Social Networking

1. Social Networking Marketing Roundtable 3/18/09

2. Why we’re talking about this • To help you determine how, or whether, you want to pursue these outlets • To demonstrate that there are other alternatives to print besides e-mail!

3. FACEBOOK

4. Facebook Facts • Launched in Feb. 2004 as a site for university students and faculty; in 2007 opened to all • 68 million active Facebook users • Usage grew by 125% in 2008 • Fastest growing demographic: 25 and older: • 100,000 age 64+ • 310,000 age 45–63 • 380,000 age 35–44 • 3 million age 25–34

5. Facebook Pros You should consider using Facebook if: • Your target audience is primarily students or young alumni. • You have the resources to monitor the page daily, answer fan questions, and update it frequently (ideally weekly). • You have content that is specific to your unit and doesn’t duplicate content on the UW page. • You have Facebook Friends who will become fans of the page and help promote it. • You have a strategy for addressing controversies or crises related to your unit that might lead to increased activity on your page.

6. Facebook Cons You’re not ready for Facebook if: • Your unit has “control issues” • You are unwilling to become part of the Facebook community yourself • You think you can just let your student interns manage it • You think you can manage it without some student involvement

7. Examples: UW on Facebook Some of the UW Schools and Departments on Facebook: • UW page launched: April 2008; 7,000+ fans • Evans School of Public Affairs • UW School of Law • UWAA • Undergraduate Research Program Some of the UW leaders on Facebook: • Mark Emmert • Phyllis Wise • Jim Jiambalvo • Ana Mari Cauce • Harry the Husky!

8. TWITTER

9. What the heck is Twitter?! • Interactive, personalized news feed • A place to post text-based status updates—they’re called Tweets! • They have to be 140 characters or fewer • They show up on your profile page and are delivered to other users who have signed up to receive them

10. Why should I care about Twitter? • It grew by 1,382% year-over-year in Feb. • 5.9 million users as of Jan. 2009 • It is increasingly a driver of news and referring traffic to Web sites • It’s a fast and easy way to build relationships • You don’t need to know people’s e-mail addresses to connect with them!

11. Twitter Pros • Doesn’t require any technical skills! • Your org can have an ongoing presence in a Twitter “follower’s” routine • Typical Twitterers use the site at least daily, often hourly • Gain insight into the interests of your most engaged constituents • Your followers can consume your information more easily, unlike a newsletter or a website/blog that requires a user to actively visit it or subscribe.

12. Twitter Cons • Requires very regular maintenance—at least daily • 140-character limit decreases the depth of your engagements • As Twitter usage increases, so does the number of tweets you have to compete with

13. Best Uses for Twitter • News & event updates • Emergency announcements • Play-by-play reporting from conferences, lectures, sporting events, etc. • To encourage conversation with and input from followers • Eyewitness accounts (e.g. Mumbai attacks)

14. Examples: UW on Twitter • UWNews:http://twitter.com/uwnews • UWSportsNews:http://twitter.com/UWSportsNews • UWTV:http://twitter.com/UWTV • The Daily: http://twitter.com/thedaily • The Henry: http://twitter.com/henryartgallery • UW Career Center: http://twitter.com/uwcareercenter • School of Public Health:http://twitter.com/uwsph • Cliff Mass:http://twitter.com/cliffmass

15. How Athletics Uses Twitter • Started using it in Jan. 2009 • To push news, including insider news • To encourage fan engagement • Accounts include: • General UW Athletics • Football Coach Steve Sarkisian • Volleyball • Crew • Softball

16. LinkedIn

17. What is LinkedIn • A site for professional networking • Users post resumes, recommend colleagues’ job skills • Has more than 36 million members • Organizations create groups to bring together people who want to be associated with their brand

18. Examples: Uses of LinkedIn • For Q&A opportunities • Monitor the competition • Facilitate networking • Provide profile information, like statistics, demographics, key links

19. Examples: UW on LinkedIn • University of Washington (Seattle, Bothell) • Foster School • UW Medicine • School of Law • iSchool • Libraries • Alumni Group (not run by UWAA)

20. Social Networking Resources • For UW marketers:http://www.washington.edu/externalaffairs/uwmarketing/toolkits/category/best-practices/

21. Appendix

22. Glossary of Facebook Terms • Profile: How an individual person joins and represents him/herself on Facebook. Profiles draw Friends. • Page: A way for businesses & organizations to represent themselves on Facebook. Pages draw Fans. • Groups: Another option for organizations; groups are made up of Members. • Can be made private • Allow you to send message directly to members • But have limited capabilities

23. Glossary of Twitter Terms • Tweets: 140-character posts • Follower: Other Twitter users who want to have a feed of your tweets • Re-tweets: Re-broadcasting someone else’s tweet to your followers

24. Median Age Data • For Twitter: 31 • For MySpace: 27 • For Facebook: 26 • For LinkedIn: 40