The higher education industry has long been receptive to social media, valuing its ability to create connections between institutions, organizations and their various supporters. By monitoring a complicated mix of keywords related to Brock University and its brand culture, Brock’s main social media co-ordinator can easily field current students’ inquiries to various departments across campus. Recruitment and Liaison can identify prospective students and thank them for applying to Brock. Alumni Relations can encourage grads to attend networking and professional development events. Read this case study to find out how social is weaving its way across campus.

1. Case Study / Brock University
The higher education industry has long been
receptive to social media, valuing its ability
to create connections between institutions,
organizations and their various supporters.
The Challenge The Approach
From prospective and current students to Much like its brand image, Brock’s approach to
alumni, athletic boosters, partners and donors, social media engagement is unpretentious, casual
the social web helps keep everyone engaged and welcoming, which Brock feels has contributed
in the campus community. Creating lasting to its growth.
connections right away with these groups helps
to ensure an active and engaged community in Brock first started using Salesforce Radian6
the future. in April 2012 to help streamline its social
media management across three key offices
Located in Canada’s beautiful Niagara region, – Recruitment and Liaison, Marketing and
Brock University is one of the fastest growing Communications, and Alumni Relations – and
universities in Canada. Serving more than to increase its ability to listen to conversations
18,000 students and a growing alumni family happening around its brand.
of more than 75,000, Brock University knows
that an effective way to keep in touch with The workflow options available in Radian6’s
its audience is through the social web. The Engagement Console allows Brock’s social media
university that engages “both sides of the brain” team members in each of these offices to assign
first took the leap into social media in 2008 posts to each other, attach notes describing
and has since grown to include more than 100 recommended next steps and select the priority in
social media properties across various university which the post should be handled.
departments and offices.
By classifying the source and content type of
With the goal of providing exceptional customer a post (i.e. prospective students or alumni and
service and creating lasting connections, Brock’s registration or housing, respectively) the tagging
social media team has been working toward a system allows Brock to produce detailed reports
more co-ordinated social media presence to that indicate who’s talking about Brock and
better engage customers throughout the entire specifically what they’re talking about.
student life cycle.
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2. Case Study / Brock University
The Results promote their student life blogs. Alumni Relations
can encourage grads to attend networking
Brock University’s commitment to engaging and professional development events, such as
online has strengthened its connection with Brock Days Alumni Weekend, and easily capture
both its on- and off-campus communities. And information for their contact database like when a
with the help of Salesforce Radian6, Brock’s graduate lands a new job or indicates an interest in
social media team has become more efficient supporting the university.
at managing the conversations and translating
them into valuable information. Moreover, by consistently tagging posts, Brock’s
social media co-ordiantor can produce reports
By monitoring a complicated mix of keywords that benefit various departments on campus; for
related to Brock University and its brand culture, example, during student registration, Brock was
Brock’s main social media co-ordinator can able to identify technical issues in the registration
easily field current students’ inquiries to various system based on the frequency and volume of
departments across campus, promote university social media posts from concerned students.
events and research findings to the media
and community partners, and assign tasks to Brock’s not only using social media to engage with
colleagues in Recruitment and Liaison and its community, it’s gathering important information
Alumni Relations. Recruitment and Liaison can that will help it improve over the long term.
identify prospective students and thank them for
applying to Brock, answer program questions and
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