1. Best Practices in Social Media
for the Communications
Professional
Instructor:
Erik Deutsch (@erikdeutsch)
#UCLAx425
Meeting 2 (October 15):
Key Platforms
Nothing is “Off-the-Record”
Can Social Media Replace Traditional
Websites?
Overcoming Fear
ROI
The PR Pro’s “Social Media ToolKit”
Do You Need a Social Media Policy?
Guest speaker:
Corianda Dimes (@corianda)
New Media Strategist, Bullfrog & Baum
UCLA X425
Fall 2013

2. Social Media is:
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Easy to post
Easy to share
Easy to find
Hard (if not impossible) to delete
Fall 2013

3. 1. Personal Profiles
2. Groups
3. Brand Pages
Also, the omnipresent “Like” button,
online contests/giveaways, widgets, etc.
Recently added Facebook Hashtags -
#FBhashtags
UCLA X425
Fall 2013

4. Facebook “Customers”
vs. Facebook “Users”
Advertisers are Facebook’s
“customers”
Users are “the product”
UCLA X425
Fall 2013

5. UCLA X425
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6. •
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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

7. • 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

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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

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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

10. 1. General status updates (share info / links)
2. The Retweet (RT and MT)
3. The @Mention
4. 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

11. Tweet Structure
Dissecting 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

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YouTube – Video Sharing/Storytelling
Flickr and Instagram– Photo Sharing
Pinterest – Scrapbooking
LinkedIn – Professional Networking
Foursquare – Geolocation
Google+ - Facebook Competitor
(“Hangouts”)
Fall 2013

13. FEAR!!!
What are companies afraid of:
1. Social media hurts employee productivity
2. Our customers don't use social media
3. People can say mean things about us
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Fall 2013

14. • Generate awareness
• Increase engagement
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• Increase influence
• Motivate action
(purchases, leads, etc.)
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15. • 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.
UCLA X425
Fall 2013

16. Best Practices in Social Media
for the Communications
Professional
Meeting 2 (April 23):
Guest speaker:
Instructor:
Erik Deutsch (@ErikDeutsch)
Twitter hashtag:
#UCLAx425
UCLA X425
Corianda Dimes (@corianda)
New Media Strategist, Bullfrog & Baum
Fall 2013