The government makes good use of the benefits of social media: saving costs and grasping public opinion
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▌Text/Vista Cheng, founder of the website “Content Hacker”. This article was originally published on the “Marketersgo” website.
Humans are group animals and cannot live alone. Likewise, social media has become a part of everyone’s lives. Not only do we communicate emotions and share information through social media, many companies and industries also try to spread marketing information through social interaction, hoping to influence people’s brand recognition and purchasing decisions.
Compared with the rapid development of social media, the way people interact with government departments does not seem to have changed much over the years. Some people are also very concerned about public affairs and even desire to have direct dialogue with public opinion representatives, politicians, officials and even entire government agencies. Now, with the help of social media, everyone has the opportunity to realize their dreams.
Social media is not only suitable for ordinary netizens to share information and exchange emotions, or for businesses to promote brand images and pursue business opportunities, it can also be a good helper for government organizations to interact with the public, and is a very effective way.
There are several obvious benefits for government departments to use social media for communication:
- Cost savings
As we all know, traditional publicity is expensive. According to foreign statistics, the U.S. federal government spends approximately US$1.5 billion (approximately NT$46.7625 billion) on public relations and advertising every year. If you can make good use of social media, you can naturally reduce these costs significantly.
The public sector can use more cost-effective social platforms (such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter) to engage in dialogue with the public and ensure that everyone gets the information they need. For example, the fan page of the Ministry of the Interior recently launched a video called “100 Second Challenge - What has the Ministry of the Interior done recently”, asking Minister Xu Guoyong to tell everyone in 100 seconds what has the Ministry of the Interior done for Taiwan recently? Well, this is a good display of creativity and can also show the minister’s people-friendly side.
- Crisis communication
The emergence of social media has also changed the way government organizations communicate in several emergency situations. Do you still remember the tragic wildfires that raged in California in November 2018? The fire at that time not only destroyed more than 150,000 acres of land and nearly 14,000 houses, but also caused many lives and caused tragic losses of more than 19 billion US dollars. In order to evacuate this group of people affected by the fire, the California Governor’s Office used social media such as Facebook and Twitter to directly provide assistance resources to the citizens of the state.
For another example, in order to prevent African swine fever from invading Taiwan, the Chinese government not only broadcasts relevant epidemic prevention information through TV news, but also mobilized social media from the Presidential Office, the Ministry of Interior, and the Council of Agriculture to carry out propaganda. Even President Tsai Ing-wen shouted on her personal Facebook “[Everyone is responsible for the epidemic prevention war!] (https://www.facebook.com/tsaiingwen/photos/pb.4 6251501064.-2207520000.1545088379./10155548337491065/?type=3&eid=ARAA1NxLm 6lpkQ8Vm__4DEgMpni0zDENbYi4xh9oyt2k8WkZ_UtAhJhJzme9sfObF36C61vPt4tMX2HH)”. Using the abundant communication energy of social media can help with crisis control and related communication.
- Citizen participation
In the past, when talking about government agencies or public departments, it always gave people a feeling of being superior. It was difficult for ordinary people to get close to and understand them, let alone participate in the interaction. Nowadays, with the help of social media, the public can participate in interaction and keep them informed of the most critical policies and issues in the public sector.
When people have the opportunity to participate in interactions, it is naturally easier to build trusting relationships. Social media can also allow everyone to understand the actual operation of the public sector, thereby gaining people’s recognition and tolerance. Many people want to see the government be more truthful and transparent, and now social media provides a perfect way for everyone to satisfy their curiosity and learn more about how relevant departments operate.
- Grasp public opinion
Through two-way interaction on social media, the public sector can learn the real opinions of the public on various policies and information. As long as you post a message on social media, you can quickly get feedback from the public. You can also know how much the public likes the message and whether it resonates with you.
For example, during the [Pingtung Lantern Festival] (https://2019taiwanlantern.pthg.gov.tw/) that just concluded a while ago, [County Magistrate Pan Menan] (https://www.facebook.com/pan.menan1/) posted an eight-minute video on his personal Facebook to thank every unknown hero for lighting up the lantern festival with their bright light, and also to every tourist for witnessing the event, allowing Pingtung to create incomparable glory. County Magistrate Pan’s move also won positive responses and shares from netizens from all over the country.
How can government departments make good use of social media to express their opinions? I think there are several principles that can be grasped:
- Develop content strategy
Content can be said to be the core of any social media strategy. If you want to create valuable and engaging social media content, you must use the power of content strategy to drive it. Content production staff, including community editors and copywriters, must have a very clear blueprint in mind. In addition to defining in advance what content will be published? More clearly, why was it released at a specific point in time?
In order to ensure the effectiveness of content marketing and optimize the content production process, it is recommended that public departments can use common digital tools or services for measurement. In addition to the basic traffic, number of views, and number of fans, the measured indicators can also focus on the number of interactions, the number of comments, the number of shares, etc.
2． Communicate sincerely
In order to effectively leverage the power of social media and make social marketing in the public sector unique, we must think about what valuable content we can provide? Compared with piling up gorgeous words, sincere communication is an important key to winning the hearts and minds of the people.
When talking to the public, you might as well start from the perspective of people’s life consumption, entertainment and leisure and other related issues, and try to find topics that can arouse resonance. Another important point is that social posts in the public sector cannot just talk about policies and political achievements, but must consider whether the published content is consistent with the needs of the target audience?
- Make good use of your content calendar
Why plan a Content Hacker Lecture? This is a proactive approach that allows community operators to turn pressure into motivation, and it also allows us to quickly organize all kinds of messy information into order.
Establishing an exclusive content calendar for public sector community management not only makes it easier to control time and arrange the content production process, but also helps to set and lay out topics in conjunction with current events and festivals. For example, when it comes to May, everyone will immediately think of Labor Day and Mother’s Day. If relevant units want to engage in government propaganda, they can plan in advance through the [Content Calendar] (https://www.contenthacker.today/search?q=%E5%85%A7%E5%AE%B9%E8%A1%8C%E4%BA%8B%E6%9B%86)!
★ Welcome to like the “Vista Writing Companion Program” fan page!
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★ Photo Credit: Jannis Lucas
Further reading
- Self-media management strategy for professionals
- When writing social posts, don’t forget emotional connection and brand integration
- Community editors come over and let you know about useful digital tools
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