Instructor: Erik Deutsch (@erikdeutsch)#UCLAx425

Best Practices in Social Media for the Communications Professional

UCLA X425 Fall 2013

Meeting 2 (October 15): Key Platforms Nothing is “Off-the-Record”Can Social Media Replace Traditional Websites?Overcoming FearROIThe PR Pro’s “Social Media ToolKit”Do You Need a Social Media Policy?Guest speaker:

Corianda Dimes (@corianda) New Media Strategist, Bullfrog & Baum

Social Media is:• Easy to post• Easy to share • Easy to find

• Hard (if not impossible) to delete

UCLA X425 Fall 2013

1. Personal Profiles2. Groups3. Brand Pages

Also, the omnipresent “Like” button, online contests/giveaways, widgets, etc.

Recently added Facebook Hashtags - #FBhashtags

UCLA X425 Fall 2013

Facebook “Customers” vs. Facebook “Users”

Advertisers are Facebook’s “customers”Users are “the product”

UCLA X425 Fall 2013

UCLA X425 Fall 2013

• Easy set up and maintenance• Quickly upload all types of information• Inherently viral platform• People login EVERY DAY!• 1 BILLION strong (“fish where the fish are”)

UCLA X425 Fall 2013

• Facebook is always changing• Ownership -- Facebook controls access and can

change the rules• Provides limited SEO benefit• Facebook doesn’t provide fan contact information• Not everyone is on Facebook (though fan pages

are public)

UCLA X425 Fall 2013

• Newsfeed “improvements” (“sponsored” posts) • Edgerank algorythm (affinity, weight and recency) • Facebook insights (publisher analytics) • Subscribe to brand pages

User experience vs. monetization... again, users are the product, advertisers are the customer.

UCLA X425 Fall 2013

• Quality over quantity. • Shorter posts (to generate more engagement).• Provide a link (and hashtag) • Ask questions (to ignite a dialogue). • Use photos, links and videos (for higher edgegrank). • Get creative.

UCLA X425 Fall 2013

UCLA X425 Fall 2013

1. General status updates (share info / links)2. The Retweet (RT and MT)3. The @Mention4. The @Reply 5. Direct Messages (DM) 6. Hashtag tweet (#)7. Multimedia Tweet (using 3rd-party apps

e.g., twitpic, twitvid, vine, etc.)

UCLA X425 Fall 2013

Tweet StructureDissecting the semantics of a tweet gives us a sense

of best practice, but keep in mind this isn't a one-size-fits-all deal. Keep it real and get in your own groove.

Start with: - Headline or phrase- Link- Hashtag - using tags that influencers use to get

noticed in those niche circles

UCLA X425 Fall 2013

• YouTube – Video Sharing/Storytelling• Flickr and Instagram– Photo Sharing• Pinterest – Scrapbooking • LinkedIn – Professional Networking • Foursquare – Geolocation • Google+ - Facebook Competitor

(“Hangouts”)

FEAR!!!

What are companies afraid of:

1. Social media hurts employee productivity2. Our customers don't use social media3. People can say mean things about us

UCLA X425 Fall 2013

UCLA X425 Fall 2013

• Generate awareness• Increase engagement

• Increase influence • Motivate action

(purchases, leads, etc.)

UCLA X425 Fall 2013

• Awareness - Website visitors, page views, fans/followers, etc. (tangible metrics)

• Engagement - Comments (blog, Facebook), retweets, time spent on the website, etc.

• Influence - Third-party mentions, inbound links, etc.• Action - Conversions, sign-ups, downloads,

purchases, etc.

Instructor: Erik Deutsch (@ErikDeutsch)

Twitter hashtag: #UCLAx425

Best Practices in Social Media for the Communications Professional

UCLA X425 Fall 2013

Meeting 2 (April 23):Guest speaker:

Corianda Dimes (@corianda) New Media Strategist, Bullfrog & Baum