UM-Flint Social Media Strategy: Evaluation
It’s been some time since I’ve shared our progress toward finalizing UM-Flint’s social media strategy. This is no accident. Some time was spent researching measurement tools. Then some time was spent playing around with said tools. At the moment, the testing of measurement tools is on hold. This sounds cryptic and official, yes? Not really. The tool I spent a bit of time with is called Radian 6, which offers an expansive suite of listening and measurement instruments. I think there is some great potential in working with Radian 6 and it may be something we explore further down the road.
So now, back on our path, it’s time to evaluate all that we’ve put in place thus far. How can we best determine whether we’re successfully growing our communities and building relationships within them? As we’ve resolved to focus on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube initially, our analysis will begin with these channels. Our goal is to identify trends for what works (or doesn’t) over time. Comparative reports will be compiled on a quarterly basis.
- Percentage of growth per quarter in: total likes, people talking about this, and total reach
- Most and least successful content per quarter using post-level data categorized by content type
- Percentage of growth per quarter in: total followers, interactions (mentions and retweets)
- Most consumed content per quarter using click-through and share rates
YouTube
- Performance (number of views) per quarter, and percentage increase or decrease
- Engagement per quarter, including comments, likes, favorites added, and subscribers net change
Mixed in with these numbers, we will share new efforts, notable events, and success stories. And if our measurement is on-track, our analysis will allow us to truly evaluate our social media strategy. If our growth slows or interaction level decreases, we’ll need to investigate. Are we not sharing content of interest to our communities? Are we being active participants in our spaces? Should we be sharing more photos? Fewer news stories? More event updates? More or less about undergraduate research? What about international perspectives? If all goes according to plan, these answers and many more will lie within the numbers.
Alaina Wiens
New Media Communication Specialist
