A Tweet or a Snap: How to Speak to Students on Social Media

As an incoming freshman at a university with over 50,000 graduate and undergraduate students, I was worried that I would find it difficult to feel connected with my school just given its sheer size. But that worry quickly dissipated, in part because of University of Florida’s strong social media presence. It not only introduced me to different opportunities and student organizations on campus, but also made me feel included. Here are a few tips—from a student’s perspective—for successfully engaging with your prospects and current students through social media:

1) Speak their language: Speaking students’ language goes beyond referencing the phrases and campus buzz that they use regularly. It also means choosing the social media platforms your students are on. For example, UF has seen great success sharing photos and video content on Snapchat. Through the account @UF1853, the university shares content from a broad range of different events on campus—from large concerts and comedy shows to tabling fairs and charity fundraisers. While UF’s Facebook and Twitter share some of the same information, Snapchat’s in-the-moment snapshots of events align with what students are watching and help them feel more involved. So which types of content are students looking for where?

• Facebook and Instagram lend themselves to the use of vibrant images. Paired with concise text, your posts should keep students informed about important dates, school history, upcoming events, and undiscovered parts of campus.
• Twitter generally allows for a wittier tone and the successful integration of GIFs. Twitter is a great place to listen to what your students think and feel about your institution, and to let them know you’re listening. In addition, the ease with which students can retweet increases the number of impressions your media can have.
• Snapchat draws attention to real-time, social events going on around campus and can motivate students to engage almost immediately by participating in the event being featured.
• YouTube shines as a great platform for showcasing your institution’s stellar athletics, beautiful campus, or active student life.
• LinkedIn is primarily used by current students as a networking tool to connect with alumni in careers and fields that interest them.

2) Be responsive: You’ve likely already seen how many students and student organizations want to engage with you on social media. Just take a look at who is tagging your university. Whether students are looking for a direct response to a question or sharing a view of your beautiful campus, quick and timely responses help build student satisfaction and let students know their thoughts are valued.

3) Maintain consistency: Students don’t just use social media during application and commencement season – they are using it multiple times a day year-round. Encourage student engagement by having a consistent social media voice and maintaining a consistent number of posts created, shared, or interacted with throughout the year.

An effective social strategy can help students feel like they’re in a room of 50, whether your student population is 5,000 or 50,000.

Eduardo Da Costa is a Project Strategy Intern at SimpsonScarborough. He is a fourth year Marketing student at the University of Florida and appreciates market research, binge-watching Friday Night Lights, and those 15-second food tutorial videos being shared around Facebook.