A blog about government-to-citizen digital communication and engagement, Government 2.0, GovDelivery, and other e-government issues
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Digital communicators transform service delivery. We are change agents.

March 5th, 2013 | Posted by GovDelivery in E-Government | Email Communication | Events | Integration | Social Media | UK Government | Uncategorized | Web/Tech - (2 Comments)

By Kathy Kyle, Digital Communications Consultant, GovDelivery

Among the many topics discussed at this year’s Communications Camp (@commscamp | #commscamp13), the one that resonated most with me was how to best demonstrate the value of digital communications. If we can’t measure our impact as communicators, how can we influence and transform our organisations?

As a former Communications and Marketing Director in both the public and private sector, I found the most traction when I aligned communications performance metrics with customer service outcomes. In my central government agency roles, I ensured our communications approach focused on internal and external customers’ interests. Regardless of whether I was working on an internal communications programme to engage employees or a multi-faceted, externally facing digital campaign to generate supportgreat leader for a new regulation, I measured our success by aligning our communications efforts to our mission and by focusing on shifting my audiences’ activities and behaviours: web impressions, media coverage, social media activity, survey responses, focus group outcomes and anecdotal feedback.

We were able to demonstrate the value of digital communications by aligning our strategy and performance metrics with the people we served – both internally and externally. If you are struggling to develop a comprehensive evaluation programme, or just want to demonstrate your value as a communicator, consider the following activities:

  • Build support internally with leadership and cross-functionally across the organisation.
  • Drive your audience to online channels for accurate measurement of activities – measure whether you experience fewer calls and in-person visits due to your digital strategy.
  • Create content once and repurpose it (the COPE model: Create Once, Publish Everywhere)
  • Use the most effective, inexpensive and targeted communication channels that suit your audience. But don’t just use a social media tool because it is “free” – ensure your audience uses the channel. For example, 3.2 billion people use email, over a billion use Facebook and over 500 million use Twitter (some analysts indicate 140m active users).

Should you care about how many Twitter followers your organisation has? Or “likes” on Facebook? Yes and no. How do you know those followers are really fans? social media2Or even in your target population? It matters more if you reach your intended audience and change their behaviour about government services. According to a study conducted by LGiU, “a Facebook ‘fan’ or Twitter follower doesn’t necessarily capture the connection and lead to a direct, sustainable, two-way relationship with a resident.” I am not suggesting throwing the baby out with the bathwater – instead, focus on your mission (some form of government service) and the people you serve (your customers) and create a bespoke plan to reach them.

There isn’t an exact science to measuring communications success – but there are ways in which we can demonstrate our value. We must shift our role from press release writers to service delivery communicators, and then delivering results that matter to our customers. We are change agents.

Kathy Kyle, Digital Communications Consultant at GovDelivery
kathy.kyle@govdelivery @bonominiyogini

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We Interrupt This Broadcast – 4 Lessons from Tampa Water Boil Notice

March 1st, 2013 | Posted by GovDelivery in Community Management/Engagement | E-Government | Local Government | Mobile | Social Media - (0 Comments)

By Steve Ressler, Mr. GovLoop

This Friday and Saturday, there was a 48-hour boil notice for water in my area (City of Tampa).  Pretty simple- you were not allowed to drink tap water without boiling it first- otherwise there might be health issues.  It affected 600,000 individuals in the area plus the trickle-down affects of restaurants, coffee shops, laundromats.
And as a father of a newborn, it’s one of those items that makes you glad you heard about it as it affects everything- water the breast-feeding mother is drinking, water we are sterilizing his bottles with, and the water we are washing his clothes in.

Which got me thinking – what if we didn’t hear about the notice?  And how do we make sure we touch and notify all citizens in times of emergencies?  Here’s my 4 lessons:

cell phones1) We Interrupt This Broadcast – Everyone knows the common refrain “we interrupt this broadcast” which usually occurs if there is a major emergency (or plan).  This began with the concept that interrupting TV was the best way to reach the masses – now the answer is super simple.  ”We Interrupt this Text Message” – in times of emergencies.  I think it’d be great to send a mass text message to all cell phones GPS located in an area.  Technology is already there (& looks like Weather Service is already planning to do it).

2) Audience Matters – On the local news, the TV announcer mentioned City of Tampa had 12,000 signed up for emergency alerts out of 600,000 individuals.  That’s about 2%.  Not enough – that’s why it is so important to increase sign-ups during non-emergency times so you can reach more than 2% of folks in times of emergencies.

3) Relationships / PR Still Matter – Personally I heard about the water issue via AOL’s Patch local service.  My wife heard about it via a community listserve, and the information was also relayed by the university where she teaches to all her students.  And it was front-page news from the major daily papers to free weekly.  In times of emergencies, these channels still matter and you need to have these relationships (press, big institutions, employers, services and shelters, etc).

ScreenShot20130225at8.43.13AM4) Social Media matters – I’d give City of Tampa a B- job on social media.  My wife kept on wanting to know if the ban had been lifted or if there had been any “new” news.  I periodically checked Twitter but it seemed the City was only updating once every few hours.  22 Tweets over 3 days – it’s not a terrible number, but in time of emergency I would have hoped for a lot more (even if it is repeating the same information).

Have you been in an emergency lately?  How did your city react?

 

See the original post on GovLoop.

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How to Get Citizens to Dig Each Other Out After a Snow Storm

February 8th, 2013 | Posted by Joseph Porcelli for GovDelivery in Community Management/Engagement | Current Affairs | Government 2.0 | Social Media - (0 Comments)

On December 26, 2010, a #snowpocalypse dumped a ton of snow in the tri-state area of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. As a result of the storm, something very cool happened in Newark. Mayor Booker’s (@CoryBooker) constituents began tweeting requests for help with shoveling at their homes. He responded by taking action, and surprised many when he began digging people out. What was even cooler was the fact that others started showing up at the requested addresses to help him. Reading this story gave me an idea.

I wondered if I could coordinate a crew of my own neighbors to go out and shovel others in need. I also wanted to solve the bottleneck Mayor Booker created by having to physically be at every location that needed to be shoveled out. Consequently, in 2010, I launched the first pilot of what is now called #SnowCrew in Boston. It was successful in getting both shoveling requests and volunteers, but the process was directly dependent on me handling the requests and directing crews to locations. I was proud but not satisfied.

I wanted to see if I could create a system that did not require the intense facilitation required to plot shoveling requests and coordinate volunteer teams. It turned out that this could be accomplished using SeeClickFix.com, which was implemented in 2011. It worked and required much less coordination. I still needed to work on getting the word out and provide support to those who could not plot their own needs, but it took me about 80% less time.

Fast forward to present day. Beginning this morning, Boston is expecting a “historic blizzard” with up to 3 feet of snow.  Yesterday I re-activated #SnowCrew and already elderly, disabled, and sick neighbors have begun posting their shoveling assistance requests.

Here’s how it works:

Neighbors who need shoveling assistance can go to the website NeighborsForNeighbors.org (a social network for Bostonians that I founded) and click on the page entitled SnowCrew. Neighbors can add assistance requests, notifying nearby users on SeeClickFix that a neighbor needs help. I also tweet out new requests using the hashtag #snowcrew. It works, and it’s awesome!

snowcrew

While we’ve been able to prove this works on the neighborhood level, this storm (called #NEMO) will provide an opportunity to see what can happen at the city level. Wish me luck.

I hope my post sparks your interest and expands what you think is possible using technology that is readily available to any organization or citizen.

What problems do you envision that could be solved utilizing this kind of technology to empower citizens in partnership with government?

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Global leaders tweet towards a more open world?

January 23rd, 2013 | Posted by Mary Yang for GovDelivery in Compelling Content | E-Government | Federal Government | Government 2.0 | Social Media - (0 Comments)

By John Simpson, Business Consultant, GovDelivery Federal

Just after the new year, the Washington Post advertised a recent study showing that an increasing amount of world leaders are taking to Twitter to increase their reach to the public. While this new report from the Digital Policy Council does show a significant upward trend in the number of leaders that are leveraging Twitter, a 75% increase from 2011, the more revealing graph is the one below that highlights which country’s heads of state have the largest amount of followers and supposedly the larger trend towards open government.

Map: Heads of State on Twitter

The Washington Post continues that “the numbers sound like a big win both for Twitter and for open government, which have gone hand-in-hand since even before the Arab Spring uprisings popularized social media as a form of civic participation in 2010.”

participation medalWhile it is undeniable that Twitter holds enormous outreach potential to a global population that is only increasing its use of social media tools, the assumption that “more leaders tweeting equals a more open society” is a misguided notion. Simply because a member of a leader’s staff maintains a regular presence on Twitter does not mean that anything being communicated is new or the government is becoming increasingly transparent. Having a large amount of followers does not automatically mean that a government is lending itself more to the idea of an active dialogue with its citizens. Without proactive engagement and real participation in public discussions, social media simply becomes an avenue for leaders to spam their followers. It is also not much of an accomplishment to tout a large base of followers over other global leaders when your country already has a large, social media savvy citizenry.military connection mobile

Many organizations that leverage social media, both within and outside of the government, use these tools as simply a device for re-purposing the same, old information. Having a bare bones social media policy does not mean an organization can boast about being more open to the public. Tools like Twitter and Facebook were not conceived as a one-to-many tool, but as a means to connect people across the world and discuss issues relevant to them. Whether it’s talking about your cousin’s ugly baby photos or the organization of a protest against a tyrant, Twitter is about proactive engagement and conversations. A steady and sizable increase in global leaders communicating to their population through social media is a positive trend, but progress cannot stop there. A country’s leader having a large following online doesn’t mean that the country itself is moving towards a policy of open government. It’s what a leader does with his or her social media megaphone that matters.

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Top 10 Most Viewed Blog Posts on Reach the Public

January 9th, 2013 | Posted by Mary Yang for GovDelivery in Analytics/Data | Community Management/Engagement | Compelling Content | E-Government | Email Communication | Federal Government | Government 2.0 | Government Success Stories | GovLoop | Integration | Local Government | Social Media | State Government | UK Government - (0 Comments)

top 10 RTP blog postsI know 2013 started just over a week ago, but it already feels like it’s been weeks since I celebrated the holidays and New Year’s with my family and friends. I think part of this is jumping back into the work day after some time off, but part of it is probably due to the fact that 2012 “year-end” reviews started weeks ago. (Google posted their Zeitgeist 2012 video a month ago! If you haven’t watched it, take a look and note how many cool events were driven by government organizations like yours.)

So I may be a little late to the game in adding my 2012 “top viewed blog entries” list, but I console myself that it’s only been a week or so. And with the belief that this list contains good reading that’s timeless. For those who may have missed these along the way, here are the top ten most-viewed blog entries on Reach the Public in 2012 and why I think they’re worth revisiting:


number 1

In this post, Lauren Modeen, Engagement Strategist extraordinaire, answers a question she received in a Reddit chat: how can you use rewards to motivate your online community?

She highlights four different ways that rewards can spur conversation and keep a community engaged, from simply featuring a member’s activity (whether that’s a discussion, question, or profile) to sending thank you notes or swag.

Why do I think this post is worth revisiting now? As we moved through 2012, it was impossible to ignore the impact of social media in government. Not just because it was a “new” way of amplifying the reach of government communications but also because of the emphasis on social. At the end of the day, people want to be part of a community; they want to interact with others who are interested in things they’re interested in. And government organizations began to understand that creating, developing and managing communities could be one way to truly drive mission value in a way that had never been done before.

Using Rewards to Motivate Your Online Community

number 2

This post was written quickly as I sat in a hotel room near GovDelivery UK’s office, up late with jet lag; so please allow me a moment to be a bit proud that it’s in this top ten list.

I logged onto my email to catch up on news in the communications world, and I saw the article on ReadWriteWeb detailing Mark Cuban’s opinion on Facebook. It was a fascinating read to me, mainly because of the very provocative but highly understandable situation Cuban faced with his basketball team (the Dallas Mavericks.) His organization had worked hard to gain Facebook fans, and they’d worked hard to engage that audience over a long period of time. So to come face-to-face with the knowledge that those connections aren’t actually available when you want them — or worse, that you have to pay Facebook to reach them — was jarring. For a government agency, that can mean a matter of life or death when you consider a situation like Hurricane Sandy.

Why is this post worth revisiting? It’s a good reminder that direct connections matter, especially in urgent situations. But it’s also good to remember that an integrated communications approach is still the key to ensuring that your government organization’s message is distributed as broadly as possible.

Abandoning Facebook

number 3

You’ll notice as you go through the rest of this list how much of these posts cover social media in government. Do you think it’s odd that the second most-viewed post was about abandoning Facebook but other posts in the top ten are about how to leverage or use social media? I think this is indicative of our society’s love/hate relationship with social media.

In this post, we summarize one of the most popular webinars I’ve ever hosted in my professional career (and I’ve hosted a lot of webinars). Our main speaker, Kristy Fifelski, also known as “GovGirl,” detailed her top 8 ways for government to engage citizens with social media – and boy, did we learn how hot a topic that was.

With nearly 1000 registrants, we had to expand our webinar contract (which had been limited to 250 “seats” to 1000 just in case everyone showed up.) And we had to expand our teleconference capability to ensure that everyone who attended could hear us. The experience gave myself and my IT team a mini heart attack – but it was all for a good cause, because this webinar was really amazing.

With concrete examples, in-the-field knowledge and expertise, and a fun presentation, Kristy/GovGirl gave our audience of government communicators key tips and tricks that could be implemented immediately to start using social media in more engaging ways. This is one post definitely worth revisiting.

8 Ways for Government to Engage Citizens with Social Media

number 4

Pinterest, another social networking site, launched in beta form in 2010 but didn’t start picking up more traction until mid-2011. By early 2012, it had become, as our post notes, “the hottest thing in social media.” By the end of 2012, the hotness had worn off a bit; but Pinterest remains a solid social networking site, with the most year-over-year growth for social desktop, web and app usage, according to Nielsen’s 2012 Social Media Report.

So take a look at this post on how government organizations can leverage Pinterest. As a site that stresses the social aspect of images, Pinterest can be a powerful storytelling social platform that extends beyond the capabilities of a social network like Twitter. This post reminds you of some ways to leverage this storytelling foundation to generate more interest and provide more value for your stakeholders.

Why Should Government be Interested in Pinterest?

number 5

That’s right, folks. The Internet and technology is no longer the sole purview of the young. In this post, we take on the idea that you can’t reach older demographics with digital means. That’s bollocks, as the British would say.

“Studies show that senior citizens are fast adopting email as one of their primary methods of digital interaction and communication. According to the Pew Internet and American Life Project, 87% of senior citizens use email and search engines, while the Nielsen Company found that checking email was the primary online activity for 88.6% of seniors.”

If that’s not a prime reason to review your communications strategy and ensure that you’re using your digital communications to reach a broad spectrum of stakeholders, take a look at this post to find out which age group uses digital technology to do what (i.e. to get email, to use a search engine, to look for health information, etc.) The statistics will surprise you!

Tech-Savvy Senior Citizens on the Rise

number 6

The title says it all. Here’s a guide to help you with the best practices we’ve found in utilizing digital communications to reach your stakeholders and the public.

The post talks about why the guide is important and some of the strategies used by well-known public sector organizations. In fact, the guide’s been accessed more than 8,500 times since it was released last April.

The guide itself is a pretty deep dive into what works for digital communications, culled from over a decade of work with government organizations worldwide. If you don’t have the time to sit down to read it all, why not download it and try to tackle one tip or trick a week?

Digital Communication Best Practices Guide Now Available

number 7

Our friend and professional colleague, Steve Ressler, Founder of GovLoop, allowed us to share his thoughts on internal communications.

In the world of Gov 2.0 and Web 2.0, he tackles the next version of internal communications, drawing on current technologies used to communicate with the public to help facilitate internal communications. For instance, Human Resources could use text messages/SMS to remind employees of form deadlines.

As one of the top ten most popular posts of 2012, I think this post speaks to the need not only to reach the public to drive mission value but to reach our own internal audiences to help ensure that everyone is on the same page and working towards the same big goals.

Internal Communications 2.0

number 8

I have to be honest: this was one of my favorite posts from 2012. Why? Because it brought something virtual and often “abstract” or conceptual into something physical that I understood: a shining example of how great communications can be.

In this post, our resident community management expert, Lauren, addresses the question, “How do I design an online community? What’s it supposed to look like?” And her answer is, in my opinion, pretty awesome.

If your government organization has an online community or is even thinking about starting one, take a look at this post. It’s a critical piece to consider when developing a community. Oftentimes, when we think about communities, we consider finding people who are going to be the community managers and hype people; how to keep an online community going; or how to generate discussion – all of which is important. But a clean, easy, and structured online community helps with all of that, and Lauren gives you an easy-to-read road map here.

How to Design an Online Community

number 9

Just a few days ago, Joseph Marks posted a short note about content on government websites, noting that most “dot-govs fail on content, not technology.”

That makes this post increasingly relevant. As a communications person myself, the power of content is becoming more and more apparent. It’s what drives connections between an organization and its audience.

In this post, our Digital Marketing Manager/Guru, Mike Bernard, tackles the idea of content marketing for government and provides ten tips that your organization can start using immediately to leverage the power of content to help meet your agency’s goals and drive mission value. From repurposing content to curation to making content easily shareable, these tactics can help you see an uptick in your outreach programs.

Content Marketing – Government Style

number 10

If you’re remotely interested in government technology, you probably already know the acronym “APIs”. It was hard to miss Federal Chief Information Officer Steven VanRoekel’s tweet about it.

That’s why I think this post was one of the most-viewed from 2012. In 2013, I’d be surprised if APIs weren’t a continuing hot topic. The integrations available with this technology make it a critical component of the Federal Digital Government Strategy, but even more than that, it allows connections in ways that make government more efficient. What’s not to love?

In this post, Richard Fong, a (master) Technical Implementation Consultant, discusses his work in helping the US National Weather Service (NWS) implement APIs to help get the word out with tsunami warnings. Their API integration with their digital communications tool allows NWS to send out tsunami warning communications more quickly than ever before, helping to save lives in situations where seconds really matter.

It’s a good post to end the list, too, because it’s a great reminder of the crucially important work that government organizations do and how critical communications are in helping organizations meet their mission in serving the public.

National Weather Service Using APIs for Tsunami Alerts

 

So that’s our top ten list of most-viewed blog entries on Reach the Public. Was there one that you found especially insightful that I’ve missed here? Did you find these posts useful? Let me know in the comments!

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Abandoning Facebook

November 14th, 2012 | Posted by Mary Yang for GovDelivery in Community Management/Engagement | Compelling Content | E-Government | Federal Government | Government 2.0 | Local Government | Social Media | State Government | UK Government - (4 Comments)

Yesterday, ReadWriteWeb posted an article detailing why Dallas Mavericks owner and tech billionaire, Mark Cuban, is taking his social media engagement elsewhere, effectively abandoning Facebook as the Dallas Mavericks’ primary social media tool for connecting with fans. Why?

The short version: “He’s sick of getting hit with huge fees to send messages to his team’s fans and followers.” In fact, Mark tweeted a screenshot of the Mavericks’ Facebook page, showing the option to pay $3,000 to reach 1 million people.

First, some background. If you’re not steeped in social media news (and who really is these days?), Facebook recently changed their algorithm, also known as EdgeRank, which is a formula used to manage which users receive messages on their News Feed. In news stories around the release about a month ago, the changes were noted more as “tweaks,” which were supposed to simply make it “more likely that posts from brands with high engagement get priority placement in feeds over posts with little engagement.”

Facebook Edgerank, Tim SandersImage from Sanders Says

But Mark Cuban, along with many other users, has seen a distinct change in their Facebook activities. A private company designed to help brands manage their EdgeRank score commented on this change, saying,

Over time we’ve seen Reach slowly decrease as more Pages, and more users, create content. The more content that is posted to the news feed, the less likely your Page’s content will reach your fans. Facebook has also been rumored to provide 80% organic content, and “20% paid content in the form of sponsored stories” for Pages. So, tweaks in EdgeRank can cause fluctuations in metrics for brands on Facebook.

And daily Web magazine, Slate, reported yesterday that there was a workaround, detailed in a Washington Post article, but that the workaround was quickly shut down by Facebook after it started gaining buzz.

Facebook Edgerank Promote Story

But aside from all this Facebook-changing-its-algorithm-to-drive-revenue drama, Mark hits on a key point that is critical for government organizations:

The big negative for Facebook is that we will no longer push for likes or subscribers because we can’t reach them all…Brands have invested in getting consumers to like their Facebook page with the presumption that every like is created equal, that the brand can reach the user easily. That is not the case…Facebook has never allowed 100% reach. I think the disconnect is that not everyone realized that they didn’t allow 100% reach. I bet if you asked anyone who has subscribers if their posts reached 100% of their subscribers, they would say yes unless they have seen the dollar box for promoted posts show up. (emphases mine)

reach

Mark makes an incredible point here that is as relevant for the owner of a multimillion-dollar franchise as it is for a government organization.

It’s impossible to ignore Facebook as a communications channel: if you are hoping to connect with citizens where they are, it’s almost a necessity for your organization to have a Facebook presence. But if your communications strategy is built upon the number of likes you receive or number of comments you get on posts, you should rethink what it means to connect with your stakeholders – and the budget you have to do so.

Mark’s decision to move to the Mavericks’ communication efforts to Twitter or Tumblr or even MySpace is based on the realization that, through Facebook, he doesn’t have the kind of direct connections that lead to the incredible reach that he feels is critical to the success of his business and the franchise.

How does this translate into public sector?

Direct connections matter. The breadth of your reach is critical. Again, if your audience is participating in social media, it may be important for you to be there. But fighting through all the noise on social media also means that there are people you want to reach who aren’t getting your messages. What you need are true direct connections with citizens and stakeholders to help meet your organization’s program goals and initiatives.

Mark makes it known that he isn’t removing the Mavericks’ page from Facebook but that he’s going to start driving Facebook fans to Twitter while looking to build out a Mavericks’ brand page on other social media sites. At the end of the day, he knows that reaching those people who’ve already raised their hands to say that they like a brand or an organization is only the start – the true worth of that action is in how easily and directly an organization can communicate and engage with its fans.

What do you think? If your organization is on Facebook, have you seen a decrease in the reach you have with your posts? Would you follow in Mark’s footsteps or rethink your outreach and social media strategy? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

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Email vs. Social Media

November 12th, 2012 | Posted by GovDelivery in E-Government | Email Communication | Government 2.0 | Social Media - (1 Comments)

Although email traces its history all the way back to the university system in the late 1960s, it wasn’t until the early 1990s that this simple way of communicating literally changed our lives.

Just as snail mail was eventually superseded by faxes for the highest priority communications in the 1980s, email came roaring into popular use in the 1990s as a way to communicate with others in the fastest way possible.

Suddenly, two or more people could almost instantly pose questions to others, share information (or jokes) and seek consensus on almost any topic. In fact, email was so transformative in the business and personal sphere that it sparked its own set of problems—including spam and the “information overload” that occurred when people could over-share anything at the touch of a button.

Today, in the age of Twitter, Facebook, texting and numerous other information-sharing tools, email may seem quaint. Some people believe email gets lost in the glitz and glamor of other types of information delivery, but in reality, it remains one of the most important ways to share information effectively, in part because of the powerful tools that can be used in conjunction with it.

MediaBistro recently posted an infographic declaring email still the smartest way for savvy marketers to communicate with their audiences.

MediaBistro Infographic: Email vs. Social Media

In an accompanying blog post, “Email Vs. Social Media Marketing—Which One Deserves Your Dollars?” the authors wrote, “Email marketing spend increased by 60 percent in 2012, and that’s because email marketing delivered a return on investment (ROI) of 4,000 percent over that same period.”

How is this possible? Well, in the first place, email has not been superseded by any of the other new social marketing tools. People have not abandoned their email accounts in favor of Twitter or Facebook, but instead, have simply added those new tools to their personal information arsenal. And while the enforced brevity of Twitter’s 140-character limit may prove adequate for some uses, email’s ability to provide more substantive communication remains undimmed.

Add to that the fact that numerous tools exist with which to measure and track the true impact of email communication. Email lists can be easily compiled, and then segregated by users, for instance. With email, users are able to pick and choose among topics in which they have a specific interest. This also allows organizations that use email to communicate to segment their audiences into specific groups based on factors such as location, income, demographics and more.

Organizations that use email to communicate with their respective audiences also have several tangible ways to gauge how successful their communications are. They can track delivery (or bounce) rates; monitor “open” rates, test subject line and from line variants against each other, and finally, definitively see whether or not recipients took action in response to the email blast, such as visiting a web site, signing up for a program or simply clicking through to another forum such as Facebook to learn more.

By being able to tightly control who receives specific information (such as by neighborhood, in the case of city or county organizations, for instance), senders can greatly increase the chance that their emails will be welcome to recipients. Recipients who want email communications on various subjects are receptive to these messages because of their immediacy and relevance to their lives.

Coupling an email strategy with tools such as GovDelivery Digital Communication Management, provides organizations with a powerful one-two punch to effectively communicate with their audiences and also to measure the impact of their email campaigns.

Integrated Platform

In fact, a recent study examining the impact of email in various industries and market segments showed that government-originated email communications maintain the highest level of effectiveness for both opens and click-throughs.

Using email as part of an integrated communications plan that also includes other social media marketing remains central to a powerful, cost-effective communications strategy that delivers information to users in the way that’s most efficient for them.

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Call to Action: Last Minute Sandy Preparation Tips for Government

October 29th, 2012 | Posted by GovDelivery in Community Management/Engagement | Current Affairs | E-Government | Email Communication | Federal Government | Government 2.0 | Local Government | State Government - (0 Comments)

By Jennifer Kaplan, Product Marketing Manager, GovDelivery

We’ve all heard the numbers. 8,000+ flights cancelled. Hundreds of thousands already evacuated. Mass transit shut downs up the Eastern Seaboard.* (stats from CNN)  Up to 60 million people will be affected. Hurricane Sandy, now the largest storm ever recorded in the Atlantic, is here.

President Obama, addressing the public in a statement this morning, said, “Please listen to what your state and local government officials are saying.” Government communicators are already in the midst of getting preparation and evacuation information out to those who need it. We’ve also seen additional tips for the public on television, radio, through news websites and social media. Here are the top things your organization can do right now if your stakeholders are affected.

Expand Your Reach. The more stakeholders receive your message, the more likely it is that they will be safe and prepared.

  • Update Your Website. Right now is the moment where citizens are most engaged with government organization. Make sure it’s as easy as possible for citizens visiting your website and social media pages to find the sign-up area for your communications. The key to success is a prominent position.  Keep it in the upper right or upper left of your page, but be careful not to blend it with other aspects of your website. For a temporary fix, highlight your sign-up area in yellow or orange.
    Ready.gov website
  • Leverage the Media to Promote Communications. In his public address this morning, President Barack Obama directed citizens to Ready.gov to get up-to-date preparation and safety information on Hurricane Sandy. If your organization is briefing or being featured through any media outlets, be sure to promote your communications and the ways citizens can subscribe to get updates via email or text message. It’s also helpful to include the URLs to your resources in any media graphics.
  • Recommend Power Outage Alternatives. If citizens lose cable, broadcast signal and Internet, they can still receive tweets about the storm on their mobile phone — even if they don’t have a Twitter account. Have citizens subscribe to SMS Twitter alerts. Here’s a great article from the Washington Post on how to do this.

Get the Word Out Efficiently. Be sure to send messages through all your communication channels.

  • Get Preparation or Evacuation Information Out NOW. There is still time to recommend precautionary actions that can be taken by stakeholders. Urge those in recommended evacuation areas to leave. Send reminders to conserve cell and computer power. Ensure citizens have a list of necessary items — enough food, water, cash, medicine and flashlights — should they experience a power outage.
    National Hurricane Center website
  • Don’t Have the Resources? Not sure what information to send out? Leverage existing, official content.  FEMA and Ready.gov, in addition to the National Hurricane Center with the National Weather Service are asking government organizations to share content they’re already creating to spread the word.  Instead of reinventing the wheel, your organization can share the information, tools and resources from these sites. Like and share FEMA’s Facebook page posts. Follow and re-tweet @ReadyDotGov tweets.
  • Continue to Send Updates Throughout the Week. Use email, SMS and social media and other channels to keep stakeholders updated. Be sure to use all means (especially SMS and Twitter) as some stakeholders may not have Internet.Ready.gov Twitter feed

Google has also developed a Crisis Map that provides real-time information about where the storm is moving. The interactive map shows Sandy’s trajectory of the entire country, plus the public can subscribe to additional alerts such as evacuation notices, storm warnings, shelter locations and traffic conditions.

Picking Up the Pieces. In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, continue to use digital channels to send updates to your stakeholders. Government organizations will need to work together to communicate relief and clean-up efforts, as well as provide additional resources available to the public. Keep an eye on FEMA, Ready.gov, and the National Weather Service for more information.

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Curbing Future Terrorists with Online Engagement

September 26th, 2012 | Posted by GovDelivery in Community Management/Engagement | E-Government | Federal Government | Government 2.0 - (0 Comments)

By John Simpson, Federal Consultant, GovDelivery

LaptopOver the weekend,  Politico published an opinion article on how the Center for Strategic Counterterrorism Communications (CSCC) within the U.S. Department of State uses social media and web forums to engage with potential radical groups to help influence them against violence or becoming a part of terrorist organizations. Unlike commercial marketing teams that use social media to convince potential customers to buy a product, the CSCC doesn’t try to convince its audience the virtue of U.S. policies and Western values. It reaches out to this small minority of mostly young men “who are vulnerable to the enticements of terror organizations or easily mobilized by the acts of marginal players.” Instead of focusing on countries or religious ideology, the CSCC pushes the conversation to the tangible consequences of terrorism and the victims of these acts. By creating doubt about its effectiveness and relevancy, the CSCC hopes to shrink the number of terrorists.

Ultimately, the CSCC pushes for a proactive approach instead of a reactive response, “to change behaviors before they reach the point of violence.” While not every government organization is interacting with radical and borderline violent audiences, most have at some point dealt with a dissatisfied constituent or stakeholder and know that simply filing away complaint emails don’t solve the root problem. If the State Department can use social media and web forums to reach out to agitated foreigners, surely other government organizations can do the same with American citizens and interact with stakeholders where they live and through tools they’re already using before they become disillusioned with the government’s role in our lives.

Although many do not have the staff or time to connect with their stakeholders individually, agencies can use solutions that allow for the public to sign up for email or SMS alerts on topics that are important to them, allowing agencies to actively communicate to that unique group of subscribers. Allowing this self-subscription option allows for offices to target their audience in the digital channel of their choice with personalized messages on the topics they’re most interested in. This kind of personalized messaging and communication can be and should be done in conjunction with social media channels like Facebook or Twitter to cast a wider net and increase the likelihood of a more engaged audience.

While the process of engagement through inventive online avenues is still evolving in many agencies, the CSCC’s work shines as an example of how putting your organization’s mission online and implementing initiatives through the tools your audience uses can help change the conversation from blind animosity to constructive conversations.

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