This presentation, which I delivered at the TerminalFOUR conference in Dublin, Ireland, on 19 November 2014, focuses on how to incorporate social media into a college or university website.

1. m
Social Media
& Your Website
Title Text
Contact info:
Coordinates
Michael Stoner
President, mStoner
michael.Stoner@mStoner.com
@mstonerblog
Linkedin.com/in/mstoner
slideshare.net/mstonervt
mStoner.com

2. m
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Student and parent use of
social media resources
2014 Seniors 2013 Seniors 2014 Parents
Source: “The E-Expectations of College-Bound High School Seniors and Their Parents,” Stephanie Geyer and Lance
Merker, High Ed Web 2014, October 2014; http://www.slideshare.net/StephaneGeyer/e-expectations-for-highedweb-
2014.

3. m
Social media usage
InteresMng)shiZs)from)2012=2013)in)social)media)use)
Mul&ple(&mes(a(day( Once(a(day( Once(a(week( Once(a(month( Every(once(in(a(while( Never(
24%)
16%)
6%)
16%)
32%)
45%)
7%(
8%(
5%(
7%(
9%(
20%(
7%(
6%(
7%(
8%(
4%(
9%(
5%(
2%(
3%(
3%(
2%(
2%(
11%(
14%(
12%(
16%(
6%(
9%(
60%(
61%(
47%(
46%(
49%(
15%(
Daily(or(
more(oaen(
Y/Y(change(
0%( 10%( 20%( 30%( 40%( 50%( 60%( 70%( 80%( 90%( 100%(
Facebook(
Instagram(
Twicer(
Google+(
Tumblr(
Pinterest(
Use)of)Social)Media)
-10%
+139%
+23%
-4%
+40%
+50%
Q4.)How)oZen)do)you)use)the)following)different)social)media)websites?)
#SocAdm14)
Source: “Digital, Social, Mobile: The 2014 Social Admissions Report: #SocAdm14,” research conducted by Uversity and
Zinch/Chegg; http://www.uversity.com/downloads/presentations/2014-Social-Admissions-Report-Webinar.pdf

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Most-used social channels
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube
Instagram
Flickr
Blogs
Pinterest
Google+
Institutional site that aggregates SNS*
Social communities from vendors*
Vimeo
Community created inhouse*
Tumblr
Vine
Geosocial service
WhatsApp
source: CASE-Huron Education-mStoner 0 25 50 75 100
Survey of Social Media in Advancement, 2014
Research from CASE/Huron Education/mStoner Survey of Social Media in Advancement 2014. Download top line
report of findings at: mstnr.me/1eilekF
*Exact wording:
An institutional website that is a an aggregator of social network sites.
Social communities provided by vendors through proprietary software. [i.e., iModules, Harris Connect, or similar];
Geosocial services (such as Foursquare or SCVNGR)

5. Top five most successful social channels
for higher ed
m
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube
Instagram
0 22.5 45 67.5 90
Q15. Which of
the following do
you consider the
most successful
in meeting your
goals? Please
select up to
three . . . .
[1615 answering]
source: CASE-Huron Education-mStoner
Survey of Social Media in
Advancement, 2014
Source: CASE-Huron Education-mStoner Survey of Social Media in Advancement, 2014; download top line report of
2014 findings at: mstnr.me/1eilekF
More respondents are finding Twitter to be their most successful tool: 58%, up from 49% last year; Instagram also went
up, from 5% to 14%.

6. m
But: what’s wrong with
this picture?

7. m
Top five most successful social
channels for higher ed
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube
Instagram
0 22.5 45 67.5 90
Q15. Which of
the following do
you consider the
most successful
in meeting your
goals? Please
select up to
three . . . .
[1615 answering]
source: CASE-Huron Education-mStoner
Survey of Social Media in
Advancement, 2014
Source: CASE-Huron Education-mStoner Survey of Social Media in Advancement, 2014; download top line report of
2014 findings at: mstnr.me/1eilekF
More respondents are finding Twitter to be their most successful tool: 58%, up from 49% last year; Instagram also went
up, from 5% to 14%.

8. “Everything is connected to
everything else.”
[mStoner’s first law of branding: mstnr.me/mFLoB]
m
In an online, mobile, social world:
“Everything is connected to everything else” is Barry Commoner’s first law of ecology and mStoner’s first law of
branding. It’s essential to keep in mind when structuring communications and marketing activities. Because of the way
the world works today, it’s easy for organizational anomalies to be observed and amplified. Consistency counts. Not
only in appearance (do your communications look like they come from the same organization?) but voice.
Furthermore, your online presence doesn’t occur in a vacuum but is also connected to everything else you do:
• Compelling brand: aspirational but grounded in institutional reality.
• Powerful stories: reinforce brand, multiple media, well-told, shareable, demonstrating value.
• Compelling creative: a strong visual vocabulary for your brand & stories
• Strong channel strategy: well-managed, connected, curated
• Your campus & your staff

9. m

10. m
“Our 2015 social predictions
emphasize the renewed importance
of branded communities . . . A
recent Forrester survey shows that
US online adults who want to stay
in touch with your brand are almost
three times as likely to visit your
site as to engage you on Facebook.”
Source: Nate Elliott, “Facebook Has Finally Killed Organic Reach. What Should Marketers Do Next?” http://
blogs.forrester.com/nate_elliott/14-11-17-facebook_has_finally_killed_organic_reach_what_should_marketers_do_next

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“Layering on interactive experiences
into the Web site, designed to
engage people with content and
share it with their friends, helps turn
brand sites into true social hubs.
When this happens, brands average
11 percent more traffic to a site and
a 300 percent increase in dwell
time.”
Source: Richard Jones, “Why User-Generated Content Is The New Marketing Currency,” http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/237119/why-user-generated-
content-is-the-new-marketing-cu.html

12. source (top): http://www.macalester.edu/admissions/
source (bottom): http://www.etown.edu/admissions/

13. source: http://www.macalester.edu/macsocial/

14. Harvard Graduate School of Education: http://www.gse.harvard.edu

15. Gettysburg Great (Campaign for Gettysburg College): http://www.gettysburg.edu/campaign/

16. Columbia University Giving Day 2014: https://givingday.columbia.edu/

18. Brown University celebrates its 250th anniversary from March 2014 to May 2015. The Imagine Brown 250+ website
showcases, honors, and illuminates the past and future of Brown.
Core Challenges:
• Build upon the institution’s already venerable reputation, while appealing to a discerning alumni population.
• Reach audiences on all devices.
• Present a singular, interactive experience that coordinates with print materials.
• mStoner’s Approach:
• A tablet-first approach.
• A highly interactive and multimedia-driven design.
• Social is baked into the site’s DNA, which leveraged the momentum Brown had on social properties.
• An integrated approach with print and other platforms.
• Editorial focus is around five storylines that encourage participation and engagement.
• A robust Timeline chronicles both the depth and breadth of Brown’s history, and offers the expected chronological
exploration while allowing visitors to scroll for more depth.

19. m
#brown250
College
•Human side of SEO – what people see
•Robot side of SEO – what makes a page desirable
to engines
•Baseline recommendations for major and minor
pages
•Adding some content for the undecided or
undeclared student

21. m
Requirements for incorporating
social on your website …
1. Established, official social media channels
2. Effective management of at least one channel
3. Connections between these channels & your
website
4. Ability to curate content on your site
5. Facilitate content sharing from your site

22. m
Michael’s rule #1 for social media
“Don’t be everywhere
until you can be
awesome everywhere
you are.”
Source: Nate Elliott, “Facebook Has Finally Killed Organic Reach. What Should Marketers Do Next?” http://
blogs.forrester.com/nate_elliott/14-11-17-facebook_has_finally_killed_organic_reach_what_should_marketers_do_next

23. How T4 can help
http://samplesite.terminalfour.com/social/

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How T4 can help: posting
• Synchronizes publishing of content different social
channels (e.g. news)
• Can push different messages to different social
channels (one to Twitter, a different one to LinkedIn,
when a piece of news is published)
• Can also be included in email campaigns
http://samplesite.terminalfour.com/social/

25. m
How T4 can help: metrics
• Measure your social reach via a centralised
TERMINALFOUR dashboard
• More features in this area in 2015.

26. mstnr.me/TkXwLu mstnr.me/18GBqct
Social Works: How #HigherEd Uses #SocialMedia to Raise Money, Build Awareness, Recruit Students and Get Results
URL for sample chapter (FSU's Great Give campaign): http://mstnr.me/Xjzr6M
website: http://mstnr.me/TkXwLu