For many marketers, the focus of social media is on their campus and their accounts. How many followers have they gained? How many people are engaging with their content? But social media and digital communities offer marketers with contextually rich business intelligence that can inform decisions related to brand and reputation, content strategy, customer service, and more. If only they’re willing to look. 

In this session, we’ll explore the social and digital communities where audiences most frequently engage in under-the-radar conversations about colleges and universities. We’ll discuss where these conversations take place, how to find them, and how, or if, you should respond to them. 

In this session, attendees will learn:

• Which online platforms and websites offer publicly available marketing insights. 
• Keywords and phrases that can be used to find insight-rich conversations. 
• Tools to automate these searches for future use. 
• A framework for determining which conversations to engage with, and which to listen in on only. 

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As marketers and content creators, it is our responsibility to provide an experience for all users whether that be platforms such as websites or social media channels. This, however, is not always the case. The world of digital accessibility is vast, unregulated, and inconsistent.

So how do we help the brand we manage become accessible to all? By ensuring that we do our best to advocate and understand all the nuances of digital accessibility. That we immerse ourselves in another user's world and ensure that our content is accessible for all. This session will provide a look at best practices for digital accessibility for marketers when creating content for social media platforms. Plus, it will provide resources for how to continue your educational journey beyond this session.

Key takeaways:

• Understand what the key elements/definitions of digital accessibility are when creating content on social media platforms.
• The best practices of how to utilize digital accessibility features.
• How to teach your team and advocate for change within your organization.

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When budget season comes around, we often see social media getting the smallest slice of the marketing pie. A single billboard may gain more funds than the entire social media budget. Nevertheless, your highly targeted social media campaigns show exactly how many people were sent to the website, how users engaged with the school, or the precise number of leads gained. And while it can be frustrating to see these successes juxtaposed to the often ambiguous or inflated metrics associated with traditional media, there are actions you can take to create internal advocates to help support and elevate your social media efforts.

This presentation will focus on two elements of social media: metrics (how you measure social media success) and translation (how you express this in terms others will understand).

• The metrics portion will show you how to identify key metrics, how to strategize your efforts towards increasing them, and how to engage in ongoing tracking and optimization

• The translation portion will review tactics on how to present these metrics to internal audiences who may not be well versed in digital marketing. The goal is to express your social media success in ways that allow others to speak clearly and effectively on your behalf

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What if you could capture that seeing-is-believing campus visit feeling and make it available to anyone, anywhere on the planet? That was the challenge presented to Bucknell’s Communications and Admissions teams — even before the COVID-19 pandemic.  

In this session, you’ll see how the Bucknell Virtual Experience started from scratch to become an interactive multimedia space that can be experienced on a desktop, mobile device or through an Oculus Quest virtual reality headset. In addition, it will walk you through the creation of a multi-channel launch strategy — including social media best practices in both organic and paid content.

Takeaways:

1. Tips for bringing your campus and University brand to life within a virtual visit experience. 
2. Tangible how-tos for incorporating virtual visit options within your existing admissions strategy. 
3. Best practices for launching a major initiative across multiple channels (organic and paid social, University website, digital advertising, media relations, in-person, etc.). 

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The common refrain of “don’t feed the trolls” among social media managers is rooted in good intentions but leads to missed opportunities and builds barriers between you and your audiences. Social media is social for a reason, and embracing the comment section – with strategy, honesty, and humor – will help you grow engagement, your audience, and most importantly, your relationship with those followers.

This panel will discuss:

• Discerning true trolls from concerned students, parents, or others
• Creating opportunities from negativity while assessing risk
• Handling vitriol, negativity, and difficult questions with empathy and resilience
• Handling the never-ending complaint – when nothing you say or do seems to satisfy the person commenting
• How to handle the mental health impacts of negativity and trolling online

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As a powerful and proven tactic for higher education institutions, it’s time for influencer marketing to take a permanent seat at the digital strategy table. We have broken down the key areas that shape the higher ed influencer marketing space, and offer actionable recommendations institutions can use to navigate this expanding market to meet their goals and evolve their strategies throughout 2021 and beyond. This presentation will help you plan your influencer marketing campaigns for well beyond 2021 with new insights into the trends shaping the future of the industry.

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This presentation will focus on ways Bob has taken elements of the Harvard Business School Office of Alumni Relations social media (like tweets and Instagram polls) and developed them into shareable content -- most notably in the form of videos. 

During his session, the audience will find ways to think differently about social media content and how--even if you're a one-person team like him--you can create engaging content around episodic social media events. 

His presentation will focus on basic tools one can use (e.g., Wakelet) to more advanced means (e.g., Adobe Premiere).

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When performance audiences began to tune in from the comfort of their own homes during the pandemic, Penn State College of Arts and Architecture pivoted to remote content delivery and marketing for their music and theatre seasons, lecture series, art exhibitions, and admissions recruitment. While this meant expanding our virtual reach, not to mention our donor pool, it also presented a challenge - competing for airtime and viewers with other virtual events and streaming platforms. 

Using social media to promote and stream events, engage our viewers, feature our Broadway alumni, and enhance our visibility has changed the way in which we intend to continue marketing when we return to in-person performances and events. Hybrid is our new model for outreach. Through our social media platforms and virtual program offerings, we will be able to increase engagement and community building by meeting audiences where they are, rather than only engaging with those who are able to come to us in-person. This is particularly important for maintaining virtual connections established with donors and alumni over the course of the pandemic through social media.

Stephanie will discuss:

• Alumni (group engagement, fundraising, and takeovers)
• Donors (virtual events hosting and crowdfunding campaigns)
• Prospective students (hashtag campaigns and student spotlights for recruitment marketing)
• Hybrid events marketing (Theatre and Music promotional marketing and livestreams/simulcasts on Facebook and Youtube as well as virtual tours of exhibitions) using "extras" and "behind-the-scenes" content. We also created a multi-night Penn State alumni performance livestream event with our Broadway alumni, using influencer marketing techniques to increase our audience.
• Subscription-based offerings (tiered content access via social groups and promotion)

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It’s a troubling but often true reality that social media content decisions can be based on assumptions. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could put a face to your target audience, get to know their particular needs, understand their pains, and win their hearts? We can do that by developing a standard that turns a customer human - so that the recipients of your social ideas are considered and cared for at every stage of design development.

In this educational session, you’ll learn: 

• How to drive your business forward using consumer and market intelligence

• How to take complicated, custom data into digestible frameworks 

• Learn how to summarize research findings 

• Challenge brand or audience preconceptions

• Why Human-Centered Design is a differentiator at the agency level

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Adobe is a brand that supports, and is supported by, creators. So when the company launched its @Adobe and @Photoshop channels on TikTok in early 2021, they did so through the voices of the creative community. Showcasing a mix of creative influencers, influential TikTok users, and edutainment content, Adobe has been able to establish strong audience growth — as well as plenty of learnings along the way. This session will focus on the lessons, both good and bad, the Adobe Social Org has learned through its first year on TikTok.

You’ll learn:

• Tips for establishing brand guidelines for TikTok
• How to test content formats and iterate with TikTok creators
• Setting channel benchmarks and expectations

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Having a solid social media strategy is outstanding, but your work doesn't stop there. You must also support that strategy and feed the "content monster" with valuable and attention-attracting digital media content and campaigns that support your brand. 

Mary Olivieri, EVP and Executive Creative Director of CBD Marketing, will share the secrets to "carving up your content turkey” – dishing up practical takeaways and improv theatre-based exercises to help you serve your target audience the content they crave. 

In this interactive session, you'll learn: 

• Tips for creating and repurposing content such as newsletters, blog posts and emails that support  social media campaigns 
• Ways to stand out online without giving consumers content fatigue 
• How to fit digital storytelling into your communications strategy 
• How to diversify your content across digital channels—and why it's crucial for success

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It’s important to remember that when you’re trying to reach customers, you’re really trying to reach people. A humanized approach to social media can enable brands to show rather than tell how their products are truly making an impact while sharing stories that resonate with their audiences.

In this interactive session, you'll learn: 

• The difference between content and storytelling 
• Ways to shift your strategy to a more human-centric approach 
• How to find stories worth telling

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Staying up on the latest Instagram changes is hard. In this session, we'll cover leveraging the newest Instagram features, including:

• How the Instagram algorithm works on:
  • Feed
  • Explore
  • Stories
  • Reels
• How to Create Engaging Reels
• Branded Partnerships - The Important Changes
• Scheduling Feed Posts and Stories using Facebook Creator Studio
• Coming Soon: The Instagram Affiliate Program
• Latest Instagram Features
• How to stay up on the latest features of Instagram easily

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In 2018, CommonSpirit Health’s social media strategy shifted from a content-first to an engagement-first strategy. A first-of-its-kind response and escalation protocol was put into place, allowing social media teams across multiple geographies and locations to follow a consistent process and rationale when responding to social media inquiries. As a result, we increased our reply rate by 220% YoY and began responding within one business day.

When the pandemic hit in March of 2020 and the volume of inbound messages on social media more than doubled, CommonSpirit was uniquely positioned to communicate with and serve its community – delivering hope, humankindness, and building trust at scale – utilizing social media as its primary communications channel. The strategic approach to social response and timeliness resulted in a 50% increase in unique fans engaged and a 28% increase in total engagements YoY. Positive sentiment comments also increased by 67% YoY.

Learning objectives of this talk include:
1. How do you approach social media consistently… in a hub and spoke model?
2. How do you define the key social metrics that ladder up to your business objectives?
3. How do you best utilize modern communication channels to exemplify your brand promise?

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In this talk, we’ll discuss how to effectively highlight university career outcomes on social media. Using tactics such as videos, graphics, and toolkits, you’ll learn how to best announce and bring attention to career outcome results at your university.

What you’ll take away:

• How to best socialize your career outcomes results within your university
• How to best prep for the career outcomes announcement
• How to announce career outcomes on social media

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As in-house marketing, communications, and social media functions become increasingly ubiquitous in higher education, the size of these creative teams continues to grow. With the rapid evolution brought on by COVID-19 and quickly shifting technical needs, these teams need to be functioning at a high level to produce their best work.

With our unique silos, limited budgets, and specialized goals, building a creative or technical team in higher education looks different than it might in a corporate setting. However, the benefits of investing time in team development are innumerable. Drawing on the wisdom of Patrick Lencioni, Seth Godin, Todd Henry, Simon Sinek, and others, this presentation helps participants define a philosophy for building and supporting their creative teams within a higher education framework.

In this session, participants will learn:

• How to build trust and connection within their team
• How to facilitate a conversation around shared values
• How to create an environment where their team can thrive
• How to best lead their team to success

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From the new book, "The Death of Content as King: How a Data Democracy has Revolutionized Marketing." Social media has experienced a once-in-a-century paradigm shift over the past few years as content tactics of yesteryear fail and data-driven strategies have revolutionized the way students interact with platforms. The ever-changing algorithms and diminishing reach of organic content on major platforms will require new framework models and a modern consumer journey that takes advantage of the available data.

Key Takeaways:
-An analysis of what has changed as mature and unicorn platforms have emphasized user-generated content while making institutional content pay-to-play.
-An introduction of a new modern consumer journey that replaces the over hundred-year-old AIDA model and embraces data as the voice of the student with actionable data-driven stages.
-Provide a new data framework model that universities can deploy to find valuable, organizable, targetable, and explainable data across their organization.

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This session walks participants through specific steps to begin growing their Twitter audience, develop a content strategy, set actionable goals, and execute in ways that are meaningful for their organization. Whether social is their full-time job or one of many responsibilities, this session can help them take thoughtful steps toward becoming successful on Twitter. Special attention is also given to developing a social presence for key executives. 

In this session, participants will learn:

• Specific steps to begin growing their Twitter audience
• How to develop and deploy a content strategy
• Set actionable goals guided by metrics
• How to partner with key executives to establish and develop their Twitter presence

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Maintaining a consistent plan for public health information is an important part of any university communication strategy. The stakes are exponentially higher during a global health pandemic. Understanding the needs and potential risks for your community, keeping abreast of ever-changing federal, state, and local guidelines and requirements, sharing testing and vaccination protocols, and providing crucial mental health and stress management resources to students and staff during a time of escalating uncertainly requires dedicated teamwork and flexibility.

This session will focus on strategies for sharing accurate and timely public health information with a diverse and far-flung community during an unprecedented health crisis.

• Providing accurate, timely, evidence-based healthcare information
• Working with your network to meet the needs of your diverse community
• Countering misinformation and skepticism
• Prioritizing mental health and stress management resources for an increasingly anxious and grieving community

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In this session, you'll learn how to effectively leverage UGC and takeovers for your admissions' Instagram handles. These tactics are a great way to involve other teams and departments on your campus and helps paint an overall picture of your school and the admissions department.

Takeaways include:

• How to plan great takeovers throughout the year
• How to collaborate with other departments on campus (takeovers + UGC)
• How to effectively source content (UGC)

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• Why addressing DEIJ is critical for the next generation of students and alumni for higher-ed
• How a global higher-ed brand found its voice on social engaging people on this topic which can have very divisive responses
• Real case studies and examples of University of Michigan's Alumni Association on how they have handled the last 18 months with this backdrop

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The journey from inquiry to enrollment can be a long one, especially for adult learners. A strategic content approach is vital to nurturing interest at all points along that continuum—from getting  the attention of prospective students and starting a conversation all the way to incenting application and registration. This presentation covers how Herzing University – a private nonprofit with 10 campuses across seven states – has boosted enrollment by engaging with students via a content ecosystem of multiple digital channels: social media, blog, email marketing and more.

Key takeaways:

• What prospective students want/expect from their online information journey
• Aligning student needs at each point in their journey with a “master plan” for your content ecosystem
• Incorporating brand voice/brand storytelling
• Setting appropriate goals and measuring success

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Social media market research is the process of gathering quantitative and/or qualitative data from social media platforms to understand social, consumer, or market trends. In this session, social media and research experts will walk you through a case study to demonstrate how a brand used social media market research to inform its go-to-market strategy and ultimately, launch its brand.

Key discussion points and criteria for developing social media market research will include:

• Determining the project objectives and outcomes, and the type of market research you want to conduct (e.g., on your brand, products, online consumer behavior, consumer insights, customer service, or competitor insights).
• The type of data – qualitative or quantitative (or both) – that will be most beneficial for your project and how to determine which methodology to use
• The variety of methods available to use to capture data, such as distributing surveys, tracking brand mentions, social listening, etc.
• Audience targeting and identifying the social media channels from which you want to mine data

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Brands, for the most part, have historically remained faceless entities on social media. But more and more, customers are becoming curious about the people behind the brand -- influencing purchase decisions and brand loyalty. In this session, Brandi Briggs, AT&T's Social Media Director, will share how and why her team started featured employees and leadership on their social channels, infusing their voices into AT&T's social content. You'll learn about AT&T's Amplify Black Voices and Valentines Day campaigns, along with their Social Media Advocates Program, as examples of how they brought employee voices to life. 

You'll learn: 

• Tips on how to highlight employees on social media, including the best platforms to use
• Understanding the difference between employees and influencers
• Knowing when and when not to use UGC
• Tracking results & measuring success
• How to kickstart an executive presence when they aren't on social media

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This session will focus on how to set up an account structure in Facebook to help achieve high ROAS while reaching new customers. As advertisers, we know there is a balance between filling the funnel and converting customers. What is the right balance between prospecting and retargeting? How do your account for testing new creative and audiences? We will talk through all of that and you will walk away with the following.

• A simple, proven structure you can replicate for every ecomm brand
• Tools you should leverage to help report on this structure
• How you can tailor creative to each audience

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Creating a multi-channel social strategy can be a daunting task. There are so many considerations - should you develop channel prioritization? How can you ensure your brand’s message surfaces consistently, regardless of platform?

After this session you’ll have answers to those questions, and will be able to:

• Define how your messaging strategy will support business goals
• Build the buyer personas that will be the foundation of your messaging strategy
• Develop channel prioritization to share your brand message

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