social media tools for disasters

The Role of Social Media in Disasters

Burt LumOctober 22, 2013@bytemarksbytemarks@gmail.com

The nature of social media

Web 1.0●Management in Control●One Way - Delivering the

Message●Repeat the Message●Control the Message●Educate●Organization Creates Content

Web 2.0●Community in Control● Two Way - Being Part of the

Conversation ●Adopt the Message●Focus on the Community Voice● Influence, collaborate●User created content, co-create

5 Trends in Disaster Management

1. Everything Happens at Lightning Speed2. People Demand Hyper-Transparency3. Dialog is important in Message Delivery4. Need to establish Trusted Sources5. Misinformation and Rumors Travel at Viral

Speeds

Social Media in the EM Cycle

Levels of EngagementMonitor

● Gather information during the response or recovery phase● Identify gaps in response● Understand how opinion of your organization is forming● Identify improvements to the response● Identify people and/or communities in need● Improve situational awareness

Respond● Increase speed of rumour log addressing (e.g. addressing inaccuracies and

misinformation)● Create a targeted response● Request specific, required information● Build trust between your organization and the public

Engage● Consult with your community● Obtain in-depth feedback on response and information provided

Touchpoints

● Know where your audience is.● Know how reach them.● Continue to engage with them.

Monitor

● Search sites using hashtags & keywords● Identify people & communities in need● Improve Situational Awareness● Collaborate

TweetTracker

The Hawaii VOST (Virtual Operations Support Team) primary activities during an emergency include:

● Helping to post and retweet information from verified sources regarding the emergency.

● Monitoring social media for incidents of distress, danger and system failures.

● Monitoring social media for erroneous reports, misinformation and rumors.

● Set up a Listening Post program● Get management buy-in on the importance of

social media● Identify the top online influencers (and begin

building relationships)● Know how you will “speak” online (e.g. Twitter,

Facebook, YouTube, etc.)● Establish Social Media Engagement Guidelines

across your organization

Keys to Digital Crisis Management

Mahalo!

Burt Lum@bytemarksbytemarks@gmail.comHawaiiopendata.com