HootSuite Professional Services: Situational Simulation In an emergency, the rapid dissemination of information is an essential part of any response strategy. Social media offers the speed and spread that organizations require in any type of crisis. As a result, HootSuite offers situational simulations to all of its Enterprise Clients through HootSuite Professional Services. This gives them the opportunity to test and practice the procedures they’ve prepared in advance of any emergency situation. In the interest of illustrating the value of these crisis simulations, we’ve put together a report about one of these exercises organized for a large electric company serving 4.5 million Americans. A storm simulation project - called Storm Owly - was used as a trial for the integration of social media into the company’s emergency response strategy. This summary covers the effective use of the following HootSuite functionalities: Scheduling Messaging Assignments Teams Geo-Targeting Reports Read this report to see how the company was able to determine appropriate team size, simplify their messaging and generally improve the integration of social media as a result of the HootSuite crisis simulation. To set up a Situational Simulation for your organization, contact us at: http://enterprise.hootsuite.com

1. HootSuite Media Inc. HootSuite Professional Services Situational Simulation | 1
Only 18% of
companies
state that their
employees
have a good
understanding
of their social
media policies
Altimeter
“Social media was
the ideal medium
for providing
updates,
responding to
public concerns
and connecting a
variety of groups
to spread vital
information”
Social Media for Emergency Response
Situational Simulation
In an emergency, it is crucial to disperse information instantly to those
who need it most. Organizations are turning to social media as a way
to effectively and efficiently disseminate emergency information. At
HootSuite we offer Situational Simulations for all Enterprise clients
through HootSuite Professional Services. Situational Simulations allows
organizations to test procedures and available resources — ensuring your
team is prepared for an emergency situation.
Project Storm Owly
A large electric utility company in the United States, serving over 4.5
million customers, needed to launch a storm simulation project. The
purpose of Storm Owly was to help integrate social media into the utility
company’s emergency response strategy. In any emergency situation,
the rapid and coordinated communication of information is integral to
everyone’s safety. This company wanted to be equipped to address all the
questions and concerns that would be submitted during an emergency
situation.
Their goal was to successfully implement a social media strategy that was
both efficient in an emergency situation as well as effective. The company
knew that social media was the ideal medium for providing updates,
responding to public concerns and connecting a variety of groups to
spread vital information. To help them become more familiar with using
social media, they called on HootSuite Professional Services to help plan
a storm simulation where communication through social media channels
was crucial.
The Challenge
Emergency response management requires rapid response times and a
dedicated team to ensure information is accurate and up to date, and to
keep the public informed. To do this, they used HootSuite Professional
Services to guide them through a successful social media strategy
implementation. If they were successful in their training, they would
emerge with an emergency response strategy that would be accurate and
reliable.
HootSuite Professional Services:
Situational Simulation

2. HootSuite Media Inc. HootSuite Professional Services Situational Simulation | 2
Storm Owly Simulation Objectives:
• To test speed and efficiency of their social media processes and plan
in storm
• To ensure integration among social media team members
• To drill Customer Service representatives on how to respond using
HootSuite
• To drill team members on their roles and deliverables
HootSuite Professional Services created a two-hour storm simulation
called Storm Owly. Before simulating the effects of a loss in power in the
area, the HootSuite Professional Services team gave an initial kick-off call
and presentation, explaining the process and what was about to unfold.
The utility company then put together an emergency response team that
was in charge of responding to messages from their customers, while
HootSuite Professional Services created and managed a number of
customer profiles to simulate the real life interaction between customers
and the utility company’s Twitter profile and Facebook page.
This two-hour simulation was created to mimic Day 1 and Day 5 after the
storm hit. The first hour of the simulation represented Day 1, imitating
the public response with a tone that was anxious and nervous. The
second hour represented Day 5, where the response and tone changed
to be extremely frustrated and agitated. Their team carefully crafted bulk
messages and responses based on the timing and scenarios requested
by the client.
Achieving Success
In order to accomplish all of the objectives of their emergency response
strategy, the utility company relied on HootSuite Professional Services, as
well as the following tools in the HootSuite dashboard:
• Scheduling: Drafted hundreds of messages that were approved by the
client and bulk uploaded.
• Teams: HootSuite Professional Services set up all social media profiles
for simulation, and added them to an organization and teams in the
dashboard.
• Messaging Assignments: Defined processes and workflows to
be followed in different scenarios, where some individuals were
responsible for certain events. Using assignments ensured the
appropriate person was responding to a post.
• Reports: HootSuite Professional Services was able to gauge the utility
company’s social engagement and map out internal responsibilities.
• Geo-targeting: Localized messaging to target a specified area
ensured that the right people were getting the right information.
Setup
Take your strategy to the next level; partner with our
with companies similar to yours, and we’ll help evolv
Leverage best practices and
ensure HootSuite is setup for
your needs, resulting in long term
success. Realize the ROI of your
social media investment sooner.
Admin
• Organization and team setup
• Team members setup
• Social networks
• Security settings
• Access privileges
HootSuite Optimization
• Dashboard customization
• Team collaboration
• Keyword/ industry monitoring
• App Directory Integration
• Reporting/Analytics
We offer cu
training tail
setup and b
needs. Hav
all your use
Administra
• Admin t
• Security
• Manage
teams, p
and con
Usage
• Effective
function
• In-depth
• Anal
• Mob
• Soci
• Lang
• Coor
• Twee
Setup Trainin
“The Professional Services team at HootSuite
us actionable feedback, resulting in a timely
short timeline and delivered accurate re
– Amanda Vandervort, D
Leverage best practices and
ensure HootSuite is setup
for your needs, resulting in
long term success. Realize
the ROI of your social media
investment sooner.
Training
We offer customized web
based training tailored to
your HootSuite setup and
business workflow needs.
Have us train your trainers or
all your users.
Professional Services
Take your strategy to the next level; partner with our expert social media consultants. Our team
with companies similar to yours, and we’ll help evolve your social media strategy, implementa
Leverage best practices and
ensure HootSuite is setup for
your needs, resulting in long term
success. Realize the ROI of your
social media investment sooner.
Admin
• Organization and team setup
• Team members setup
• Social networks
• Security settings
• Access privileges
HootSuite Optimization
• Dashboard customization
• Team collaboration
• Keyword/ industry monitoring
• App Directory Integration
• Reporting/Analytics
Custom rep
metrics tha
goals in mi
reports bas
industry be
• Custom
• Campaig
• Twitter p
• Faceboo
• Team st
• Templat
• Report a
• Social e
• Function
• Custo
• Socia
We offer customized web based
training tailored to your HootSuite
setup and business workflow
needs. Have us train your trainers or
all your users.
Administration Training
• Admin tips and tricks
• Security administration
• Manage social organizations,
teams, permissions, access
and control
Usage
• Effective usage training by
function and role
• In-depth product training
• Analytics and reports
• Mobile apps
• Social end-to-end tracking
• Language and geotargeting
• Coordinated Messaging
• Tweet archiving
Setup Training Analyt
“The Professional Services team at HootSuite took the time to listen to our ideas an
us actionable feedback, resulting in a timely and engaging Twitter campaign. They
Analytics
Custom reports drill down to
the metrics that matter most.
With your goals in mind, we
build custom reports based
on your KPIs and industry
best practices.
Professional Services
Take your strategy to the next level; partner with our expert social media consultants. Our team has experience working
with companies similar to yours, and we’ll help evolve your social media strategy, implementation and analytics.
Leverage best practices and
ensure HootSuite is setup for
your needs, resulting in long term
success. Realize the ROI of your
social media investment sooner.
Admin
• Organization and team setup
• Team members setup
• Social networks
• Security settings
Custom reports drill down to the
metrics that matter most. With your
goals in mind, we build custom
reports based on your KPIs and
industry best practices.
• Custom reports
• Campaign impact reports
• Twitter profile reports
• Facebook page reports
• Team statistics
We offer customized web based
training tailored to your HootSuite
setup and business workflow
needs. Have us train your trainers or
all your users.
Administration Training
• Admin tips and tricks
• Security administration
• Manage social organizations,
teams, permissions, access
and control
Setup Training Analytics
Setup
Professional
Services
Professional Services
Take your strategy to the next level; partner with our
with companies similar to yours, and we’ll help evolv
Leverage best practices and
ensure HootSuite is setup for
your needs, resulting in long term
success. Realize the ROI of your
social media investment sooner.
Admin
• Organization and team setup
• Team members setup
• Social networks
• Security settings
• Access privileges
HootSuite Optimization
• Dashboard customization
• Team collaboration
• Keyword/ industry monitoring
• App Directory Integration
• Reporting/Analytics
We offer cu
training tail
setup and b
needs. Hav
all your use
Administra
• Admin t
• Security
• Manage
teams, p
and con
Usage
• Effective
function
• In-depth
• Anal
• Mob
• Soci
• Lang
• Coor
• Twee
Setup Trainin
“The Professional Services team at HootSuite
us actionable feedback, resulting in a timely
short timeline and delivered accurate re
– Amanda Vandervort, D
Leverage best practices and
ensure HootSuite is setup
for your needs, resulting in
long term success. Realize
the ROI of your social media
investment sooner.
Training
We offer customized web
based training tailored to
your HootSuite setup and
business workflow needs.
Have us train your trainers or
all your users.
Professional Services
Take your strategy to the next level; partner with our expert social media consultants. Our team
with companies similar to yours, and we’ll help evolve your social media strategy, implementa
Leverage best practices and
ensure HootSuite is setup for
your needs, resulting in long term
success. Realize the ROI of your
social media investment sooner.
Admin
• Organization and team setup
• Team members setup
• Social networks
• Security settings
• Access privileges
HootSuite Optimization
• Dashboard customization
• Team collaboration
• Keyword/ industry monitoring
• App Directory Integration
• Reporting/Analytics
Custom rep
metrics tha
goals in mi
reports bas
industry be
• Custom
• Campaig
• Twitter p
• Faceboo
• Team st
• Templat
• Report a
• Social e
• Function
• Custo
• Socia
We offer customized web based
training tailored to your HootSuite
setup and business workflow
needs. Have us train your trainers or
all your users.
Administration Training
• Admin tips and tricks
• Security administration
• Manage social organizations,
teams, permissions, access
and control
Usage
• Effective usage training by
function and role
• In-depth product training
• Analytics and reports
• Mobile apps
• Social end-to-end tracking
• Language and geotargeting
• Coordinated Messaging
• Tweet archiving
Setup Training Analyt
Analytics
Custom reports drill down to
the metrics that matter most.
With your goals in mind, we
build custom reports based
on your KPIs and industry
best practices.
Professional Services
Take your strategy to the next level; partner with our expert social media consultants. Our team has experience working
with companies similar to yours, and we’ll help evolve your social media strategy, implementation and analytics.
Leverage best practices and
ensure HootSuite is setup for
your needs, resulting in long term
success. Realize the ROI of your
social media investment sooner.
Admin
• Organization and team setup
• Team members setup
• Social networks
Custom reports drill down to the
metrics that matter most. With your
goals in mind, we build custom
reports based on your KPIs and
industry best practices.
• Custom reports
• Campaign impact reports
• Twitter profile reports
• Facebook page reports
We offer customized web based
training tailored to your HootSuite
setup and business workflow
needs. Have us train your trainers or
all your users.
Administration Training
• Admin tips and tricks
• Security administration
• Manage social organizations,
teams, permissions, access
Setup Training Analytics

3. HootSuite Media Inc. HootSuite Professional Services Situational Simulation | 3
HootSuite Professional
Services helped to:
• Discuss and plan the
overall goals and flow of
the simulation.
• Setup all social media
profiles for simulation
as well as team and
organization structure in
HootSuite.
• Draft messages that were
approved by the client
and bulk uploaded.
• Create real-time
messages on the fly.
• Perform a live simulation
which included a kick off
call, real time interaction
through fake profiles,
live technical support,
summary document of
overall recommendations,
and a wrap up call.
Results
After the Storm Owly simulation was finished, HootSuite’s Professional
Services team provided the utility company with the following
recommendations:
• Appropriate Team Size: Make sure the size of your team is
proportionate to the amount of traffic coming through. After testing
their efficiency, they realized they needed a larger team to filter and
assign messaging.
• Simplify Messaging: Make sure to fit within Twitter character limits.
They initially used abbreviations such as “4”, “Pls” or “B”, but these
detracted from a professional appearance.
• Educate: Prepare your team for using social media in emergency
situations beforehand as many are not familiar with using social in this
circumstance.
• Keep It Simple: Don’t use jargon that the customer might not
understand.
Going through the simulation afforded the utility company the insight
and practice their team needed to respond well during critical blackout
periods. By enlisting HootSuite Professional Services they gained the
important experience and understanding of what it takes to be effective
during real-time engagement.

4. HootSuite Media Inc. HootSuite Professional Services Situational Simulation | 4
About HootSuite Enterprise
HootSuite for
Social Media
Management
HootSuite Enterprise is designed for organizations
that want to drive, and connect, business goals
with social media efforts. Securely deploy broad
social programs that empower employees to
participate in social, regardless of department,
function or geography. Provide executive insights
on your entire social media footprint, and feed
social data into existing systems for CRM,
customer service and compliance.
Beyond tools and features, HootSuite Enterprise
enhances the value that social media provides by
seamlessly integrating all social media efforts with
existing systems and structures.
Request a custom demo today by visiting
enterprise.hootsuite.com
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