1. Social media and public sector communications -
protecting and developing your reputation online
Simon Wakeman
3 December 2009

3. social networks

7. we learnt…
• more than just an online billboard
• invest time in interacting
and responding
• need to offer value to community
• social networks effective for issues that
people actually care about?

11. twitter

12. Medway
Council
100

13. RSPB
Medway
Council
765
100

14. SCC
478
RSPB
Medway
Council
765
100

15. SCC
1243 people
478
RSPB
Medway
Council
765
100

16. SCC
RSPB
Medway
Council

17. we’re learning…
• to provide interesting content
• to maximise shareability
• to be human
• to monitor and respond

18. social media relations

26. we learnt…
• role of social media
monitoring in issues management
• be ready to engage when appropriate
• we needed to think about how
to deal with this kind of thing...

27. social media relations

28. influencing reputation through direct
two-way social media communications

29. influencing reputation through direct
two-way social media communications

30. influencing reputation through direct
two-way social media communications

31. three steps to effective
social media relations

32. 1. Monitoring

33. the local online audit

34. effective online monitoring

35. what to monitor
• place names
• people’s names (members, staff, community)
• key issues and identified risks
• campaign-specific terms

36. www.google.com/alerts

37. search.twitter.com
www.tweetbeep.com

38. www.technorati.com
www.blogpulse.com

39. www.icerocket.com www.socialmention.com
www.backtype.com

40. bit.ly/UJJP
boardreader.com

41. but...
www.facebook.com/search

42. • News - mainstream news and editorial outlets
• Blogs
• Social - includes Facebook public data, Twitter, and
FriendFeed.
• Forums - online groups and forums
• Comments - all mentions found in blog comments
• Video - YouTube, and mentions/comments from
other known online video sites
• Images - Flickr and other popular online image sites
www.filtrbox.com

43. 2. Assessment

44. • size of community/group involved
SCALE / • rate of growth
TREND? • relative influence
WHO?
CONTEXT?
ABILITY TO
RESPOND?

45. • size of community/group involved
SCALE / • rate of growth
TREND? • relative influence
WHO?
CONTEXT?
ABILITY TO
RESPOND?

46. • size of community/group involved
SCALE / • rate of growth
TREND? • relative influence of group
WHO?
CONTEXT?
ABILITY TO
RESPOND?

47. • who’s involved?
SCALE / • relative influence (offline / online)
TREND? • position in network?
WHO?
CONTEXT?
ABILITY TO
RESPOND?

48. • who’s involved?
SCALE / • relative influence (offline / online)
TREND? • position in network?
WHO?
CONTEXT?
ABILITY TO
RESPOND?

49. • who’s involved?
SCALE / • relative influence (offline / online)
TREND? • position in network?
WHO?
CONTEXT?
ABILITY TO
RESPOND?

50. • who’s involved?
SCALE / • relative influence (offline / online)
TREND? • position in network?
WHO?
CONTEXT?
ABILITY TO
RESPOND? ...but what about customer service and
link to reputation?

51. • the bigger picture
SCALE / • fit with protocols / rules
TREND? • consistency with other channels
WHO?
CONTEXT?
ABILITY TO
RESPOND?

52. • the bigger picture
SCALE / • fit with protocols / rules
TREND? • consistency with other channels
WHO?
CONTEXT?
ABILITY TO
RESPOND?

53. • the bigger picture
SCALE / • fit with protocols / rules
TREND? • consistency with other channels
WHO?
CONTEXT?
ABILITY TO
RESPOND?

54. • how could you respond?
SCALE / • what channels do you have available?
TREND? • can you respond in time?
WHO?
CONTEXT?
ABILITY TO
RESPOND?

55. 1.Ignore
2.Monitor and review
3.Respond

56. 3. Action

57. PROTOCOLS ROLES CHANNELS
• clear, understood social media policy for staff
(at work and at home)
• good examples at http://socialmediagovernance.com/policies.php
• make sure other policies are consistent (eg ICT, HR)
• have an agreed system for handling social media relations

58. PROTOCOLS ROLES CHANNELS
• who is responsible for social media relations?
• what skills / competencies are needed for this role?
• working with customer service teams

59. PROTOCOLS ROLES CHANNELS
• in public vs in private
• respond at source?
• use existing council presences to reply?
• be ready to engage in a long and spreading debate...

60. more than just communications
• disruption of traditional hierachies/elites
• digitally-enabled community groups
• duty to involve / promote democracy
• more collaborative and participative
future for local government

61. simon@simonwakeman.com
+44 (0) 7771 701902
twitter: simonwakeman