Author: Domen Božeglav, ARNES, <domen.bozeglav@arnes.si>
Reviewers: Laura Durnford, TERENA, <durnford@terena.org>, Gitte Julin Kudsk, <gitte.kudsk@uni-c.dk>

Introduction

The goal of the Social Media Jumpstart Pack is to help NRENs start their own Social Media presence or improve an existing one. The document aims mainly at communications-PR (or other) coordinators setting up their NREN Social Media, with some parts aimed at staff producing content - e. g. technical staff. It's not an overwhelming strategy but rather "How to..." directions you can use instantly.

This document was created by TF-CPR, the TERENA task force on communications and public relations, but all NREN employees are kindly invited to contribute to keep it updated as our Social Media usage matures.

The document is divided into 8 logical steps which imitate the natural top-to-bottom deployment of an NREN Social Media presence (some steps of deployment are covered in further detail on the TERENA wiki space):

  1. Why do you need it
  2. Which Social Media are you talking about
  3. Evaluate ROI (return on investment)
  4. Get Management buy-in
  5. Deployment
  6. Start producing content and engage co-workers
  7. Measuring
  8. Where to go forward

 

1. Answer the question “Why does your NREN need Social Media?"

The most common reason for expanding our PR efforts to Social Media is "because others are on Social Media too". In our opinion this argument is wrong and if you don't exactly know what you want to do with Social Media, you'd be better off putting your effort elsewhere.

  1. Write down what  you expect from Social Media
  2. What’s your audience? Use "personas" if you have them available from other web projects. Be aware that a minority creates the majority of Social Media conversation.
  3. How do you plan to talk to your audience (in comparison to the way you would talk to them via other channels)?
  4. What do you consider as a success?

Before going any further, try to honestly answer these two questions:

  1. Are you and your organisation ready to communicate on the new channels (Social Media is just a complementary set of channels)?
  2. Who is going to be communicating  - are they prepared to take enough time to do that properly?

If you can't answer above questions, feel free to explore the subject a bit further:

2. Decide which Social Media you are going to adopt

The Social Media space is changing as we speak - some applications cease to exist and some new ones are emerging all the time - although we are aware of some serious players that won't vanish overnight (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Youtube ...). If you want to maintain focus and momentum we suggest you decide on WHICH Social Media applications you are going to adopt.

For now (2012) NRENs are present on (in the app, order of frequency):

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Youtube
  • Google+
  • Xing
  • Blogspot
  • Wikipedia
  • Custom Social Media deployments and various blogs

For details and live examples check the NREN Social Media 'use cases' wiki page, where you can explore how NRENs have set their Social Media presence. It's best if you start with one Social Media application and once adopted move to others.

If you can't decide on which Social Media to adopt, additional hints can be found at:

3. Evaluate ROI and decide if it's worth the effort

If by now you still aren't sure what you'd like to achieve with Social Media channels it will be very hard to evaluate the ROI (Return on Investment). Try thinking at least in these areas:

  • With publishing on Social Media channels you will reach a broader audience.
  • You will be able to reach people who usually don't monitor your web page for news feeds.
  • News editors and some decision makers are very active on Social Media. It's much easier to reach them now (Twitter)
  • You can get instant feedback on things you publish
  • People are able to react to your published output
  • Social Media is a great place to launch less formal news
  • Consistent Social Media presence can bring you higher brand awareness

Social Media requires constant involvement so don't underestimate the work you will have to invest to start Social Media and keep it going. Here are a few hints from our own experience:

  • Deployment takes time. It can take from a single day to even a month or more if you want to exploit the full potential of applications (e.g. Facebook games, apps ...)
  • Social Media constantly evolves so you will likely have to invest some more time as new features are available
  • Content publishing on Social Media is trivial but you will have to "fine tune" your content to get better results. Avoid the use of RSS re-feeds on Social Media at all costs. 
  • You'll have to take time to monitor what's going on and potentially answer additional questions from users, though tools that make that easier for you are freely available on the Internet (e.g. netvibes)
  • Eventually you'll probably have to face "difficult users". Such appearances are rare but can take a lot of time and effort to solve.
  • If possible have a person responsible for looking after Social Media in your team ...

So now, do the maths. Also think about hiring a professional to do it for you. There are more and more firms that are aware of NGOs (Non-governmental organisations) specifics e.g. Helpful Technology, which led the TF-CPR Social Media training workshop in Belgrade in 2011.

4. Make the final decision and get management “buy in”.

With Social Media in place at some stage you will definitely need management support, so now is the best time to get their consent for the project. Try to incorporate Social Media into company culture. Since the management is on your side now it's an excellent opportunity to push forward a Company Social Media policy. 

 Though some NGOs are often keen on creating very long polices, we suggest you take the UK Govermnment Social Media guidance for civil servants as an example:

Government expects civil servants to adhere to the Civil Service Code online as well as offline.

Do check out these additional examples of "light" policy and guidelines:

But if you need a more elaborate Social Media policy, the Social Media policy examples Wiki page offers you a few NREN and a lot of corporate extensive examples, or check out Forresters "The CIO's Guide To Establishing A Social Media Policy". Guidelines on the Ethical Use of Social Media are also a good start for creating your own policy.

5. Start deploying your Social Media

When deploying various Social Media applications there are some general guidelines you can follow:

  1. Learn from others. Be active and see for yourself what's working and what's not. Check the NREN Social Media presence Wiki page for ideas.
  2. You won't be able to monitor the entire Social Media space. Plan deploying various tools such as netvibes to save you time once your applications are in production.
  3. Technology and applications are changing all the time. Instead of training employees for specific applications, think in more general terms and give them "How to communicate on Social Media" training that will still be of value even when you are migrating from e.g. Facebook to Pinterest.
  4. If you have very limited resources, you won't likely have a chance to be innovative with your Social Media usage. Learn from others if the knowledge is available - e.g. Do's and Don'ts of Social Media.
  5. Don't forget to include your NREN Security policy issues while deploying your Social Media. Check out a list of hints. and 5 Social Media security hints video.
Facebook

Facebook has the highest number of users so it's probably the best "usual suspect" to start with.

  1. Create your company page profile (don’t use groups since they will be depreciated and don’t create a personal profile for your company since it’s against the FB rules).
  2. Add company data, try to “talk to people” don’t just use facts.
  3. Use the new layout mode with a cover photo. We are visual beings and also Social Media is a very visual medium. Check article on Visual elements of FB page, FB sizes and dimensions cheat sheet and offical FB dimensions guide to achieve perfect visualization of your profile.
  4. Publish as many photos as you can - people will most likely check them out and engage through them.
  5. Use the new Timeline feature and create your NREN history.



  6. Notify your colleagues about the new page and hopefully they will like it (and others will follow them).

If you plan on spending further efforts on Facebook consider reading

Twitter

Twitter is often called the Social Network for intellectuals, so it's quite likely you will be able to reach important journalists and decision makers there. You can set up your profile in minutes and in terms of customisation, adding a logo and a simple background picture resembling your common design should be a no brainer:

  1. Once you create your corporate profile do take time to customise it. It will make all the difference if someone lands on your profile.
  2. Make sure you state who stands behind the company Twitter profile - name the person(s), so users know who they are talking to.
  3. Twitter users produce a lot of post so make sure you use tools like Tweetdeck: https://tweetdeck.twitter.com/. They will help you navigate through the information noise and manage multiple accounts and hash-tags. The most important feature with Tweetdeck you should use is "Teams" feature, where you can assign editorial or administrator roles to other twitter users without disclosing your account username and password. More info: https://blog.twitter.com/2015/introducing-tweetdeck-teams?utm_campaign=OT_PU_CON_TweetDeck_US_Teams&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua Make sure the future editor is logged into Twittdeck before he clicks (confirms) his role through email.
  4. Don't forget to set automatic notifications for various events - for instance when somebody mentions you or re-posts one of your tweets.
  5. Since tweeting is so dynamic, make sure you stay connected to emerging trends on Twitter: Twitip.
  6. Make sure to use the new profile options for images: http://mashable.com/2014/04/08/twitters-new-profiles-what-you-need-to-know/ 
LinkedIn

LinkedIn could also be called the Facebook for professionals. Especially professionals from technical fields are present and try to "connect" on LinkedIn. A vast number of NREN employees are already present on LinkedIn though the activity rarely exceeds linking with others. A company LinkedIn profile is also good for raising brand awareness.

  1. When creating a company profile try to search for and "link" to existing companies (your company could be already listed among companies and linked to your employees).
  2. Add the company "professional" data. Think of the profile as a billboard for job seekers.
  3. In this case think about incorporating a company news RSS. LinkedIn is not (yet) as 'live' as other Social Networks so it could save you some time and the potential damage is not as big as using RSS on Facebook or twitter.
  4. Add information about a few of the most important services you offer and are important to you.
  5. If you are looking for new employees very often, fill in the Job section.
  6. Check the LinkedIn official guidelines for additional possibilities you can use in your LinkedIn profile.
Youtube

People rarely browse through custom Youtube channels, though creating one brings credibility and raises brand awareness. Contrary to the majority of NREN custom solutions, it offers additional customisation and subscription opportunities.

  1. When creating your channel think about the name carefully since it will tend to (or not) pop up at the searches.
  2. Add information about the channel. Careful use of words applies in this case too.
  3. Creating a customised, NREN-branded background and slight channel customisation is easy
  4. Select featured channels and upload several videos so that the channel at least looks full if you blindly land on it.

Wikipedia

The Wikipedia page about your NREN is probably already online, created by a Wikipedia enthusiast. In any case you will have to be careful when editing or adding information since local Wikipedia users look after their Wikipedia spaces passionately.

  1. Check whether your NREN is already on Wikipedia and whether the information about your NREN is up to date.
  2. If you have to update the information, be aware of strict editorial policy and comply to it.
  3. If possible, try contacting the "local Wikipedia caretaker" and discuss what you should add or update.
Google+, Pinterest, Flikr, Instagram, various Blogs, Wikispaces and future Social Media applications

With so many Social Media applications it's really hard to know where to put your focus. If the application is not in your immediate interest you certainly shouldn't be spending too much time on it. We suggest you do the following:

  1. Register your company account as soon as possible so you can "reserve" your brand username.
  2. Keep the username and password somewhere safe if you decide to work further in the future.
  3. If possible also add a short company description and company logo.
  4. Wait to see what happens with the application.
  5. And be aware. With some of them you will need an android or apple-based mobile device.

In our opinion, Instagram will be the next Social Media application worth spending effort on.

6. Start producing content and engage co-workers

Once you are underway your work really begins. If you want results it takes your time, effort and constant involvement! Here are some general guidelines that will keep you going in the right direction:

  • Understand what you are doing. All Social Media applications have their own rules and you have to understand them to use them effectively.
  • Invite your work colleagues and technicians to participate in your Social Media channels. If necessary, provide internal or external Social Media training.
  • Make it clear that everyone in the company should be aware of and follow your Social Media guidelines and policy.
  • Identify Social Media enthusiasts inside your NREN and actively encourage them.
  • Answer questions as soon as possible to maintain you credibility.
  • Think about content in advance. Execute your plan with the help of Social Media Conversation Calendar.
  • Time your posting for maximum impact. Check out The best and worst time to post info-graphic.
  • Always make people feel that their opinion matters.
  • And most important: If you have nothing to say, don’t say it!
  • Use natural language, so you reduce the distance between you and users.
  • Don't try to moderate Social Media. You should rather guide the debate, check out Guidelines on how to react to Social Media posts.
  • Don't forget checking the trends all the time. You could be wasting your precious time on Social Media applications that are "so last year"!
Facebook
  • Show people you appreciate their time. They will reward it.
  • Facebook users love photos and stories. Add as many photos as possible.
  • Create NREN events on Facebook and invite people to participate. That's certainly a new channel to reach them.
  • Photograph events and post photos from events on your profile. It will bring the traffic to your site all by itself.
  • When you launch a new service, use Facebook to share some extras with your users or give them some previews in advance - they will appreciate it. It's also a good way for getting frank feedback.
  • Create contests if you would like to activate your users or gain new ones.
  • Advertise to friends of your followers. It's very inexpensive and you can target specific users with little effort. Check out some further advices on advertising.
  • Monitor what your users like and repeat it multiple times.
  • Don't forget to understand how Facebook works. Information on Facebook is "active" for about 5-7 hours. Use "permalink" options for content with intended longer lifetime.

Twitter

  • Don't forget twitter can use a lot of your time if you get involved! Try to build it into your every day workflow but do be conservative!
  • Always tweet in #twitter language, otherwise @community will think you #failed. So learn it before tweeting!
  • Start to follow journalists and people of the same interest
  • Whenever possible try to tweet breaking news
  • Be polite, give credit. If you saw an interesting tweet, don'd tweet it as your own. Use Re-tweet!
  • Observe when people you would like to reach hang out on Twitter. Tweet your news when they are online.
  • Use tools to help you manage the tweets. Do you remember the IRC? Twitter is just like IRC but with a fancier interface.
  • Reply to twees - engage in conversation.
  • To promote your twitter @account, event #hashtag or engage users, use tweetwalls at events. It will help you display event-related tweets in real time on television or an extra projector.
  • Data on twitter is active around 5-15 minutes. Think carefully when you tweet.
LinkedIn
  • If you are in the search of new employees, make sure your job billboard on LinkedIn is up to date.
  • Engage in conversations in professional groups to let them know you are here.
YouTube
  • Keep an eye on the comments on movies you published. It's possible you'll have to give additional information or catch a chance to get a new user.
Wikipedia
  • Just make sure the information on Wikipedia is up to date and accurate, "Wikipedia caretakers" will take care of all the rest.
Google+, Pinterest, Flikr, Instagram, various Blogs, Wikispaces and future Social Media applications
  • Keep an eye on all these networks and act accordingly. Make sure you are able to spot emerging applications too.
  • If you notice a lot of users have started using Instagram, plan your future efforts into deploying and using this application.
  • Even if you think some Social Media applications are just toys it's quite possible you just don't know how to use them. So explore!

7. Measure success and report back to management

Deploying and using Social Media is often quite rewarding since it's very easy to measure the impact of your efforts. Each Social Media application usually has it's own insights tool (check out the new Facebook insights features available from September 2013) which will show you when and how users react to your posts. These insights are very useful so make sure you check them frequently and even more important, act on them accordingly.

Though insights will give you the best information you can always:

  • Count the number of your followers, likes and re-tweets.
  • Monitor news dissemination through Social Media. If possible monitor your CMS for different entry points to your news articles.
  • Use tools for accessing influence (e. g. klout, peerindex).

Don't forget to let management know you are doing a good job. Show them insights, show them how your news and influence are spreading. It will be easier for them to grant you new resources if you have something to show. And don't forget to mention: in recession times Social Media takes more of your time and less of your organisation's money whilst producing very good results when managed in the right way.

8. What's next

Now that your NREN fully utilises the benefits of Social Media, you can expand your work even forward. You can continue with further Accelerating your NREN social maturity, but if you like to keep your feet on the ground here are a few suggestions:

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