Social Media Strategies

some fundamentals….

Kate Richards

Social media is an umbrella term that defines the various activities that integrate technology, social interaction, and the construction of words, pictures, videos and audio. This interaction, and the manner in which information is presented, depends on the varied perspectives and "building" of shared meaning among communities, as people share their stories, and understandings.

Social media can take many different forms, including Internet forums, weblogs, wikis, podcasts, pictures and video. Technologies include: blogs, picture-sharing, vlogs, wall-postings, email, instant messaging, music-sharing, crowdsourcing, and voice over IP, to name a few.

There are exact statistics on many aspects of social media but in general the proliferation of internet use is the fastest of all media and that encompasses social media. Participation (blogs, photo uploads, etc) has increased from about 20 million instances in 2005 to about 10 billion in 2008.

Types of social mediaSocial networking

Professional networkingMedia sharing

Blogging and micro-blogging

RSS and controlled feeds

Types of social media

Social networkingFacebook, Bebo

Types of social mediaProfessional networking

Linked In, ping

Types of social media

Media sharingTumblr, vimeo, flickr, you tube

Types of social media

Blogging and micro-blogging

1:1 1:many

Twitter, the blogosphere

Types of social media

Locative social mediaFour Squared

Deciding what’s relevant for your outcomes…FUNCTION & AIMS• build fan-base

• create spin• collect content/comments/links

out• regular updates

• build brand• using multiple environments

(concept + technique, eg tweetdeck)

Deciding what’s relevant for your outcomes…

Deciding on FUNCTION & AIMS• do focus groups• user scenarios

• user testing• scope social media

• migrate brand to social media• devise a social media strategy

Deciding what’s relevant for your outcomes…

Form of participation?• enrolled students – enforced

participation?• shared interests

• existing authority/opinion• participatory design

Deciding what’s relevant for your outcomes…

Moderation/participation• Is a moderator necessary?

• Is it pre- or post-?• Planning to populate the site

using staff

Deciding what’s relevant for your outcomes…

Duration!• How long does it run for?

• Sustainability• Social media fatigue

• Working with a marketing firm• Pre-, peri- and post-event