Recommendations social media_pd_dunselman

Social Media in Public Diplomacy
Recommendations for the Dutch embassy in London
Astrid Dunselman
Intern at Public Diplomacy, Press and Culture Department
Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
10 May - 27 August 2010

Social Media in Public Diplomacy - Recommendations for the Dutch embassy in London
2
TABLE
OF
CONTENT

TABLE OF CONTENT 2

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3

INTRODUCTION 4

METHOD 5

THE AIMS OF PD FOR THE EMBASSY 6

WHAT IS PUBLIC DIPLOMACY? 6

WHAT IS IN IT FOR ME? 8

CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS IN PD AT THE EMBASSY IN LONDON 8

KEY POINTS 9

WHAT ARE SOCIAL MEDIA? 10

HOW CAN SOCIAL MEDIA BE USED? 10

STYLE AND CODE OF CONDUCT 11

WHO IS TALKING? 11

HOOKS AND LOOKS 11

SOCIAL MEDIA IN DIPLOMACY 12

SOCIAL MEDIA IN BUSINESSES AND MEDIA 13

RECOMMENDATIONS 14

HOW TO START? 15

SHORT-TERM 15

MEDIUM-LONG-TERM 16

LONG-TERM 16

WHICH SOCIAL MEDIA ARE SUITABLE FOR WHICH DEPARTMENT? 17

AGRICULTURE DEPARTMENT 17

CONSULAR DEPARTMENT 17

DEFENCE DEPARTMENT 17

ECONOMIC DEPARTMENT 18

NFIA 18

POLITICAL DEPARTMENT 18

PRESS, PUBLIC DIPLOMACY AND CULTURE DEPARTMENT 19

SWOT ANALYSIS OF SOCIAL MEDIA 20

OFTEN HEARD… 22

APPENDIX A – PD DEVELOPMENTS BETWEEN MFA AND MISSIONS 24

APPENDIX B – OVERVIEW OF SOCIAL MEDIA 26

APPENDIX C – TABLES PD AND SOCIAL MEDIA 35

SOURCES 36

3
Executive
summary

This report aims to set out a first set of recommendations for the use of social
media for the Dutch embassy in London in its public diplomacy (PD), i.e. relations
with civil society. PD policy can be aimed at different parties and stakeholders in
society, with different means and language. For PD to work, three elements are
key: listen to what is being said by the different stakeholders, develop and sustain
a network and of course communicate your message. Furthermore there are three
levels on which PD can be conducted, namely the advocacy, profile raising and
engagement level.
Rather than only broadcasting information, social media invite discussion and
interaction. It is precisely this element that makes social media a useful tool for
Public Diplomacy as it enhances engagement with the public. However this can
make the use of social media a challenge as well.
The six mostly used social media in the UK have been selected. For each of these
social media is mapped out to what extent it can be used for listening,
communicating and networking, and to what extent it can be used on every PD
level. Also it is assessed which social media are suitable for every department.
PD needs to be coordinated from one steering group. However, many themes
are cross-departmental, so social media needs to be conducted by several teams.
This will also guard continuity. Every department should have a sense of ownership
and responsibility for representing the embassy’s work online. Furthermore,
training can help to make clear to the staff how social media can support them in
their work.
The online realm is changing every day. The PD and social media project
should be thoroughly monitored and reassessed throughout its development. As
start up, some practical short-, mid-to-long-term and long-term recommendations
have been taken up in this report.

4
Introduction

In the current era of globalisation and the widespread use of information and
communication technology, the nature of international relations has changed.
Through the Internet people are able to communicate and interact with each other
faster, easier and across national borders. Both public and private organisations
have now an easy way to get out their message and influence public opinion and
policy makers. Herein lies the necessity for government officials to extend their
diplomatic relations to a wider public, including journalists, NGOs, academics and
pundits. Addressing the stakeholders in specific areas of interest for a state is Public
Diplomacy (PD).
New technologies have increased opportunities for communications and media.
News spreads around the world faster. Social media, like Facebook, Twitter and
blogs have become a big part of society and everyday life. The US embassy used
Twitter to communicate opening hours. More and more politicians use it as does
every large business. Social media have proven to be a useful tool in crisis
management. KLM used it to update travellers-information during the ‘ash cloud
crisis’. BP has been twittering about the oil spill.
Practise has also shown that the usage of social media is not without risk. A
mock Twitter account is turning BP’s reputation to shreds. KLM’s Facebook page has
turned into a wailing wall about poor customer service. Politicians, diplomats and
journalists alike have made mistakes, causing some controversy and need for
damage control. Lastly, whatever is put on the Internet can be duplicated and
pulled out of context and messages become harder to control.
As more and more companies, political organisations and journalists have
become active online, it can be useful to extend the embassy’s online profile to
social media as well. However, the negative consequences of online exposure will
need to be taken into consideration as well. Therefore this report aims to
investigate the extent to which social media can be used in public diplomacy by the
Dutch embassy in London and to provide the embassy with a set of
recommendations on how social media can be used.

5
Method
In answering this question, desk research has been done, for PD and social media
literature and blogs. The websites and online profiles of institutions and
organisations have been analysed on how they use social media. Furthermore,
some of these have been interviewed to find out more about their experiences.
Several experts have been asked their opinion of social media for (governmental)
institutions. To find out on a very practical level how social media can be used by
the embassy itself, every department has been questioned about their experiences
and their views on this subject.
It has been difficult to get a very practical approach to this research, as the
embassy’s PD policy has been under development during this report. The results
and recommendations are for this reason quite generally put, though wherever
possible a concrete recommendation is given.
Central to the embassy’s PD policy is a model developed by Nick Cull. In the
model PD-policy can be in three levels: advocacy, profile raising and engagement.
On all these levels, three characteristics are most important for PD, being listening,
networking and communicating. The six social media that are mostly used in the UK
have been assessed for both the PD-levels and the social media characteristics. This
has resulted in three tables that show the extent to which social media can be used
for a specific PD level and characteristic.
The embassy in Washington and the consulate in San Francisco have been
doing research on the same subject. The results of the interviews and research
have been shared between these representing institutions and on a weekly basis
meetings have been held. The aim is to combine the reports of each representation
and come to a general conclusion for social media in PD for the ministry of Foreign
affairs in The Hague.

6
The
aims
of
PD
for
the
embassy

What is Public Diplomacy?
A lot of different definitions can be found on PD. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in
The Hague is currently outlining the PD long-term strategy and topics.1
This
research uses therefore the definition and explanatory model that is presented in
the strategic plan (MJSP) of the Dutch embassy in London.
PD is:
Engagement with influential British individuals, groups or organisations with
the intention of listening, sharing good ideas, raising awareness of Dutch
strengths, winning support for Dutch international priorities and ultimately
building sustainable and mutually beneficial relationships.2
Key elements of PD are reciprocity and dialogue. PD is moving away from the
broadcasting model of ‘informing the public about what the Netherlands is doing’.
Rather, PD should be focused on certain niches in which the Netherlands excels and
aim for an engagement with the British public.
For PD to work, three elements are key: listen to what is being said by the
different stakeholders, develop and sustain a network and of course communicate
your message with the right words, images and tone.
PD policy can be aimed at different parties and stakeholders in society, with
different means and language. This is visualised in the pyramid below. Nick Cull
roughly recognises three levels of PD, all having a particular timeframe. However,
this pyramid is a model, a simplification of reality and it should be noted that these
levels are not completely strict differences.
1
For
an
overview
of
the
discussion,
see
Appendix
A
(in
Dutch)

2
For
more
information
on
PD
for
the
Dutch
embassy
in
London,
see
the
MJSP-‐programme
and
the
report

Lessons from California by Weijer Vermeer.

3
Social
Media
in
the
UK
2010,
Simply
Zesty
27
July
2010

http://www.youtube.com/user/SimplyZesty#p/u/3/YZHSZY8S9mA

2
For
more
information
on
PD
for
the
Dutch
embassy
in
London,
see
the
MJSP-‐programme
and
the
report

Lessons from California by Weijer Vermeer.

7
Public Diplomacy Pyramid. Prof Nick Cull, USC Summer Institute of Public
Diplomacy 2009
The advocacy level is at the top, pinpointing key players in the civil society playing
field and directly addressing them on a certain topic. Then there is the level for
raising a profile in the middle, with a broader target of creating and sustaining a
network within civil society. The engagement level on which we try to build a long-
term relationship with the British public and communicate what the Netherlands
stands for forms the base of the pyramid. On every level, work is laid out for the
embassy, in different departments. As for the use of social media, every form has a
specific target group and can support PD on a specific level as well.
Getting attention for the Netherlands is not an easy task. Simon Anholt has
pointed out that people have persistent feelings and ideas about a country. From
his results he has concluded that it is very hard to change prejudice or even keep
the attention of a foreign nation on your undoubtedly diverse and flourishing
country. Furthermore, as there are almost 200 nations in the same business,
competition is hard. It is therefore important to set realistic goals and stick with a
well-considered and genuine strategy in order to raise a country’s profile.

8
This report focuses on using social media in PD. As been mentioned, PD should
focus on specific niches. The question has been raised whether social media can be
used to sustain a permanent rather general online profile, to communicate activities
and information about the Netherlands. Furthermore, having an active outlet for
broadcasting can be a good thing in crises to explain your point of view without
being dependent on an external source. However, what should be considered is
whether there is enough content to provide engagement and discussion with the
public, if social media are to be used. The British public will not be interested to
follow ‘the Netherlands’ online. A general profile will therefore probably be followed
mostly by heritage groups, rather than Britons.
What is in it for me?
A central question that came up throughout this research is ‘What’s in it for me?’.
In other words, how can PD and social media be useful in my work at the embassy?
It would be too much to describe all the works of the embassy in full at this point.
Basically, the main function is to represent the Dutch government abroad to its
counterparts the UK and to report back on the sentiments that are alive within
government and society. Furthermore it is important for the embassy to maintain
contacts and represent the Dutch nation within British society.
As said before, the civil society has a stronger voice and therefore more
influence on governments, which makes it all the more worthwhile to maintain good
relations with these groups and to lock in a correct perspective on what the
Netherlands stands for. To succeed in this mission, the embassy needs first to listen
to what is relevant, communicate the Dutch policy views on these issues and do
this by engaging its extensive networks. Listening, communicating and using and
expand networks is exactly what social media can do.
Current developments in PD at the embassy in London
At the moment the embassy is working on new PD policy. The categorisation on PD
is still rather broad, being political, socio-economic and cultural. As said, most PD
policy would revolve around certain typical subjects and the embassy upholds that
view. Another approach that is mentioned throughout the discussion at the

9
embassy is that everything is a PD-opportunity and that for one thing, the embassy
needs to heighten the Netherlands’ visibility in the UK.
Key points
Ø The public voice is growing louder and getting more influential. The
development of online communications has created new platforms where
people can meet and interact.
Ø PD is conducted at three levels: advocacy, profile raising and an engagement
level.
Ø For PD to be useful a clear long-term strategy for the embassy needs to be
developed by the MFA and main missions, pinpointing specific topics for PD.
Ø PD keys are listening, networking and communicating, all of which are
elements that social media have to offer.
Ø Social media should be used to engage public in PD niches. A general profile
might only invite engagement of heritage groups.

10
What
are
social
media?

Today 85 per cent of the people in the UK is online, having an email account,
Facebook, Twitter, blogging etc.3
Basically, social media are media that are
developed and used as means to communicate and interact, rather than just
broadcast. Traditional media are more or less a one-way street. Social media have
evolved to meet the needs of a public becoming more knowledgeable and more
opinionated. Innumerable networks have evolved between friends and
acquaintances and around topics and institutions in civil society. As PD is about
engagement through listening, networking and communication, social media are
bound to be an indispensible tool.
How can social media be used?
If people are engaged and activated, a message has more chance of sticking. Public
Diplomacy policy should no longer only be about informing a public about what a
country does (broadcasting model) but also entering into a dialogue with the public.
This is the biggest transition a governmental institution will have to make.
On every subject one can think of, there are blogs, fan pages on Facebook
etc. Stakeholders on a topic are already present and active on these platforms,
therefore are easy to reach and interact with. It is the quickest way to engage a
broader audience and could be highly effective in that sense. However, making
effective use of these networks is not an easy task. You have to know where your
audience is, go where the people are already active online. This is relatively easy to
find out if you can work with specific websites. Get yourself trained in it or get
someone to do it for you. (Alexa, Google analytics) Listen carefully to what is being
said and how. Then share the right information. If you do not manage it well, the
wanted debate does not occur and you will have spent energy on a dead medium.
Furthermore, it does create extra exposure that is not always completely
manageable. Later on in this report these matters will be further elaborated upon.
3
Social
Media
in
the
UK
2010,
Simply
Zesty
27
July
2010

http://www.youtube.com/user/SimplyZesty#p/u/3/YZHSZY8S9mA

11
Style and code of conduct
Every form of social media requires a particular style. It depends on the audience
and the issue. As with any exposure, there is the risk involved of someone making
a mistake or causing an uncomfortable situation. People need to be aware of this
and be briefed on what they can and cannot do or say online. However, there is no
need to be too anxious about it. People make mistakes; owning up to it only
stresses the fact that we are human. Train your people. Inform them on what they
can and cannot say, but then trust the people who are working for the embassy
that they have enough sense of their position to know what they can and cannot
share, when they are properly briefed.
Who is talking?
Social media give an institution the opportunity to step out of anonymity or
aloofness. There are mixed opinions however on how to set up the public profile.
Should it be an embassy website, as is now the case with many Facebook pages
and the embassy’s Twitter account. Or should it be personal, as KLM for instance
uses and the FCO has chosen to do for its blogging diplomats? Former Minister of
Development Cooperation Bert Koenders has had a Facebook page, but was
updated by his staff, referring to him in third person. That does not work either.
It would be best to make it known who says what if it is an invitation, opinion
or a statement. Whenever it is more of a general post on an event or something of
that kind, it would not have to be specified who has said it.
Hooks and looks
A website or social media profile should be accessible, easy to understand, easy to
find by simple queries. The key to every online profile is info visualisation, i.e. use
supporting images and tools to make it look professional and interesting, without it
being dull. It is a necessary investment to design such a website and get access to
high quality images.
Look into search engine optimisation, making sure that your website is
ranked high in search engines. Make sure URLs are in words, not numbers. Google
has a webmasters website where all basic information can be found. It might be
worthwhile to have someone look into this so that he/she gets the basics, next to
hiring someone to design your site.

12
Social media in diplomacy
Some Dutch MFA institutions have been active online so far, mostly on Facebook
and Twitter and not very successfully with respect to interaction or addressing an
audience abroad. Cultural departments have been much more active online. Culture
can speak for itself and is therefore an easy means to cross borders. Furthermore
culture in itself is almost always a positive message.
Good examples are The Erasmus Huis in Jakarta, Institut néerlandais in
Paris, Orange Alert of the New York Consulate-General and NL Ruhr in Dusseldorf.
All these institutions are active on Facebook, updating regularly and having quite a
lot of followers; Dutch, but definitely foreign too. The Erasmus Huis for example is
responsible for only fifteen per cent of the content of the Facebook page. The
reason that the institute is successful in interacting with the Indonesian public is a
forty-year history with an assertive approach to committing visitors of the centre.
The cultural Facebook sites often do not have any reference to the Dutch
missions that support these pages. This is not necessary from PD perspective. The
aim is not to promote the Dutch embassy, but to diffusely add to a positive image
of the Netherlands. However, when searching for the sites online, they proved to be
hard to find. It is necessary to think about interlinking websites and using correct
key words and names.
Examples of foreign offices that are extensively using social media are the State
Department in the US, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) in the UK, the
Norwegian websites and Switzerland using Swissnex. These institutions have a
centrally coordinated digital diplomacy strategy. The FCO for instance has 22
people working for the digital diplomacy department in London, next to their PD
department and the staff at the missions themselves. On the other hand, Swissnex
has only one person monitoring and updating the network full time.
What is striking in all four examples is the very professional and functional layout of
their websites.
Experts that have been interviewed on social media have mentioned the
importance of this as well. Pay attention to and invest in info visualisation. Sites
should be as good looking as magazines, with lots of graphic content and a very

13
accessible and logical content. The website of the Dutch embassy in London should
undergo a thorough review with special attention to graphic and clear
representation.
Social media in businesses and media
More and more businesses are active online using social media. However a lot of
businesses have just started it without setting out a strategy. KLM was one of the
businesses that stood out in April for using social media effectively to update
stranded travellers during the ash cloud. Furthermore, they are a well-known brand
to the Dutch public with a high interest of expanding their visibility abroad.
Therefore KLM’s experience is in particular interesting to take into account in this
report.
There had not yet been a clear strategy before the ash cloud and the activity on
Facebook and Twitter was low. Because of the ash cloud, suddenly the usage and
followers soared for these pages. The online profiles make it very easy to target
their customers for marketing strategies and mouth-to-mouth marketing. The down
side however turned up a few months later. The customer service was overloaded
and refunds had been refused. KLM had to suffer a lot of critique on their very own
Facebook page. What had been an effective means of informing their clients and
answering direct questions, had become a wailing wall. This is a risk they could not
possibly have foreseen.

14
Recommendations

Ø Social media and an online profile can be an extension of the embassy’s work
in the virtual realm. In the long run, the embassy should aim for an online
presence on various platforms. Facebook (and Twitter) for culture. LinkedIn
for more business contacts. Twitter to keep update on opinions by
policymakers, and media. Blogs are eventually the best tools for an in depth
discussion on specific topics. However, getting people to come to a new blog
does take time and patience and should be thoroughly prepared before doing
so.
Ø The website should be a place where information can be verified. The
platforms should be interlinked. Social media can get more traffic to the
website, that usually would be visited only by people already looking for
information on the Netherlands.
Ø Though PD is being developed mainly from the Press, Public Diplomacy and
Culture department, it should be noted that PD should eventually become an
interdepartmental exercise. Social media should be conducted via the same
interdepartmental model, where there is a one team that keeps an eye on
the development and maintenance of the embassy’s social media platforms.
Ø Provide training for the staff on social media functions and usage. There is
still a lot of scepticism regarding both PD and the use of social media. If
members of the staff know social media, it is mostly from personal, private
use. Especially the use of media like Twitter and blogging is not necessarily
clear, as is the usefulness of Facebook etc.
Ø Take your time! To effectively use social media some rather big changes
need to be made, regarding technical support and the development of
specific policies. This makes social media a long-term project as well.
However, on the short-term some media may already be used quite easily.
Furthermore building an online identity for the embassy and make both staff
and public comfortable interacting via social media takes time and is an effort
that should therefore be started with immediately.

15
How to start?
As a first trial there are several possibilities:
Ø Do a trial with a small project under the radar, to get people used to the idea
of using social media. Choose a cultural event and make a point of using as
Facebook and Twitter as much as possible, actively informing your network
about it, asking to spread the word. This is not as much PD as PR, but can be
useful to make steps towards approach
Ø Do a larger project but coordinate it extremely well. Make one person
responsible for finding out where the network is, who to ask to write and to
create and moderate in- and output. The off-shore wind conference might
provide a good opportunity, as it is politically not too sensitive
Ø Whole different approach: crisis management. Get your side of the story out
there. It’s the strength of new media that you are now your own publisher.
You are not necessarily dependent on what papers are saying. Write your
own article, put it on the blog. Any self-respecting journalist will have to link
it to his or her story. And if they don’t put it on the other medium’s blog
yourself. You will give yourself a voice and a face. People will respect that.
Social media humanises the mob.
Ø Start putting articles about the Netherlands in the UK and perhaps some
other interesting articles on the subjects of PD online. For instance under the
caption: “What I have read in the paper” on the website, and twittering the
link to the site. Any wrong information that was published can be rectified. It
will not have many followers per se, but it will get the staff used to the idea
of a blog or social media.
Short-term
First steps to be made:
Ø Inform and train some colleagues in every department about social media
(and PD) involving both opportunities and threats.
Ø Think of ways to challenge colleagues to use social media.
Ø Start listening to your network online.
Ø Let the departments map out their networks and see to what extent they are
online. If they are on Twitter, start following them.

16
Ø Make lists on Twitter for every department. Perhaps eventually it would be
better to make separate accounts even.
Ø Make a timeline for both short- and long-term and plan specific moments of
evaluation.
Ø Inform the Hague on your progress and needs for further development
Ø Keep in touch with the US
Ø Develop pilot for offshore wind and for human rights
Medium-long-term
Ø Map out the network for the PD projects that already is available at the
embassy for several stakeholders.
Ø Develop LinkedIn groups for the PD-events with a clear networking element
to it.
Ø Develop the website to make it functional and visually attractive.
Ø Start writing informative articles and content on the PD key issues.
Ø Get good visual content
Ø Make sure that visual content about the embassy in general is freely
available when it is searched for in search engines.
Ø Start pilots for offshore wind and for human rights
Ø Work out a code of conduct for staff using social media
Long-term
Ø Arrange technical support
Ø Have a blog on each PD key issue
Ø Keep listening to your network and reply
Ø MFA wide development of social media.
Ø Realise long-term policy visions, either coming from The Hague or from the
embassy.

17
Which
social
media
are
suitable
for
which
department?

Basically every department could and should be aware of the potential use of social
media. However, not every department can use every kind of social media, some
are more suitable then others. Following is an overview of the possibilities for each
department.
Unfortunately, due to the summer holidays, it has not to be possible to speak
to the Office of Science and Technology (TWA) department, which is why estimation
has been made in the table in Appendix C.
Agriculture department
The agriculture department answers questions with companies that have questions
regarding the Dutch market and directives. Furthermore it supports the ministry in
The Hague by reporting UK policy and sentiments. They organise seminars that are
not open to public to address the Dutch policy views in preparation for Brussels and
other multilateral relations. On these occasions they are looking for feedback from
the attendants, mostly businesses and NGOs. On a lot of topics online communities
are already active and being followed by the department.
Useful social media tools are blogs and Twitter. For the latter, training is
requested, as is copy or directions from The Hague that is signed off to use.
Consular department
The consular department was very weary about the use of social media. Their
business is mostly dealing with personal requests. That is hardly something to put
online. The only effect will be to give people another outlet to express grievances
about either waiting lists or worse, being denied a visa and posting accusations.
Having to deal with these people on another platform is time consuming and not
helpful for PD or their work. Social media therefore would not necessarily be
convenient. However, Slideshare might be taken under consideration, as it can
provide explanatory visual material.
Defence department
The defence department should look into Twitter and blogs to listen and find out
who their target groups are. This department has a lot of events that invites

18
publicity, like fleet shows etc. Furthermore, military activity might need extra
attention and communications. In cooperation with the political department and
PPC the department should consider their agenda and policy communications.
Economic department
The economic department provides information on the possibilities of trade within
the UK for Dutch businesses. Their target group is therefore mainly Dutch. They
recently have set up a new website and are reviewing their newsletter. With these
tools they feel they can address their clients sufficiently. However, with a
newsletter you only reach those people that are already in your network. A main
concern is the amount of extra time that will be spent on using social media,
without having much result for it. Potentially interesting content could be the short
economic messages from the EVD, the news items for the newsletter.
LinkedIn might be a good tool for them to use, as is Twitter for news feeds and
listening.
NFIA
The NFIA has a newsfeed on its website. However, people that visit the website will
be looking for specific information. The newsfeed will not evoke that much interest.
Twitter can be a useful tool to spread the newsfeed. Furthermore it is can be used
for listening. Slideshare and YouTube have a lot of potential to use to communicate
activities and information. Blogging can be done on project basis as a start-up for
events.
Business is still mainly a matter of personal contacts, according to the NFIA
managers. Therefore it might be most efficient to just use personal profiles on
LinkedIn to spread information on events, as it is very clear in each profile who is
the employer. It is advisable to create groups within LinkedIn for specific topics.
Currently the NFIA target groups would not necessarily be using social media much,
apart from LinkedIn. Give it three years though, and other social media can be
used, for listening as well. It is advisable to start implementing it already.
Political department
A large part of the political department works on traditional diplomacy, directed
governmental counterparts, who will not necessarily share information online.

19
However, civil society is already active on social media. It might therefore be useful
for networking, and of course listening. By creating LinkedIn groups on a topic,
people interested in that topic can get in touch more easily. LinkedIn, blogs and
Twitter are very useful to listen.
The political department works mainly on the advocacy level in diplomacy
and directly on very specific policy goals. In traditional diplomacy the network is
mainly in the counterparts in government. However, these relations are mostly well
known and based on trust. On the other hand, civil society’s voice is growing and
the stakeholders in policy can create support and leverage for policies. Situations
do occur where diplomats try to lobby NGOs, rather than the other way around.
Social media can be used for finding out about these stakeholders. Where they are,
what they think and how to keep them committed.
LinkedIn is useful for networking, to find out who knows who. Also by creating
LinkedIn groups on a topic, people interested in that topic can get in touch more
easily. LinkedIn, blogs and Twitter are very useful to listen.
Press, Public Diplomacy and Culture department
Facebook is a very useful tool for cultural events. A lot of cultural institutions are
already there and the industry uses it extensively. People will not be looking for the
embassy to read about culture though. Therefore it is advisable to come up with a
different name and look rather than the embassy’s. Twitter is useful to send out
links to useful articles and keep track of news. As social media is a PD scheme, the
department should be keeping track of all social media being used. All this is a lot
of work. It is advisable to make one person responsible for the development and
management of social media, providing him/her with the necessary tools.

20
SWOT
analysis
of
social
media

Strengths:
Ø The embassy already has extensive networks. All that needs to be done is to
find these online.
Ø There is a lot of information that can be shared, but that information needs
to be put in a different format.
Ø There is a momentum for change now
Weaknesses:
Ø People are sceptical. A new creative approach is necessary for people to get
involved.
Ø The technical support system is rather poor. Step to take: Invest time and
money in setting it up and keeping it going. For instance, IPhones for staff
and/or setting up a web room.
Ø You create exposure that can potentially be harmful; there is another flank to
cover. Create a code of conduct to let people know how to go about it.
Opportunities
Ø Direct, immediate access to influential groups.
Ø Amplification of exposure on PD key subjects.
Ø Possibility of bridging the perceived aloofness of a government.
Ø The right people can get in touch more easily. LinkedIn is for instance a
network that has a very clear purpose of addressing someone you have
never met, just because you share a contact. Perfectly acceptable.
Ø You are what you preach: accessible, open-minded, freedom of speech.
Ø If you set it up correctly and invest in it, it is probably relatively cheap as you
can reach your whole network quite easily.
Ø It can become possible to create an outlet that you control yourself, rather
than being dependent on what is written in the press.
Ø It becomes easier to listen
Ø It becomes easier to get in the picture

21
Ø It becomes easier to sustain a professional network
Ø It becomes easier to get an idea of what your public feels and how to address
them
Threats
Ø Nobody follows you or likes you. Solution: don't rush into it. Do it, but do it
properly. Therefore: target your audience first!
Ø Your staff will make mistakes, saying things that were better left unsaid.
However, best way to deal with that is probably by letting it blow over, as it
almost always will. Making a fuss over it will only increase attention. (Might
be an agenda as well) If something goes wrong, admit it and move on.
Ø You cannot control what is being said, therefore, people might be abusive
regarding the Netherlands and the embassy. Step to take: Stay calm and
respond! People will respect that.
Ø Nobody will follow you.
Ø Step to take: review the strategy and target-audience
Ø Posts are boring. Solution: only let people posts that want and can write
don't let people that don't want to write, write anything.
Ø Holidays of staff influences continuity make sure enough people are available
to take over the online output.
Ø Half an effort is made and/or the efforts are unsuccessful, but still time and
money is wasted on it. Review your policy, keep up to date, and stay critical.

22
Often
heard…

Social media is not for diplomats. Their work is too subtle and secretive.
Of course there is some truth in this critique. High-level discussion on international
security is something you would rather not tweet about. Furthermore, relations
between high profile stakeholders are delicate. As it takes some time and effort to
build up a good and trusting relationship, unwise exposure can do a lot of harm.
However, not all diplomacy is at this level. You might say there is an inverted
relationship between the delicacy of some matters and the social media that can be
used. Traditional intergovernmental diplomacy on high-profile subjects will not lend
itself for social media. However, on key PD subjects, on which the government is
working extensively, PD can support traditional diplomacy. For these PD subjects,
Social media could be useful.
Solution: keep using your head. Some information is for sharing, other is not. But
bear in mind as well: on certain projects, lobbying, general image building and
most of all listening, social media can be very useful.
Yet another supposedly helpful tool that actually costs more time than it saves.
If that would be the case, then it would be wise not to follow through on using it. Or
to put it more accurately, when that is the case, it would be better to stop using it.
However, if used correctly, social media seem to serve an end. Therefore using it,
should be a reallocation of resources and time, not extra use of resources and time.
It is necessary to make sure to make those resources and time available.
Twitter?! I am so very much NOT interested in whatever some random person is
doing during any given day.
As are most of us. But: if someone is abusing Twitter in this way there is a very
useful button called “unfollow”. Immediately the culprit’s inappropriate tweets will
stop filing into your account. In fact, they disappear completely! Rest assured, most
people have understood the proper use of Twitter. Namely informing followers
about something interesting they have read or organised or have an opinion about
and providing the link where more information can be found.

23
Twitter?! How can it be possible to have any valuable input to any discussion in 140
characters? I am not interested in someone’s unfinished thoughts.
See the answer above.
Well, I don’t care what they say, there’s nothing to a good old real life meet and
greet and my stack of business cards.
Probably true. Any good relationship is maintained through real contact and
interest. Social media can never replace the real life contact. However, as your
stack of business cards will be growing, it might be harder to keep in touch with the
whole lot. Social media can be a good means to keep each other informed at least
on a moderate level.

24
Appendix
A
–
PD
developments
between
MFA
and
missions

6 August 2010
Aanmerkingen van PD uit het postennetwerk, by Lauren Harris, APA Londen.
Een korte samenvatting van de belangrijkste punten voor HMA Londen en
voornamelijk het nieuwe PD-overleg:
Samenwerking van PPC-afdelingen en beleidsafdelingen
Er is een algemene consensus tussen Den Haag en ambassades dat PPC-afdelingen
als communicatie-afdelingen moeten fungeren, om de door beleidsafdelingen
bepaalde kernboodschappen uit te stralen. Het is belangrijk dat
beleidsmedewerkers inhoudelijke input geven aan PD-projecten: zij hebben de
technische expertise in hun beleidsgebied en zijn goed in staat om de verschillende
beïnvloeders te identificeren. De toegevoegde waarde van PD-medewerkers is hun
expertise in communicatie en PD-middelen en technieken. De risico, als
beleidsafdelingen terugschrikken van PD-activiteiten ("What's In It For Me?") is dat
de informatie over NL beleid binnen een kleine groep van betrokkenen blijft steken.
PD-medewerkers kunnen deze kernboodschappen uitstralen naar een grotere
publiek dat ook zijn eigen (zij het indirecte) invloed op beleid uitoefenen. PD- en
beleidsmederwerkers moeten in ieder geval hand in hand werken.
Welke thema's? Welke projecten?
Er heerst door de postnetwerk (en ook in Den Haag) onzekerheid over de PD-
thema's waarop ambassades zich in de volgende jaren moeten concentren. Tot nu
toe waren deze vag of te talrijk om richting te geven. DVL is deze zomer bezig een
"paraplu" van brede thema's te bepalen. Ambassades hebben wel focus nodig
vanuit het centrum maar willen ook dat hun zo veel flexibiliteit mogelijk worden
overgelaten, omdat zij de "markt" in hun gastland het best kennen. Vooral is het
belangrijk onderzoek, monitoring, voorbereiding en evaluatie van doelgroepen en
activiteiten te doen. Welke thema's zijn voor het lokale publiek
relevant/interessant, en is er eigenlijk vraag voor? Wat doet de concurrentie?

25
Sociale media
HMA Washington loopt wat betreft sociale media voor ten opzichte van de andere
ambassades. Dit komt mede door het belang van sociale media in de Amerikaanse
samenleving. Floris Hovell (HPPC Washington) wilde "benadrukken, dat met name
de sociale media voor PD "natuurlijk cruciaal" zijn". Washington en Londen zijn
overigens allebei bezig met het schrijven van een digitale PD-strategie waarin alle
risico's en gelegenheden van deze nieuwe middelen zullen worden onderzocht.

26
Appendix
B
–
Overview
of
social
media

Following are the most important media that are currently used, though this list
could be extended. Of all media mentioned the functions will be shortly explained,
being followed by the opportunities to listen, network and communicate, concluding
with the possible threats.
Twitter
Twitter is a short message medium, where you can put together a message in 140
characters, which will be posted on the Twitter website. If you have an account,
you can read any person’s message online and if you start to follow them, you will
be updated on his or her ‘tweets’ on your personal account page. www.twitter.com
Opportunities to listen
And you do not have to actively twitter at all. You can also just follow people that
might be of interest to you and stay updated on what keeps them busy. Unlike its
reputation in most minds, Twitter is not a network of people sending random
information, but a collection of links to news and opinions. One of the most
interesting features of Twitter is that you can follow people in your network, but
also wholly outside of it, but that still are very interesting to know what their
opinion is on relevant topics.
To network
With Twitter and the appending websites of the main website, it is possible to map
out who are active on a topic, who their followers are and who they are following. It
is possible to make lists on a specific topic that people can follow in particular.
Through those lists, you can narrow down and target your audience and
opinionators better.
To communicate
The strength of Twitter is that you can quickly share something that interests you
or your organisation, a thought that you want people to consider, or an item you
want them to read. These thoughts and items do not necessarily have to be yours.

27
You can ‘retweet’; forward a tweet from someone else to your network. You can put
links in your tweet, to guide people to a larger article or website. This way you can
enhance your online visibility. Furthermore, through the above-mentioned lists, you
can specify your message.
Threats
A possible weakness lies in two things: first, it is the limited space you have to put
your message out. This should be considered a challenge, as you want it to be
attractive and informative at the same time. The second point is the need for
interaction.
Jon Worth, a blogger on EU politics and partner of a web agency for politics and
diplomatic institutions, stresses this on his blog, where he is explaining how
politicians (should) use Twitter.4
There is one group that uses Twitter to tell all
about what they are doing, whether that is completely beside any point of
professional interest or worse: boring. However, there is also a vast group of
politicians telling about what they are doing and what they have been reading,
inciting a discussion and replying to whatever response they get. It is this type of
interaction that you want. According to Worth, it is a kind of interaction you will get
if you listen. This is the second weakness, as listening has never been a particular
strength of people, let alone politicians.
Twitter for PD
The characteristics of Twitter can be used to network and communicate for specific
events or projects. Furthermore it is a useful tool to keep interested parties
updated on activities of the Netherlands and/or the embassy. It can therefore be
used in the bottom and medium level of the PD pyramid.
LinkedIn
LinkedIn is a social networking site for professional purposes. People can develop a
profile where they present themselves and their professional capabilities. By
4
Jon
Worth,
‘Politicians
that
don’t
get
Twitter’,
13
June
2010

http://www.jonworth.eu/politicians-‐that-‐dont-‐get-‐twitter-‐macshane-‐byrne-‐swoboda/

28
becoming friends with the people you know and meet professionally you can look
into other people’s networks. Specific businesses have formed online groups of
which you can become member. LinkedIn has evolved into a network for
recruitment, sharing information and consultations. Because of the groups it is a
very easy and useful means of targeting an audience on specific subjects.
Furthermore, it is completely acceptable to address someone you have never met
for any business purpose.
LinkedIn has not really been used to mediate discussions, therefore people’s
opinions will not likely to be found. What can be derived from a profile is
information on their professional career and interests.
Network
Through the site, people are linked to each other, making networking and targeting
groups easier to do.
Communicate
Most communications through the network are either directly to one another, or as
an open message available to all viewers. It is a good means to inform a specific
network on particular professional events.
Threats
It takes time to build a network, therefore an active approach is needed.
Furthermore the network needs to be sustained.
LinkedIn for PD
As it is completely acceptable to address a person directly on a business matter, it
is a good tool to get in touch with people and extend the network, to use it to
communicate specific events. Furthermore, it can give you an insight in who knows
who in your network, which you could use to get introduced or use it in offline

29
networking or addressing a person directly. It is a useful tool for the advocacy and
networking approach to PD.
Facebook
Facebook is a network totalling 500 million people and institutions that share
pictures, news, thoughts and friendship. Again it is criticised for being superficial,
no person has that many friends. How does it work? You make a profile that you
can connect to the profiles of so called friends. Your main page is a newsfeed. Any
message from anyone in your network pops up on your main page, on which you
can answer immediately. This means that when person A is connected to person B,
and B to person C, person A will be able to read what person C says to person B,
without knowing C at all. This means news will spread very very quickly.
Institutions usually do not have a ‘friends’ Facebook account but a so-called
‘fan page’. The functionality however is basically the same. Facebook is therefore a
very useful tool to spread news and events. The tone and information of Facebook
should be quirky and fun.
A lot of people update their Facebook profile regularly, sharing what they have read
or done. Organisations will have new events popping up there as well. The Dutch
ambassador for International Cultural Affairs, Margriet Leemhuis mentioned that
she regularly uses Facebook to get an idea of what is going on in her network and
who is working on what. For her it has become a good source of information.
To network
If the content of the page is interesting, there will be a natural extension of the
network. More people will be interested in following and the threshold to join or
become fan of a group is very low.
To communicate
Any message posted on Facebook could spread very quickly. As already said, the
content needs to be attractive and fun. It is not a good medium for serious

30
projects. The Dutch ministry of development cooperation has a Fan page on
Facebook. It has seemed to attract people that are already involved in Dutch
development cooperation. Furthermore it is a bit awkward to ‘like’ a post on a
drought in Sudan.
Threats
If a Facebook page is set up, it should be well thought through who is going to
update it. Again, the fan page of development cooperation as an example. It is a
general page on DC. However, most updates are on aid in Haiti, as the coordinator
of that project is most active online. It might communicate that the Netherlands is
only active in Haiti regarding development cooperation, which is far from true.
Most fans on Facebook pages by embassies are heritage groups, which are not
the target group of PD. Furthermore; the pages are not really popular, having few
fans. The content of an embassy and visual image of the Rijkslogo are less than
appealing. This is not good for an image.
Facebook for PD
Cultural institutions that have Facebook are more successful than the more general
embassy pages. The subject of a Facebook page on culture is more targeted to a
particular audience, being interested in culture, not nations. It is mostly
The Dutch Erasmus Huis in Jakarta is particularly successful. Only 15 per cent of
content is being produced by the Dutch embassy. The rest is produced by mostly
Indonesian fans. According to the moderator the success can be explained by their
assertive approach of reaching the public that visits the Erasmus Huis, asking them
to leave their email addresses. Furthermore, they have a history of 40 years of
being an active institution in the society, having had time build up a reputation and
extending that online.
The Dutch embassy already hosts the NL-Dutch Cultural Pop-up Space in
London, which has quite a successful fan page on Facebook. The site statistics show
that with every update, the site attracts more hits and fans. A fan has pointed out
to be interested in more Dutch cultural news and events and that it was not
particularly clear that it is connected to the Dutch embassy.

31
The page is now exclusively for the Pop-up Space, which has potential of becoming
quite a strong brand, especially within the cultural scene. It would not be wise to
dilute that by adding other Dutch cultural events. It could be possible to develop a
Facebook page on general Dutch cultural events, however than you would scatter
your audience. It might be taken under consideration to make a tab on the fan
page of the Space that collects all the Dutch culture content. It will be necessary to
keep it updated, next to the website, which could be easily done via an RSS feed.
However, it must be kept in mind that the visual content is very important.
YouTube
YouTube is an online network where videos can be published. It is possible, but not
necessary to create a specific account. By choosing to do so, you basically have
your own broadcasting channel. It is possible to put comment on posts, if you set it
up accordingly. There is no particular style connected to this medium. The Dutch
embassy has an account, as have other national representations. However, these
institutions are not in the business of producing movies and movies that have been
made by representations themselves are rather amateurish.
Though there is the possibility to have discussion on YouTube, it would be the most
logical place to look for the embassy’s interests.
To network
Not actively.
To communicate
It can support a message or information regarding an event or policy or general
information on the Netherlands. To spread the video, it should be embedded in the
website and maybe other media.
Threats
It takes time and expertise to produce really high-level visual content; you do

32
not want to associate your name with amateur work. However, there are instances
where movies can provide extra information.
YouTube for PD
YouTube should not be a main strategy to communicate PD, but can be used for
supporting a message. As it will not be a site that will be regularly updated, it would
be advisable not to provide links directed to the account on the website or other
social media, but to embed the content of the account in the website and other
relevant social media whenever it is useful to share the info. YouTube will be a tool
for the bottom and middle level of PD.
Slideshare
Slideshare is a functional network containing slideshows, which is easy for
communicating (serious) information in short, simple format and acquire
information in short, simple format. It is widely used by businesses and can be
easily spread via other social media networks.
It is not really a means to listen, but very much to learn about other business
partners online and to get a quick grasp of information you are working on at that
particular moment.
To network
Not much, though it will lead you to businesses and institutions that are clearly
involved in topics that have your interest.
To communicate
Definitely. With a clear-cut, good slideshow, information can be easily spread.
Threats
Question is: How to make a good slideshow:
http://www.slideshare.net/HubSpot/science-ofpresentationsppt

33
Slideshare in PD
Slideshare would be a means to send a message and to get information. It could be
part of the networking and perhaps engaging level of PD.
Blogs
Blogs are media that invite discussion and engagement. It is a very open and useful
tool to interact. In that sense it would be very appealing to use in PD. The FCO in
particular has started blogging for their missions abroad. About 45 diplomats are
active online, which has incited some uproar these past months, as some opinions
were rather controversial. The question is as well to what extent it adds to benefit
their work as little interaction is taking place online. Most people looking for FCO
and interested in reading about it would be British, which is not a PD target group
for the FCO.
That does not mean the whole idea of blogging should be pushed aside just
yet. It can be possible to use blogging for PD, not only by posting on a blog, but
also by hosting it, inviting people to discuss certain PD topics that are suitable for
discussion. As an open and open-minded country of free speech, providing this
service could be a natural next step and would leave your network with a positive
notion of the Netherlands.
There is a blog available on practically every subject you can think of. Some of
them are open to heated discussions and comments. It is therefore a very useful
means to listen what is happening online on topics of your interest.
To network
It gives your network an extra opportunity to engage and interact with you and
each other. It can therefore enhance your profile and status offline as well. In order
to make your online relations work with and for you, offline relationships are
important as well. Therefore it is important to meet bloggers, as you would meet
journalists too.

34
To communicate
It could be a very useful tool to put the Dutch perspective online, should you wish
to. However, given the role of an embassy and its functioning at the moment, it
might be preferred to let other people speak for you and only moderate the
discussion if necessary. Hosting an event or in this case an online blog,
communicates a message already. The tone being used depends on the subject of
the blog of course and who is writing the entry.
Threats
Writing for a blog is rather time consuming, as it demands longer entries, longer
reads and more moderating. It is therefore necessary to make time available to
update the blog regularly. If a blog is successful and people reply, they might of
course write rather negatively about the Netherlands or the subject. The only
solution to this is to provide those replies with a considerate answer. Deleting a
reply is possible, but it will never disappear from the web completely. Moreover it is
can be seen as a sign of weakness. In an open society, criticism should be taken to
heart. If criticism turns into abuse, measures can and should be taken of course,
but that would ostracize the abuser, not the abused.

35
Appendix
C
–
Tables
PD
and
Social
Media

PD trait/
Social medium Listen Network Communicate
Twitter ●●●● ●●● ●●
LinkedIn ● ●●●● ●
Facebook ●●●● ●●● ●●●●
Youtube ● ● ●●
Slideshare ●● ● ●●●
Blogs ●●●● ●● ●●●●
PD level /
Social medium Advocacy Profile-raising Engagement
Twitter ● ●●● ●●
LinkedIn ● ●●● ●●
Facebook ● ●●● ●●
Youtube ● ●
Slideshare ● ●● ●●
Blogs ● ●●● ●●●●
Dept /
Social
medium Agriculture Consular Defence Economic NFIA Political PPC TWA
Twitter ●●● ● ●● ●●● ●●● ●●● ●●● ●●
LinkedIn ●● ● ●●●● ●●●● ●● ●● ●●
Facebook ●●●●
Youtube ●● ● ● ●● ●●
Slideshare ●● ●●● ●●● ●●● ● ●●
Blogs ●●● ● ● ● ●● ●●● ●●

36
Sources

Facebook sites
Erasmus Huis, Jakarta
FCO missions
Institut néerlandais, Paris
KLM
NL – Dutch Cultural Pop Up Space London
NL – Ruhr, Dusseldorf
Nordisk film
Orange Alert, New York
And many others
Webpages
Foreign and Cultural Office of the United Kingdom
Norway.org.uk
Swissnex, Switzerland
State Department, United States
Social media
Mashable, blog and twitter
Diplodocus, blog
Slideshare
Interviews
Adriana Lukas – Blogging specialist and communications consultant
Jon Worth – Tech Politics partner
Karen Høgh - Nordiskfilm
Margriet Leemhuis – Ambassador for International Cultural Policy
Marketing Department KLM
Matt Williams - UK Representation to the EU Brussels
Ross Ferguson - Head of Networks, Digital Diplomacy Group, Communications
Directorate, FCO
Sanne Kanis – Sr. Industry Analyst Google
Vicky Taylor, Channel 4 - coordinator online media
Internship supervisor
Weijer Losecaat Vermeer – Press and Public Diplomacy Attaché
Peer consultation
Carolijn van Noort – Intern at the Dutch Consulate in San Francisco
Bert Bentsink – Intern at the Dutch Embassy in Washington
To consider
- Search Engine Optimisation needs to be looked into. See webmaster.google.com
- The whole digital diplomacy website of the FCO. See digitaldiplomacy.fco.gov.uk

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