NC|Com by kiara jones

NC|Com

NC3C’s Magazine for Communication Professionals

Spring 2013

We Are The Champions

See who won an award this year and read some highlights from this year’s conference in Greensboro

Changing of the Guard Get a welcome from the new president and a farewell from the former one

Succesful Social Media Metrics, reach, and sweet spots

Volume Two. Number Eight

www.nc3c.com Visit us. Then join us.

NC|Com

NC3C’s Magazine for Communication Professionals

published by the Pitt County Office of Public Information for NC3C Volume Two. Number Eight

nc3c executive officers president vice president secretary treasurer past president

Kiara Jones, Pitt County Glenn Hargett, City of Jacksonville Kevin Elwood, City of Greensboro (GTA) Joshua Harris, City of Morganton Mandy Pitts, City of Hickory

contributors writers

Mandy Pitts, City of Hickory Kiara Jones, Pitt County John Stephens, School of Government (contributor)

images

Digital Juice Gary Herman, Alexander County

NC Com magazine, established in 2011, is published quarterly in Pitt County, North Carolina, by the Pitt County Office of Public Information for the North Carolina City and County Communicators (NC3C). Subscriptions: visit www.nc3c.com or the site of any executive officer for your free subscription. Magazine is published online only. To request a high-quality printed version, call 252.902.2955 or e-mail pittinfo@pittcountync.gov. Allow 10-15 days for delivery. For costs, contact the Office of Public Information. Advertising: Rate card available upon request from Publisher. © 2013 Pitt County Office of Public Information for NC3C (All Rights Reserved.)

Spring has sprung...hooray!

NC|Com

NC3C’s Magazine for Communication Professionals

Volume Two. Number Eight

In This Issue Spring 2013

cover stories 6

Changing of the Guard

Successful Social Media

Read a farewell message from Past President Mandy Pitts and a welcome note from President Kiara Jones.

How do you know your social media initiative is working? It’s all about metrics, reach, and that “sweet spot.” Duh.

We are the Champions

Boy, did we have some winners at this year’s Awards of Excellence lunch. We had a pretty great conference, too.

fixtures 7 8

President’s Message Should I...?

did you know? pollen attaches itself to insects, like bees (do you think it makes them stuffy, too?)

(Past) President’s Message

Dear NC3C Members,

NC3C Past President Mandy Pitts

Thank you for the opportunity to serve you as the NC3C President for two years, as well as Vice President for two years prior to being President. I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know more government communicators across the state and we have grown to about 100 members. In the last two years, NC|Com was created, two successful annual conferences were held in Greensboro and Chapel Hill, and this year’s addition of three regionals in Statesville, Apex and Jacksonville exceeded all expectations. The goals over the last two years were met, and that is because of the dedicated Board of Directors, and the whole membership. As our membership grows, more people get involved and more creative ideas and talents are shared! 2011-2013 Goals • • • •

For the NC3C membership to use the communications tools in place to help members network and seek advice from peers throughout the year Increase participation in the “Excellence in Communications” awards program Increase NC3C retention and membership Hold three regional meetings (2012-2013 year)

I look forward to serving in an advisory role this year and congratulate all the new board members. Kiara Jones is already a great leader and know she will continue to take the organization to new heights. I also encourage members to host regionals or serve on a committee. All my best,

President’s Message

Fellow NC3Cers,

NC3C President Kiara Jones

I recall the first time I ran for secretary of NC3C. I thought, “No one knows me. Why would they vote for me?” I didn’t win, but it was close, and that gave me the confidence to try again. Well, here we are, and I’m humbled to be writing this message as NC3C President. I’ve enjoyed my time as Secretary, creating NC|Com and working with other board members to reach the goals set under Past President Mandy Pitts. But I’ve especially enjoyed being with you, the NC3C members, networking, sharing ideas, and gaining knowledge. You’re a great group, and I look forward to serving as President of this wonderful organization. One of Mandy’s goals was to increase NC3C retention and membership. Under her great leadership, we have been able to meet that goal, and I certainly adopt it as one of my own. NC3C is a valuable organization, and I think every city and county communicator in the state should be a part of it. I want to increase NC|Com’s profile, setting it on a path to become one of the premiere communication magazines in our field. I think it can be a tool to recruit new members, while keeping current members up-to-date with NC3C information. I also would like to implement an idea I got from the National Association of County Information officers (NACIO). I was on a conference call with their board, and the president mentioned a new mentorship program. How would that work for NC3C? Any members who have been in the PIO field for 2 years or less would be partnered with a veteran PIO who would show them the ropes and help guide them through this crazy profession we love so dearly. I think we have current members who meet that criteria, so I will be looking for mentors really soon! That’s only a small piece of what I’d like to accomplish as President, and I look forward to the journey. Thanks for trusting me to lead this fantastic organization. God bless,

Should I...

Join the Member Profiles page

Well, of course! We all know that NC3C has some great members. We see that every time we attend a spring conference or regional meeting. But sometimes when we leave those gatherings, we may not recall the name of that great person we just networked with. Here comes the Member Profiles page plug. The page was created (thanks Gary Herman for getting it started!) so you can put a name to the face you have in mind. We have members from all around the state, and having one location for everyone is helpful in keeping us connected. Do we have a member in the western part of the state? I’m traveling there for work and need to find a great hotel. Well, go to the Member Profiles page and find out! See where I’m going with this? This valuable resource is lacking something - you! NC3C has approximately 100 members, and if you can recall everyone’s face, jurisdiction, phone number, and e-mail address, you probably did very well in college and this page may not benefit you much. But, if you’re like the rest of us, (ok, me), then the Member Profiles page is a great resource. So, send a picture, your name, jurisdiction, and contact info to NC3C Secretary Kevin Elwood (kevin.elwood@ greensboro-nc.gov) and he can add you to the page. And don’t forget, you may be the featured Member Profile in an upcoming NC|Com issue. You never know! 8

Successful Social Media Metrics, reach, and that “sweet spot”

In helping manage GSA’s social media channels, I’ve learned that creativity and fun are great to have, but you need to back it up with cold, hard data. As GSA expands our use of social media to increase engagement and communication with the public, it is clear that we also need to start measuring our success. But what does success look like in social media? Is it the number of Facebook “likes” and Twitter followers? Number of retweets and shares? Yes, but it’s a lot more than that – it’s about looking at how you’re connecting with people and if you’re working in the right spaces for your audience. I recently attended a Social Media Week presentation called “Make Better Social Media Decisions Through Analytics” where Dan Soschin talked about using metrics to drive your content plan. This is nothing revolutionary to those in the media world, but is what we at GSA need to focus on in the future. Facebook Insights provides easy-to-use metrics right from your page that will help you determine what’s working with your audience. Here’s what you can learn with just a few clicks:

• • • •

How many people like your page? The most basic metric. How many friends do those people have? Combined with #1, this is the potential audience for anything you post. Total Reach: How many people actually had your content show up in their News Feed. How many posts did you put up on any given day. Compare this to how many people you reached to determine your “sweet spot” for how often you update your page.

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Social Media continued You can also see the list of all your recent posts, and can sort them to discover: • • • •

Which post reached the most people How many people clicked on your post How many actively engaged with it by either “liking,” commenting, or sharing, and Virality = (3/2)*100. The most “viral” post in GSA FB history? This one.

By looking at the type of post (Text post, photo, link, video, etc.) when you sort, you can see which ones get the most engagement. Photos tend to get more likes and shares, but simple text posts may get a higher reach. What does all this mean? It means you can take this information and figure out the right mix of content to maximize the impact of what you’re doing. Stop taking a scattershot approach and start being more strategic in your efforts, the results will show in the end. Thanks to John Stephens, UNC School of Government, for sharing this blog post.

What Does Success Look Like in Social Media? | posted by ohoffer http://blog.howto.gov/2013/04/12/what-does-success-look-like-in-social-media/

We are the Champions Meet the 2013 award winners and see some conference highlights

We went back to Greensboro, where it all began, to have our spring conference and it was great. Cathey Armillas was our featured speaker and broke down the Unbreakable Rules of Marketing. Can you name all 91/2? Go ahead, try. No? Well, here they are: Rule #1: Consistency Beats Ability Rule #2: Perception is Reality Rule #3: Be Creative or Die Rule #4: The Medium is Not the Message Rule #5: Work Hard to Keep It Simple

Rule #6: Give Love to Get Love Rule #7: Emotions Rule the World Rule #8: Go Big or Go Home Rule #9: Everything is Marketing The 1/2 Rule: Know the Rules and Know When to Break Them

Cathey stayed around for the pretty much the whole conference, took pix with us, and even signed books! Between her multiple sessions and hang out times, she really gave some valuable information on marketing and left us with a serious networking contact. You can find out more about Cathey and her rules by visiting her web site: puramarketing.com. To find a complete list of conference speakers and their biographies, visit www.nc3c.com and click on the NC3C News – 2013 Conference Info link. While there, you’ll also find presentations from Paul Sherwin and John Stephens, a well as pix taken by NC3C’s faithful photographer, Gary Herman. 10

2013 Award Winners - 69 entries, 20 categories. The biggest? TV and Videos

TV and Videos Interview/talk show 1 City of Rocky Mount – Holiday Happenings Show 2 Buncombe County – Bill Stanley Dedication Regular programming (including magazine shows and news programming) 1 Cabarrus County – Hot Air Balloon 2 City of Durham – Values of Every Drop One-time special programming 1 City of Raleigh – A moment in Black History 2 Dare County – Mosquito Prevention 2 Town of Garner – Around Town Special: Garner Police Public service announcement 1 City of Greenville – Trash Collection and You 2 City of Raleigh – See, Click, Fix Promotional video 1 Cabarrus County – Hunger Games Community Read 2 City of Greenville – Citizens Academy Printed Publications Employee newsletters 1 City of Rocky Mount - Talk of Town External newsletters 1 Town of Holly Springs – Business Watch Magazine 1 City of Rocky Mount – My Rocky Mount Annual Report 1 City of Durham 2 City of Fayetteville Brochure 1 Greensboro Transit Authority – GTA Construction Day 2 Town of Matthews – Parks, Facilities & Greenway Guide Communication Technology Electronic External Newsletter 1 Buncombe County 2 Town of Garner Website 1 Dare County 2 City of Kannapolis Marketing Tools Direct mail or print advertising 1 City of Raleigh – Raleigh Fire Department Recruitment Poster 2 Town of Garner – Visit Raleigh Visitors Guide – Garner Editorial Branding/New logo 1 Town of Matthews 2 City of Fayetteville Best use of Promotional Item 1 Greensboro Transit Authority – Dedication Riverstone Special Events 1 City of Hickory – Zahra Baker All-Children’s Playground Dedication Greensboro Transit Authority – New Facility Dedication 112

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Champions continued Citizen Participation 1 City of Hickory – Zahra Baker All-Children’s Playground Community Build 2 Pitt County – Flag redesign contest Community Visioning 1 Town of Chapel Hill – Chapel Hill 2020 Communication or Marketing Plans 1 Town of Fuquay Varina – Youth Sports 2 Town of Holly Springs – Ready Wake Communications Campaign Most Creative Activity with Least Dollars Spent 1 City of Hickory & Catawba County – Catawba Communities 2 Chapel Hill – We Love Chapel Hill (the Love is a symbol of a heart) 2012-13 Executive Board Congrats to all of the 2013 Awards of Excellence winners. Now, let’s take a look at the new executive board: President Kiara Jones, Pitt County NC - you’ve already met her : ) That’s Glenn : )

Vice President Glenn Hargett, City of Jacksonville

Treasurer Joshua Harris, City of Morganton

Secretary Kevin Elwood, City of Greensboro (GTA)

Past President Mandy Pitts, City of Hickory

2012-GIGa Awards Here are two more award winners with PIO connections. The 2012 GIGa Awards were presented on Feb. 17, 2013. Thanks for sharing, John Stephens. Town of Cary - Virtual Interactive Planner (VIP). Dan Matthys, Communication and Information Planner, $2,500 Award City of Conover - W.A.S.P. - Website and Social-media Project. Christopher Niver, IT Director, $1,000 Award for Video Submission 12

Thanks to our 2013 conference sponsors!!