Creating Social Media Channels

If your department or unit desires to create a new social media presence, first contact LSA Social Media for a consultation and to discuss your goals and plans. 

Whether you’re just getting started with social media or you’ve already established social media accounts for your department/unit, use the following questions as a guide to help you define your strategy.

Download and begin filling out the Social Media Strategy Template.

Outline the objectives of your social media and desired return on investment.

  1. What prompted your interest in social media?
  2. What are the key goals and messages of your department/unit?
  3. What are the top 2-3 priorities for social media in your department?
  4. How will you know your social media efforts are working?

Define your target demographic.

  1. What audiences do you most need to reach? (e.g., prospective students, alumni, et cetera)
  2. Will they be interested in being educated or informed?
  3. What level of transparency is appropriate for this audience?

Determine the best sources and paths to producing quality content.

  1. What is inherently social about your department/unit? or what about your department’s area of expertise might people want to talk about or share with their friends?
  2. What kind of information do you hope to disseminate via social media?
  3. What other sources of information would your audience enjoy reading?
  4. Will you be creating new content for social media? If so, what kind?
  5. Could this content be used elsewhere? (e.g., your website) Where? When?
  6. Do you have content that appears elsewhere (print, web, email, etc.) that you hope to repurpose for social media?

Identify stewardship and workflow practices.

  1. Who will be managing your social media accounts? Are they a dedicated communications professional, and/or do they have enough bandwidth to manage social media accounts in addition to other professional responsibilities?
  2. If necessary, do you intend to allocate any additional department resources to further your social media efforts?