municipal power systems and social media
DESCRIPTION
Slides from July 26, 2010 presentation to S.C. Association of Municipal Power SystemsTRANSCRIPT
Making the most of social media…even if you don’t want to
S.C. Association of Municipal Power Systems Annual
MeetingJuly 26, 2010
Social Media is Everywhere
•500 million users worldwide•125 million users in the U .S.•1.5 million users in South Carolina
•105 million users as of April 2010• 300,000 new users daily• 55 million “Tweets” per day
Look Before You Leap
Begin With a Strategy
• Social media is a tool – does it further your city/utility goals?
• Not every tool is right for you• Can you handle it when a conversation doesn’t
go the way you want?• Time commitment – it’s not a sometimes thing
How Do Utilities Use Social Media?
• Updating customers about outages and other real-time issues
• Updating media about fast-moving stories• Building community support for plans• “Humanizing” the organization
More About Facebook
• Deeper connections – deeper risk• Need to have a Facebook account user/users
who can run it• Photos, videos, contests and ads• Walled garden
More About Twitter
• Easy to set up• Less risky• 140 characters• Very popular with journalists• You can link it to your Facebook page• Don’t have to join to read someone’s Twitter
feed
Some Suggestions
Have a Social Media Policy
Keep Squatters Out
Listen to Competitors
Don’t Let IT Block You
My Contact Information
Michael SponhourDirector of Public Affairs
S.C. Budget and Control Board(803) 734-0632
[email protected] www.twitter.com/msponhour