A presentation prepared in 2011 to intoroduce staff members to the (then) current social media landscape in Scotland and the opportunities it represented for the sector. A bit too wordy, but still has some useful info.

1. Social Media

2. Background
•
More and more companies & organisations understand the need to be
present on social media, but not many of them ‘do’ social media
effectively.
•
Why is this? Mainly this is because in order to succeed in social media, it
cannot be treated like another, separate communication channel. It can’t a
random activity. It should be aligned with the overall communications or
business strategy.
•
Many organisations take up social media but have no idea what for and
what they will do there:
“Social Media is like teenage sex. Everyone wants to
do it. No one actually knows how. When finally done,
there is often surprise that it wasn’t better.” - Avinash
Kaushik, Analytics Evangelist, Google

3. So, first things first: What is Social
Media really?
•
The term ‘social media’ refers to the use of web-based and
mobile technologies to turn communication into interactive
dialogue
• Fundamentally, social media is a means of communicating
directly with your audience, bypassing the filter of
traditional media
• Social media is not a communications ‘cure all’ for organisations and
businesses, but it can help with networking, public relations, brand
awareness, developing thought leadership and engaging with your audiences.

4. So what is all the fuss about?

5. Years to reach 50m Users…
Radio
= 38 Years
TV
= 13 Years
Internet
= 4 Years
iPod
= 3 Years

6. But…
Facebook added 200million users in less than a year!
After just 6 years it now has 800million registered users.

7. The landscape is crowded
At last count, there were more than 300
different types of social media ‘tools’ used regularly
world-wide – and this number is growing every day!

8. But in the UK, a few reign supreme…
• In
Scotland alone, 2,359,000
individuals have an active
Facebook account - almost
50% of the population
• 475,000
Scots have a Twitter
account and 200,000 are
regular, active users - 1 in 10
of the population
And others are growing in popularity all the time

9. More facts & stats:
•
More than 24 hours worth of video is uploaded to YouTube every minute
of every day.
•
There are more than 2 billion video views on YouTube every 24 hours.
•
Flickr members upload more than 3,000 images every minute of every
day.
•
More than one million companies have LinkedIn Company Pages
•
There were nearly 2 billion people searches on Linkedin during 2010.
•
The average Facebook user creates 90 pieces of content each month.
•
People that use Facebook on their mobile devices are twice as active on
Facebook than non-mobile users.
•
More people subscribe to Stephen Fry’s Twitter feed than read The
Times, Independent, Guardian, Telegraph and Financial Times
combined!

10. Why should you/your organisation be
engaged and active on Social Media?
Because people are talking about our sector…
The media
Decision
Makers
Partners &
Young people
General Public
Members
…and we need to know what they are saying…
…and let them know what we are saying!

11. Five rules for staying secure online
The following are some common sense top tips for staying safe online with
social media:
1.
Know your own rules – What are your company’s/organisation’s internal
rules for using social media?
2.
Be Prudent – Think about what you upload or link to such as images and
news articles etc… Is it appropriate?
3.
Stranger Danger – Do not share your personal or social media details
with someone you don’t know.
4.
Check the default settings – And know what they mean.
5.
Use common sense – If it feels risky, it probably is.

12. Top Tips for creating an impact
The following are some top tips to best use social media for networking and
sharing information:
•
Define your strategy - Decide on a purpose, what do you want to get out
of social media?
•
Be prepared & be consistent – social media requires a lot of time & you
need to be willing to put in the effort. Need to be consistent in terms of
how you talk about yourself & what you do.
•
Quality not quantity – it is what you say, not how often you say it.
•
Always respond – approach social media like a conversation and don’t
ignore people. It’s a dialogue, not a monologue.
•
Use it to engage – it is not just another platform to ‘push out’ info, it is a
way of engaging with your followers.

13. Integration is Key
• Important to make sure that any social
media strategy you adopt integrates fully
with your existing online presence –
sharing content and ‘signposting’ to your
website all helps to maximise your
impact.

14. Different Roles
• Create
your own ‘online community’
• Use it as a multi-media platform
• Link to campaigns, news, information and events
• Only ‘fans’ of the page can view its full content
• Engage and converse directly with followers
• Share news and announcements
• Create interactive experiences at big events (#tags)
• Follow what key audiences are talking about in
realtime

15. What are the risks?
Loose lips… sink ships!
• For organisations, businesses and public bodies, social
media should be treated in the same way as any other
professional communication tool
• Social Media is not a personal soap box to voice opinions
when used under an organisations name/brand
• No content should be posted on social media that has not
been approved or that you would not be happy putting out in a
national press release

16. What are the benefits?
• Establishing & raising awareness of your brand
• Getting your message out more directly
• Engaging with the youth work sector
• Developing your online reputation

17. ANY QUESTIONS?

18. Thank you