The Office of Marketing and Communications manages the college’s official social media presence. We've developed the following summary to help those interested in exploring social networking understand the tools available to them. If you or your department is interested in creating an official presence on a social networking site, please review the options below and contact Christian Camerota, Assistant Director of Marketing for Social Media, at ccamerota@smcvt.edu or extension 2447.
| Blogs are a type of website where information on a topic is written on an ongoing basis, shared and discussed. Blogs give users with limited experience in HTML or web technology the ability to create a webpage. | ||
| As a best practice, blog posts should be written at least once a week and include 3-10 hyperlinks depending upon the length. Posts should include photos and videos to keep readers engaged. Paragraphs should be kept short so that the blog is easy to read. The design/layout of the blog is up to the author. | ||
| Facebook is a social networking site where friends, family, and colleagues can connect by sharing messages, photos, and videos. Users create personal profiles and can join common interest groups. | ||
| Facebook Pages or Groups should be reviewed at least once a day and content should be contributed at least twice a week. | ||
| Twitter is a micro-blogging social networking site where users can send messages, or “tweets,” to their followers (subscribers) within a 140 character limit. | ||
| Departments and individuals on campus are encouraged to use Twitter to connect with the Saint Michael's community. Twitter is the best tool for quick and constant updates. Twitter accounts should be updated at least once a day. | ||
| Formspring is a Q&A platform that allows users to submit and answer questions. | ||
| Formspring questions can be submitted at any time and account managers are sent an email notification when a question is waiting in the queue. Users expect that the questions will be answered within 24 hours. | ||
| YouTube is the most popular online and free video sharing website. YouTube works best for those who have the technical resources to consistently produce good-quality, short videos. | ||
| Departments that have the resources to produce video can create a playlist within the Saint Michael’s channel. | ||
| LinkedIn is a business-oriented social networking site, mainly used for professional networking. LinkedIn helps users exchange knowledge, ideas, and opportunities with other professionals. | ||
| The Saint Michael’s community is encouraged to create both groups and jobs for others in the Saint Michael’s community. Please contact Allison Sherman, asherman2@smcvt.edu. | ||
| Flickr is a photo-sharing website and online community. This is an effective tool for programs that have a steady supply of visually distinct events and activities. | ||
| If you are interested in sharing your photos in these accounts, please contact Allison Sherman, asherman2@smcvt.edu. If you have a personal Flickr account, please consider tagging appropriate photos with the official Saint Michael's College hashtag: #smcvt. | ||
| Foursquare, Facebook Places, Gowalla, SCVGR, etc are geo-social, location based services. They allow users to “check in” from their mobile device and typically users choose to share their location with their friends and followers on other social networking sites. Saint Michael’s is currently reviewing how to best use these tools. | ||