Tips and Best Practices
Strategy
A good strategy is important to the success and lifespan of the social media platform you create. What are you trying to do? Who are you trying to reach? What types of items will be posted? Who will maintain it? Who will be the secondary maintainer? What would the measure of success be?
What Platform is right for you?1, 2, 3
| Platform | Purpose | Rough Age Range | Optimal Posting Habits | Downside |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short thoughts, discussions, news, or events | 18-29 | 2-5 per day | Limited Characters | |
| Relationship driven place for News, Discussions, events | 25-54 | 1 per day | Limited Reach | |
| Youtube | Videos | All | 1-2 week | Resource Intensive |
| Images & video | 18-29 | 1-2 day | Images Only | |
| Business/Partnership building | 30-49 | 1 per day / week | Limited Interactions |
Scheduling
HootSuite (free version available)
HootSuite allows you to connect multiple social media platforms and schedule posts at certain times. Only way to schedule LinkedIn, but doesn't allow tagging of accounts when scheduling.
TweetDeck
Specifically for Twitter, this platform allows you to schedule tweets to go out at optimal times.
Facebook/Instagram Creator Studio
Specifically for Facebook and Instagram this platform allows you to schedule Facebook and Instagram to go out at optimal times.
Crisis Communications
Crisis Communication should, first and foremost, not exceed or overcome the crisis communication of the University or College as a whole. Be aware that during a crisis, any public post or comment could be seen as a press release or an official statement from the University.
Also be sure that all scheduled posts during a time of crisis are respectful and appropriate to the situation.
Comment Policy
Open discussions and comments on social media posts are encouraged. However, all comments should maintain basic respectability. We reserve the right to remove / block comments/commenters based on inappropriate content. Inappropriate content is defined by, but not limited too:
- Discrimination against a sex, race, religion, etc.
- Profanity or obscenity
- Promotion or suggestion of illegal activity
- Spam or Solicitations
1 https://marketingleap.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/whysocialmedia_infographic.jpg
2 https://louisem.com/144557/often-post-social-media
3 Sonia Holt - 2017 Social Media Platform Comparison Infographic