For more information about this guide go to: http://www.govloop.com/profiles/blogs/annoucing-govloop-state-of-government-communications-report

1. APRIL 2012
The State of
Communications

2. GOVLOOPGUIDE
02.
WELCOME/
CONTENTS
About GovLoop 22 FourSquare
3 About the GovLoop Guide Series
22 Quora
22 LinkedIn
22 Blogging
Overview 23 Crisis Management
4 Why Government Communications? 24 Mobility
25 About CitySourced
26 GIS Applications
Featured Government 27 About Esri
Communications Initiatives 28 Customer Service
4 Featured Initiatives 29 Transparency Efforts
5 Federal: United States Marine Corps
6 State: State of Indiana
7 Local: Columbia County, GA
Best of GovLoop: Top
GovLoop Communications
10 Trends in Government Resources
31 Creating an Effective Crisis Communications Plan
Communications 32 12 Hopes for 2012: Enhanced Adoption of Digital
8 Overview Technologies
9 Digital Divide
10 Culture Change
11 Metrics Acknowledgements
12 Excerpt From: Social Media Monitoring is Critical for 35 GovLoop Authors
Government Operations
13 Data Management
15 Social Media
15 Pinterest
17 Facebook
19 YouTube
19 Twitter
20 Google+

3. About GovLoop
and the GovLoop Guide Series
GovLoop’s mission is to “con- tion sharing among public produce valuable resources tions Council, whose mem-
nect government to improve sector professionals . Gov- and tools, such as guides, bers include, CitySourced
government.” We aim to in- Loop members come from infographics, podcasts, on- and Esri.
spire public sector profes- across the public sector; in- line training and educational
sionals by serving as the cluding federal, state, and lo- events, all to help public sec-
knowledge network for gov- cal public servants, industry tor professionals do their
ernment. GovLoop connects experts as well as non-profit, jobs better. GovLoop also
more than 55,000 members, associations and academic promotes public service suc-
fostering cross-government partners. In brief, GovLoop cess stories in popular news
collaboration, solving com- is the leading online source sources like the Washington
mon problems and advancing for addressing public sector Post, Huffington Post, Gov-
government careers. issues. ernment Technology, and
other industry publications.
The GovLoop community In addition to being an online
has been widely recognized community, GovLoop works The State of Communica-
across multiple sectors as with government experts tions Guide is underwritten
a core resource for informa- and top industry partners to by the GovLoop Communica-
Meet the team/
Acknowledgements
Govloop Team: Created & Devel- Location:
oped by:
STEVE RESSLER - Founder and CEO GovLoop is headquartered in Wash-
ington D.C., where a team of dedicated
DOUG MASHKURI - Director of Busi- professionals share a common commit-
ness Development ment to connect and improve govern-
ment.
PAT FIORENZA - Research Analyst
JEFF RIBEIRA - Creative Director GovLoop
734 15th St NW, Suite 500
COREY MCCARREN - GovLoop Fellow In Partnership with: Washington, DC 20005
Phone: (202) 407-7421
ANDY KRZMARZICK - Community Fax: (202) 407-7501
Manager

4. GOVLOOPGUIDE
04.
Overview
Featured Stories
&
The GovLoop State of Communications Report highlights the key trends sur-
rounding communications in government, and provides insights from the Gov-
Loop community about how these developments will shape government commu-
nications going forward.
overnment communications profession- agencies to prove value in programs, communica-
G als have always felt the pressures of pub-
lishing public news and information as
quickly as possible. With the boom in so-
cial media, communications has become an even
more critical function of government. Public re-
tions has become a much-needed area of study.
Featured Stories
At the very core of GovLoop, our passion is to high-
lations officers are now faced with an expecta- light and honor public sector professionals. Because
tion of being open 24/7/365, to deliver real-time of this passion, GovLoop would like to honor gov-
information to citizens. As citizens have adopted ernment agencies at the state, local and federal lev-
social media in their personal lives, the expecta- el that are leaders in government communications.
tion has increased for government engagement
across a variety of web-based social platforms. This year, we decided to feature three govern-
ment organizations that are leaders in govern-
Of course, communications extends well beyond ment communications at the state, local and fed-
just social media. There has been a boom in mo- eral level. The organizations highlighted where
bile technology, open innovation platforms, vir- selected by GovLoop staff and were based on
tual worlds, geographical informational systems, interactions within the GovLoop community and
greater transparency efforts and improved cus- success stories our members have shared with us.
tomer service strategies. A well-crafted commu-
nications strategy is now critical for government
at all levels. Using multiple channels of commu-
nication is now essential for government to fulfill
the most important initiatives within an agency.
What is exciting about the development of new
platforms and technology is that citizens are at
the center of the discussion. With growing fiscal
uncertainty, tightening budgets and pressures on

5. 03.
The United States Marine Corps
T he Marine Corps is first to be featured in the
GovLoop State of Communications Report.
First of all, we thank all members of the Marine
Marine Corps Social Media Re-
sources
Corps and the armed services for their commit-
ment to our country, their dedication to serve http://www.marines.mil/Pages/Default.aspx
and their sacrifice for our lives and liberties.
http://marines.dodlive.mil/
The Marine Corps has a first class communications http://www.facebook.com/marines
policy. The challenge for government agencies is
that they need to make sure that their communica- http://www.youtube.com/marines
tions program is integrated across the agency, and http://twitter.com/usmc
their key stakeholders can quickly find the informa-
tion. From their website layout to their published http://www.flickr.com/marine_corps
content, the Marine Corps does a great job shar- http://marinesmagazine.dodlive.mil/
ing and promoting information to their audience.
What put the Marine Corps at the top for the Gov-
Loop team was their social media program. Across
all channels, content is appropriately integrated
and effectively represents the mission of the Ma-
rine Corps. The Marine Corps also shares guides
and resources for other military branches to use
while crafting their own social media program.
What is clear from the Marine Corps is that there is
a strategy behind how they are using social media.
The Marine Corps has designated areas for key audi-
ence segments. A perfect example of this comes from
the Facebook page. On the page, prospective Marine
Corps members can quickly contact a recruiter through
a form on the “Contact a Recruiter” tab or connect
with a Marine in their community, through the “Ma-
rine Connect” link. Both are quick and easy for users to
find, and provide a great service to key stakeholders.

6. The State of Indiana
T he State of Indiana has numerous initiatives that
has made Indiana one of the leaders in communi-
cations at the state level. Once a citizen arrives at the
we look forward to sharing this information with you.”
Data is presented visually and citizens can also ac-
cess excel files with further information. Certainly,
State of Indiana website, they can quickly find infor- the Indiana government has made a conscious effort
mation they need and are presented with numerous to improve transparency with citizens and provide
options on the webpage. Very quickly a citizen can them information on how tax money is being spent.
subscribe to email alerts and connect with the State
of Indiana across social channels. Citizens can also ac-
cess the “Transparency Portal,” or receive help through
a live chat. The design and layout is extremely intuitive Indiana Resources
and citizens can easily access the right information.
One of the more interesting features on the Indiana http://www.in.gov/
webpage is the Live Chat support, which is available to https://twitter.com/in_gov
citizens Monday – Friday: 7:00AM – 5:00PM. Having a
live chat feature is a great customer service initiative to http://www.youtube.com/IndianaGovernment
provide to Indiana citizens. Another customer service http://www.in.gov/itp/
initiative that the State of Indiana provides is a quick
listing of the most frequently asked questions. What is
clear from the Indiana help section is that Indiana State
government has taken a multi-channel approach to
customer service. Citizens can find information quick-
ly through the multiple channels provided like the
chat feature, FAQ section and the transparency portal.
A final element that is worth noting is the Indiana
Transparency Portal (ITP). The homepage of the ITP
states, “The Indiana Transparency Portal (ITP) is de-
signed to give you, the Indiana taxpayer, an inside look
into Indiana State Government spending and opera-
tions. ITP is an online solution designed to bring bet-
ter visibility, openness and accountability to Indiana
State Government. The ITP contains information rang-
ing from agency budgets to state contracts and agen-
cy performance measures. We strive to utilize your tax
dollars as efficiently and effectively as possible and

7. Columbia County, Georgia
C olumbia County, Georgia, is our featured local
government. Columbia County has been growing
rapidly since the 1950s. In 1950, Columbia County’s
Columbia County Resources
population was 9,525 and has grown to over 105,000 http://blog.citysourced.com/index.php/2222/colum-
today. Over the last decade, Columbia County was one bia-county-citizen-reporter/
of the fastest growing counties in Georgia. Columbia
County also reports that there are over 1,300 specially http://www.columbiacountyga.gov/
trained citizens who volunteer with recreation, emer-
gency management, fire and police departments.
Columbia County has been featured because of a recent
mobile application for citizens. A recent press release
announced the app, “The Columbia County Board of
Commissioners is proud to announce the launching of
a new smart phone application that will allow citizens
to snap and submit photos, video and audio files of
potholes, illegal dumping, deceased animals, and any
other issues that Columbia County needs to address.”
Commission Chairman Ron Cross stated about the
mobile app, “In government, you can’t wait for people
to come to you – you need to give residents the tools
to empower themselves in the most convenient way.
This real time mobile application will allow our citi-
zens to identify public safety and quality of life issues
and report them to the county for quick resolution.”
Mobile is not the only reason why Columbia County has
been featured. They have also been selected because
of their available online services and commitment to
accessibility. The Columbia County website provides
numerous services for citizens. Citizens can make
property tax payments online, make service requests,
and even make requests to help find or adopt a pet.

8. GOVLOOPGUIDE
08.
10 Trends In
Government
Communications
T
he goal of communications is to be where the people and key stakeholders
conduct their daily lives. This section highlights ten trends in government
communications and related challenges that are shaping the day-to-day
environment for government communications professionals.
1. Digital Divide and Accessibility
2. Culture Change
3. Metrics
4. Data Management
5. Social Media
6. Crisis Management
7. Mobility
8. Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
9. Customer Service
10. Transparency

9. 09.
GOVLOOPGUIDE
Digital Divide
& Accessibility
T echnology plays a tremendous role in our day-to-
day lives. Much of our communication now takes
place over the web, and having access to a computer
and taken advantage of new technology to provide
low-income citizens with access to the internet.
and the Internet is critical to being successful. The dig- Broadband Technology Opportunities Pro-
ital divide can be looked at through a variety of lenses, gram (BTOP)
depending on which segment of the population you
are considering. BTOP was part of President Obama’s 2009 Simulus
Bill. The bill contained $4.7 billion in grant money for
Although great strides have been made in closing the those in rural and low-income communities to help
digital divide, there are still some key challenges. The provide access to broadband technology. Below are
digital divide can encompass everything from prohib- the key findings from a December 2011 quarterly re-
itive costs of computers and software, limited acces- port:
sibility to Internet in certain areas of the country, and
lack of technology education, especially for disadvan- infrastructure projects totaling $3.5 bil-
taged groups. 123 lion for broadband networks;
Open Government challenges agencies to use tech- Public Computer Center (PCC) projects to-
nology to be more transparent, participatory and col-
laborative as to how it meets the demands of citizens.
66 taling $201 million in Federal grant funds
to provide access to broadband, computer equip-
The one problem that government officials face is that ment, computer training, job training, and educa-
no level of technology will ever help to close the digi- tional resources to the public and vulnerable popu-
tal divide. Government officials need to remember lations; and
that although technology is valuable, it is not a re-
placement for traditional methods of communication. Sustainable Broadband Adoption (SBA)
In some cases, technology can exacerbate accessibil-
ity challenges to already under-served populations.
44 projects totaling nearly $251 million in Fed-
eral grant funds to support innovative projects that
promote broadband adoption, especially among
There are many challenges related to removing the vulnerable population groups where broadband
digital divide and mitigating its effects. One particu- technology traditionally has been underutilized.
lar issue that the federal government has addressed is
providing broadband access to rural and low-income
communities. Providing access to broadband would Although there are numerous programs in govern-
be a critical step for the nation and help alleviate some ment that are great steps forward, more work needs
symptoms of the digital divide. Although the govern- to be done to inform citizens of the opportunity and
ment has reported success in improving broadband encourage participation to help citizens develop
access, a remaining obstacle continues to be cost of the skills they need to succeed in the future.
broadband and computers. There have been some
promising initiatives, which have used smart phones

10. GOVLOOPGUIDE
10.
Culture
Change
I nstitutional and cultural hurdles exist across all fields
and studies of government. Government communi-
cations is no exception. Some of the common chal-
Without effective measures of success, gov-
ernment can’t justify an R&D budget
lenges related to government communications are
risk aversion and undefined metrics. Without a resolu- Government rewards the status quo
tion to these two challenges, buy-in from senior level
management will not occur. By showing case studies and examples of impact,
communications professionals can continue to show
Risk Aversion value and remove barriers to their social media pro-
gram. The responsibility to be a champion of social
There have been countless studies about govern- media within an agency relies on the communications
ment innovation. Typically, innovation in government staff, and by showing clear metrics and case studies;
comes from two places: a crisis or a champion leading they can continue to be innovators in government
the charge within an agency. communications.
In a recent report released by Partnership for Public
Service and IDEO, government innovation can come
in three forms:
Innovation in government can come in three forms:
Improving something you already do to deep-
en your agency’s impact on people’s lives
Adapting a tried and true idea to a new con-
text
Developing something entirely new to achieve
your agency’s goals.
The report also identifies barriers to innovation as:
Politics and miscommunication disrupt efforts
to promote collaboration and innovation
Government employees have no defined pro-
cess for introducing and exploring new ideas

11. 11.
GOVLOOPGUIDE
Metrics
W ith any emerging technology, defining metrics
and instituting methods to measure perfor-
mance takes time for organizations. This has certainly
have gone out to 100,000 followers or was re-tweeted
dozens of times, and a YouTube video may have been
watched 300 times, shared with hundreds of others
been the case with online communications. For in- and received 30 comments. By showing these met-
stance, social media metrics are still being defined as rics, some of the value will become more clear. Using
communications professionals seek to prove its value. a link shortening service like Bit.ly or Go.USA.gov is
Many improvements have been made in the way gov- also enormously helpful, as you can track clicks and
ernments have defined value, but there is still a long see how many people actually viewed content.
way to go to measure impact. Absent those solid met-
rics and performance standards, some will continue As budgets get tightened, showing that social media
to question the value of social media. saves money will help remove any roadblocks and in-
stitutional hurdles within an
To continue to move past insti- organization. Although so-
tutional and cultural hurdles, “The stakes are higher cial media sometimes is not
communications professionals
will need to continue to define
with a failed program in the direct link to a cost sav-
ings, it certainly plays a role.
value, and develop hard met- government, especially
rics to measure performance. Cost does not have to be tied
In a time of tight budgets and in a time when budgets to just savings as a new or
resources, online efforts need
to contribute to concrete ob-
are shrinking” replacement service. Think
of cost also in terms of staff-
jectives that tie back to an or- ing and personnel. Agencies
ganization’s core mission and should make considerations
functions. Unlike their coun- and perform analysis of how
terparts in the private sector, much time operating a well-
the stakes are higher with a failed program in govern- run social media campaign, instead of traditional
ment, especially in a time when budgets are shrink- methods, save.
ing.
Even with well defined metrics, some people will not
Measuring online communication extends beyond be on the bandwagon. This is common with technol-
just an understanding of number of followers and ogy adoption. With government using so many new
fans. The GovLoop community has identified numer- tools with emerging and undefined metrics, defining
ous ways to show value of social media. value will continue to shape communications land-
scape. Without clearly defined metrics and a move
By showing the real “reach” of Facebook, Twitter, You- away from risk aversion, there will continue to be chal-
Tube, a blog or other channels, communications pro- lenges in receiving buy-in from senior leaders.
fessionals can easily show how many people received
government information. For instance, a tweet may

12. “
Communications
without measure- Saving money through program
evaluations
ment is like soc- Excerpt from “Social media monitoring is critical for
government operations.” Blog by Andrew Einhorn, Ad-
cer without a net. junct Professor, Georgetown University
Instead of slashing budgets arbitrarily, Con-
You can kick the gress and agencies could work together
to gather information on what the public
thinks about government programs and
ball all day, but services and make budgetary and program-
matic changes based on actual evidence,
you won’t score not the anecdotal testimony of a few outli-
ers marched to hearings on Capitol Hill.
without a net. So, OhMyGov Inc. provided such an analysis
for the Department of Veterans Affairs in
before you begin 2010, where we analyzed what veterans
complained about online with regard to the
services the VA was providing. Given the
your run to the VA’s main charter to provide quality health-
care to veterans, it’s easy to think quality of
goal, visualize the care would be the number one complaint.
It wasn’t. Only 5 percent complained about
the quality of care they received by the VA.
target, determine But 60 percent of complaints were about
poor customer service—most of which was
directed at seven specific VA facilities. With
the right path and this information, the VA can allocate re-
sources to fix problems instead of mandat-
know what you ing more costly and unnecessary across-the-
board healthcare quality improvements.
want to accom- Social media analysis uses aggregated data.
This type of aggregated data, where per-
plish when you “ sonally identifiable information is not in-
cluded, is critical to informing government
operational effectiveness and can save a lot
get there. of money by identifying where resources
should be spent to fix or solve problems.
Why Measure Your Communications?
Blog by Rick Alcantara, Principal, Tara Communica-
tions LLC

13. 13.
GOVLOOPGUIDE
Data
Management
A nother trend facing government is how agencies
are able to manage large quantities of data and
information. With agencies using multiple online plat-
ernment, data must be used to help streamline effi-
ciency and optimize services for citizens.
forms, they are flooded with information. While these Open Innovation Platforms
platforms are great ways to quickly share information
and connect with citizens, one of the challenges is There are numerous open innovation platforms that
how to extract value from the numerous interactions have been used by government. Open Innovation
that take place. platforms have been implemented at all levels of gov-
ernment. Some models are used for internal collabo-
One emerging trend is looking at web-based ser- ration, while others are used to tap into the collective
vices which measure sentiment, track key words and intelligence of citizens. Generally, open innovation
attempt to find value in the interactions. Although platforms have mechanisms to quickly allow people
many of these services are quite expensive to use, to submit ideas, comment on ideas, and vote.
there are also some free versions available for govern-
ment agencies. One of the big challenges for open innovation plat-
forms is that the platform needs to be tied to an in-
Some of these services are: novation strategy, which is not always well defined in
government. For the platform to really work, the ideas
HootSuite need to move from a generic idea to actually being
Tweetdeck implemented by the government agency. With a ne-
Seesmic glect towards implementation, the value of the plat-
Scoutlabs form and collecting ideas is not capitalized on.
Another challenge with managing data comes from In Focus: Challenge.gov
data collected by government agencies. Websites like
Data.gov are fantastic spots to share data and infor- The Challenge.gov website describes itself as “an on-
mation, but the data sets posted are not always ben- line challenge platform administered by the U.S. Gen-
eficial for citizens – at least not without developer as-eral Services Administration (GSA) in partnership with
sistance. ChallengePost that empowers the U.S. Government
and the public to bring the best ideas and top talent
The problem that plagues government is that gov- to bear on our nation’s most pressing challenges. This
ernment is generally “data rich and insight poor.” platform is the latest milestone in the Administration’s
The challenge for government is how to best extract commitment to use prizes and challenges to promote
knowledge from large volumes of data. With new innovation.”
and emerging technology, government will continue
to collect large and complex data, through multiple Challenge.gov also highlights two of the more suc-
channels. Also, the demand for data will continue to cessful challenges that have been staged, NYC Big
grow from citizens and businesses. At all levels of gov-

14. GOVLOOPGUIDE
14.
Apps and Apps for Healthy Kids. Although these chal- predefined time and make sure that you com-
lenges are free and easy to set up, there are some guid- municate the duration and elapsed time to
ing principles that federal agencies should follow. The your participants. Having that one time op-
following content is an excerpt from a blog written by portunity to submit an idea can also serve as
Ines Mergel, Assistant Professor of Public Administra- an incentive for participants.
tion Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs,
Syracuse University. Create a transparent evaluation process: Post
the evaluation steps and experts involved in
Designing Challenges judging the submitted solutions prominently
Excerpt from GovLoop “Crowdsourced Ideas Make Participat- on your website.
ing in Government Cool Again.” By Ines Mergel, Assistant Pro-
fessor of Public Administration, Maxwell School of Citizenship Communicate how you plan to implement the
and Public Affairs. final solution. Throughout the implementa-
tion process make sure to show the value of
While we truly observe only the first lighthouse proj- the crowdsourced solution: How much money
ects and experiments with Open Innovation plat- was saved? Why are government operations
forms, designing challenges is relatively easy. GSA’s now running smoother than before?
Challenge.gov for example provides the platform for
free to all federal agencies and challenge administra-
tors can follow a relatively straightforward process. Reference:
The devil lies in the detail. Here are a few lessons Mergel, I. (2011): Crowdsourced Ideas Make Participat-
learned from Open Innovation administrators who ing in Government Cool Again, in: PA Times, American
started to experiment with their local platforms: Society for Public Administration, Vol. 34, No. 4, Octo-
ber 2011, p. 4 & 6, Special Issue: From Bureaucratic to
Start by carefully crafting the problem state- Cool: A Call for Public Service.
ment you want your employees or citizens to
solve. The challenge has to be posed in plain
language so that non-experts immediately un-
derstand the problem.
Experiment with challenges in-house first be-
fore opening the floodgates to the public. You
internal sandbox can provide valuable insights
to streamline the process for public challenges.
Design participation incentives: Think about
monetary and non-monetary give-aways that
no one else offers and make it worth partici-
pating in the challenge. Showcasing submit-
ted solutions on your website can be an incen-
tive for citizens to participate – others might
want a monetary return on their time and
ideas invested in helping government.
Set a time limit: Close your challenge after a

15. 15.
GOVLOOPGUIDE
Social
Media
T here is a consistent flow of new online tools being
developed and used by citizens for personal use.
Some of these emerging tools also have applications
Pinterest
Facebook
in both the private and public sectors. YouTube
Government has traditionally been slower at adopt-
Twitter
ing social tools than their counterparts in the private Google+
sector. For a variety of reasons, a slower adoption rate
makes sense for government agencies. In some in-
FourSquare
stances, with tighter budgets and limited resources, Quora
programs should only be launched when there is a LinkedIn
significant audience that justifies engagement.
Blogging
Pinterest has been rapidly adopted by citizens predominantly for personal use. Although several agencies
have already signed up for Pinterest, others have been more wary. Pinterest has recently released an updated
Terms of Service, drawing more agencies to begin exploring the value of Pinterest.
Pinterest allows for the creation of a virtual pinboard, which makes Pinterest a great storytelling tool. A
government agency could take advantage of Pinterest by pinning photographs that relate to their mission.
For example, NASA could pin pictures of Earth from space. Pinterest users who are interested in NASA would
then follow their boards, keeping up with the latest images from space. Pinterest has also been a proven traf-
fic driver; when users click an image it redirects to the original source. The appeal to Pinterest for government
agencies is still being developed; however as the platform evolves, it is likely to encourage government and
private sector use.
Mike Bernard, GovLoop Member and Digital Marketing Coordinator at GovDelivery recently wrote a post,
“Why Government Should Take an Interest in Pinterest.” A common challenge of any new social network is
considering what kind of content to use on the site. Mike explains that government agencies typically have
more content than they realize to share on Pinterest. Here are 14 great examples that Mike provides:

16. GOVLOOPGUIDE
16.
1. Natural resources departments can post pictures of animals (birds and fish are always winners)
or scenic nature shots.
2. Transportation departments can post pictures of bridges, construction trucks or aerial photos
of highway interchanges.
3. Education departments or school boards can post whimsical photos of children at play (don’t
forget media releases of course) or highlight teachers who are doing an excellent job.
4. Cities can post cool pictures of police cars, fire trucks, new civic buildings, historic homes, inter
esting artwork or architecture in the city hall.
5. County parks, nature preserves and fairs are great places for photos.
6. How about taking pictures of the inner-workings of municipal facilities such as water treatment
plants to show the public how things work? There’s a whole TV show about how things work!
7. Transit and port authorities…Hello, buses, trains, cranes and ships! What’s not to love?
8. Elected officials post pictures of ribbon cutting ceremonies, important business developments,
meetings with important people and much more.
9. Tourism boards have more amazing pictures than anyone I can think of. Post away.
10. The military could post pictures of tanks, planes, ships and places around the world.
11. History centers, museums and archives are sitting on a treasure trove of America’s past. People
love images of the way things used to be.
12. Food safety agencies can post pictures of bacteria or what to look for when food spoils. This
kind of stuff will definitely get people’s attention.
13. How about having a photo contest where you post a really focused picture of something your
agency deals with and have people guess what it might be. Then announce the actual item
after a week of guessing.
14. Do you create interesting graphics for reports you create? Post the graphics and link it back to
the reports on your website.

17. 17.
GOVLOOPGUIDE
Facebook
Facebook, largely the first social media platform adopted by government agencies, is in some ways very
mature in terms of usage in government. Likewise, the way Facebook is used by government is consistently
evolving. Facebook recently launched their new timeline feature, changing the way content is posted to an
organizations ‘wall’, as well as making several design enhancements. Adapting to these changes can be a
challenge for government agencies - it can feel like adopting an entirely new platform. However, when best
practices are applied, these changes can result in a higher return on investment.
One advantage to using the timeline feature is the ability to feature content. The latest happenings at an
agency are not always the most interesting, even if it is important information to disseminate to citizens. To
assure that the right content stays visible, agencies can now click the ‘Highlight’ button to feature content.
The content takes up more of the agencies wall and stays there for up to seven days, or until it’s no longer
highlighted.
Another prominent change is the cover, allowing for a second image to be displayed at the top of the page,
along with a profile picture. The cover can be utilized by placing an interesting picture that isn’t the agency
logo, as the profile picture already serves that purpose. There are several restrictions to the use of the cover:
calls to action, advertisements, or contact information cannot be displayed. The cover is designed to be aes-
thetically pleasing.
Facebook has also recently introduced a ‘tabs’ feature. This new feature replaces the apps that used to exist.
In the tabs, items such as videos, photos, likes, notes, and events will be accessible. Up to 12 tabs can exist
at once, with four being displayed directly on the page. Katherine Watier, VP Social Media of Ketchum PR,
recently wrote a post on GovLoop, “Is Your Agency or Organization Ready for the Facebook Timeline Switch?”,
which highlighted the eight major changes to Facebook timeline:
An Overview of Eight Major Facebook Timeline Features
1. Cover Image:
The cover image is a welcome banner to your Page that will be the first thing people see when they visit.
Consider what you want your fans and new visitors to take away from their visit and how you want them
to perceive the brand. This image (851 X 315 pixels) will set the tone for the users’ experience on the page.
There are several cover photo restrictions.
Cover photos cannot include:
Price of purchase information, such as “40% off” or “Download it at our website”.
Contact information, such as a website address, email, mailing address, or other information that
should go in your Page’s “About” section.
References to Facebook features or actions, such as “Like,” “share,” or an arrow pointing from the cover
photo to any of these features

18. GOVLOOPGUIDE
18.
Calls to action, such as “Get it now” or “Tell your friends”
2. Profile picture:
Your profile picture will represent your organization/brand on other parts of Facebook− ads, sponsored sto-
ries, and in your fans’ news feed. We recommend using your official logo and ensure it is sized appropriately
to the new Facebook image specs: high quality image that scales well from 180 x 180 to 32 x 32 pixels
3. Pinned Posts:
This new feature allows you to select a post to pin to the top of the Page that will last for 7 days, and take up
the width of the Page. This is a feature we recommend using so as to better promote the top content you
have identified for each week in your editorial calendar as it will be prominently featured when a user visits
the page. This is similar to sticky posts in online forums.
4. Views and apps:
Your views, photos and custom apps will now appear at the top of your Page. Previously apps were displayed
by text tab links. The new Timeline displays apps with visual logo art that will drive more visitors to discover-
ing your company/organization’s photos, apps, and more. You will have the ability to customize these images.
The icons on the main Page should be scaled at 110 x 74 pixels, and the individual app page should display
images that are up to 810 pixels.
Note: The photos icon is in a fixed position and will always display the most recently uploaded photo. The
views icon provides a competitive analysis to all Facebook users. We recommend moving this icon off the
main Page so that this insight will not be as easily accessible to competitors.
5. Larger Stories:
Publish and feature multiple stories about a campaign using rich and engaging photos and videos. You will
have the ability to highlight important stories with the star icon, and hide or delete stories that aren’t as en-
gaging with the pencil icon.
6. Milestones:
Publish new events and milestones that define your key moments over time. Facebook provides examples of
milestones such as reaching a certain number of fans, opening a new store, or winning an award. This feature
will allow visitors to engage with the brand or organization’s history long after a milestone has passed.
7. Friend activity:
The Timeline will be a unique viewing experience for each individual, as it will be personalized based on each
visitors friends activity. When people visit your page, they will see which of their friends likes the Page and
how their friends are interacting with your brand/organization. Research has shown that seeing your friends
talk about a brand will encourage their engagement on the Page and with the brand in a sales environment.

19. 19.
GOVLOOPGUIDE
8. Management Tools:
There have been several changes to the admin panel that will allow it to function more like a dashboard.
Notifications: You will receive notifications about all the activity on your Page
Messages: You will be able to directly respond to people when they message you privately. This will
be especially beneficial for custom service.
Scheduling Posts: you will now be able to plan ahead and schedule posts for future publishing
Real-time insights: You will now have access to data and metrics on your Page in real-time.
Activity Log: View all your Page posts including ones you’ve chosen to hide. Use the drop-down menu
to filter stories by type or date. This allows you to keep a running history of users engagement with
your Page.
YouTube
YouTube does one thing, and does it well. The video-sharing platform allows users to upload content and
share it with others. For government, YouTube can be a great way to spread knowledge of government
programs. For example, the General Services Administration posts trainings that will appeal to government
workers. Though users have the ability to comment on videos, it is not as useful for directly crowdsourcing or
assisting citizens as other social platforms. Posting a YouTube video to Facebook or Twitter is a great way to
drive interaction about a video as opposed to using YouTube as a standalone platform.
YouTube insights are a great way to find out which videos attract certain demographics. Insights break the
viewers down into categories including gender, age, and geographic location. It’s important for government
agencies to make sure their videos have a broad appeal and does not isolate any group of people.
Twitter
The microblogging site Twitter limits users to 140 characters, making it both the simplest and most complex
social networking platform. Because of the character limit, agencies need to share information smart, and
each tweet should be strategic in wording.
Tweets can consist of hashtags (#), mentions (@), and links. It’s important to have discretion when using each
of these.

20. GOVLOOPGUIDE
20.
Some best practices for using Twitter hashtags are:
Don’t be vague with hashtags or use adjectives too liberally (#awesome!)
Make sure the hashtags aren’t too long and therefore aren’t difficult to retweet
Don’t be too conservative or liberal with the number of hashtags used. #It #Can #Get #Obnoxious!
Don’t use offensive hashtags just to generate buzz
With mentions, it’s important to only mention relevant Tweeters so you don’t appear to be spamming.
Using links is an effective tool to generate traffic to a website. Start with an interesting comment or question,
then use the link to encourage Tweeters to delve deeper into the subject by clicking it. Make sure they are
shortened using a URL shortener so they don’t appear sloppy.
GovLoop has a lot of great resources for Twitter, be sure to view our Twitter guides:
15 Commandments for Government Agencies on Twitter
12 Commandments for Government Employees on Twitter
Google+
Google+ is a fairly new platform, being slowly adopted by government. It is an additional tool to the Google
suite, which allows agencies to collaborate internally more efficiently after shifting to a cloud-based Google
For Government Apps system.
Google+ has had trouble with widespread adoption because of competition from the well-established
Facebook; however, it does have high potential and is a relevant tool because of its integration across other
Google products. For example, if a user Googles “+Barack Obama” then hits enter, the President’s Google+
profile appears automatically. As Google+ integrates itself further with search, Gmail, Android, and other
Google services, adoption is likely to grow.
Video-conferencing is another advantage of Google+ via the Google hangout. President Obama has taken
advantage of this by hosting G+ Hangouts with constituents in order to learn about what issues matter most
to them. Hangouts can bring a sense of transparency to government; while only 10 users can be logged into
a Google hangout, an unlimited amount of people can watch.

21. 21.
GOVLOOPGUIDE
Top 10: Obama and Google+ have shaped future leadership
Andreas Addison Civic Innovator, Office of the Chief Administrative Officer, Richmond, VA
I have to admit, last night was pretty awesome. Work had ended, and I was still sitting at my desk, eagerly
waiting for 5:30 to come around. Why? I had a meeting with President Obama. Sure, so did anyone who
wanted it, but it was the first POTUS Google+ live streaming event. As things started, the environment was
pretty amazing. Regardless of your political affiliation, the candid nature of which the President had live
conversations with normal Americans shows a true understanding of the democratic process. Mr. President
took a risk. Going live to stream to the world a conversation post-State of the Union, was to me a sign of a
leader understanding his position and role to the country. Having open discussion about key concerns and
situations that face many Americans today created an opportunity have a glimpse at the true human side
of President. It made him real. As leader, putting yourself in a position of normalcy yet being able to act on
anything discussed is pretty amazing.
Questions ranged from unemployment, student loans, marijuana, the Occupy movement, to SOPA/PIPA. The
President exuded several key attributes of leadership in this brief 50 minute discussion.
1. Well-rounded knowledge of many topics- even though the format allowed for Mr. President to be breifed
on the questions before answering them, there was a level of focus, intent and honesty in hearing the con-
cerns and questions from theh public. The frequent views from behind Obama as he leaned into the camera
to see the people asking the questions was impressive. It showed he was intently listening and not just re-
sponded through a scripted teleprompter. His preparedness was in who he was and showed how knowledg-
able he is about the topics that are important to most Americans.
2. Candid and conversational- he made jokes, comments, and interacted with everyone in a personal manner
that showed how much he valued this forum, probably just as much the participants.
3. Fast on his feet- the rapid ad-libbed points and questions came from the live-audience Google+ invitees
were handled with the politcal savvy one would expect from the President. There was however the risk of
getting posed a question that would evoke a firestorm in the media. There were two responses that have
received critical comments from. Overall, I feel that this minimally controlled forum showed an honest and
open President who was willing and able to answer any question asked.
4. Direct and personal- Obama responded to all the questions and comments with a direct personal ap-
proach that showed his true level of care and concern for those lucky enough to be a part of this event. He
showed how much he understood where Americans are today and even gave information and direction to
how we as a country can address these concerns.
5. Leaders of all levels are people too- his smile, charisma and honest approach to this forum showed just
how human the President is. He related with the individual stories, the families, the hardships, and the true
extent to which people were really eager to hear his response.
How would you round off the top 10 leadership examples from the Google+ hangout with President Obama
on Monday night? Where do you see this first Google+ Presidential hangout leading the democratic process
next?

22. GOVLOOPGUIDE
22.
FourSquare
FourSquare is a platform, usually used as a phone application, which allows users to “check-in” to their current
location. Users can achieve badges or Mayorships when they check into different locations - or the same loca-
tion - often. FourSquare check-ins can be shared on Twitter and Facebook, allowing people at a local event to
share it with their friends.
FourSquare users can visit government venues and give each other tips, such as with parking. Agencies can
encourage visits to their sites by creating the venues on FourSquare then giving them descriptions; they can
also hold competitions for mayorships.
Quora
Quora is a crowdsourcing tool that allows users to ask questions and get responses. According to numerous
sources, Quora is expected to grow rapidly. If the platform does grow, it could become a benchmark for gov-
ernment agencies looking to crowdsource solutions.
One challenge currently facing agency use of Quora is that it requires a real name, which that means that
agencies can’t sign up as their agency. Using a representative is a viable solution to the problem, but it’s dif-
ficult to get a representative as much visibility as the organization itself.
LinkedIn
LinkedIn is the most widely used professional networking website. It distinguishes itself by having a subscrip-
tion-centric model on top of advertising, though most users opt for the basic (free) account. The advantage
of using LinkedIn is the professional audience that’s being reached.
In general, members of groups on LinkedIn want to be in the group, not having simply “liked” a page as is
often with Facebook. Though there are far fewer LinkedIn members than there are on Facebook, group inter-
action is often comparable between LinkedIn groups and Facebook pages. Because of its audience and high
engagement, LinkedIn is an important crowdsourcing solutions and engagement tool for government.
Blogging
Blogging is useful for government agencies, providing an inexpensive avenue to reach the public. As op-
posed to sending out a press release, blogs are published in personal web-journals and thus are cost-effi-
cient. The federal government, via http://www.usa.gov/Topics/Reference-Shelf/News/blog.shtml, has its own
blogging platform, allowing citizens to easily keep up with the latest government happenings.

23. 23.
GOVLOOPGUIDE
Crisis
Management
C risis management is a quickly evolving field of
communications. With so many technologies
available to aid in crisis communications, government
Excerpt From, Social media monitoring is
critical for government operations
Blog by Andrew Einhorn, Adjunct Professor, Georgetown University
agencies are constantly looking at ways to reform and
improve crisis communications. Whether it was the recent earthquake in Virginia, Arab
protests during Arab Spring, or Captain Sully’s heroic
Today, crisis management crosses multiple disci- landing of a commercial passenger airplane on the
plines. Information during a crisis is shared through Hudson River, the best and usually the first bits of in-
the cloud, GIS, Twitter, Facebook, and can be shared in formation about the situation on the ground during
a mobile environment or from a computer in an emer- emergencies and natural disasters are coming from
gency command center. individual, first-hand witness accounts posted to so-
cial media. If the government does not monitor that
Mobility has certainly become a very important part of information, then we are quite simply abandoning
crisis communications. In many instances, a commu- precious resources and turning our backs on life-sav-
nications professional is on staff at emergency centers ing information.
monitoring social media channels, to help in recovery
assistance. Citizens can easily access Facebook and If social media were a viable resource during 9/11 and
Twitter from mobile devices, and are increasingly us- the government was monitoring social media chan-
ing these platforms to obtain and share information in nels, perhaps Americans would have been more pre-
crisis situations. pared and armed with information to help them stay
safe in the unfolding crisis. The same may be true for
Other important aspects of mobile are for crisis profes- Katrina. Had Twitter been as pervasive of a tool for
sionals to use their mobile devices to share resources spreading information then, operators on the ground
on the move, take pictures, use maps, and share infor- could have been able to more readily identify assets
mation instantly in the cloud. available at their disposal, such as the infamous doz-
ens of yellow school buses left to rot in the parking
lot that could have been used as transport vehicles for
displaced persons.

24. GOVLOOPGUIDE
24.
Mobility
T he use of mobile technology might be the hot-
test of the ten trends. One of the pressing chal-
lenges now for government agencies is how to make
One of the challenges of implementing mobile is hav-
ing support from management. With the call to be a
‘lean, clean and smart city’ from the highest-ranking
online resources available in a mobile environment. public official in the city, Forest was able to run with
The move towards mobile has led to many signifi- the project. Forest continued, “We took Mayor Carl-
cant changes for government employees and citizen isle’s leadership as a challenge to create innovative
engagement. As smart phones and mobile become ways for our citizens to get connected to government
more widely available, more citizens are accessing the easier and hopefully become more involved in the
web through mobile technology. process of making Honolulu the best city it can be.
One fascinating part of mobile is that numerous pri- With support behind the initiative, Forest began con-
vate sector companies have started up in the last few sidering what kind of services the mobile app should
years with the basis of improving citizen engagement provide and the key needs of a citizen on a mobile
through mobile technology. By using mobile tech- platform. One observation from Forrest was that gov-
nology, citizens can quickly take charge of their com- ernment does not have all the answers, and should
munity, report incidents and hold their government be using existing technology to help leverage change
accountable. Some emerging trends in mobile tech- within a city.
nology are:
“Government can’t solve every problem, we need
The following is an excerpt from the GovLoop Indus- help form the community and through apps like City
try Perspective Case Study featuring the Honolulu 311 Sourced we can facilitate that happening,” stated For-
mobile app. This is part of the GovLoop Industry Per- rest. This kind of philosophy has not only driven inno-
spective Series. You can view the entire case study by vation in the City of Honolulu, but also across all levels
following this link. of government.
In early 2012, the City of Honolulu released a new app, By opening up more channels of engagement and
Honolulu 311. Honolulu 311 allows citizens to use tapping into and extracting knowledge from citizens,
personal smartphones to report abandoned vehicles, government can work to address some of its more
broken streetlights, illegal dumping and other issues. critical and complex challenges.
GovLoop Research Analyst Pat Fiorenza had the op- To read the entire Industry Perspective
portunity to sit down with Forest Frizzell, Deputy Di-
rector at City and County of Honolulu to learn more and the rest of the interview with
about the history behind the app. Forest stated, “When Forest Frizzel, please view the
our Mayor took office a year ago he said he wanted to GovLoop Industry Perspective here.
work towards creating a “lean, clean, and smart city
that is looking towards the future.”

25. About
CitySourced
CitySourced is a real time mobile civic engagement platform. CitySourced provides a simple and intui-
tive platform empowering residents to identify civic issues (public safety, quality of life, environmental
issues, etc.) and report them to city hall for quick resolution; an opportunity for government to use
technology to save time and money plus improve accountability to those they govern; and a positive,
collaborative platform for real action. A picture tells a thousand words and CitySourced makes it a
snap.
Client Testimonials
“We’re using CitySourced to connect people and their government through smart technologies that
improve efficiency, communication and engagement.”
Eric Garcetti, Los Angeles City Council President
“In these trying times, this is one of the ways we are doing more with less to deliver public safety and
quality of life for our residents.”
Pete Constant, San Jose City Council District 1
“Labor is always going up; in most big cities, it’s between 70 and 80 percent of the annual budget.
So anything you can do to make that labor more efficient, that’s where you save money. Also, In the
not-too-distant future in addition to all traditional means of communication and common electronic
forms, I believe we will see increasing use of mobile devices, and especially smart phones, as the pre-
ferred means of resident-to-government communications and transactions.”
Ed Fraga, IT Director at Glendale, CA

26. GOVLOOPGUIDE
26.
GIS
Applications
T he basic definition of GIS is that it is a technology
that enables spatial representation of geography
and data through maps. GIS extends much more than
This data hopefully exists somewhere in the city, but
making a visual representation and sharing with the
public, will help drive action and inform decisions.
a modern day cartographic tool, and to think of GIS
in such simple terms diminishes the impact and po- GIS has multiple applications, one area we are seeing a
tential of GIS. One of the most pressing issues for gov-lot of impact is in crisis management. During an emer-
ernment and challenges that government is facing is gency, officials need to be able to quickly connect and
managing complex data and making it visual to drive collaborate with each other. This is now easier to do
decision making and improve citizen engagement. than ever before with modern technology. With GIS
GIS technology works to impact this element. technology, information can be instantly shared and
updated in real-time - this information allows decision
GIS technology takes seemingly intricate and complex makers to improve their decision making during a cri-
abstract data and manages the data into a version sis and allocate resources to the proper locations.
that is easy for government officials to understand.
There are countless of examples of GIS, some great At all levels of government, GIS can be used to help
examples of GIS come from the federal government. improve transparency, identify at risk communities
and be used to help manage critical resources of the
Geographic Information Systems have been adopted community.But that’s just the start, here are my Top
by dozens of agencies across the state, local and fed- 10 benefits of GIS:
eral level of government. Too often, we underestimate
the value of what GIS brings to the decision-making Improved decision by government officials
process. GIS technology can be found across multiple Instantaneous collaboration through the clo
disciplines within government. Layer complex data to drive improve decision
making
Top 10 Benefits of GIS Technology Improved transparency for citizen engagement
Blog Post by Pat Fiorenza, Research Analyst, GovLoop Identify at-risk or under-served populations with-
in a community
There is so much that you can do with a GIS technol- Improved allocation of resources and planning
ogy, the most common example is making layers with Management of natural resources
data showing all sorts of different variables of a com- Improved communications during a crisis
munity to help inform decision makers and inform the Cost savings by improved decision making
public. For example, my hometown of Syracuse could Planning for demographic changes to community
really use (and publicize) housing information. A use-
ful application would be to see how many vacant
houses are in the city, and map that with educational
levels, income, etc.

27. About
Esri
Esri is an exciting company doing important work. Our technology enables organizations to create
responsible and sustainable solutions to problems at local and global scales. At Esri, we believe that
geography is at the heart of a more resilient and sustainable future. Governments, industry leaders,
academics, and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) trust us to connect them with the analytic
knowledge they need to make these critical decisions that shape the planet.
We invite you to discover ways that you can leverage our technology and expertise in your own orga-
nization.
History of Esri
In 1969, Esri president Jack Dangermond and his wife, Laura, founded Environmental Systems Re-
search Institute, Inc. (Esri), in Redlands, California. Esri’s early mission was to organize and analyze
geographic information to help land planners and land resource managers make well-informed
environmental decisions. These studies resulted in maps that showed constraints and opportunities
for development. In the mid-1970s, San Diego County, California, selected Esri to develop a polygon
information overlay system (PIOS), which became the company’s first foray into creating a geographic
information system (GIS).
A global company from the beginning, Esri began developing relationships with like-minded compa-
nies in Germany, Japan, Australia, and Canada, forming the foundation of today’s large international
network of distributors.

28. GOVLOOPGUIDE
28.
Customer
Service
T o improve government wide customer service,
agencies need to take a hard look at themselves,
the services they provide and the mission of the orga-
DS: We started with several surveys asking the citi-
zens and employees how to improve our web site. We
formed a development committee involving employ-
nization. One of the big challenges for government is ees from all divisions of the City and also some exter-
to “untangle the knots,” and quickly solve problems for nal constituents (veteran, etc.).
citizens. Since many customer service initiatives have
multiple entry points, agencies need to be careful to AK: I just used your chat feature (which I love and
craft policies, procedures and processes to quickly strongly recommend to cities since it’s the most im-
provide the most critical information to citizens, as ef- mediate form of online engagement they can use).
ficiently as possible. Tell me how you staff it - who, how often, length of
time during the day, etc.?
The GovLoop community has discovered some
themes that help agencies identify their customer ser- DS: Our receptionist staff the online chat 8-5 everyday.
vice needs. One critical element to customer service is We also have a chat client in our utility billing depart-
mapping out the customer service program. Agencies ment and at the service center (public works depart-
can start by identifying their key customers and begin ment) that answer questions concerning trash, street,
to think critically about what the customer wants to landfill, and water line repairs.
accomplish.
AK: Any other tips or recommendations you’d make
Once this is understood, agencies should chart out a for your colleagues as they’re striving to more effec-
map that walks through each contact point with the tively engage citizens wherever they are?
customer and interaction with the customer. At each
level, the agency can think how they can improve the There are a lot of free tools that municipalities can use
customer experience. In doing so, agencies will be to engage citizens (facebook, twitter, youtube, and
able to streamline the customer experience. flickr). I would suggest that the government body use
a Gov2.0 tool (e.g. Spigit, BrightIdeas, Jive, etc.) that
Enid, Oklahoma is a great example of a well-defined allows the community to share their ideas on how to
customer service strategy. As part of one of GovLoop’s make their government body better. In using these
Project’s of the Week Series, Derrick Silas, City of Enid tools, remain honest to the community and they will
Web Communications Developer/Social Media Strat- appreciate it and feel more compelled to participate
egist sat down with GovLoop Community Manager in the openness in government. I would suggest that
Andrew Krzmarzick to talk about the City of Enid and other municipalities allow their staff to attend con-
their citizen engagement strategy. ferences (e.g. National Association of Government
Communicators [NAGC], National Association of Gov-
AK: How did you decide to incorporate these ele- ernment Webmasters [NAGW], etc.) to network with
ments? Were citizens involved? Key city stakehold- other government entities and to get best practices
ers?

29. 29.
GOVLOOPGUIDE
Transparency
W hat is driving government to be more open and
transparent? Is being more open occurring out
of necessity by government due to the fiscal climate?
swers to some of the most complex challenges they
face. With the releasing of data sets in both raw and
structured forms, agencies are allowing citizens to
With such limited resources, government is being build applications to assist in improving government
forced to be more open, transparent and collaborate services and are empowering citizens to hold more of
across agencies. Or is a more open government devel- a stake in their community.
oping because of increasing pressures from citizens?
There is a pressure from citizens and a desire for a
more connected government that can use technol-
ogy to improve government operations.
“
The challenge for transparency is that “transparent”
can mean multiple things across agencies and lev- Transparency pro-
els of government. There are complex questions that
relate to government transparency - how can we
measure transparency? What are the requirements
motes accountability
that make an agency transparent? How do we define
transparency? What level of transparency is appropri-
and provides informa-
ate? The answers to those questions likely are differ-
ent across agencies, so being “transparent” can have
tion for citizens about
different meanings to various agencies and certainly
to citizens. what their government
There are many different ways to try and tackle trans- is doing. Information
parency; one way is the releasing of data sets that
government collects. This can be done in a variety of maintained by the Fed-
different ways - if it is releasing data in raw form for
citizens or taking a more structured approach and
providing limited data with key insights. Typically, this
eral Government is a
“
all depends on the agency’s mission and varying in-
ternal processes for transparency. Other transparency
national asset
efforts include allowing citizens to visualize data on
maps, mobile applications, and improved customer - President Barack Obama
service by providing the right information that is eas-
ily accessible.
A trend that continues to grow is that government
agencies are realizing they do not hold all the an-

30. GOVLOOPGUIDE
30.
Best of GovLoop
Top GovLoop Communications
Resources
As GovLoop seeks to highlight and honor our community members, GovLoop
staff has selected our Top Communications Blogs on GovLoop as an additional
resource in our State of Communications Guide.
Stop Waiting for the Messiah and Do it Yourself
WordPress for Local Government
When will we see Gamification in Government
You don’t Really Serve your Customers at all
Keeping it Real: New York Style
You can’t Separate the ‘Social’ from Social Media
Semantic Confusion Surrounding Modern Marketing
16 Communication Tips to Live By
How do People get Information about their Community
The Top 5 Pure Social Media Trends in 2012
Leader Vs Loser
How do you Measure your Local Governments Social Media Success?
Brand Yourself
Can Communications Prevent Protests?
What’s Worth Sharing?

31. 31.
GOVLOOPGUIDE
Creating an Effective
Crisis Communications
Blog by Sandy Evans Levine, President, Advice Unlimited LLC
Plan
We live in an “instant information” age, with 24-hours news channels on TV, radio, and the Web, all needing
information and wanting exciting, attention-getting headlines. This creates an environment where managing
the message to the media takes on heightened importance, since the chance for a misstep to go unnoticed is
slim. We have all seen the effects of negative media exposure and witnessed the ramifications of harmful leaks
or misinformation to the press. The results have caused businesses to suffer, organizations to be unfairly ma-
ligned, and, as seen with early reports about ‘swine flu,’ a nation to panic.
There is a better way. Through crisis communications planning, companies and government organizations can
have a clearly defined and effective process in place to immediately manage the message to the media and,
therefore, the public. This will lessen panic, provide calm, clear directives and suggestions, and negate further
trauma. And this communication and interaction with the media and the public can be done in a manner that’s
consistent with protecting sensitive sources and information.
Many government agencies are reviewing their crisis communications plans and putting Public Information
Centers (PICs) into place. Their reasons are clear:
Companies and organizations that have a crisis communications plan are significantly more effective
in handling disaster situations.
They can respond faster because they know what to do. Speed is crucial to negate rumors and hearsay
and contain the damage as quickly as possible.
Companies and organizations that cooperate with media and share facts with the public consistently
are more trusted by the public.
Companies and organizations that demonstrate loyalty to their clients by placing their clients’ needs
first in dealing with the crisis are more likely to survive a crisis situation.
The PIC leadership develops, creates, and tests the crisis communications plan, provides guidance in training
team members and spokespeople, and overall provides necessary tools so your organization is well prepared
to speedily respond to a potential media crisis. A thorough planning phase should include the following:

32. GOVLOOPGUIDE
32.
Identify a crisis team/Re-evaluate existing crisis team’s roles
Analyze your vulnerabilities
Evaluate your existing procedures
Identify the new procedures you need
Designate a spokesperson(s)
Draft a comprehensive crisis communications plan
Media training
Simulate/test crisis communications plan
As disasters unfortunately seem to be a more common occurrence, our skills for dealing with them must be
honed. An effective crisis communications plan provides your team with the blueprint to navigate rough wa-
ters effectively, to minimize panic, reassure your audiences, and protect sensitive sources. A delicate balancing
act - but one Public Affairs and Public Relations professionals must engage in more and more frequently. Plan-
ning and preparedness help make dealing with a disaster a lot less disastrous.
12 Hopes for 2012
Enhanced Adoption of Digital
Excerpt from GovLoop Blog by Courtney Shelton Hunt, PhD
Technologies
My specific hopes below are predicated on a general hope – namely, that the global economy will stabilize
enough to encourage people to focus on the future with a renewed sense of optimism and confidence. I also
hope we will devote more energy to action than talk, working together to address the opportunities and chal-
lenges we face rather than bickering and playing the blame game. The realization of these hopes is critical to
all kinds of advances and successes in 2012, not just the enhanced adoption of new technologies.
One of the paradoxes of technology adoption is that it is fundamentally a human endeavor. Creating the
means to do things better, faster, cheaper is irrelevant if people don’t embrace the new tools and approaches.
Throughout the early days of the Digital Era, our technological capabilities have generally exceeded the will-
ingness and ability of people to leverage them. Jane Young summarizes the situation well in her comment on
this Forbes piece:
Our biggest challenge isn’t keeping up with the latest in social media, it’s finding ways to get mindset to catch
up with capabilities and new knowledge…. Companies who recognise we’re facing a psychological challenge
rather than a technological one, will thrive.

33. 33.
GOVLOOPGUIDE
My hopes for 2012 are rooted in the psychological challenges we face and are built on our willingness – both
individually and collectively – to address them in thought, word, and deed.
Sort of in order (but not really), I hope that:
People – especially organizational leaders – will recognize that we are fully in the Digital Era and will
begin to explore more fully what that means for them as individuals and for their organizations. They
will acknowledge they don’t understand new digital technologies as well as they could/should – and
more importantly, they will make a real effort to educate themselves.
More leaders will act like leaders – taking a broader view of their organization, industry, and the larger
world in which both function; focusing on the future; engaging in strategic discussions; demonstrat-
ing a willingness to take risks. More specifically, they will recognize the transformative power of digital
technology across multiple disciplines and will use their newly-acquired understanding to develop ap-
propriate strategic priorities and objectives, and to allocate necessary human and other resources to
pursue those objectives.
We will stop sanctifying and vilifying social media, recognizing that it is neither “the cure for all that ails
us” nor “the end of civilization as we know it.” Both things are true, but neither position represents the
truth. We will move past unproductive, moot arguments and focus more on developing solutions for
managing the new realities of our lives as effectively as possible.
In a related vein, we will stop thinking of social media as a frivolous novelty and begin to take it and
other digital technologies more seriously, recognizing that these technologies are necessary utilities for
functioning in the 21st Century.
We will understand that leveraging new digital technologies is at once both a (r)evolutionary step for-
ward and a return to more natural ways of communicating, collaborating, and learning. We will realize
that digital technology is most effectively viewed as a means to achieving our goals and objectives
rather than an end unto itself.
We will shift from a focus on external uses of social media – particularly in a BtoC (business-to-consumer)
context – to recognize the greater need (and opportunity) to address internal and inter-organizational
applications and implications of new technologies in organizations of all types and sizes. We will begin
to integrate them into existing projects and operations in all functional areas.
We will develop more thoughtful and strategic approaches to digital engagement that employ ap-
propriate platforms and communication channels based on organizational characteristics, stakeholder
demographics, and other factors. We will be less reactive, less likely to engage in copycat behavior, and
less inclined to pursue a “one size fits all” model.
The false assumption of the inherent superiority of “Digital Natives” and “Millennials” in leveraging new
technologies will cease to dominate people’s thinking. We will realize that we all have the opportunity
– and ability – to be as digitally proficient as we want to be. As we all become more digitally proficient,
we will once again realize that substance (e.g., functional and organizational knowledge, experience,
wisdom, emotional intelligence, communication skills) is much more important than form (i.e., specific
digital skills) – and far more difficult to acquire!

34. GOVLOOPGUIDE
34.
More high-quality formal education and training about social media and other new digital technolo-
gies will be available. And recognizing the need to make a lifelong investment in their own success,
more people will take advantage of it to climb their short-term learning curves more efficiently and
effectively – and to lay a strong foundation for continuous learning and improvement.
Organizations of all types will shift from public social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube,
and LinkedIn to private digital networks (PDNs) for internal communication and collaboration. The
value of PDNs for inter-organizational communication and collaboration will also be realized and ex-
ploited more fully.
Organizations will take appropriate action to manage their Digital Era risks by reviewing and updating
their employee policies, creating social media policies/guidelines where necessary/appropriate, and
providing ongoing training for both individual contributors and managers.
Technology advocates will focus less on disruptive applications and more on how new technology can
extend and enhance existing competencies rather than destroying them. And instead of primarily de-
fining the success of technology companies – both start-ups and established firms – based on their
splashy hits, we will place more value on incremental contributions and improvements that have a
larger, albeit quieter, impacts.

35. Acknowledgements
Pat Fiorenza, GovLoop Research Analyst
Lead Author of the State of Communications Report
Pat Fiorenza is currently a Research Analyst at GovLoop. Through the creation of blogs,
research reports, guides, in-person and online events, Pat helps to identify and find
best practices to share with the GovLoop community. Pat received his Masters of Pub-
lic Administration degree from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at
Syracuse University.
Thank you to all who assisted in the production of the GovLoop Guide, “State of Com-
munications Report.” Thank you to all those who were referenced in the guide and con-
tributed quotes, blog posts and content. In particular, thank you to Andrew Krzmarzick,
GovLoop Community Manager, who served as a contributing author to various por-
tions of this guide, as an editor and provided direction on content. Also, thank you to
Corey McCarren, GovLoop Graduate Fellow and writer of the social media trends sec-
tion. Thank you to Jeff Riberia, Creative Director, GovLoop, who designed the guide.
GovLoop
734 15th St NW, Suite 500
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: (202) 407-7421
Fax: (202) 407-7501