Getting Ready for Social Media

Mike Spear

Director of Corporate Communications

Genome Alberta

• Former journalist with a CBC President's Award, Farm Writers' Award, CBC Peer awards and RTNDA awards for my programs or newsrooms. Currently working on a network radio pilot program

• SysOp with CompuServe of Columbus, Ohio in the 90’s

• Published in peer-reviewed journals

• I've owned a Newton, Palm, and an iPAQ

• Part of our National genetics and society team

• Live outside high-speed internet or cell data plans

• Genome Alberta is a not-for-profit research funding organization

• Funded by 2 levels of government, academic institutions and industry

• Our communications goals centre on:• Awareness• Education• Position Genome Alberta as a source of information• Prepare for later

I share my genome

• “Social Media is not a fad – it is a fundamental shift in the way we communicate”

• The technology is new with better speed, reach, and scope

• The how, where, when, what, and to whom has not changed

Words spreads fast and you need to be there:

Mp3:

Wav:

Audience is Key to Strategy

• No high speed internet• Strong sense of

community

• Little interest in social media

Go back to the basics to integrate your communications strategy

Choosing the tools:

You Must Enter the Tiger's Den to Catch the Cubs

Madison Avenue has always known to enter the culture where you want to compete

Social Networks are not new:

“ The peculiar challenge then, is for us digital immigrants – many of whom are in positions to determine how news is assembled and disseminated – to apply a digital mindset to a set of challenges”

Rupert Murdoch

Government & non-profits tend to polarize.

We need more ways to reach out.

Knowledge is only one factor among many influences that are likely to guide how individuals reach judgements, with ideology, social identity and trust often having stronger impacts”

Bubela, Nisbet et al. (2009) Nature Biotech

"Strengthening ( Internet) network culture construction and management," ..... "will help extend the battlefront of propaganda and ideological work. It is good for increasing the radiant power and infectiousness of socialist spiritual growth."

Hu JintaoPresident of China

Moral incentives need to replace material incentives.

Give-a-Gene

Templates, stories, layout, features, and content, can be edited on the fly.

Pushes material to the web, Twitter, and is re-usable in other communications tools

• Integrate, Integrate, Integrate

• Reuse, Recycle, Reduce

We chose SM route because:

• Cheap• Easy• Intuitive• Replaces other tools• Risk free

PlanningSocial Media Research  8-25 hoursSocial Media Planning   10-20 hours BlogCreation                      10-15 hoursDevelopment                40 hoursMaintenance                5 hours/week LinkedIn Creation                       1 hourDevelopment                 5-15 hours         Maintenance                 3-10 hours/week Facebook (Fan or Group Page)Creation                       3-12 hoursDevelopment                10-50 hoursMaintenance                 7-15 hours/week

TwitterCreation                        1 hourDevelopment                 15-40 hoursMaintenance                 3-7 hours/week

YouTube (branded channel)Creation                        3 hoursDevelopment                  5-20 hoursMaintenance                  2-7 hours/week

One and a half staff needed to look after social media channels

from a blog post by James Bennett, Head of Content, Melcrum

So how can you prevent social media from sucking up all your time?

GenOmics - Twitter - blog - DNA network - Homepage

Twitter - blogs - Newsletter – influencers - homepage

Blog / GenOmics - media - Twitter

Picasa – AAET - BioAlberta - blog - GenOmics

Newsletter – Twitter – GenOmics - Influencers

YouTube - GenOmics - blog - partners

Slideshare - Homepage - Twitter - GenOmics

RSS - blogs – GenOmics

Wikipedia – Other Genome Centres

David & Goliath

mspear@genomealberta.ca

@mikesgene

http://facebook.genomealberta.ca

http://www.genomealberta.ca/blogs

http://www.slideshare.net

or

http://mediamargins.com