Transcript Tips for Engaging Audience and Staff in Social Media Brian Dresher: USATODAY.com Twitter: @bdresher Blog: social.usatoday.com.

Tips for Engaging Audience
and Staff in Social Media
Brian Dresher: USATODAY.com
Twitter: @bdresher
Blog: social.usatoday.com
Why do we care about social media?
•Social media is another way to reach audience.
•If you don’t break or share the news, then someone else will.
•Trend spotting.
•Connect with existing fans as well as find new ones.
•Traffic increases to your site.
•Even if Twitter goes away, the concept isn’t, so it or something like
it will be a part of the social media future.
Where is the USATODAY.com community?
Brands need to adapt to the rules of the
playgrounds in which they’re playing.
Facebook Fan Pages for Brands
Many Uses for Twitter
•Meet Ups - @CruiseLog - Anyone else going on Carnival's Bloggers Cruise
this weekend? I'll be on board (and blogging) starting Saturday and would love
to meet up!
•Opportunity - @USATODAYweather - Send your weather photos to USA
TODAY. We publish the best online and in the newspaper. #photography
•Engagement - @USATmedialounge - With more than 1,700 comments,
there's a lot of interest in Iowa's decision on gay marriage. Add your thoughts
here: http://ow.ly/21o5
•Story Leads - @barbdelollis - Are you #snowbound/stranded in a #hotel ? If
so, I'm interested in hearing abt yr experience for a story. Email me @
[email protected]
•Customer Service - @USATODAYservice - @LinsayPattan Our apologies for
the issue with the paper machine. Contact USA TODAY Customer Service
@ 800-USA-0001 for a refund of the $1
Steps USA TODAY took to Sell Internal Staff on Twitter
•Started small. One person buying-in leads to another and another.
•Shared success stories.
•Defined roles for members of our organization.
•Created internal education plan.
•Prepare monthly report showcasing our ROIII.
These steps have helped to turn doubters into believers!
Tips for Brands to Reach Users on Twitter
•
Understand value of Twitter etiquette: re-tweets, replies, and
thank yous.
•
Use sites such as WeFollow to find and follow Twitterers who
cover similar topics.
•
Follow other internal Twitter feeds, industry experts, major brands,
clients, competitors, etc.
•
Identify best hashtags to have tweets discovered as well as
search for other Twitterers tweeting on same subject.
•
Optimize tweets so that they’re easily re-tweetable.
All of the above tips lend themselves to
increasing Followers and Engagement!
Competitive Analysis of Social Media
Mainstream media
Anyone with a cell phone
Mainstream media +
Anyone with a cell phone
Educate and Inform our Audience about Twitter
Tweets posted to the comments section.
Source: “Hotel guests: What's the 1st thing you do after check in?” by Barbara DeLollis,
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/hotelcheckin/post/2009/05/67083873/1
Enhance On-Site Twitter Presence
Source: “Gene mutations tied to children’s stuttering,” by Rtia Rubin,
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2010-02-11-stutter11_ST_N.htm
Social Networking Impact on Role of Brands
•
Publish content to a blog.
•
Optimize title tags so that they are SEO-friendly.
•
Submit content to social media sites (e.g., Yahoo Buzz, Digg,
etc.).
•
Upload multi-media to Flickr, YouTube, and iTunes.
•
Maintain Facebook Fan Page presence.
•
Tweet and monitor Twitter for trends and ideas.
Need to know what tools exist and how
and when to use them!
Developing your Social Media Plan
1. What do you hope to achieve by having a social network
presence?
2. Who is your target audience and where do they spend their time?
3. How will you create buy-in with internal staff that this is a priority?
4. What metrics will you use to gauge success?
5. Who are your competitors and what do they do on social
networks?
6. How do your on- and off-site social media activities support each
other?
Summary
•Social networking is logical extension of onsite community and social
media initiatives.
•Social networking allows for increased engagement and exposes
personality of the brand and increases traffic.
•Commitment to social networking requires commitment to learn, apply
latest tools, and experiment.
•Social media is here to stay. Each day allows us opportunity to tap new
audiences.