Meeting Students/Families Where They Are:

1. Meeting Students/Families Where They Are: Tips for using social media effectively in College Counseling Meredith Britt, New Community Jewish High School Nicole Thompson, Sage Hill School Aviva Walls, Shalhevet High School

2. AGENDA Why even try? Available Platforms Types of Content Show, Don’t Just Tell Building “Likes” Best Practices Inspiration

3. WHY EVEN TRY? It’s where they are, why not use it? A way to share more engaging material (articles, pictures, videos) without overloading email Feeding the hungry sharks Another way to advertise the great work we do with the larger school community

4. Platforms Photo heavy School Based/LMS Blogging Platforms

5. Types of Content Original Material Outside Resources College of the Week Lingo - definitions Trivia Announcements Reminders Good Luck messages Articles Shared content Scholarship Links Gap Year programs Links to outside programs/fairs

6. College Visits and Social Media • Before the visit • Post a few sentences about each college along with time and location • Advertise with the school’s logo • Could also use a relevant article/picture to draw interest • RSVPs • There are pros and cons to having students RSVP to a visit using social media • Might get more/younger kids interested, but harder to then push to Naviance • During the visit • Take pictures of the rep engaged with students to post later • After • Gives the school community a better sense of the wide variety of schools visiting

7. Show, Don’t Just Tell • By far the most popular content • See a surge in engagement with sites when post pictures • Increase in followers when post pictures of a college tour or event • Pick Great Profile and Cover Pictures • Post Pictures whenever you’re away visiting a college • When in doubt, link a picture • Articles – use a thumbnail • Find pictures for colleges using google images or use a screen shot • You can also post inspirational memes and funny videos • Be careful about posting photos of your kids • check if your school has photo waivers on file

8. Building a Following • Likes beget likes • When close to a “milestone number” advertise it • Spread the word however you can • Class meetings/Advisory • Parent programs • Email signature • Make it easy • Put the direct link in an email • QR codes on your handouts that link to your page • Use the resources of your school • Links/shares from the school’s account (if available) • Weekly roundup email • Advertise to incoming students?? • Incentives • A raffle or coupon to school store • Give away college swag

9. Best Practices – Consistency is Key • Posting regularly builds credibility and “likes” • Pre-Schedule Posts when Possible • Take advantage of slower times in your office to post ahead of time • Use the clock icon or ads.twitter.com • Stay on track even when you’re away from the office • Use the Pages app on an iphone/ipad to do mobile uploads and even schedule posts while you’re on the road • Stay Organized • Keep a spreadsheet of what and when you’re posting • This way you won’t post the same thing twice and you’ll know you’re covering every topic, event and reminder

10. Best Practices – Cont • Only Post Monday – Friday • Use your data! • You can figure out the days/times that are most popular for your families • If a post is for a specific audience, announce that • ex: JUNIORS, SENIORS, PARENTS, etc • Create a fictional person for your facebook account • Jenna Jaguar at NCJHS • Will make it easier to pass along to another staff member • Avoid posting private and proprietary information • Have a Succession Plan and Emergency Plan in Place • Take advantage of outside resources • “like” or follow as many relevant pages as you can

11. Inspiration Professional Organizations Colleges High Schools

12. Contact Information Meredith Britt – mbritt@faculty.ncjhs.org Nicole Thompson – thompsonn@sagehillschool.org Aviva Walls – a.walls@shalhevet.org