It’s all about the experience Social & Digtial Media Workshop: International Conference An account of Grace Paraino, (Loreto Normanhurst) and Mia Garlick’s (Facebook) social media workshop at the 2018 International Conference. Schools using social media must invest in marketing strategies, focus on engagement and know when and how to reach their audiences. And they need to understand and mitigate risks, and realise the digital landscape is constantly changing. These messages from the Effective Use of Social & Digital Media Workshop at the Educate Plus 2018 conference in Auckland, were underpinned by three key points: . . Know what social media channels are best for your school . . Know how to use them . . Know what tools will help you get the best result Grace Paraino, Dean of Development & Alumni at Loreto Normanhurst school in Sydney and Mia Garlick, the Director of Policy Australia & New Zealand/APAC Regional Co-ordinator for Facebook, said engaging with students, parents and supporters through social media is essential. However, how exactly such engagement is carried out, has to keep evolving. “More than ever, we must be fully invested in our social media marketing strategies and focus on engagement,” Grace said. “It’snolongerabouttheproductbutabout the community and its experiences.” Grace said that with an array of social platforms available and most school marketing or development teams having busy schedules, it can be easy to feel overwhelmed. “That’s why setting objectives is so critical to the first part of any social media strategy,” she said. “Try to choose the channels that have the most importance based on your organisation’s goals. Equally, avoid over- complicating a strategy with too many targets and objectives. Simplicity can take you a long way.” Key strategies include: . . Set your objectives . . Know your audience and your competitors . . Build and create engaging content . . Moderate and mitigate risks . . Evaluate . . Continue to evolve Grace said Loreto Normanhurst defined its strategy, assembled the right team, evaluated its existing communication platforms and processes, planned the content, chose the channels and set up the social framework. “Know what motivates your audience to engage, create content that fits your organisation’s identity and tailor it to the platform,” she said. “Social media does not replace any of the school’s other forms of communication. It complements them and generates a buzz about certain activities” For Loreto Normanhurst social media activities have included: . . Posting a video of the school’s open day . . Promoting the school’s annual music festival to build anticipation . . Engaging in Refugee Week . . Creating a school video to support a former student competing at the Paralympics. “Social media provides a platform in which we can communicate real news in real time,” she said. “It allows organisations to share their story authentically. As Rachel Botsman, a global expert on the power of collaboration said, ‘the currency of the digital economy is trust’.” With the digital world evolving, Mia Garlick listed five big shifts in social media communication for educators to be aware of: 1. Social media is now a mass- communication platform 2. Mobile devices are changing how we communicate 3. Communications are becoming more visual and more immersive 4. Communications are becoming more personalised 5. Live and disappearing content is the coming trend (continued over page..) 6 3