Getting Buy-in from Administrators for Social Media
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Getting Buy-In from Administrators for Social Media Stephen Johnson Director of Communications Windward School Los Angeles sjohnson@windwardschoo l.org @ burma999
Transcript of Getting Buy-in from Administrators for Social Media
Getting Buy-In from Administrators
for Social Media
Stephen Johnson
Director of CommunicationsWindward School
@ burma999
Joel Price: Find Them, Keep Them (By Using
Facebook/Social Media)
Liz Allen: Community Management & Managing Online Reputations
Webinars: Three Sessions, Three Days, and Three Angles of Social Networking for Schools
1. Sell the benefits.2. Contain the risk.3. Build coalitions.
Three Ways to Get Buy-In Preview
The well meaning communications professional
Your Head of School’s response:
You: “We should live stream this Friday’s big basketball game, and, hey, we can do a chat so students, parents, the public, and alumni can talk on a screen during the game.”
Your Head of School’s response:
You: “We need to lift restrictions to Facebook in our library so that everyone on campus has access to the school’s Facebook page.”
Your Head of School’s response:
You: “Blogs will make our school more transparent. Transparency is good. That’s what I read in the Cluetrain Manifesto.”
Look familiar?
Understanding the psychology of your Head of School
and of your senior administrators
The New Yorker, 2/1/2010
transparency vs. concealment
is on your Head of School’s mind . . .
A LOT.
transparency:
2 a: free from pretense or deceit
transparency:
2 a: free from pretense or deceit
b: easily detected
transparency:
2 a: free from pretense or deceit
b: easily detected or seen through
transparency:
2 a: free from pretense or deceit
b: easily detected or seen through
c: readily understood
transparency:
2 a: free from pretense or deceit
b: easily detected or seen through
c: readily understood
d: characterized by visibility or accessibility
of information
transparency:
2 a: free from pretense or deceit
b: easily detected or seen through
c: readily understood
d: characterized by visibility or accessibility
of information especially concerning business practices
transparency:
from Merriam-Webster.com/dictionary
Some Fears: Survey Question 1
Some Fears: Survey Question 1
What is your Head of School’s biggest fear regarding your school?
Some Fears
• Losing privacy (students, parents, teachers, etc.)
Some Fears
• Losing privacy (students, parents, teachers, etc.)
• Losing control of the School’s message or reputation
Some Fears
• Losing privacy (students, parents, teachers, etc.)• Losing control of the School’s message or
reputation• Losing control of the School itself
Some Fears
• Use words such as engagement rather than transparency. Communication is a two-way street now. Be willing to have a conversation.
• Find the balance between transparency and concealment - respect both.
• Educate. You work in a school. Teach others how to use the tools.
Some Initial Solutions
THREE WAYS TO GET BUY-IN
1. SELL THE BENEFITS
The dirty little secret of all independent schools:
The dirty little secret of all independent schools:
No one wants to take on more work.
The dirty little solution for all independent schools:
No one wants to take on more work unless if saves them work in another area.
Major Benefits of Social Media for Independent Schools
1. Social media tools help you tell your school’s stories and help you share information with a large number of people.
Major Benefits of Social Mediafor Independent Schools
1. Social media tools help you to tell your school’s stories and help you share information with a large number of people.
2. Social media tools help build and engage your communities. You are judged on how you engage.
Major Benefits of Social Media for Independent Schools
1. Social media tools help you to tell your school’s stories and help you share information with a large number of people.
2. Social media tools help build and engage your communities. You are judged on how you engage.
3. Social media tools help organize groups.
Avoid the
Curse of Knowledge!
Avoid the
Curse of Knowledge!• Have a vision• Ask and listen• Learn what’s important
Specific Strategies - Benefits
1. Develop a Social Media Marketing Plan• These are tools that help you
accomplish goals. Tie Plan to strategic plan goals and school’s mission.
• Present it to senior admins as part of your annual departmental goals.
Social Media Marketing Plan - Foundations
“Social media marketing is modern public relations, helps Windward create brand awareness online with a huge audience, drives traffic to the Web site, and helps everyone in the Windward community feel more connected to the School.
Social media makes it easier to share content (photos, videos, news, announcements) to many more people (parents, alumni, prospectives, policymakers, the public).”
1. Develop a Social Media Marketing Plan
a snapshot
Facebook Directly benefits: Alumni, Development, Admissions (anyone
can be a fan of WW page), Athletics (team pages), Arts (a page for spring musical with rehearsal times, etc.)
Helps us: Build the alumni community, raise $ from alums, share content instantly. Saves us money from creating paper brochures.
Specific ideas: Easily organize alumni reunions (and let the users do the connecting); share info re Windward events such as founder’s birthday, playoff games, etc.; share photos, videos, news with many people. Post classic photos of WW history.
How can the community join? A WW community member can “become a fan” (join) the Windward pages directly from our home page.
How is it secure?/Our control: On alumni pages, content will posted by Comm. Dept. and Dev., and comments can be addressed and moderated daily by page admins. Find full document at www.windwardschool.org/communications
Specific Strategies - Benefits
2. Help other departments meet their goals.• Development• Athletics (Twitter to post live scores,
etc.)• Arts • Head of School• Communications (Twitter widget on
home page as announcement board)
Specific Strategies - Benefits
3. Involve students/make it educational.
3. Involve Students/Make it Educational
Benefits
Show that social networking skills are 21st century, college-preparatory skills. (Tools, not toys.)
Create student internships for live streaming, video production, photo club, etc.
Involve your online school newspaper. (See www.windwardbridge.com, www.wamash.worcesteracademy.org/.)
Deputize certain students to tweet and blog. Introduce blogging and writing into the
classroom through innovative teachers. Help educate students how to safely use
social media.
Involve the Online Student Newspaper
Windward Bridge OnlineWA Mash (Worcester Academy)
Who benefits? Survey Question 2
Which one of your school’s departments would benefit the most from social media, and how can you save them work?
2. CONTAIN THE RISK
Two Views of Social Media
admins: Tools of danger
you: Tools of opportunity
Help manage the danger while selling the benefits.
Contain the risk.
Create Social Media Guidelines (or Policy) for faculty/staff.
Protect your Head. Be your Head’s communications bodyguard.
Show measurable results. Deputize certain students and teachers, and train them. Balance negative reviews with ones solicited from your
community members. Be less an evangelist and more a translator of social
media innovations. For your admins, build a strong fence within which your
school can have social media freedom.
3. BUILD COALITIONS
Build coalitions.
Partner with people who “get” it. Compromise. Take small victories and go from
there. Collaborate with like-minded directors at local
schools. Solicit advice through Twitter (and give back). Create a Social Media Plan, but ask Head’s/admins’
advice on part of it. Play politics, negotiate, and leverage. Educate. Host an EdSocialMedia boot camp.
EXAMPLE: FOUNDER’S DAY 2010
EdSocialMedia Bootcamp
Founder’s Day Goes Interactive
Founder’s Day Project
Process
Hosted the boot camp Wrote a news story and posted on Windward Web site. Sent
pushpages/ emails to alums, parents inviting them to view and participate
Created a live Flickr feed on the home page – invited everyone to post photos, but we chose them
Posted a Twitter widget on the home page to which certain students, teachers, coaches, parents posted from all over the campus
Were able to archive all Flickr photos (100+) in an gallery that was evidence of a great community day; we sent it to all parents and later shared it with prospectives
Head of School’s response was great – thought it really reflected the school and got everyone involved!
Founder’s Day Project
1. Benefitted Everyone
Shared engagement from students, parents, teachers, coaches, alumni – got everyone involved and created community event.
2. Contained the Risk
Deputized certain students to tweet and post Twitpix. Had control over posted Flickr photos.
3. Built Coalitions
Teamed with visual arts teachers to post photos, newspaper to post tweets
Worked with students, parents, and others
Resources
www.windwardschool.org/communications
Stephen Johnson
Director of CommunicationsWindward School
@ burma999
