regular digital coordination with the White House & HHS
Participated in other chats – domestic & internationally
Promoted and shared other content
CDC’s Ebola Social Media Response
Coordinated closely with Web activities
Posted a mix of content types to get maximum reach Text
Infographics
Photos
Critical to stay engaged on breaking info & constantly coordinate Often little to no notice of press events, etc.
Often developed content and images on the fly (and obtained quick clearance) Had key messages but had to quickly develop social content
Immediate & Consistent Communication
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CDC Director Responds to Ebola
• Critical to tweet timely
information
• Tweets often tied to his
regular press conferences
• Wrote Op-Ed Blogs
• Considerable growth of
account and reach of his
account
Getting out the Facts about Ebola
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Explaining Complex Issues
Talking to Health Professionals
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Engaging & Listening
Visit https://www.facebook.com/CDC/posts/10152554658861026 to view the full Q&A
Provided 6 engagement opportunities
First one with less than 24 hours notice
Critical to provide access to CDC experts
Identified at least 5 SMEs per event
SMEs are considered agency spokesperson
Used Storify
Qs informed communication needs
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August 4 – Hosted 1st Ebola Twitter Chat
Number of participants: 2,371
Total Mentions: 4,380
Potential Reach: 109 Million
Adjusted Reach: 16,171,289
Total Questions Answered: 98
https://storify.com/HHSGov/august-4-
2014-cdcchat-on-ebola
August 8 – Twitter Chat for Healthcare Workers
Number of participants: 893
Total Mentions: 2,059
Potential Reach: 37.2 Million
Adjusted Reach: 3.8 Million
Total Questions Asked: 96
https://storify.com/CDCgov/live-twitter-chat-8-8-2014
Facebook Q&A with Disease Detective Kelsey
• Total Questions
Asked - 44
• Total Questions
Answered - 30
• Potential
reach: 51,488
• Total Facebook
Engagement :
2,438
October 2 – Twitter Chat Number of participants:
3,634
Total Mentions: 9,246
Potential Reach: 155.5
Million
Adjusted Reach: 26.2
Million
Total Questions
Answered: 155
Largest CDC Chat Ever https://storify.com/CDCgov/live-ebola-cdcchat-october-2-2014
October 8 – Twitter Chat Total participants: 2,944
Total Mentions: 6,827
Potential Reach: 100
Million
Adjusted Reach: 12.1
Million
Total Questions
Answered: 160
https://storify.com/CDCgov/cdcchat
October 15 – Facebook Q&A
Visit https://www.facebook.com/CDC/posts/10152554658861026 to view the full Q&A
Total Post Reach: 806,144
Total Questions Asked: 2,117
Total Questions Answered:
192
Post Likes: 1,618
Post Shares: 2,411
Most Common Questions
How does Ebola spread?
Will it mutate?
What are signs of Ebola?
Can my pets be infected?
Is there a cure?
Situation questions
Dispelling Misinformation - #EbolaFacts FAQs
New Conversations: Highlighting CDC Disease Detectives
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CDC Disease Detective Stories
127 total posts on CDC social media channels
Total Twitter Impressions: 1,002,053
Total Twitter Engagement: 1,708
Total Facebook Post Reach: 1,180,252
Total Facebook Engagement: 16,925
#CDCintheField
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#CDCintheField
Total Photos Posted on CDCgov Twitter: 71
Total Twitter Potential Reach: 6,933,124
Total Twitter Engagement: 2,411
Total Photos Posted on CDC Instagram: 53
Total Instagram Engagement: 2,464
Social Media Monitoring
Social media team reviewed constantly
JIC Research Team reported to entire JIC on trends
CDC uses Sysomos to provide critical social media
information
Helped us:
Determine communication needs
Identify misinformation
Understand our reach
Understand influencers
Evaluate media types
Daily Report of News & Social Media
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WHAT WE LEARNED
Substantial Reach with Social Media
0
2000000
4000000
6000000
8000000
10000000
12000000
0
50,000,000
100,000,000
150,000,000
200,000,000
250,000,000
300,000,000
350,000,000
400,000,000
FAC
EBO
OK
REA
CH
TWIT
TER
REA
CH
Social Media Reach
Twitter Reach Facebook Reach
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CDC was an Influencer
@WHO 333,012
@NYTimes 173,497
@AP 144,934
@CdcGov 133,590
@Unicef 115,350
@BBCWorld 96,372
@UN 56,521
@RT_com 50,536
TOP INFLUENCERS 2014
Source: Sysomos
WHO IS TALKING ABOUT CDC AND EBOLA
Top influencers in this community include prominent Republicans and employees and affiliates of Fox News
What Communities have formed around the CDC and Ebola on Twitter.
Top influencers in this community include the President/White House and large News networks like the New York Times and the BBC
Top influencers in this community include the CDC, World Health Organization, FEMA, and Liz Szabo – Medical Reporter for USA Today
Communities are segmented by: • Twitter users who are connected based on follower relationships • Twitter users who are tweeting about the similar topic, matching the
keywords CDC and Ebola.
@DrFreidenCDC/ Twitter Follower Growth (August – November)
Follower increases appears to be driven by mentions of Dr. Frieden’s
profile rather than by original tweets.
0
5.0K
10.0K
15.0K
20.0K
25.0K
30.0K
35.0K
Tota
l En
gage
men
t
Engagement Breakdown
@replies (to @DrFriedenCDC) Retweets Mentions Favorites
@DrFreidenCDC/ Twitter Follower Growth (August – November)
43% total follower growth since July 2014, increasing from 45,734 on July 31, 2014
to 65,495 as of November 20, 2014 (a gain of nearly 20,000 new followers.)
Social Media Growth – Ebola Bump
-
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
60,000
70,000
-
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
July August Sept October Nov. 20
DR
. FR
IED
EN
CD
C C
HA
NN
ELS
Ebola-Related Social Media Growth
CDCgov Twitter Facebook DrFrieden Twitter
Best Practices & Lessons Learned
Have process and plans before a crisis for social media &
integrate into an overall communication structure
Establish a lead for social media
One voice
Determine “lead” profiles
Communicate quickly – it can be done
Repeat key messages & share on multiple channels
Create simple messages & add visuals
Tell good stories
Be transparent
Best Practices & Lessons Learned
Curate and share content freely
Interact and answer questions
Have a strong comment management plan
Set moderation filters
Review your comment policy
Have a thick skin
Have a deep bench of staff
Make sure your content is sized correctly for your
channel
Have social media monitoring/metrics tools in place
Office of the Director
Office of the Associate Director for Communication
Questions?
CERC:
http://emergency.cdc.gov/cerc/index.asp
CDC’s Social Media:
http://www.cdc.gov/socialmedia/
Contact:
Carol Crawford