Social Media and Student Affairs: Designing a Plan that Works

Social media is ubiquitous. We are all connected to at least one platform, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or Snapchat. Most of us juggle several platforms, trying to manage contacts and stay connected through picture, text and video. Many student affairs divisions are going online, using social media to connect with students.

But how do you develop a strategy that works for you and the students?

How do you effectively engage students, while developing an online presence that isn’t overwhelming or time consuming?

You must be intentional about your social media strategy, or you will waste time and fail to connect.

Here are some questions you should ask yourself in designing social media for students:

What is your purpose for being on social media?
There are many social media tools out, and they can engage students in different ways. How would you like to connect? Are you interested in providing general encouragement and motivation? Profiling your campus? Highlighting services? Profiling students? Sharing resources? Asking questions and soliciting feedback? Inviting students to events?

The ways in which you desire to engage with students will determine the tools you use. For example, Instagram can be a good way to profile students and events, while Twitter can be effective in answering questions. Facebook (to the extent that your students use it), can be a way to invite students to events. Snapchat can be used for community building. Consider what you want to do and choose a platform accordingly.

What social media do your students use?
As educators, it is important to meet students where they are at. In developing a social media strategy, it is important to start on the platforms that students are already using. Asking students to use new platforms just to connect with the university is an uphill battle. Collect some data and find out where your students are digitally, then start there.

Also, it is important to think about where your students actually want to engage with the university. Some students may prefer Facebook for general use, but prefer to keep their Twitter interactions limited to friends. Talk to your students and get a sense not only of what social media sites they use, but why they are on social media. This way you won’t waste time building your presence on a platform where students don’t want to engage with you.

How do you want students to engage with you?
Social media is collaborative. Online interactions have to go both ways. While getting ‘likes’ is important, to be effective you need more active engagement. How do you want students to engage with your social media? Do you want them to comment or take offline actions? Being clear with users about how and why they should engage with your social media goes a long way toward its effectiveness.

Do you want students to post content or comment on posts? Do you want students to come to events? Will you be sharing or reposting students’ online content? Will you give rewards to frequent student users? Think about all of this and let students know.

Developing a social media strategy takes some research and knowledge of your students and their needs. With proper planning you can ensure that you connect with students and use social media to strengthen your university community.

Author Bio: Sharla Berry is a PhD candidate at the University of Southern California in the Rossier School of Education. Her research is on the ways in which students, instructors and student affairs practitioners build community in online programs. @Sharla_Berry | [email protected]

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