SESSION A

CREATING CONTENT FOR SOCIAL MEDIA APPLICATIONS

CO-PRESENTERS:Matthew Gordon, Co-founder and Director, OurSay and Policy

Officer - Planning EPA Victoria

Madeline Snow, Platform Co-ordinator, OurSay

Madeline Snow- Platform Coordinator

Email: madeline.snow@oursay.orgPhone: 0400650136

Matthew Gordon- Co-founder of OurSay

Email: matthew.gordon@oursay.orgPhone: 0410275905

Today’s Agenda: Introductions – 5 minutesDiscussion on challenges/opportunities – 15

minutesOurSay Insights - 50 minutes

Facebook: “How to”, examples, activity Twitter: “How to”, examples, activity(BREAK)Youtube: “How to”, examples, activity

OurSay Strategies for Local Government – 10 minutes

Questions (and answers) – 10 minutes

Getting to know each other

Find a partner.Introduce yourselves.Rate your social

media skills from 1-5.Regroup, and discuss

your answers.

Why can social media be scary?What are some challenges for making your

government social media savvy?What opportunities does social media present?

Challenges & Opportunities

The End Goal:

Government Citizens

Two-way dialogue

Trust

Understanding

OurSay Insights:

OurSay Strategy to Social Media

Ask yourself:Are you creating a two-way discussion?Is your content interesting and informative to

your community?Is it social? Will people share it, as well as read

it?

Facebook now has over 1billion users.Facebook is very personal. It’s used to connect

with family and friends; be mindful of this. In some ways, Facebook is your most valuable

resource for online communication.

Getting the most out of Facebook

Know your audience and use appropriate language.

Vary the kind of content that is posted. For example, council updates, links to articles, pictures etc.

Connect with your local community.Give your Facebook a personality!

Things to avoid:The silent treatment.Talking at people, not to people. Too many updates.Not giving reasons to engage with posts, or like

the page.Be cautious of becoming self-centric.

Great Facebook Content:The Whitehouse on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WhiteHouse?fref=ts

ActivityWrite a plan for the content you might want to

publish on Facebook over the next week.Consider varying the types of content, and

people you’ll be engaging.Address the list of challenges.Refer to the OurSay strategy!

OurSay Strategy to Social Media

Ask yourself:Are you creating a two-way discussion?Is your content interesting and informative to

your community?Is it social? Will people share it, as well as read

it?

Twitter differs from Facebook as the content is much shorter, and also disappears much sooner.

There are fewer people on Twitter, and the demographic is different.

Great way to give short updates, connect with your residents and share information.

Tips for TwitterPosts on Twitter don’t have to be as general as those on

Facebook, and they can be a lot more frequent.Retweet updates that come from your community.Use the search function to find conversation happening

in your community. Include calls to action. Follow people back.Send direct messages. Use #hashtags.

ActivityWrite a post about a

community community in 15 words or less.

Consider the language you are using, and ways to increase its reach.

Refer to the OurSay strategy.

OurSay Strategy to Social Media

Ask yourself:Are you creating a two-way discussion?Is your content interesting and informative to

your community?Is it social? Will people share it, as well as read

it?

Youtube is great for giving your workplace a public face, and creating trust.

Youtube can allow you to get creative!Content is not produced as frequently, but is just

as important for communicating with networks.

Using Youtube…Show, don’t tell. Low production value- keep things real!Positivity is key, so it’s a great way to

communicate successes.Timely to issues.Great way to put a friendly face to local council.Mayor Nenshi from Calgari: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSlMjqWZZdg

Activity

•Think about this video we just watched.•What about it is interesting? How can you use these points to benefit local government?

Strategies to consider…Sign off posts with a name or initials.Ask your followers for their opinion on particular

issues.Establish a routine- Eg. post a pic of the day, an

inspirational video every Monday, something lighthearted every Friday, council updates every Wednesday etc.

Ensure you have a plan for when things go wrong- setup guidelines for everyone that uses social media in your department.

Taking it to the next level:

A case study:

The End Goal:

Government Citizens

Two-way dialogue

Trust

Understanding

2. CASE STUDY: HEPBURN SHIRE COUNCIL

.

The CEO and Council wanted to access a variety of community views in the Council Plan consultation process.

Outcomes• Diverse community involvement

from all ages: from 15 to 90 years old

• Involved +10% of households: 1000-fold increase

• Positive media exposure enhancing reputation

Client ContactAaron Van Egmond, CEO

Questions?

Thank you!