What is Social Media
Social media is the term used to describe social interaction
through the internet including audio, video, images and text.
This includes social networking and content-sharing. The
services are mostly free to use and you don’t really need to
have any technical skills to use them.
Social media is…
• an addition to traditional communications activities
• a tool to converse directly with customers / service users
• a cost communications tool
• cross functional-platform
• sometimes difficult to use!
Why is Social Media Important?
• A great resource to reach a
new/bigger audience
• It’s often FREE to use or
low cost
• Can quickly be updated.
• Easiest and quickest way
of getting good news out
• It’s viral. People will pass
stuff on to a new audience
• Sharing information
• Publicising information and
events
Common Social Media Platforms
Yammer: Social network used for private communications with
groups and networks. Often used within organisations to share
documents and ideas.
Twitter: Social networking and ‘microblogging’ service that
allows you to answer the question ‘What are you doing?’ by
sending a short message of 140 characters.
Foursquare: Location based social network. It lets people
‘check-in’ to places they visit using their mobile phone. Can
earn points, badges and rewards.
Facebook: Social networking site that allows you to create a
page/group which ‘friends’ can join or ‘like’. You can post
messages, add photos and create events.
YouTube: Video sharing site for uploading short videos of an
event or activity. People can comment on videos and they can
be embedded in a website.
Common Social Media Platforms
Tweetdeck/Hootsuite: ‘Social media dashboards’ that allow
you to manage multiple social media accounts in one place.
Schedule updates and post them to multiple places
Flickr: Photo hosting website that you can upload images to so
that people can view them. Can display your photos in different
ways, such as a slide show
Linkedin: Business related social networking site for
professional networking. Create a professional profile similar to
a CV to build connections
Podcasts: A series of audio files which could be news or
events. Users subscribe to the series and are updated
automatically when a new one is posted
RSS: Really Simple Syndication is frequently delivered updated
information you subscribe to. They are fed from websites to a
place you can read them
The Big Two!
• The best known and one of the
easiest to use
• Approx 3.5 billion are registered
• Millions of businesses, charities
and community groups use it to
raise profile and increase sales
• Can create groups (open, closed,
secret)
• Create a Page (mainly used to
promote a
brand/product/service).
• Not limited to characters and can
upload images etc…
• Arguably has over took Facebook
in terms of active use (rather than
Zombie accounts)
• Followers not ‘friends’
• 140 characters
• All major corporations, celebrities
and groups have an account
• Retweet interesting news
• Link to website updates
• Post images
Time is of the Essence
Best Times: Weekends 1.00pm – 3.00pm
www.twitter.com
Social Media Mistakes to Avoid in 2015
1. Obscure Profile Images
2. Self-centered content sharing
(Self promote, when appropriate)
3. Check links before sharing
4. Inconsistent posts
5. Research trending hashtags before using
6. Avoiding dialogue
7. Sticking to worn out methods
The key to a successful social media strategy is to constantly
share interesting content..
Source: www.mediacase.org and newsnet5.com
Get used to using social media in a professional way
Make yourself a
Twitter profile
and tweet about
computer games,
game culture,
game and ethics,
game design etc.
And follow video
games suppliers,
developers,
gamers,
some or all of
your fellow
students, and the
lecturer
Make yourself
a paper.li using
your “gaming”
Twitter profile,
and set it to
automaticly
tweet the latest
edition so that
your Twitter
profile has one
paper.li tweet
per day.
Make yourself
a SoundCloud
profile and
upload two
recordings in
accordance
with the
mandatory
tasks
Hinweis der Redaktion
What is the purpose of using this Social Media?
What is its strength?
What is itsweakness?
What opportunities does it present?
What are the threats orrisks?
1. Obscure profile images
A dash of creativity to your groups social media profiles is one thing, but something unrelated and abstract is another. Always use your nonprofit’s logo as the profile image, because it leverages the most brand recognition.
2. Self-centered content sharing
Just because users have decided to follow your nonprofit’s social media accounts doesn’t mean you should inundate them with promotional or fundraising posts. A good rule of thumb is the 70-20-10 rule.
70% value-based content + 20% shared content + 10% promotional content.
3. Inconsistent posts
Ensure your social media audience remains engaged by providing them with content that encourages interaction. This includes posting and tweeting thought-provoking content that sparks discussions.
4. Avoiding dialogue
Out of all of the social media platforms out there, Twitter provides nonprofits with the best opportunity to reach followers in real time. Not only can you interact with those you are connected to, but conversations around hashtags allow you to connect with potential supporters. Hosting Twitter chats and live tweeting during events are two other great ways to interact with your nonprofit’s supporters, potential supporters, partner organizations and other key influencers.
6. Sticking to worn-out methods
Social media platforms evolve at lightening speed - so keep up with the latest trends. Be creative and test out different methods of sharing content and engaging with supporters:
- Ask questions.
- Share photos and links to stories.
- Post images with text overlaid on photos.
- Announce victories and organizational milestones.
- Request partner organizations to share your nonprofit’s content on their networks. (And do the same for them!)
- Create and share infographics.
The key to a successful social media strategy is to constantly share interesting content. Replicate ideas that work and go back to the drawing board to refine and retest ones that don’t.