Making the most of Social Media
Laura Cunliffe-Hall
Social media is one of the most regularly-used and popular forms of communication. Using social media effectively means that you can share information about projects, ideas and content such as videos and infographics, to engage and build advocacy amongst your local community.
Popular social media platforms that can be used to promote your town’s projects to a diverse audience include LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok and Instagram. These different platforms appeal to specific demographics, with the first four much more likely to cut through to older age groups and businesses, whereas the latter two will help you interact with younger audiences. In current times, as we adapt to social distancing and the changes of COVID-19, having these online conversations is more important than ever.
However, social media can understandably make people nervous. Once a message is disseminated on social, it is out there forever (even if posts get deleted, they can easily resurface).
Whilst you cannot control people’s reactions to what you post, you can make sure to listen to their feedback. Social media can facilitate constructive debate and discussion – but think carefully before responding to negative feedback. Show that you’re willing to listen to people’s points and be respectful, not defensive.
If you do make a mistake, don’t cover it up – apologise and learn from it when posting in future. Ultimately, transparency is key to making your content social-media friendly.
So how can you make the most of social media?
Here are our five golden rules:
Less is more – Over-saturating people’s feeds with content means that even if the content you are sharing is fantastic, it can get lost. Focus on making your posts as concise as possible and make sure that your message is clear.
Timing is everything – Plan a clear schedule for your posts. Work out what big events or news stories (either in your local community or nationally) are going on which might clash with or overshadow your content, and plan accordingly. Posts in the middle of the week in the daytime are most likely to gain maximum engagement.
Be consistent – An integrated approach across multiple platforms – including press releases, websites and email as well as multiple social platforms – is vital to ensuring a wide reach and consistency of message. Make sure there is a tone-match across all of these and always fact-check what you’re sending out.
Engage and inform – Social media is a fun and dynamic platform. Use visuals, hashtags and emojiis (proportionately and if appropriate), to help create shareable and engaging content. Target your posts to share key messages and the most interesting information that will make people curious to find out more about your projects.
Speak in your audience’s language – You know what will strike a chord with your community. Say it in an accessible and approachable way that reflects your audience.
A key thing to remember is that social media is one tool of many. To avoid digital exclusion, it’s important to combine using social channels with traditional methods, so we don’t leave those without internet access behind (you can read more in our ‘Bridging the Digital Divide’ blog).
Nevertheless, effective use of social media can build and strengthen connections, helping you maximise the reach of your projects to a wider audience and demonstrate the community investment that will provide long-term benefits for your town.