Social Networking for Texas School Districts

TASB CommLINK WebinarMarch 4, 2010

"Social Media is a social trend in which people use

technologies to get the things they need from each other, rather than from traditional

institutions."

from Groundswell by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff

Put simply, social media is people having online conversations.

Why Social Networking for School Districts?Can be an efficient way to tell your storyExplain why your District does what it doesPeople want to be a part of something goodBuild and maintain relationships with your community

http://www.flickr.com/photos/craigstephen/2559705249/

Facebook has the market

Facebook surpassed MySpace as the leading social network in the US and leads market share of US social networking site visits. Sept/09 data — 59% of all social network category visits were at Facebook, compared with just over 30% for second-place MySpace.

http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007351&N=701&No=43&

well hello

Fan Pages and Groupsparts and sections - profile images

Full size when viewing 'Wall' & 'Info' tabs Tip: Profile images 200px wide by 600px tall leverage more screen real estate

Fan Pages and Groupsparts and sections - side boxes

Tagline, basic information, your fans/members and other content

Fan Pages and Groupsparts and sections - title & tabs

Title, 'Become a Fan' or 'Join Group' link, and Tabs Note: Facebook fan pages and groups have 'Wall' and 'Info' tabs on left. Other tabs can be adjusted/modified.

Fan Pages and Groupsparts and sections - wall

You decide how the wall shows updates - just you, just your fans, or you AND your fans Important decision

Groups similar for members through customizations

Fan Pages and Groupsparts and sections - advertisements

Targeted ads - how Facebook makes its $

Tip: You will likely see fake ads for your page to get you to create your own

Fan Pages and Groupsparts and sections - publishing content

Where interactions happen Note: You determine what your fans can/cannot publish. A variety of content possible from text to complex stuff.

Fan Pages and Groupsparts and sections - additional navigation & applications

smaller logo/image 50px by 50px iconbeyond rigid 'Wall' and 'Info' comes customizations like photos, videos, calendars, discussion boards plus your own created contentno applications for Groups

Groupsparts and sections

While similar in look to Fan Pages, Groups have their pros and cons.

Let's compare...

Facebook Groupsadvantages/disadvantages

allow for bulk event invitesnow look more like pagesslightly easier to set up and managetotal control over who becomes members only visible to Facebook usersno extra applications added to themrequire regular visits to use the messaging feature

Facebook Fan Pagesadvantages/disadvantages

updates show in the fan news feedsvisible to users not registered with Facebookcontent visible before they become a fan allows for custom Facebook usernamesadd custom applications and rich contentvisitor stats (Insights) to track visitors and interactions

Communication & PersonalityFacebook and your communication efforts Not really simplified, rather a complex juggling and balancing of many opportunities But you can be efficient

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rveldwijk/2907506894/

Communication Management ManageWhy integrate social networking in school district

communication efforts? What do you hope to achieve?

allows a more personal approach to sharing the district's activitiesgive fans and visitors something positive to talk about to others who have questions about districtsparents can get a larger view of district beyond their campusfosters two-way communication between district community of parents, students, staff and publiccreates a broadcast vehicle and listening post to understand the questions and concerns from the community

Communication Management ManageThink about language use and having a voice.

Be real with people.

Communication Management ManageIt's ok to have a personality...

Communication Management Manage

Communication Management

Watch other school districts and their online communication efforts. Can you copy/remix efforts to meet your objectives? Success Stories

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mommypants/319568014/

Communication ManagementCampus Fan Pages

Who will manage?Administration oversightSame rules applyNaming conventions

Customer Service & Community Development

Wall posts provide you with a proactive way to track down customer service problems, correct mistakes, and learn from them.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mslivenletlive/318572306/

Policies & GuidelinesSet the rules of engagement...

We remove posts that:Break the law or encourage others to do so. Contain abusive or inappropriate language or statements.Easily identify students and/or staff in defamatory, abusive, or generally negative terms.Do not show proper consideration for others’ privacy or are considered likely to offend or provoke othersAre spamFull Sample: http://bit.ly/1w30vT

You are not going to be able to please everyone, but everyone should see

that you aim to please.

Thank you to colleagues at Bryan ISD, Corpus Christi ISD, Duncanville ISD, and Northwest ISD for taking time to share thoughts for this presentation.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ilyaericlee/58742420/

Contact

Richie Escovedohttp://nextcommunications.blogspot.com/richie.escovedo [at] gmail.comhttp://twitter.com/vedohttp://www.linkedin.com/in/rescovedo