Millennials and Generation Z students are no longer using the same social media channels they were using even just two years ago. They have moved on to other platforms, like Instagram, Snapchat, and WhatsApp, and in China and other parts of the world - WeChat. This presentation provides an overview of the latest trends in social media use among these students and how to engage with them on these new platforms.

1. Millennials / Generation Z & Social Media
Meeting Students Where They Are

2. Ashley Houston (Chair) - GoAbroad.com
Mandy Reinig - St. Mary’s College of Maryland
Jeramy Johnson - Academic Programs International
Presenters

3. Outline
● Current state of
social media
● Emerging trends
● Examples & Best
Practices
● Q & A

4. Current State of Social Media in IE
▣ Why do we use social media in IE?
▣ What are people currently using
□ Professionals
□ Students
▣ Based on what students are using,
what channels might you need to start
using or change your use of?

5. Why do we use social media?
Recruit/Promote
Engage
Create/Build
Community
Monitor

6. Why do you use
social media?

13. Potential Survey Conclusions
● Is Facebook really dying?
● What other social media channels
do you need to start using?
● Are your current engagement
efforts paying off?

14. Question:
What trends are driving social
media today?

15. Emerging Trends: Visual Media
“This massive, technology-driven shift in communication is
changing the way brands and consumers interact with one
another, and has heralded the rise of what people in the ad
world are calling the Visual Web.” - Ari Lewine, WSJ

16. Emerging Trends: Visual Media
● The emerging social networks are ones that focus on
the visual medium
○ A picture is worth 1000 words!
● Prevalence of camera-enabled mobile devices driving
move to visual media sharing
● Information can be communicated easier, faster
visually than through text (or audio)
● We’ve made the shift from “tell” to “show”...

19. Meerkat & Periscope

22. Stickers, Emojis, & Videos, Oh My!

23. Time for some stats!

24. Emerging Trends: Engagement
● Posts with
photos receive
2x more likes
than those
with text only
on Facebook
● Video sharing
on Facebook
increased 50%
in 2014
Sources: Hootsuite Blog;
VFM Leonardo, Social
Media Examiner

25. Emerging Trends: Engagement
● Instagram engagement is up 416% in the past two years;
posts generated 58x more engagement per follower than
Facebook, & 120x more than Twitter
● Roughly half (53%) of adults 18-19 use Instagram; a quarter
of all adults do (26%)
● 49% of Instagram users visit on a daily basis; 60% of
Snapchat users are active on a daily basis
Sources: Adweek, Brandwatch, Emarsys, Socially Sorted, Pew Internet Research

26. ● Tumblr and Pinterest
platforms now growing
even faster than Instagram
● Snapchat is the fastest
growing mobile app. It’s
also the youngest social
network (60% of users are
in 18-24 demographic)
Sources: TechCrunch, Socially Sorted,
Business Insider, iMediaConnection
Emerging Trends: Leading Networks

27. Emerging Trends: Visual Search

28. Emerging Trends: Messaging Apps
Private & group messaging apps were 2014’s biggest boom
○ 67% increase in Snapchat user base
○ 30% increase in WhatsApp user base
○ 14% increase in WeChat user base
○ 700 million photos; 100 million video messages sent
PER DAY on these networks alone
Source: Jacqueline Woerner, Emarsys

31. Best Practices - Moving Forward
● Understand & know
your audience
● How to find success
with different platforms
● Examples: What are
your colleagues doing
that’s effective
● Actionable next steps

32. Millennials & Gen Z: Who are they?
● Most educated generation
in history
● Most racially diverse,
tolerant of LGBTQ
community, open-minded
● Utilitarian, idealistic,
concerned about putting
the good of society in
front of self, want to make
a positive impact
● They value authenticity &
transparency

33. Millennials & Gen Z: How does this play in?
● Tech savvy group
● 80% use social several
times a day
● Use it to make decisions:
social shoppers
● Less trusting & more
skeptical of institutions
(matters in what they pay
attention to)
● 99% of our target market, &
an increasingly growing % of
IE staff

34. Social
Media Ads:
Are They
Effective
and/or
Positive?

35. What catches
student
interest?
● “We need your help”
● Infographics
● Videos
● Adventurous or odd
cultural photos
● Travel quotes
● Useful tools or
resources
● Student reviews,
interviews,
testimonials
● Pictures from site
locations
● Contests, discounts,
travel deals
● U.S. News updates
● Buzzfeed posts
● Alumni blogs
● Teach/Jobs Abroad

36. Facebook Examples:
What catches student interest

37. Mobile platforms shine!
Source: Mashable

38. Examples of Success: Instagram
Reposts Tag a
friend!
Student
photos
Share tips &
tricks!

39. How to Find Success: Snapchat
● Program discount or app fee waiver
● Announcing new programs
● Behind the scenes look at sites
● Example: WWF’s #LastSelfie Campaign
Source: TechCrunch

40. Examples of Success: Tumblr
Instagram
Matador Network API The Travel Channel

41. Examples of Success: LinkedIn
Share events, jobs, resources
Share
News
Share deadline
reminders,
alumni
programming

42. Examples of Success: Twitter
Alumni tips!
Deadlines
Engage!
Get their attention!

43. Use existing content on a new
platform
Create specific boards
Optimize your
description
Create visual,
shareable content
Provide what your
audience wants
Examples
of
Success:
Pinterest

44. Make playlists
Create program
specific categories Promote vlogging!
Optimize your
description/keywords
Examples
of
Success:
YouTube

45. Examples
of
Success:
Facebook

46. How can you connect with
students on new or existing
platforms to more effectively
meet your organizational
goals?

47. In Review...
Current State
of Social Media
Emerging Social
Media Trends
Best Practices
& Action Items

48. #Hashtag Contest
Challenge: Using the #NAFSA15
hashtag & #GenZMedia on
Instagram, Meerkat, or Periscope,
document behind the scenes life at
NAFSA through an image or video
Deadline: Saturday, May 30th
(winner chosen the following week)
Prize: Social media swag bag from
GoAbroad/GoMedia, API, & St.
Mary’s College of Maryland
#GenZMedia
#NAFSA15

49. Thanks!Any questions?

50. Ashley Houston
Outreach Manager, GoAbroad
ashley.houston@goabroad.com
@midwestash
Jeramy Johnson
Vice President of Marketing & Development,
Academic Programs International
jeramy.johnson@apiabroad.com
@jeramyutgw
Mandy Reinig
Director of International Education,
St. Mary’s College of Maryland
arreinig@smcm.edu
@MandysMashups

51. ‘’
● “Are You Prepared for Visual Social Media Marketing?” Krista Neher -
ClickZ
● “Outside Voices: The Visual Web is Changing Everything in Media
and Advertising” Ari Lewine, WSJ
● “The 7 Social Media Trends Dominating 2015” Jacqueline Woerner,
Emarsys
● “7 Takeaways from Social Media Marketing World 2015” Donna
Moritz, SME
● “The Shift to Visual Social Media - 6 tips for Business [Infographic]” -
Donna Mortiz - Socially Sorted
● “Top 9 Social Media Trends for 2015” - Ruxandra Mindruta,
Brandwatch
● “Social Media and Storytelling, Part 4: The Growth of Visual
Storytelling” Cameron Uganec, Hootsuite
● “Social Media Update 2014” - Maeve Duggan, Nicole B. Ellison, Cliff
Lampe, Amanda Lenhart, Mary Madden, Pew Research Center
● “The Top Demographic Trends for Every Major Social Network” -
Thiago Guimarães, Business Insider
● “Tumblr Overtakes Instagram as Fastest-Growing Social Platform,
Snapchat is the Fastest-Growing App” - Ingrid Lunden, TechCrunch
● “28 Social Media Marketing Predictions for 2015 From the Pros” -
Cindy King, Social Media Examiner
● “Visual Storytelling Using Social Media” - Sarah Eva Monroe -
SlideShare
● “Why Your Brand will Love Snapchat in 2015” - Tom Edwards,
iMediaConnection
References