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Putting a New Face on Internet Communication

Part III. Putting a New Face on Internet Communication. United States 2008 Statistics 220+ million internet users (72.5% of US population) 130.9% increase in usage since 2000 48% report using the internet more than 1 hr/day compared to 26% in 2002. The internet’s Impact.

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Putting a New Face on Internet Communication

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  1. Part III Putting a New Face on Internet Communication

  2. United States 2008 Statistics • 220+ million internet users (72.5% of US population) • 130.9% increase in usage since 2000 • 48% report using the internet more than 1 hr/day compared to 26% in 2002 The internet’s Impact

  3. Who’s using the internet? • 75% of adult women and 73% of adult men • Breakdown of age groups surfing the web: • Ages 18-29: 87% • Ages 30-49: 82% • Ages 50-64: 72% • Ages 65+: 41% • Men and those age 65+ posted gains greater than the national average in internet usage in 2008. The Internet’s Impact

  4. The Internet’s Impact • Since the launch of the new SBE website: • 17.4+ Million Visits including: • Voter Lookup: 3.5+ million views • Precinct Finder: 1+ million views • Election Results: 3.4+ million views with 3,660 requests PER SECOND on Election Night ‘08

  5. 7% of the County Boards of Elections in North Carolina do not have a working or active website. • 31% of the CBE websites are single web pages consisting mostly of contact information. The Internet’s Impact

  6. Knowing what we know about the impact of the internet in today’s world, are we effectively utilizing the internet as a communication tool? • For many of us the answer is NO. • How can the internet help us in our day-to-day business? • It’s an untapped RESOURCE… • It’s your VIRTUAL OFFICE… • It’s a powerful COMMUNICATION TOOL. • How we can improve our internet presence during a budget crunch? • It’s EASIERthan you might think… • And it may SAVE MONEY. The Internet’s Impact

  7. Setting up your virtual office

  8. Visualize for a moment walking into your elections office. • Front door • Public Work Station • Board Room • Director’s Office • Staff Desk • Equipment Storage Room • File Room Setting up your virtual office

  9. Now think of how these rooms correspond with public needs. • Front door – welcome, office hours • Public Work Station – source of information, we’re here to serve you • Board Room – minutes, provisional counting • Director’s Office – notices are written, ballot proofing • Staff Desk – voter registration, precinct assignment • Equipment Storage Room – equipment demonstrations, testing, election results • File Room – campaign finance records, past results, election costs Setting up your virtual office

  10. How do we make our real offices into VIRTUAL OFFICES? Setting up your virtual office

  11. CBE web sites can contain extensive information through tabs and special sections while maintaining a uniform look with the county government’s website. The Front Door: The Home Page Buncombe CBE:www.buncombecounty.org/governing/depts/election/

  12. Graphics or icons can help enhance a CBE web site while also providing direction for the user. The Front Door: The Home Page Wake CBE:www. wakegov.com/elections/

  13. The most user friendly site combines graphics, tabs and special sections to help any user to navigate a site quickly and easily. The welcome paragraph on the SBE site takes it to a new level. High quality content, especially on the homepage, makes a website more “Google friendly.” The Front Door: The Home Page NC State Board of Elections:www. sboe.state.nc.us/

  14. Recommended Tabs/Categories: The Floor Plan: Tabs and Web Pages • All three examples utilize tabs for site navigation and to provide additional content beyond the home page. About BOE Absentee Voting Board Members Campaign Finance Casting Your Vote Check Your Voter Registration Contact Us Early Voting Elected Officials Election Costs Election Results Election Schedule FAQs Glossary Kids Voting One-Stop Voting Polling Locations Poll Worker/Precinct Officials Provisional Ballots Register To Vote Registration Statistics Related/Resource Links Sample Ballots The Right To Vote Update Your Registration Voter Guide Voting Districts

  15. A-Z Index: Cabarrus County, www.cabarruscounty.us/elections/ Contact Us Form/Subject Email Addresses: Forsyth County, www.co.forsyth.nc.us/elections/ and Buncombe County, www.buncombecounty.org/governing/depts/election/ Add Link to Pollworker Training: Clarity Training, http://nctraining.us/ The Floor Plan: Additional Features

  16. From concept to construction site

  17. Schedule a meeting with your county webmaster and/or IT department. • Is website maintained in-house or through vendor? • Are there uniform guidelines or is website at department’s discretion? • Discuss updating/editing procedures. Building your website

  18. Importance of the domain name. http://www.hendersoncountync.org/elections/ vs. http://www.countywewillnotname.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=46&Itemid=56 • Publicize the domain name. • On your voicemail, letterhead, press releases, notices, email signatures… every document that leaves your office. • Would the newspaper run a feature article? Building your website

  19. How will you design your website? • Option 1: It’s on your office computer today… • Microsoft Publisher has easy to use, effective templates • COST: $0.00 • Option 2: Consult your IT department about design • Option 3: College students, interns, poll workers • Option 4: Other software or outside vendors • Option 5: Breaking News – SOE Software/Clarity Connect Building your website

  20. Design Tips: KISS Theory “Make every dollar you spend on your site count. Forget about the cosmetics and focus entirely on functionality.” – Michael Fischler, ClickZ.com Building your website

  21. Design Tips: COLORS • Choose a natural palette; unnatural colors cause eye fatigue • Black text on white background considered best for readability • On average select 3 different colors and stick with them; be consistent throughout the website Building your website

  22. Design Tips: FONTS • Avoid fancy fonts that are hard to read • Remember that reading on a computer screen is more difficult • Best fonts to use – “Sans-serif” fonts: • Arial • Futura • Helvetica • Lucida • Optima • Palatino • Veranda Building your website

  23. Home (Page) improvement

  24. Social Network Services/Websites focus on building on-line communities of people who share interests and/or activities. • 1 in every 11 minutes on-line globally is accounted for by social network sites. • These sites now rank higher than email in on-line categories. • 67% of US on-line population visit such sites. • Largest increase in use: 35-49 year olds (11.3 million) Home(page) improvement: the next level

  25. Social Network Services/Websites include: • Twitter • Facebook • My Space • YouTube, though not considered a social networking site, YouTube has transformed video communication. Home(page) improvement: the next level

  26. Home(page) improvement: the next level • The 200 millionth active user joined April 8, 2009. In the last 2 months the number of Facebook users over age 35 doubled. • Twitter 1382% growth in active users in the past year. Percentage of users age 55-64 equals those between 18-24. • 3rd most visited website behind Yahoo! and Google. Every minute 10 hours of video is uploaded to this site.

  27. Taking communication to the next level. Home(page) improvement: the next level

  28. Taking state government to the next level. Home(page) improvement: the next level

  29. Today we take the NC State Board of Elections and all 100 County Boards to the next level. Home(page) improvement: the next level

  30. How can we utilize Facebook in the elections field? Example: SCVotes.org and Dorchester County (SC) BOE The Next Level: FaceBook Dedicated to providing elections and voter registration information. Links to SCVotes.org and other related sites.

  31. How can we utilize Facebook in the elections field? Example: Lucas County (OH) BOE The Next Level: FaceBook Helps Lucas County Ohio Board of Elections communicate with full time, seasonal, and election day workers. This is a closed group. Members must be invited or approved by an administrator.

  32. How can we utilize Twitter in the elections field? The Next level: Twitter Example: One-stop voting starts today. Example: Followers can be alerted of short wait times at one-stop, the start of filing, polling place hours, & more!

  33. How can we utilize YouTube in the elections field? The Next Level: YouTube Appleton, Wisconsin: “Poll Worker: Behind The Scenes” YouTube Website: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLSKD83Wq7U Cuyahoga Co., Ohio: “How To Vote An Optical Scan Ballot” YouTube Website: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRRRlgtIdk4 North Carolina SBE: “You Have A Voice, You Have A Vote” YouTube Website: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usTK7vLgGzU Other Ideas: board meetings (St. Louis County, MO), how to absentee vote, man-on-the-street interviews – how’s one-stop going, how long is the wait Don’t just put videos on YouTube… Links on your website drive more traffic!

  34. With effective use of the internet we can accomplish the following: • Provide information to the public 24-7 by creating a virtual office. • Deliver our message accurately. • Reach existing voters and expand to new voters. • Show innovation and creativity in a time of budget constraints. new face on internet communication

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