For a neighborhood council, social media is all about building community, engaging your stakeholders through more direct contact, and encouraging participation and involvement with your NC. Here are three quick tips to keep in mind as you build your social networks:
1. Get your story out there
What is your NC’s history? What are your proudest achievements? Your neighborhood is made up of diverse stakeholders with many identities and needs — and your council is there to serve all of them. Connect with your neighbors by sprinkling your newsletters, website, and social media with interesting facts and stories about your community, your stakeholders, and your council. Let everyone know who you are, what you do, and why it matters. Sharing personal stories can make stakeholders feel connected in a meaningful way and encourage them to engage with their community and their NC.
2. Keep your followers in the loop
In other words, update often! Let your supporters know about what’s going on in your community, what happened at your recent meetings, upcoming events, and progress on current projects. Encourage people to ask questions — and answer them promptly! Remind stakeholders that you’re listening and responding to their concerns!
3. Show your successes
When you reach one of your goals, host a successful event, or take part in something exciting or important going on in your neighborhood, make sure you let your stakeholders know. Show them your value as an entity that represents them, the hard work you’ve been doing, or the fun that they’re missing out on by not participating. In today’s busy, stressful world, it can be tough to get people to participate in NC work and events. Encourage stakeholders to engage and participate by showing them how they can volunteer meaningfully — and how much fun it can be.
Have any social media tips or tricks that have been particularly useful for you? Let us know! We’d love to hear from you. Email us at [email protected] or tweet @EmpowerLA.