1. Designing Your Social Media Strategy
Social media strategies are not ‘one size fits all’.We’ll explore how to utilize popular social media platforms like
Facebook,Twitter, LinkedIn and Flickr to build a successful social media strategy as unique as your school.
Stephen Johnson, Windward School
Jesse Bardo, EdSocialMedia.com
Travis Warren, WhippleHill

2. SOCIAL MEDIA APPROACH
✓ Inventory
✓ Leadership
✓ Coalition Building
✓ Policy
✓ Planning
✓ Staffing
✓ Tools
✓ ROI

3. Communication Models
Mass Media
CLAY SHIRKY WHIPPLEHILL

4. Communication Models
Social Media
CLAY SHIRKY WHIPPLEHILL

5. Can’t simply
bolt social
media on to
your web site.
WHIPPLEHILL

6. Can’t simply
bolt social
media on to
your web site.
WHIPPLEHILL

8. but first ..
WHIPPLEHILL

9. INVENTORY
ASSESSING WHERE YOU’RE AT

10. worcester academy -site:worcesteracademy.org

13. craiglist

18. also, begin benchmarking
peer schools.
know your numbers!
WHIPPLEHILL

19. LEADERSHIP
GETTING BUY IN FROM THE TOP

20. Three Ways to Get Buy-In
1. Sell the benefits.
2. Contain the risk.
3. Build coalitions.

21. The well meaning communications professional

22. You:
“We should live stream this Friday’s big basketball game,
and, hey, we can do a chat so students, parents, the public,
and alumni can talk on a screen during the game.”
Your Head of School’s response:

24. You:
“We need to lift restrictions to Facebook in our library so
that everyone on campus has access to the school’s Facebook
page.”
Your Head of School’s response:

26. You:
“Blogs will make our school more transparent. Transparency is
good. That’s what I read in the Cluetrain Manifesto.”
Your Head of School’s response:

28. Look familiar?

29. Understanding the psychology
of your Head of School

30. The New Yorker, 2/1/2010

31. transparency vs. concealment

32. transparency:

33. transparency:
2 a: free from pretense or deceit

34. transparency:
2 a: free from pretense or deceit
b: easily detected

35. transparency:
2 a: free from pretense or deceit
b: easily detected or seen through

36. transparency:
2 a: free from pretense or deceit
b: easily detected or seen through
c: readily understood

37. transparency:
2 a: free from pretense or deceit
b: easily detected or seen through
c: readily understood
d: characterized by visibility or accessibility
of information

38. transparency:
2 a: free from pretense or deceit
b: easily detected or seen through
c: readily understood
d: characterized by visibility or accessibility
of information especially concerning
business practices
from Merriam-Webster.com/dictionary

40. Some Fears: Survey Question 1

41. Some Fears: Survey Question 1
What is your Head of School’s biggest
fear regarding your school?

42. Some Fears

43. Some Fears
• Losing privacy (students, parents, teachers, etc.)

44. Some Fears
• Losing privacy (students, parents, teachers, etc.)
• Losing control of the School’s message or reputation

45. Some Fears
• Losing privacy (students, parents, teachers, etc.)
• Losing control of the School’s message or reputation
• Losing control of the School itself

46. Some Initial Solutions
• Use words such as engagement rather than transparency.
Communication is a two-way street now. Be willing to
have a conversation.
• Find the balance between transparency and
concealment - respect both.
• Educate. You work in a school. Teach others how to use
the tools.

47. Major Benefits of Social Media
for Independent Schools
1. Social media tools help you to tell your school’s
stories and help you share information with a large
number of people.
2. Social media tools help build and engage your
communities. You are judged on how you engage.
3. Social media tools help organize groups.

48. Specific Strategies - Benefits
1. Develop a Social Media Marketing Plan
• These are tools that help you accomplish goals. Tie
Plan to strategic plan goals and school’s mission.
• Present it to senior admins as part of your annual
departmental goals.

49. 2. CONTAIN THE RISK

50. Contain the risk.
¨ Create Social Media Guidelines (or Policy) for faculty/staff.
¨ Protect your Head. Be your Head’s communications bodyguard.
¨ Show measurable results.
¨ Deputize certain students and teachers, and train them.
¨ Balance negative reviews with ones solicited from your
community members.
¨ Be less an evangelist and more a translator of social media
innovations.
¨ For your admins, build a strong fence within which your school
can have social media freedom.

51. COALITION BUILDING
A LITTLE HELP FROM YOUR FRIENDS

53. Build coalitions.
¨ Partner with people who “get” it.
¨ Compromise. Take small victories and go from there.
¨ Collaborate with like-minded directors at local schools.
¨ Solicit advice through Twitter (and give back).
¨ Create a Social Media Plan, but ask Head’s/admins’ advice on
part of it.
¨ Play politics, negotiate, and leverage.
¨ Educate.
¨ Host an EdSocialMedia boot camp.

54. EXAMPLE:
FOUNDER’S DAY 2010

55. EdSocialMedia Bootcamp

56. Founder’s Day Goes Interactive

57. Founder’s Day Project
Process
¤ Hosted the boot camp
¤ Wrote a news story and posted on Windward Web site. Sent pushpages/ emails to
alums, parents inviting them to view and participate
¤ Created a live Flickr feed on the home page – invited everyone to post photos, but we
chose them
¤ Posted a Twitter widget on the home page to which certain students, teachers, coaches,
parents posted from all over the campus
¤ Were able to archive all Flickr photos (100+) in an gallery that was evidence of a great
community day; we sent it to all parents and later shared it with prospectives
¤ Head of School’s response was great – thought it really reflected the school and got
everyone involved!

58. Founder’s Day Project
1. Benefitted Everyone
¤ Shared engagement from students, parents, teachers, coaches, alumni – got everyone
involved and created community event.
2. Contained the Risk
¤ Deputized certain students to tweet and post Twitpix.
¤ Had control over posted Flickr photos.
3. Built Coalitions
¤ Teamed with visual arts teachers to post photos, newspaper to post tweets
¤ Worked with students, parents, and others

59. Resources
¨ www.windwardschool.org/communications
Stephen Johnson
Director of Communications
Windward School
Los Angeles
sjohnson@windwardschool.org
@ burma999

60. POLICY
START SMALL, KEEP IT SIMPLE

63. Social Media Guidelines for
Windward Faculty/Staff, 2009‐10
The following guidelines lay out some general boundaries
for Windward faculty and staff about using various social media
tools while the school develops a more thorough
policy over the next school year.
Their purpose is to provide information about the misuse of non
educational networking sites rather than be a guide to all educa
tional networking. The idea is to encourage
using social media tools such as wikis, Facebook, Twitter,
blogs, and forums in productive and fruitful ways and to
avoid the potential harm and liability that can result from
inappropriate or unethical use.

64. CONTENT
Use common sense
Does your post put the effectiveness
of your teaching at risk?
Do not discuss students or co-workers
Imagine students and parents visit your site

65. FRIENDS & FRIENDING
Don’t accept students as friends
Don’t initiate Facebook friendships with students
If you wish to use networking protocols as part of
the educational process please work with technology
staff

66. SECURITY
Visit your profiles security settings.
set to “only friends”
Information on social networking sites fall under
mandatory reporting guidlines.
Contact your department chair with any questions or
concerns.

67. PLANNING
SWEAT THE DETAILS, SCHEDULE CONTENT

68. Content is King:
but it is easier to rule as a royal
family

69. Creating content creates a library

70. Don’t try to be something you aren't

71. THE DO’S
Involve fans Show it Plan attack
Post 3-4 times a week

72. The Don’ts
Don’ts Spread too thin
Say it
Be repetitive
Be afraid

73. STAFFING
NEW ROLES, NEW TITLES

74. TOOLS
WEB 2.0

75. /BRIANSOLIS

76. ROI
MEASURING RESULTS

77. alumni futures
Record It & Report It
•“What’s the ROI?” Possible answers…?
– “What do you want it to be?”
• Set goals and measure progress toward them
– “What’s the ROI of our phone system?”
• If ROI is low, are you going to quit Facebook?
– “Return on attention is more important”
• Don’t increase mindshare; increase its value
•So who gets which information?
http://www.alumnifutures.com

78. alumni futures
The ROI Hierarchy: Metrics
Senior Leaders
• Strategic Outcomes Reputation
Engagement Strategy
Visibility
Directors
• Social Media Analytics Advocacy
Word of Mouth Management
Insights
Program Staff
• Engagement Data Clicks, Fans, RTs,
Views,
Members, Comments,
Execution
Followers, Check Ins
Adapted from web-strategist.com
http://www.alumnifutures.com

79. alumni futures
Reporting Results
• Template for
summarizing social media
progress
• Adapt it to match the
scale, maturity, scope of
your program
• Simple steps to follow
Source: adaptivateblog.com
http://www.alumnifutures.com

80. alumni futures
Reporting Road Map (1)
• Start with the
executive summary
• Assess & describe
audiences
• Describe efforts tool
by tool, separately
– Quantitative
– Qualitative (quotes,
comments)
Source: adaptivateblog.com
http://www.alumnifutures.com

81. alumni futures
Reporting Road Map (2)
• Highlight new tools
and trends
• Revisit your overall
communication
strategy
• Summarize the report
and draw conclusions
Source: adaptivateblog.com
http://www.alumnifutures.com

82. 3000
2250
Fans
1500
750
0
2 months 6 months 12 months 24 months

83. 40
30
20
10
0
13-17 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55+
2004 1994 1984 1974 1973 -
DEMOGRAPHIC SWEET SPOT

86. 100
90
80
PHOTO VIEWS
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0

88. comment = engagement.
50
38
25
13
0
8
08
08
08
08
09
9
09
09
9
9
00
00
00
00
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
r2
2
2
r2
n
g
ct
c
b
ril
ne
st
er
Ap
be
De
Ju
Au
Fe
Ap
gu
O
ob
Ju
m
Au
ct
ce
O
De
Source: Proctor Academy/Chuck’s Corner Commnets (April 2008 - December 2009)

89. $916,190
top 221 donors
+ $1,000
Box
1

90. $916,190
top 221 donors
Alumni
Parents
71
Current
58 Parents
71 Alumni

91. 221 Donors
ALMOST
1/2

92. 27
+ $10,000
Box
LEADERSHIP DONORS 1A
Total Giving to Proctor = 16.8 MILLION
Average Retention Rate = 10 Years!

93. ts
Who are these 27 donors?
8 Current Parents 8 Past Parents
10 Alumni/ae 1 Friend

94. All 27 have e-mail,
but how about ?
12

95. All 27 have e-mail,
but how about ?
6

96. 26 Box 1
Parents
26 of 51 Leadership
Parents
are on Twitter
Students
Current Parents
Alumni
Faculty/Staff
Peers
Unknown