How to Use Social Networking Sites to Communicate to Families
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Transcript of How to Use Social Networking Sites to Communicate to Families
How to Use Social How to Use Social Networking Sites to Networking Sites to
Communicate to FamiliesCommunicate to FamiliesAmy Berrier - UNC Greensboro
Sonja McMullen – Sallie Mae
Beloit College’s 2010 Mindset ListBeloit College’s 2010 Mindset Listwww.beloit.edu/mindsetwww.beloit.edu/mindset
The incoming freshman class of 2014 was born in 1992
So using a computer has always been a part of their lives
PCs and Apples of the early 90’s had hard drives smaller than today’s flash drives
For many students, email is passe – and because of cell phones, wrist watches are no longer necessary
Shifts in CommunicationShifts in Communication
Communication is no longer a one way street
People now spend more time on social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter than on personal or work email
Generational◦Millennials are the heaviest users◦Baby Boomers are the fastest growing users
What’s in it for the FAO?What’s in it for the FAO?
You can meet students where they are◦Get the message out in the most effective manner
in the most effective meansLarger reach with fewer staff resources
◦Field common questions◦Reduce phone calls on simple issues◦Shorter lines and less walk-in traffic in your offices
Competitive advantage◦If you aren’t out there meeting your audience, who
is? Financial Aid Scams via spam Getting the right message out is CRUCIAL
Create
Be interactive!
Create great conversation starters!
Use relevant keywords in “About Us” box
Include FAQ’s and photos when appropriate
Use email to announce your page
Plan your strategy!
What do we want to achieve?
Who do we want to reach?
What social media channels are the right ones for our institution/office?
What will work best for our audience?
Common Social Media ChannelsCommon Social Media Channels
Common Channels What’s most effective for you?
Stop, Listen, and Learn!Stop, Listen, and Learn!
What is being said about you?Keywords – do not misspell!Tools for social media management:
◦Google Alerts (listening tool) Email updates of the latest Google results (web,
news, etc.) based on your choice of query or topic◦Social Mention (listening tool)
http://www.socialmention.com/ Similar to Google alerts but for social media Receive daily email alerts of your brand, company,
developing news story, etc.
Facebook Facebook
Facebook has over 500 million usersIf Facebook were a country, it would be
the third largestAn average Facebook user spends:
◦55 minutes a day on Facebook◦6.5 hours a week on Facebook◦1.2 days a month on Facebook
More than 30 billion pieces of content shared each month
Facebook is most commonly used Facebook is most commonly used social media channel on college social media channel on college
campusescampuses
What can you do with Facebook?What can you do with Facebook?
Status Updates◦Text, links, photos◦Meet the customer where they are
Facebook Events◦Promote Financial Aid Events and Deadlines
Easy to shareFacebook Questions
◦Answer and keep track of common questions◦Shorten your lines
What can you do with Facebook?What can you do with Facebook?
Students don’t use the school website much – using FB can potentially drive students to the website for pertinent info
FB posts – what is too little? What is too much?
Use the Notes section of Facebook (use hyperlinks to important info)
Use FB polls and discussionsMost colleges say to focus on Facebook more
than any other social media applicationPodcasts
FacebookFacebook
What does it take to create a Facebook page?
Negative comments on Facebook? Concerns?
Monitor 24/7?
How do you create a Facebook How do you create a Facebook page?page?
Official rep of an organizationhttp://www.facebook.com/help/?
page=904#!/pages/create.phpCreate a Facebook pagehttp://www.facebook.com/pages/learn.php
◦A public profile that enables you to share your organization’s information with the public
Step by Step - FacebookStep by Step - Facebook
Pick a category and nameAdd a profile pictureAdd informationMake it rich and engagingPublishUpdate regularly
http://www.facebook.com/pages/learn.php
YouTube/PodcastsYouTube/Podcasts
Using search engines and social media for research
Duke University YouTube Video◦http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJIxDFtUpY8◦Director of Financial Aid educating families on
financial aidPodcasts
◦UNC Greensboro podcast on Satisfactory Academic Progress
◦http://fia.uncg.edu/sap/
80% of Twitter users use Twitter on mobile devices
Over 50 million tweets in 2010
Over 100 million current users
Other ways to use TwitterOther ways to use Twitter
Follow pertinent feeds◦ Students, university departments, FinAid resources
Monitor◦ What are your students saying?
Some comments are just noise, but some feedback can be constructive
Interact◦ Make followers your advocates
Gain respect through involvement Don’t be a robot
Field QuestionsLink Twitter updates to Facebook – link Twitter to
PromotePromote
Facebook and Twitter icons on your websiteCross-promote
◦Such as signature lines in general email account – example [email protected]
◦Follow us on Twitter @UNCGFinAidFollow us on Facebook @ UNCG Financial Aid Office
Hosts contests to gain followersInteract
◦Use your website to push information◦Make students, faculty, alums your advocates
Stop, listen, and learn!Stop, listen, and learn!
Hootsuite◦http://hootsuite.com◦Social media dashboard for teams using
Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn◦You can follow “mentions” on Twitter◦Shorten links that need to be posted – Twitter
has a shorter amount of space to work with than Facebook
◦Can be used to schedule postings in advance for FB, Twitter, and YouTube
QuestionsQuestions
How do you get started?Conversations on campusWhich social media outlet(s) do you
choose?What is the plan of attack for your office?Who will manage the pages?What information do you share?
QuestionsQuestions
How much is too much? How much is too little?
How do you create a Facebook page and Twitter account?
Concern about students being able to post to pages?
How do you deal with negative responses?How do you choose status updates?
QuestionsQuestions
What are you hearing from your audience?
How do you gain followers?What are the best means of promoting
your offices social media outlets?
Amy BerrierUNC Greensboro Financial Aid OfficeAssistant Director for OperationsPO Box 26170Greensboro, NC 27402(336) [email protected]
Sonja McMullenSallie MaeSenior Account Executive5428 Cochran DriveNashville, TN 37220(615) [email protected]