Tips for Engaging Audienceand Staff in Social Media

Brian Dresher: USATODAY.comTwitter: @bdresher

Blog: social.usatoday.com

Why do we care about social media?

•Social media is another way to reach audience.

•If you don’t break or share the news, then someone else will.

•Trend spotting.

•Connect with existing fans as well as find new ones.

•Traffic increases to your site.

•Even if Twitter goes away, the concept isn’t, so it or something like it will be a part of the social media future.

Where is the USATODAY.com community?

Brands need to adapt to the rules of the playgrounds in which they’re playing.

Facebook Fan Pages for Brands

Many Uses for Twitter

•Meet Ups - @CruiseLog - Anyone else going on Carnival's Bloggers Cruise this weekend? I'll be on board (and blogging) starting Saturday and would love to meet up!

•Opportunity - @USATODAYweather - Send your weather photos to USA TODAY. We publish the best online and in the newspaper. #photography

•Engagement - @USATmedialounge - With more than 1,700 comments, there's a lot of interest in Iowa's decision on gay marriage. Add your thoughts here: http://ow.ly/21o5

•Story Leads - @barbdelollis - Are you #snowbound/stranded in a #hotel ? If so, I'm interested in hearing abt yr experience for a story. Email me @ bdelollli@usatoday.com

•Customer Service - @USATODAYservice - @LinsayPattan Our apologies forthe issue with the paper machine. Contact USA TODAY Customer Service@ 800-USA-0001 for a refund of the $1

Steps USA TODAY took to Sell Internal Staff on Twitter

•Started small. One person buying-in leads to another and another.

•Shared success stories.

•Defined roles for members of our organization.

•Created internal education plan.

•Prepare monthly report showcasing our ROIII.

These steps have helped to turn doubters into believers!

Tips for Brands to Reach Users on Twitter• Understand value of Twitter etiquette: re-tweets, replies, and thank yous.

• Use sites such as WeFollow to find and follow Twitterers who cover similar topics.

• Follow other internal Twitter feeds, industry experts, major brands, clients, competitors, etc.

• Identify best hashtags to have tweets discovered as well as search for other Twitterers tweeting on same subject.

• Optimize tweets so that they’re easily re-tweetable.

All of the above tips lend themselves to increasing Followers and Engagement!

Competitive Analysis of Social Media

Mainstream media

Anyone with a cell phone

Mainstream media +Anyone with a cell phone

Educate and Inform our Audience about Twitter

Tweets posted to the comments section.

Source: “Hotel guests: What's the 1st thing you do after check in?” by Barbara DeLollis, http://content.usatoday.com/communities/hotelcheckin/post/2009/05/67083873/1

Enhance On-Site Twitter Presence

Source: “Gene mutations tied to children’s stuttering,” by Rtia Rubin, http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2010-02-11-stutter11_ST_N.htm

Social Networking Impact on Role of Brands

• Publish content to a blog.

• Optimize title tags so that they are SEO-friendly.

• Submit content to social media sites (e.g., Yahoo Buzz, Digg, etc.).

• Upload multi-media to Flickr, YouTube, and iTunes.

• Maintain Facebook Fan Page presence.

• Tweet and monitor Twitter for trends and ideas.

Need to know what tools exist and how and when to use them!

Developing your Social Media Plan

1. What do you hope to achieve by having a social network presence?

2. Who is your target audience and where do they spend their time?

3. How will you create buy-in with internal staff that this is a priority?

4. What metrics will you use to gauge success?

5. Who are your competitors and what do they do on social networks?

6. How do your on- and off-site social media activities support each other?

Summary

•Social networking is logical extension of onsite community and social media initiatives.

•Social networking allows for increased engagement and exposes personality of the brand and increases traffic.

•Commitment to social networking requires commitment to learn, apply latest tools, and experiment.

•Social media is here to stay. Each day allows us opportunity to tap new audiences.