CeDEM Day 2, morning, Main Hall, Workshop

1. STRATEGIES FOR BUILDING AND SUSTAINING
SUCCESSFUL USER-ENGAGEMENT
A model, tool box and check list for a one-off or cyclical process
Morten Meyerhoff Nielsen
Danish Agency for Digitisation // meyer@digst.dk
Andy Williamson
FutureDigital // andy@futuredigital.eu

2. Agenda and format
• 0-5 min Welcome and agenda (5 min).
Outline of the engagement model, the tools and the
checklist will be done in turn.
Indicate if agree/disagree (vote by raise of hand).
Followed by arguments pro and con.
• 6-25 min Engagement model (25 min).
26-50 min Tool box (25 min).
• 51-75 min Check list (25 min).
• 76-90 min Debate (15 min).

3. Context
• Social media are a new and effective way for
public authorities and parliaments to connect with
the public, particularly young people;
• Social media use is subject to existing codes of
practice for communication and engagement; and
• Social media are fast changing and dynamic
spaces for networking and sharing.

4. The pros and cons
Pros Cons
§ Creates space for dialogue
§ Pushes you closer to the public
§ Can build credibility and trust
§ Opportunities for third-party syndication
and support
§ Viral distribution
§ Cost-effective
§ Better understanding of public opinion
§ Real time monitoring
§ Time to get information out is greatly
reduced
§ Can become core part of your
communications strategy and central
hub for engagement and dissemination
§ Etiquette and protocols are different to
other media
§ Reputational risks if not authentic,
honest and transparent
§ Must be perceived as relevant to
audience, not self
§ Requires carefully tailored content
§ Potential to move rapidly and beyond
your control
§ Recruitment is hard to predict and there
is no guarantee productive dialogue will
occur
§ Social media are not short cuts to
efficacy and principles of good
communication still apply

5. The model
Source: Andy Williamson & Morten Meyerhoff Nielsen, 2012.

6. The questions
The model:
• What are the main strengths and weaknesses
of the model?
• Can it be utilised for user-involvement in
participatory service design?
• Does it account for democratic and political
decision-making processes and allow for
successful civic-engagement?

7. The tools – traditional
Panels and focus
groups
Examples: On/offline panels and focus groups and personas.
Tests Examples: think-aloud, try-it and other forms for user tests.
Mapping, statistics
and analysis
Examples: Service and context mapping, heat-mapping, eye-
tracking analysis of content and service use statistics.
Surveys Examples: Personal, telephone and online surveys plus user-
knowledge and satisfaction measures.

8. The tools – Web2.0
Social and
professional networks
Examples: Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn and Twitter.
Social and
professional platforms
Examples: Wikis like MediaWike, DokuWiki, TikiWiki, Google page
wiki; blogs like Wordpress or Blogger and collaborative office
solutions as digitaliser.dk, Debategraph, Teamwork or Work Spot.
Social publication Examples: YouTube, Flicker, SlideShare, RSS feeds and Twitter.
Social and
professional feedback
Examples: Vote and debate borger.dk or Debategraph, rating and
commenting on Facebook, gov.uk or digitaliser.dk, surveys as
survey monkey, pirate survey, free online surveys, blogs, wikis,
Wikipedia's article feedback tool, various public solutions etc.
NB: Tools may have one or more of the above functionalities

9. The tools – Web2.0
[S] earch Finding information through keyword search.
[L] inks Connecting information into a meaningful information ecosystem
using the world wide web model and providing low-barrier social
tools such as Facebook, Twitter and the like.
[A] uthoring Ability to create and update content leads to the collaborative work
of many rather than just a few web authors. In wikis, users may
extend, undo and redo each other's work, while blogs, posts and
the comments of individuals build up over time.
[T] ags Categorisation of content by users adding short descriptions to
facilitate searches without dependence on pre-made categories.
Collections of tags created by many users within a single system
are often referred to as "folksonomies" ie, folk taxonomies.
[E] xtension Software making the web an application platform as well as a
document server.
[S] ignals Use of syndication technology such as RSS feeds to notify users of
content changes.
Source: Andrew McAfee, SLATES abbreviation (Lancione, E, Meyerhoff Nielsen & Archmann, S, 2010)

10. The questions
The tools:
• What are the strengths and weaknesses of the
various participatory tools, traditional as
Web2.0?
• What tools are appropriate to what steps of the
engagement model?

11. The model
Tools
• eg networks • eg networks
(debate, sharing,
surveys)
• eg networks
(voting, rating),
feedback
• mainly project
implementation tools.
• eg tests, mapping,
statistics and surveys

12. The check list – new set of rules
• Social networks are less formal, less controlled,
less rigid and more open.
• They are less respectful of position, tradition and
privilege and conversations evolve much more
quickly than in the traditional media.
• This can be challenging for public administrations.
• But they can also be a powerful way to connect
with people who would normally NOT engage (eg
young people).

13. The check list – plan for success…
• have clear objectives, target audience and expectations (and what not
to expect)
• select Web 2.0-tools for their user-friendliness, data collection
optimisation and process facilitating characteristics (in relation to the
target group).
• have clear focus on the needs and interests of the target group and
when to include stakeholders in the formulation of these.
• decide how the input and feedback is collected and how this is
analysed, used and reported.
• have clear and transparent rules and guidelines for debate, voting
and responsibilities (often more important than the technology chosen
to increase participation).
• have a transparent and open process for the full engagement cycle.
• engagement should be supported politically and the host
organisation.

14. The check list – continious…
• focus on audience needs and interests
• focus on including and involving the target audience
• use a clear language, understood by the audience
• use two-way communication, listened, asked and
replied (votes are not enough) to sustain audience
interest and get their constructive feedback
• give the opportunity to express anger and frustration
• make use of careful, independent and credible
moderation

15. The check list – and throughout the
process…
• make use of evaluation and the target audience is
asked to participate in this
• provide feedback on input and it is illustrated
input will be used (and why it is not used)

16. Above all
• Good user-engagement practice means listening,
responding, asking and sharing; it’s about being
an active participant in the network.
• Social media is faster and fast changing; be
prepared to experiment and don’t create barriers
through over-regulation.

17. The questions
The check list:
• What is on a check list?
• What are the do s and don ts of civic
engagement, user-need analyses and testing?
• What does it take to make the engagement
model a success?

18. Morten Meyerhoff Nielsen
Danish Agency for Digitisation
eMail: meyer@digst.dk
Twitter: @mortenmeyerhoff
LinkedIn: dk.linkedin.com/in/mortenmeyerhoff
Web: digst.dk & borger.dk
Dr Andy Williamson
FutureDigital
eMail: andy@futuredigital.eu
Twitter: @andy_williamson
Web: futuredigital.eu & andywilliamson.com