Social media provides a unique platform for Extension professionals to share information about programs, including the Florida Master Gardener Program. Presented at the 2010 continuing education meeting for Master Gardener coordinators.

1. Social Media Marketing Tools
and Strategies
Kim Taylor

2. What is the role of Extension?

3. How have we done this?

4. Are we still reaching people?

5. The landscape is changing

6. Information then

7. Information now

8. Social Media Revolution 2 (Refresh), by Erik Qualman
http://www.youtube.com/user/Socialnomics09#p/a/u/0/l
FZ0z5Fm-Ng

9. More about online audiences

10. Why should we care?
• “Cooperative Extension will continue to keep its
local community ties, but has and will continue to
grow an online presence. Cooperative
Extension’s online presence is not
a replacement for our local, face-to-face
contacts, but rather a way to build, maintain, and
strengthen these relationships.”
– Anne Adrian, Auburn University

11. Need more reasons?
• Stats for Why Extension Should Use Social
Media (Anne Adrian)
http://www.slideshare.net/aafromaa/stats-for-
why-extension
• What is Social Media? (Marta Kagan)
http://www.slideshare.net/mzkagan/what-is-
social-media-2005829

12. Not sure you have the time?

13. Where people connect, share,
and learn online

14. Where should you start?
• What do you like to do?
• How do you like to share information?
• How much time do you have?

15. Key elements of success
• Listen
• Engage
• Measure

16. Rule #1 -- Listen
• Google Alerts
• TweetDeck
• SocialMentions
• RSS

17. Listen to what’s being said
http://google.com/alerts

19. Know what people are saying
http://search.twitter.com

20. SocialMention.com

21. Feed (RSS) Readers

22. Google Reader
www.google.com/reader

23. Rule #2 -- Engage
• Comment on other
people’s content
– Facebook
– Twitter
– Blogs
– Flickr
• Start adding your
own original content
• Make it meaningful

24. Facebook
• Fourth largest population in the world (>300
million active users)
• 50% of users log on to FB on any given day
• Women older than 55 make up the fastest-
growing age group on Facebook
• 40 million status updates
• 2 billion photos and 14 billion videos uploaded
each month
• 70% users outside of US

25. My Facebook profile page (public)

26. What my friends see

27. My “Wall”

28. Privacy
• You decide how much
info to post
• You decide who it will
be shared with
(mostly)
• Search “Facebook”
and “privacy” –
NYTimes article is
good resource right
now

29. ReclaimPrivacy.org

30. (Fan) Pages

31. Insights (interaction data)

32. Advertising

33. Group pages

34. Twitter
• Twitter is a micro-blogging service, which is text-
based
• More than 25 million accounts
• 3 million Tweets/day (March 2008)
• Tuesday – most popular day
– Wednesday – close 2nd popular day

35. Twitter
• Tweets are updates or a mini blog
– Announcements
– ReTweets
– Direct Messages
– News Reporting
– Marketing

37. Photo Sharing
http://www.flickr.com/photos/floridamastergardener

38. Photo Sharing
• Set up a group and encourage readers to share
photos or videos of projects
http://www.flickr.com/groups/thefloridabotanicalgardens/

39. Photo Sharing
• Also a place for interaction and discussion

40. YouTube
• 70 million – videos (March 2008)
• 95.4 million – videos (May 2009)

41. Video Sharing
• Upload
demos
showing
gardening
techniques
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTAEvOEAxl4

42. Video Sharing
• Embed videos
into blog
posts
http://fruitscapes.blogspot.com/

43. Blogs & Microblogs

44. Blogosphere
• 346 million – people read blogs (comScore
March 2008)
• 900,000 - average number of blog posts in a 24
hour period
• 77% - active Internet users read blogs

45. Blogging
• Journal about
gardening
• Highlight workshops,
articles,
• Feature great garden
photos
• Embed how-to
videos

46. Be Successful
• Read
• Comment
• Write
• Respond
• Converse
• Connect
• Rinse &
Repeat
http://flmastergardener.wordpress.com

47. Going mobile
• iPhone, Blackberries, and smart
phones
• Connected ALL the time
• Many platforms/applications to
choose from

48. Rule #3 -- Measure
• How do you know
who’s stopping by?
• Once you know who’s
visiting, how do you
know what they’re
reading?
• What do they WANT to
be reading?

49. Web Analytics
• Many service providers (google.com/analytics)
• Helps to drive content direction
• Keyword searches
• Where are people visiting from?
• What are they looking for?

50. Dig In!

51. Things to Remember
• Keep it professional
• Post what is meaningful
• Make sure your information is current
• Make sure your information is correct
• Make sure your information is relevant
• Follow many others, but use filters
• Remember, social media is social and PUBLIC

52. Other considerations
• Do you offer ways for people to keep up with
news about your MG program (plant sales,
garden tours, other events)?
• Do you have ways for readers to comment?
• Look for other groups, forums, social networks
that are being used by your clientele.

53. Kim Taylor
Contact Kim krtaylor@ufl.edu
• Twitter: sassycrafter
• Slideshare: krtaylor
• Flickr:
– FloridaMasterGardener
– gardeninginaminute
• YouTube: UFGardening
• Facebook: thesassycrafter
• Blog: cannasandbananas.blogspot.com

54. Resources
• Intro Social Media for Cooperative Extension Directors
http://www.slideshare.net/aafromaa/intro-social-mediafor-extension-
extdir
• Ohio Farm Bureau Social Media Guide ofbf.org/uploads/social-
media-guide.pdf
• Facebook Privacy: A Bewildering Tangle of Options
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/05/12/business/facebook-
privacy.html
• 10 Privacy Settings Every Facebook User Should Know
http://www.allfacebook.com/2009/02/facebook-privacy/

55. Resources
• Twitter Guide: How to, Tips, and Instructions
mashable.com/guidebook/twitter/
• How to Use Twitter for Business
flyte.biz/resources/newsletters/08/06-twitter-for-business.php
• Deciding who to follow in Twitter (and Friendfeed) and who to friend
in Facebook blog.anneadrian.com/2009/07/decide-who-to-follow-in-
twitter-and.html

56. Resources
• RSS in Plain English, a video introduction to using news readers
from Common Craft commoncraft.com/rss_plain_english
• Use a newsreader blog.anneadrian.com/2007/05/how-to-use-news-
reader.html
• Poscente, Vince. The Age of Speed. (2007)
• Aral, Sinan and Van Alstyne, Marshall W., "Network Structure &
Information Advantage: Structural Determinants of Access to Novel
Information and Their Performance Implications" (January 18,
2007). Available at SSRN: ssrn.com/abstract=958158

57. Resources
• Clay Shirky "It's not information overload. It's filter failure" at Web
2.0 Expo NY
web2expo.blip.tv/file/1277460/
• Not information overload--filter failure
blog.anneadrian.com/2008/10/not-information-overload-filter-
failure.html
• Misconception about web technologies
blog.anneadrian.com/2009/06/misconception-about-web-
technologies_26.html

58. Resources
• Engaging Communities on their on Turf: Secrets of Social
networkers hconnect.extension.iastate.edu/p79426457/
• Feeding Frenzy eXtension 30-Minute recording by Beth Raney,
connect.extension.iastate.edu/p51525211/
• Beginner’s Guide to Social Media in Extension
collaborate.extension.org/wiki/Beginners_Guide_to_Social_Media_i
n_Extension

59. Resources
• Hampton, K. (2002). Place-based and IT mediated “community.”
Planning Theory and Practice, 3(2), 228-23.
• Hampton, K. & Wellman, B. (2003). Neighboring in Netville: How the
Internet supports community and social capital in a wired suburb.
City and Community, 2(4), 277-311.
• Ellison, N. B. Steinfield, C., and Lampe, C. (2007). The benefits of
Facebook “friends”: Social capital and college students’ use of
online social network sites. Journal of Computer Mediation
Communication, 12(4), Article 1.