The International Association of Chiefs of Police and Bureau of Justice Assistance provide guidance on increasing social media presence for law enforcement agencies. They recommend having a strategy and goals before launching accounts, promoting accounts on websites and printed materials, and regularly engaging with communities by answering questions, sharing content, and asking for feedback and investigative help. Building partnerships with other organizations can also help maximize outreach. The IACP has additional resources available online or by request to help agencies enhance their social media strategies.

1. International Association of
Chiefs of Police Bureau of Justice Assistance
U.S. Department of Justice
Increasing Your Social Media
Presence Fact Sheet
With more and more law enforcement agencies Twitter, YouTube, or some other site.
using social media, the question shifts from “Should • Add to department personnel e-mail signatures—
we use these tools?” to “How can we use them Think of how many e-mails leave your department
better?” Increasing your social media presence as a servers each day. These e-mails go out to other
law enforcement agency will enhance the success of agencies, community members, elected officials,
your efforts whether your goal is crime prevention, members of the media, and so on. Add links to your
soliciting tips to solve crimes, recruitment, or improving social media accounts to your e-mail signature and
community relations. Below are a few suggestions on people will click over to view your pages.
how to increase your agency’s social media presence. • Partner to increase promotion—Don’t be afraid to
reach out to people in your community who are
Launch active on social media and ask them to spread the
• Have a strategy—Before launching, be sure that news of your new online presence. Local bloggers
your agency has a strategy for social media use. Set and those active on other platforms may have a
goals and determine who will have responsibility substantial following and can bring your message
for content management. to diverse populations.
IACP Resources • Launch in conjunction with an event—Some
The IACP Center for Social Media agencies have had success launching their social Engage
media platforms in conjunction with an event such • Answer community questions—The public has
has resources that can help law
as National Night Out, another community activity, many questions when it comes to law enforcement
enforcement agencies enhance or with the anniversary of an unsolved crime. This and community safety. Your agency is the trusted
their social media presence. strategy allows an agency not only to publicize its authority, so be ready to answer questions and
The tools can be accessed or social media presence but also to bring renewed provide information when your community asks
requested online. Resources attention to an event or case. for it.
include the following: • Involve your local media—Use the traditional • Ask for feedback—People communicate and
media outlets in your area to help increase the share across all social media channels, and they
• act sheets
F effectiveness of the launch of your new social are ready to communicate with your agency.
• ase studies
C media strategy. Involving your local media outlets Your community members have valuable insight
could help you increase their involvement later. that they can provide to help you enhance your
• irectory
D
They may also run a story about your new efforts, services. All you have to do is ask.
• ebinars
W increasing your promotional outreach. • Diversify your content—Increase the appeal
• utorials
T of your posts by incorporating other types of
Promote media such as photos and videos. You can also
• he Social Media
T
• Place a link on your Web site—Most social media experiment with different content topics or uses of
Beat Blog platforms allow users to embed a badge or widget humor in your posts.
• hiefs’ Corner
C on their traditional Web page, which advertises and • Ask for investigative help—The public is the
links to their social media sites. Doing so not only eyes and ears of the community, and is a great
makes Web site visitors aware of your pages but resource to tap into for investigative assistance
also informs the public that those specific social and information about suspicious activity. Many
media pages are the official voice of your agency. agencies are now crediting social media platforms
• Display on print materials—Integrate your social with helping them prevent and solve crime.
media into other methods of outreach and • Connect with traditional media—Social media can
communication. You can put your Twitter name, help you create a new relationship with your local,
Facebook page URL, or other social media link on traditional media outlets. Share the links to your
print materials such as brochures, posters, or press social media platforms with them and encourage
releases. Agencies are also experimenting with them to follow or “like” your pages in order to
Quick Response (QR) codes displayed on posters receive updates and even story ideas.
International and other physical objects. Smartphone users can • Build partnerships—Follow other agencies,
Association of scan the QR codes and link to a message, video, or organizations, and businesses in and around
Chiefs of Police Web page. your community. You can then share messages,
• Incorporate into speeches—Whether it’s the chief maximizing outreach. Following your peers will
1-800-THE-IACP addressing the media or the crime prevention also help refine your strategy as you see trends
officer talking to a Neighborhood Watch group, and get ideas from other agencies using these
socialmedia@theiacp.org
talk about your new social media efforts. Let tools.
www.IACPsocialmedia.org
people know where they can find you on Facebook,
December 2011
This project was supported by Grant No. 2010-BE-BX-K037 awarded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. The Bureau of Justice Assistance is a component of the Office of Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau
of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of Justice, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, the Office for Victims of Crime, and the Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending,
Registering, and Tracking. Points of view or opinions in this document are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the United States Department of Justice.