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SocialMediaIntroduction
SocialMediaOverview 1
GettingYourFeetWetWithSocialMedia 1
GoverningSocialMediaEfforts 2
CDCsTopLessonsLearnedfromUsingSocialMedia 3
DevelopingaSocialMediaStrategy 5
SocialMediaTools
ButtonsandBadges 8
ImageSharing 9
ContentSyndication 11
RSSFeeds 12
Podcasts 13
OnlineVideoSharing 15
Widgets 18
eCards 19
ElectronicGames 21
MobileHealth 22
Microblogs 25
Blogs 28
SocialNetworkingSites 32
VirtualWorlds 35
SocialMediaCampaignExample
20092010H1N1andSeasonalFluOutbreakCampaign 37
MoreSocialMediaResources 45
SocialMediaCommunicationsStrategyWorksheet 46
SocialMediaEvaluationWorksheet 49
References 52
Aguidetousingsocialmediatoimprovereachofhealthmessages,increase
accesstoyourcontent,furtherparticipationwithaudiencesandadvance
transparencytoimprovehealthcommunicationefforts.
August6,2010
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SOCIALMEDIAINTRODUCTION
SocialMediaOverview
Inthelastseveralyears,theuseofFacebook,YouTube,Twitter,andothersocialmediatoolsto
disseminatehealthmessageshasgrownsignificantly,andcontinuestotrendupward.Using
socialmediatoolshasbecomeaneffectivewaytoexpandreach,fosterengagement,and
increaseaccesstocredible,sciencebasedhealthmessages.Socialmediaandotheremerging
communicationtechnologiescanconnectmillionsofvoicesto:
Increasethetimelydisseminationandpotentialimpactofhealthandsafetyinformation.
Leverageaudiencenetworkstofacilitateinformationsharing.
Expandreachtoincludebroader,morediverseaudiences.
Personalizeandreinforcehealthmessagesthatcanbemoreeasilytailoredortargeted
toparticularaudiences.
Facilitateinteractivecommunication,connection,andpublicengagement.
Empowerpeopletomakesaferandhealthierdecisions.
Inotherwords,integratingsocialmediaintohealthcommunicationcampaignsandactivities
allowshealthcommunicatorstoleveragesocialdynamicsandnetworkstoencourage
participation,conversation,andcommunityallofwhichcanhelpspreadkeymessagesand
influencehealthdecisionmaking.Socialmediaalsohelpstoreachpeoplewhen,where,and
howtheywanttoreceivehealthmessages;itimprovestheavailabilityofcontentandmay
influencesatisfactionandtrustinthehealthmessagesdelivered.Likewise,tappingintopersonal
networksandpresentinginformationinmultipleformats,spaces,andsourceshelpstomake
messagesmorecredibleandeffective.The2009EdelmanTrustBarometerfoundthat60%of
informedpublicsaged25to64yearsneedtoseeamessagethreetofivetimesbeforethey
believetheinformationtobetrue. Inaddition,peoplealsoneedtoseethemessagesfromboth
expertsandpeers(Edelman,2009).
GettingYourFeetWetWithSocialMedia
Thereareavarietyofsocialmediatoolsthatcanbeutilizedaspartofanintegratedhealth
communicationsprogram.Toolsrangefromeasilydownloadableproducts,suchasbuttonsand
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GoverningSocialMediaEfforts
Itisimportanttoestablishstructure,policies,andleadershipatyourorganizationtomore
effectivelymanagesocialmedia. Atsomepointafteryoustartusingsocialmedia,itisagood
ideatoestablishboardsandcouncilstodevelopguidance,policies,standards,and
recommendationsaroundtheuseofsocialmediaatyourorganization.Theresourcesbelow
mayguideyouinestablishingyourownpolicies.
GovernanceResources:
GovernmentSocialMediasWeb2.0GovernancePoliciesandBestPractices
Wiki:http://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web20GovernancePoliciesandBestPractices
SocialMediaGovernance.comsOnlineDatabaseof
Policies:http://socialmediagovernance.com/policies.php
CDCsTopLessonsLearnedfromUsingSocialMedia
Overthelastfouryears,theCDCsocialmediateamhaslearnedanumberoflessonswewanted
tosharewithyou. Wehopetheselessonswillhelpothersindeveloping,implementingand
evaluatingstrongsocialmediaattheirorganizations.
1. MakeStrategicChoicesandUnderstandtheLevelofEffortBestrategicandfollowdemographicanduserdatatomakechoicesbasedonaudience,
communicationsobjectives,andkeymessages.Besuretoassessthelevelofeffortneeded
tomaintainthesechannelsandensureyouhavethenecessarytimeandefforttocommitto
yourefforts.Often,theresourcesneededtostartandmaintainsocialmediaprojectsare
differentthantraditionalcommunicationefforts.
2. GoWherethePeopleAreSocialmediacanhelpreachpeoplewheretheyaremillionsofpeopleusesocialmediaand
spendalotoftimeinthesespaceslearning,sharing,andinteracting.Thepopularityofkey
socialmediasitescanbeassessedbyreviewinguserstatisticsanddemographics.
Additionally,thereareseveralnichesocialnetworkingsitesthattargetspecificgroups,like
http://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web-2-0-Governance-Policies-and-Best-Practiceshttp://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web-2-0-Governance-Policies-and-Best-Practiceshttp://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web-2-0-Governance-Policies-and-Best-Practiceshttp://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web-2-0-Governance-Policies-and-Best-Practiceshttp://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web-2-0-Governance-Policies-and-Best-Practiceshttp://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web-2-0-Governance-Policies-and-Best-Practiceshttp://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web-2-0-Governance-Policies-and-Best-Practiceshttp://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web-2-0-Governance-Policies-and-Best-Practiceshttp://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web-2-0-Governance-Policies-and-Best-Practiceshttp://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web-2-0-Governance-Policies-and-Best-Practiceshttp://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web-2-0-Governance-Policies-and-Best-Practiceshttp://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web-2-0-Governance-Policies-and-Best-Practiceshttp://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web-2-0-Governance-Policies-and-Best-Practiceshttp://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web-2-0-Governance-Policies-and-Best-Practiceshttp://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web-2-0-Governance-Policies-and-Best-Practiceshttp://socialmediagovernance.com/policies.phphttp://socialmediagovernance.com/policies.phphttp://govsocmed.pbworks.com/Web-2-0-Governance-Policies-and-Best-Practices8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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moms,physicians,orracialandethnicgroups,orsitesthatfocusonaparticulartopiclike
travelorhealth.
3. AdoptLowRiskToolsFirstIfyouarestartingoutandfindingresistancetousingsocialmediaamongyour
communicationteamorstakeholders,itmaybehelpfultofirstadoptlowrisksolutionsand
laterbuildonyoursuccesses.Productssuchaspodcasts,videos,andwidgetsareeasily
downloadable,andcanbeaccessedfrompartnersitesandpostedonyourwebsite.
4. MakeSureMessagesAreSciencebasedAswithanyeffectivehealthcommunication,messagesdevelopedfordisseminationthrough
socialmediachannelsshouldbeaccurate,consistent,andsciencebased.
5. CreatePortableContentDevelop
portable
contentsuch
as
widgets
and
online
videosthat
can
easily
extend
reach
beyondyourwebsitetoprovidecredible,timely,andaccuratecontentforpartnersand
otherswhowanttohelpspreadyourhealthmessages.
6. FacilitateViralInformationSharingMakeiteasyforpeopletoshareyourmessagesandbecomehealthadvocates.Thiscanbe
accomplishedbyusingsocialmediasitessuchasFacebookandYouTubethatencourage
sharingamongusers,oryoucanusetoolswithsharingfeatures,likewidgetsoreCards.
7. EncourageParticipationSocialmediaallowsforthetailoringofmessagestohelpexpressempathyandacknowledge
concern,promoteaction,andlistentowhatpeoplearesayingabouthealthrelatedtopicsin
yourcommunity.Twowayconversationscanfostermeaningfulcommunicationwithyour
audiencesthatcanhelptofacilitaterelationships,sharing,andinteraction.
8. LeverageNetworksSocialmediaallowspeopletoeasilyestablishnetworksthattheycanaccessonaregular
basis.Forexample,FacebookreportstheaverageFacebookuserhas130friends,ora
networkof130peoplewithwhomtheycaneasilyshareinformation,andmaychooseto
shareyourhealthmessages(Facebook.2010).Bystrategicallyleveragingtheseestablished
networksyoucanfacilitateinformationsharingandinturn,expandthereachofyour
message.
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9. ProvideMultipleFormatsProvidingmessagesinmultipleformatsincreasesaccessibility,reinforcesmessages,and
givespeopledifferentwaystointeractwithyourcontentbasedontheirlevelof
engagementandaccesstomedia.
10.ConsiderMobilePhonesOverninetypercentofadultsinAmericasubscribetomobileservices.Therefore,mobile
technologiessuchastextmessagingandmobilewebsitesofferanopportunitytorapidly
reachalargepercentageofyouraudiencemembersnomatterwheretheyare.
11.SetRealisticGoalsSocialmediacanraiseawareness,increaseausersknowledgeofanissue,changeattitudes,
andpromptbehaviorchangeindynamic,personalized,andparticipatoryways.However,
like
traditional
communication,
social
media
alone
may
not
be
able
to
meet
all
of
your
communicationgoalsoraddressallofthetargetaudiencesneeds. Setyourgoals
accordingly.
12.LearnfromMetricsandEvaluateYourEffortsDigitalcommunicationsoffermanymetricsthatyoucanusetofocusandimproveyour
communicationsefforts.Metricscanhelpyoutoreportusage,monitortrends,andgauge
thesuccessofspecificpromotionsoroutreachefforts.Beyondsimplemetrics,socialmedia
effortscanalsobeevaluatedbymeasuringtheuseofinformation,engagement,and
participationofpeoplewithyourcontent,anditshealthimpact. Monitoringtrendsand
discussionsonsocialmedianetworkscanalsobeavaluablewaytobetterunderstand
currentinterest,knowledgelevels,andpotentialmisunderstandingsormythsaboutyour
healthtopic.
DevelopingaSocialMediaStrategy
Asocialmediacommunicationstrategyshouldbeonlyonepartofalargercommunication
effort,andsocialmedianeedstobeintegratedintooverallcommunicationplanning,activities
anddatacollection.Therefore,overarchingcommunicationgoalsshouldbeconsideredwhen
developingsocialmediaactivities.Aswithallmediaoutreach,thekeystoeffectivesocialmedia
outreachareidentifyingtargetaudience(s),determiningobjective(s),knowingoutlet(s)and
decidingontheamountofresources(timeandeffort)thatcanbeinvested.However,with
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socialmediamoreinformationcanbeobtainedthroughaparticularmediachanneltohelpbuild
yourstrategy.Forexample,withsocialmediayoucanlistentoconversationsinrealtime,and
identifyinfluencersandfans.Youcanbetterunderstandaudienceneedsinspecificsocialmedia
spacesandengageusersinnewways.
Havingclearcommunicationobjectiveswillhelpbuildyourstrategy.Forexample,youwill
probablyneeddifferentstrategiesforeachcampaign.Becausetheobjectivesforeachcampaign
aredifferent,thewayyouexchangeideas,collaboratewithpartners,orencouragebehavior
changewillalsobedifferent. Likewise,understandingyouraudience(s)willhelpyoudetermine
thechannelselectionandhowyouusespecificchannels. Peopleaccessinformationindifferent
ways,atdifferenttimesoftheday,andfordifferentreasons.Definingyouraudienceneeds
using
market
research,
metrics,
and
other
data
will
be
important
to
determining
the
channels
youwanttouse.Eachchannelisdifferentandhasdifferingengagement,content,and
communitynorms. Understandingthewaypeoplenaturallyuseorparticipateinsocialmedia
channelsisalsoveryhelpfulindeterminingyourstrategy.
Resources:
SocialMediaCommunicationsStrategyWorksheetonpage46.
"KnowingYourAudience&DoingMarketResearch"from
Webcontent.gov:http://www.usa.gov/webcontent/improving/evaluating/audience.shtml
PewInternetandAmericanLifeProject:http://www.pewinternet.org/
CDCeHealthDataBriefs:http://www.cdc.gov/HealthMarketing/ehm/databriefs/
http://www.usa.gov/webcontent/improving/evaluating/audience.shtmlhttp://www.usa.gov/webcontent/improving/evaluating/audience.shtmlhttp://www.pewinternet.org/http://www.pewinternet.org/http://www.cdc.gov/HealthMarketing/ehm/databriefs/http://www.cdc.gov/HealthMarketing/ehm/databriefs/http://www.pewinternet.org/http://www.usa.gov/webcontent/improving/evaluating/audience.shtml8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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SOCIALMEDIATOOLS
CDCusessocialmediatoprovideuserswithaccesstocredible,sciencebasedhealth
informationwhen,where,andhowuserswantit.Avarietyofsocialmediatoolsareusedto
reinforceandpersonalizemessages,reachnewaudiences,andbuildacommunication
infrastructurebasedonopeninformationexchange.Therearethreekeyattributesofsocial
mediachannelsthatarebelievedtomakethemhighlyeffectiveashealthcommunicationtools:
Personalizationcontenttailoredtoindividualneeds.
Presentationtimelyandrelevantcontentaccessibleinmultipleformatsandcontexts.
Participationpartnersandthepublicwhocontributecontentinmeaningfulways.
Additionally,manysocialmediachannelsfacilitatesocialengagement,viralsharingof
information,andtrust.
Thereareanumberofsocialmediatoolsthatyoucanutilizeinyourhealthcommunications
activitiesmorethanwhatislistedhere,infact.Whilewedidnotcovereverysocialmediatool
available,thissectionofthetoolkitshouldprovideyouwithanunderstandingofawiderangeof
socialmediatoolsCDCandothersinpublichealthhavesuccessfullyusedinemergency
responseefforts,majorcampaigns,andotherhealthcommunication,promotionandmedia
efforts.
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ButtonsandBadges
WhatareButtonsandBadges?
Buttonsaregraphicelementsthat
usuallyincludeanimage,ashort
calltoactionmessage,andalink
formoreinformation.Theyare
oftencreatedtobeshared,and
includeHTMLcodethatallows
themtobepostedonawebsite.
Badgesarealsosmallgraphic
imagesthatincludeamessageand
linktoawebpage.However,
badgesareoftenpostedonan
individual'ssocialnetworkprofile
orpersonalblogtoshowsupportfororaffiliationwithacauseor
issue,andmayincludemessages
thatshowapersonalactionwas
taken(e.g."Igottested."instead
of"Gettested.")(Centersfor
DiseaseControlandPrevention,
2010a).
CDChasalargegalleryofbuttonsandbadges,small
webgraphicsorimages,whichcanbeutilizedby
partnerstosharehealthinformationabout
campaignsandcausesonline.Gotoourgallery
whichincludesgraphicsonanumberofhealth
topics,includingspecificcampaignsandnational
publichealthactivities. Toaddabuttonorbadgeto
yourwebsite,socialnetworkingprofileorblog,
simplycopyandpastethecodeassignedtothe
imageinthegallery.
Buttonsandbadgescanhelppromoteactivitiesand
increaseawarenessabouthealthtopics,andcanbe
producedfairlyeasilyandwithlittleresources.CDCprovidesguidanceandbestpractices
forcreatingbuttonsandbadges. (ThelinkislistedinResourcesectionbelow.)
SixSimpleTipstoCreatingGreatCampaignImages:
1. Creategraphicsinseveralsizes,includingstandardadsizes,andsizesdevelopedspecifically
foryourwebpages.
2. Writeasimple,yetcatchy,healthmessagethatstandsalone.
3. Usecolorfulandattractiveimagesordesignsthatcanbeviewedonanumberofsitesandin
anumberofsizes.
4. BesuretoincludeaURLontheimageandalinkbacktoyourwebsite.
5. Promotetheuseoftheimagesandreviewmetricstolearnmoreabouttheeffectivenessof
yourefforts.
6. ReviewtheCDCsGuidelinesandBestPracticesforDevelopingButtonsandBadgeslistedin
theresourcesectionbelowformoretips.
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Resources: CDCsButtonandBadge
Gallery: http://www.cdc.gov/socialmedia/tools/buttonsgallery.html
CDCsButtonandBadgeOverviewPage:http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/ButtonsBadges.html
CDCsGuidelinesandBestPracticesforDevelopingButtonsandBadges:http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/buttonbadge.pdf.
ImageSharing
What
is
Image
Sharing?
Imagesharinginvolvesposting
images(photos,artwork,etc.)to
publicwebsiteswheretheycan
beviewed,tagged,categorized,
andevenusedbyothers.
(CentersforDiseaseControland
Prevention,2010b).
Imagesharingprovidesvaluetohealth
communicationactivitiesbyprovidingpublichealth
imagesthatuserscaneasilyuseonwebsites,blogsor
othersocialmediasites. Ascontentcreationcontinuestoimproveonsocialmediachannelsand
ontheinternetasawhole,theneedforfreshgraphicsandengagingcontentalsoincreases.
Postingimagespeoplecaneasilysharehelpsengagepeopleandallowsforgreateraccessto
healthcontent.
Thereareseveralonlinecommunitiesthat
provideimagesharingservices. For
instance,FlickrandShutterflyprovidea
platformforpostingimagesthatcanbe
organizedaroundhealthtopics. CDC
sharesimagesonbothFlickrandthePublic
HealthImageLibrary(PHIL),whichoffers
anorganized,universalgatewaytoCDC
pictures.Thesecanbeusedforreference,
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http://www.cdc.gov/socialmedia/tools/buttonsgallery.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/ButtonsBadges.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/buttonbadge.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/buttonbadge.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/ButtonsBadges.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/socialmedia/tools/buttonsgallery.html8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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ContentSyndicationWhatisContentSyndication?
ContentSyndicationisa
technicalapplicationthat
enablespartnerorganizationsto
displaycurrentCDChealthand
safetycontentandallows
visitorstothepublichealth
partnerswebsiteaccesstoCDC
contentwithoutleavingthe
partnerwebsite.Thistool,
providedbyCDC,allowsthe
communicationand
managementofthelatest
sciencebasedinformation
online.(CentersforDisease
Control
and
Prevention,
2010b).
Prevention,2010c).
CDCsyndicatesawiderangeofhealthrelatedtopics
ofcontentonCDC.gov,includingseasonalflu,chronic
disease,andemergencypreparednessinformation.
ManytopicwebpagesarealsoavailableinSpanish.
Hundredsofpartnersalreadyutilizecontent
syndicationtoprovideaccuratewebcontentthatisautomaticallyupdatedontheirwebsites
whenitisupdatedonCDC.gov. ContentSyndicationisaneasyandcostfreewayforpublic
healthpartnerstoprovidecredible,timely,andsciencebasedhealthinformationtotheir
audiences. PartnerscanselfregistertoquicklysearchavailablecontenttopicsatCDC.gov,
selectfromtheonlinecatalog,anddownloadsyndicationcode.
Inadditiontoimprovedreachandaccesstohealthinformation,contentsyndicationalsohelps
enablecitizenstocreateinnovativehealthapplicationsbyprovidingeasieraccessto
governmenttools,dataandinformation.CDCbegancontentsyndicationinNovember2007,and
hasfoundittobeasuccessfulwaytoprovidevitalgovernmentinformationtothepublicand
collaboratewithvaluablepublichealthpartners.
Resources:
CDCsContentSyndicationRegistrationSystem:http://tools.cdc.gov/register/
CDCsListingofSyndicationTopics:http://tools.cdc.gov/register/pages.aspx
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RSSFeedsWhatisanRSSFeed?
RSSstandsforReallySimple
Syndication. RSSfeedsprovide
aneasywaytostayupdatedon
informationthatisimportantto
youandhelpsreducethetimeit
takestobrowseorsearchfor
newinformationonwebsites.
RSSfeedsprovideupdatednews
headlines,blogpostsorselected
Websitecontent.(Centersfor
DiseaseControlandPrevention,
2010d).
CDCRSSfeedsenablepartnersto
personalizethehealthinformation
theyreceivebysubscribingtothe
topicsofgreatestinteresttothem.Publichealth
partnersalsohavetheoptionofpostingthefeedson
theirwebsitestoallowtheirusersaccesstoupto
dateCDCinformation.Morethan25uniqueRSS
feedsareavailablefromCDC,includingSpanish
languagefeeds.
Toutilizethiscontent,youwillneedanRSSenabledbrowseroranRSSnewsreaderto
subscribe. Thesetoolshelpyouviewthecontentandwillletyouknowwhenthereisnew
content. YoucanalsousecontentfromRSSfeedsbyaddingafeedtoyourwebsiteorsocial
mediaspace. AddinganRSSfeedtoapageisarapid,lowcostwaytoprovideuptodatehealth
newstoyourviewers.Likewise,creatinganRSSfeedofyourcontentisnotverydifficult
technically,anditcanbealowriskwaytostartworkinginsocialmedia.
Resources:
SubscribetoaCDCRSSFeed: http://www2c.cdc.gov/podcasts/rss.asp
CDCsOverviewof RSSFeeds
Page: http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/RSS.html
AIDS.govsPuttingtheSimpleinRealSimpleSyndication(RSS
Feeds):http://blog.aids.gov/2008/01/rssfeed.html
WebContent.govsRSSFeeds
Page:
http://www.usa.gov/webcontent/technology/rss.shtml
WhyRSS.comsReallySimpleGuidetoRSS:http://www.whyrss.com/
CommonCraft'sRSSinPlainEnglish providesabriefoverviewofRSS
feeds:http://www.commoncraft.com/rss_plain_english
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http://www2c.cdc.gov/podcasts/rss.asphttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/RSS.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/RSS.htmlhttp://blog.aids.gov/2008/01/rss-feed.htmlhttp://blog.aids.gov/2008/01/rss-feed.htmlhttp://blog.aids.gov/2008/01/rss-feed.htmlhttp://www.usa.gov/webcontent/technology/rss.shtmlhttp://www.whyrss.com/http://www.commoncraft.com/rss_plain_englishhttp://www.commoncraft.com/rss_plain_englishhttp://www.whyrss.com/http://www.usa.gov/webcontent/technology/rss.shtmlhttp://blog.aids.gov/2008/01/rss-feed.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/RSS.htmlhttp://www2c.cdc.gov/podcasts/rss.asp8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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Podcasts
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WhatisaPodcast?
Apodcastisadigitalaudioor
videofilethatcanbesavedfor
playbackonaportablemedia
deviceorcomputer.Theterm
podcastreferstoboththe
actualcontentofthemediafile
andthemethodbywhichthe
contentissyndicated.(Centers
forDiseaseControland
Prevention,2010e).
Podcastshelptodeliverinformationin
aconvenientandenjoyableformat,
andcanbeplayedonthegofromaniPod,mobile
device,orotherportableplayer.Podcastscanalso
beviewedonwebsites.CDCprovidespodcaststo
increaseaccesstohealthmessagesanddeliver
healthinformationinaconvenientformat.
PartnershaveaccesstoCDCsextensivelibraryofpodcaststhatincludestopicsdirectedto
clinicians,healthcareworkers,publichealthpractitionersandthegeneralpublic.Partnerscan
easilydownloadpodcastsfromCDC.gov,postpodcaststotheirwebpage,providelinkstothe
CDCpodcastpagefromtheirwebsiteandsubscribetopodcastsseries.Partnerscanalsocreate
theirownpodcastsrelatively
easilyandwithoutmuch
investmentintechnical
resources.
WhoUsesPodcasts?Podcastusecontinuesto
increaseasmoreandmore
peopleusedeviceswith
digitalaudioplaying
capability.AccordingtoPew
InternetandAmericanLife
Project,almost20%ofall
web
users
in
the
United
Statessaidtheyhad
downloadedapodcastin
2008(Madden&Jones,
2008).
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ExamplesofHealthRelatedPodcasts
Anumberofhealthcareorganizationsprovidepodcasts,including:
TheWorldHealthOrganizationprovidespublichealthinformationandrelatednewsfrom
aroundtheworld:http://www.who.int/mediacentre/multimedia/podcasts/en/
SeattleChildrensHospitalspodcastonfluvaccinationsfor
children:http://www.seattlechildrens.org/videos/fluvaccinationsforchildren/
PKIDsalsoprovidesanumberofpodcastsforParentsofKidswithInfectious
Diseases:http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id218493791
CDCprovideshundredsofpodcasts,includinganumberonavarietyofhealthandsafety
topics:http://www2c.cdc.gov/podcasts/browse.asp
EightBestPracticesforPodcastProduction
1. Definethepurpose. Identifythetargetaudience,themainhealthmessagesandcommunicationgoalpriortodevelopingcontent.
2. Createaudiencerelevantcontent.Designingapodcastwithaparticularaudienceinmindrequirescarefulconsiderationofcontent.Podcastsdesignedtoreachhealthprofessionals
maycontainmedicalterminologywhereasthoseforthegeneralpublicshouldmakeuseof
commontermssuchaschickenpoxinsteadofvaricella. Thisisparticularlyimportantwith
podcasts,sincelistenersorviewersmayhavedownloadedthepodcastforlisteningor
viewingonapersonaldeviceandnotabletoaccesstheinternetoradictionary.
3. Considerlength.Thereisnohardandfastrulethatdictatestherecommendedlengthofapodcast.Itishelpfultoconsiderthecommunicationgoalsandthetargetaudience.Some
messagescanbeeffectivelycommunicatedinfiveortenminuteswhileothertopicsmay
requirealongerpodcasttoexplainadequately.
4. Developareleasescheduleandpostfrequently.Podcaststhatarepartofaserieswithfrequentreleaseshaveabroaderlistenerbase.
5. Utilizecrossmarketing.Toincreaseexposureforpodcastepisodesorseries,leverageavarietyofexistingandno orlowcostchannels.Externalpodcastdirectoriesallowpodcast
registration,anduserscansearchbykeywordandcategory.Consideraddingabuttonon
otherwebpagesdirectingpeopletothePodcastURL.
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/multimedia/podcasts/en/http://www.who.int/mediacentre/multimedia/podcasts/en/http://www.seattlechildrens.org/videos/flu-vaccinations-for-children/http://www.seattlechildrens.org/videos/flu-vaccinations-for-children/http://www.seattlechildrens.org/videos/flu-vaccinations-for-children/http://www.seattlechildrens.org/videos/flu-vaccinations-for-children/http://www.seattlechildrens.org/videos/flu-vaccinations-for-children/http://www.seattlechildrens.org/videos/flu-vaccinations-for-children/http://www.seattlechildrens.org/videos/flu-vaccinations-for-children/http://www.seattlechildrens.org/videos/flu-vaccinations-for-children/http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id218493791http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id218493791http://www2c.cdc.gov/podcasts/browse.asphttp://www2c.cdc.gov/podcasts/browse.asphttp://www2c.cdc.gov/podcasts/browse.asphttp://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id218493791http://www.seattlechildrens.org/videos/flu-vaccinations-for-children/http://www.who.int/mediacentre/multimedia/podcasts/en/8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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6. Provideadditionalinformation. DirectthelistenertomoreinformationorresourcesrelatedtothetopicbyfullyarticulatingallURLsmentionedinthepodcast.Thiswillbe
usefulformanyusers,butkeepinmindthatotherpeoplemaylistentopodcastswhilethey
areawayfromacomputer,orareunabletowrite,sothecontentshouldstandalone
withoutadditionalinformation.
7. Connectwiththeaudience.Carefulselectionofahostensuresaconnectionwiththeaudience.OftenaQ&Aformatwillhelplistenerstobetterunderstandthetopicby
providingnaturalbreaksduringthediscussion.
8. Evaluateyourpodcastingactivities. Forexample,youcancollectbasicinformationonhowmanytimeseachpodcastisdownloadedorplayed.Additionally,ifusercommentsand
ratingsareapartofthepodcastingsystem,youcantrackthemtoguidefuturepodcast
development.
PodcastingResources:
ToreviewCDCspodcastlibraryorsubscribe,please
seehttp://www2c.cdc.gov/podcasts
CDCsOverviewofPodcasts
Page: http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/Podcasts.html.
PodcastFAQawebsitecommittedtoprovidingeverythingyouneedtoknowabout
podcasting,hasawealthofinformationonpodcasting:http://www.podcastfaq.com/
WebContent.govsPodcast
Page:http://www.usa.gov/webcontent/technology/podcasting.shtml
15
OnlineVideoSharingWhatisOnlineVideoSharing?
Onlinevideosharingcanbeused
by
partners
to
share
tailored
healthcommunicationmessages.
Onlinevideosites,suchas
YouTube,MSNandYahoohave
emergedaspopularandpowerful
videosharingsites.(Centersfor
DiseaseControlandPrevention,
2010f)
http://www2c.cdc.gov/podcastshttp://www2c.cdc.gov/podcastshttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/Podcasts.htmlhttp://www.podcastfaq.com/http://www.usa.gov/webcontent/technology/podcasting.shtmlhttp://www.usa.gov/webcontent/technology/podcasting.shtmlhttp://www.podcastfaq.com/http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/Podcasts.htmlhttp://www2c.cdc.gov/podcasts8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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Onlinevideosharingcanbeagreatwaytoexchangeinformation,sharepersonalstories,and
engageaudiences.Becauseanyonewithinternetaccesscanupload,view,share,andcomment
onvideofootage,videosharingisbecomingimmenselypopular.Usingvideosharingsiteslike
YouTubeorGoogleVideotodisseminatetailoredhealtheducationandhealthcommunication
messageshelpsprovideanengagingexperienceforconsumerstoviewandsharehealthand
safetyinformation.Withpeoplewatchingover100millionclipsadayonYouTubealone,
(Hurley,2009)theseonlinevideosourcescanbeapowerfulmechanismtoassistyouin
distributingcurrentandaccuratescienceandhealthmessages(CentersforDiseaseControland
Prevention,2010g).
CDCsofficialYouTubechannel,CDCStreamingHealth,containsCDCproducedvideosona
variety
of
health
topics.
With
an
internet
connection,
partners
can
upload,
view,
share
and
commentonvideofootage.PartnerscanalsoeasilyuploadanumberofCDCproducedvideosto
theirwebsitesorothersocialmediaspaces,likeablogorFacebookpage. Similarly,youcan
easilycreateachannelonavideosharingsitetodisseminatevideoscreatedbyyour
organization.
WhoUsesVideosharingSites?
Overall,theuseofvideosharingsiteshasnearlydoubledfrom20062009.Amongsocialmedia
tools,watchingonlinevideosismoreprevalentthantheuseofsocialnetworkingsites.Users
tendtobeyoungadultsinthe1829agegroup.However,therehavebeensteadyincreases
overthelastyearinviewingamonginternetusersinthe3049andover50agegroupsaswell
(Madden,2009).YouTubeisthemostpopularvideosharingsite,withmorethan103.8million
uniquemonthlyvisitorsinMay2010,upfrom81.4millioninMay2009(Siteanalytics,2010).
ExamplesofHealthrelatedVideosharingSites
CDCTVVideoSharingsite:www.cdc.gov/CDCTV
CDCYouTubeChannel:http://www.youtube.com/CDCstreaminghealth
ChildrensHospitalofPhiladelphia: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CrvznJOt2I
ImmunizationActionCoalition: http://www.youtube.com/user/ImmunizationAction
JuvenileDiabetesFoundation:http://www.youtube.com/user/jdrfonline
eHowHealth:http://www.youtube.com/user/ehowhealth
http://www.cdc.gov/CDCTVhttp://www.youtube.com/CDCstreaminghealthhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CrvznJOt2Ihttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CrvznJOt2Ihttp://www.youtube.com/user/ImmunizationActionhttp://www.youtube.com/user/ImmunizationActionhttp://www.youtube.com/user/jdrfonlinehttp://www.youtube.com/user/jdrfonlinehttp://www.youtube.com/user/ehowhealthhttp://www.youtube.com/user/ehowhealthhttp://www.youtube.com/user/ehowhealthhttp://www.youtube.com/user/jdrfonlinehttp://www.youtube.com/user/ImmunizationActionhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CrvznJOt2Ihttp://www.youtube.com/CDCstreaminghealthhttp://www.cdc.gov/CDCTV8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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SixBestPracticesforOnlineVideoProduction
1. Preparecontentthatisappropriateforyourtargetaudience.Contentshouldbeengaging,visuallypleasing,andpresentedatalevelappropriateforthetargetaudience.Forinstance,
theuseofjargon,technicalinformation,ordetailedchartsandgraphsshouldbeavoided.
Simple,easytofollowstorieswithasinglemessageorcalltoactionaremorelikelyto
becomeviral,atermreferringtowhenviewersvoluntarilysharelinksorembedvideoson
theirownwebsites,blogs,andsocialnetworkingprofiles.
2. Keepthevideosshort.Checkthetechnicalrequirementsforthesitebeingutilizedforvideoposting.Themajorityofvideosharingsiteswillhavetimelimitsonthelengthofthevideo.
CDCdatashowthatmanyusersstartdroppingoffafterthreeminutes.
3.
Create
a
promotional
plan.
List
the
video
sharing
site(s)
where
you
plan
to
post
the
video,
partnerstohelpyoudisseminateit,thewebpagesonyoursitewherethevideowillbe
embedded,andothersocialspaceslikeMySpace,FacebookorTwitterwhereyoucan
postandpromoteit.
4. Choosemusicappropriately.Musicyouuseshouldbepurposefulandthoughtful,andcomplementtheintendedmessage.Unlessyouplantopayformusic,chooseselectionsthat
arecopyrightfree.
5. IncludeaURLformoreinformation.IncludeaspecificURLattheendofthevideotodirecttheusertoadditionalinformationonthetopic.
6. Evaluate.Aswithallcommunicationsactivities,evaluationisimportant. Dependingonthesiteutilizedforvideoposting,metricsmaybeprovidedtoassistwiththeevaluation. For
instance,youmaybeabletomeasureortrack:
Thenumberoftimeseachvideohasbeenviewed
Viewerratingsandcomments
Channelsubscribers
Points
in
the
video
when
viewership
drops
off
VideoSharingResources:
YouTube http://www.youtube.com/
GoogleVideo http://video.google.com/
Yahoo!video http://video.yahoo.com/
http://www.youtube.com/http://www.youtube.com/http://video.google.com/http://video.google.com/http://video.yahoo.com/http://video.yahoo.com/http://video.yahoo.com/http://video.google.com/http://www.youtube.com/8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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FormoreinformationononlinevideoatCDC,please
see:http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/OnlineVideo.html
SeeCDCsYouTubeandOnlineVideoGuidelinesandBestPracticeforadditional
information:http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/onlinevideo.pdf
WidgetsWhatisaWidget?
Awidgetisanapplicationthatcan
beutilizedbypartnerstodisplay
featuredhealthcontentdirectly
ontheirdesktop,websiteorsocial
mediasite. Widgetscanalso
generallybesharedwithfriends.
(CentersforDiseaseControland
Prevention,2010g).
MadepopularbyGoogle,Facebook,
andproviderssuchasWidgetbox,
widgetsprovideinteractive
informationandfreshcontentwith
minimalusermaintenance.The
contentinawidgetcanbeupdated
automatically,ensuringaccesstoupto
dateandcrediblehealthandsafetycontent.CDCprovidesanumberofwidgets(inbothEnglish
andSpanish)onavarietyofhealthtopics,includingH1N1andseasonalflu,smokingand
tobaccouse,anadultBMIcalculator,andeverydayhealthtips.Theseandmanyotherwidgets
caneasilybeaddedtopartnerpagesorsocialmediasitestoprovideaninteractiveexperience,
freshcontent,andengagementwithimportanthealthtopics. ToaddaCDCwidgettoyoursite,
locateawidgetatwww.cdc.gov/widgetsandclickon"Share."Anewscreenwilldisplaythehtml
codeforthatparticularwidget.Simplycutandpastethehtmlcodeintoyourwebpage.
WhoUsesWidgets?
AccordingtoanOctober
2008Razorfishreport,55%of
connectedconsumers (orthose
whoreportusing abroadband
connectiontotheinternetandthe
useofdigitalmedia)addwidgetson
theirdesktops,and62%usethemonsitessuchasFacebookandiGoogle.
18
http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/OnlineVideo.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/OnlineVideo.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/onlinevideo.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/onlinevideo.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/widgetshttp://www.razorfish.com/http://www.razorfish.com/http://www.cdc.gov/widgetshttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/onlinevideo.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/OnlineVideo.html8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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HowDoIStartDevelopingaWidget?
Thereareprogramsonlinethatallowanyonetocreateawidget.However,ifyouwanta
customizedone,youwillmostlikelyneedtohiresomeonewithspecifictechnical,usability,and
designskillstodevelopit.
ExamplesofHealthrelatedWidgets
CDC.gov:http://www.cdc.gov/widgets/
Healthfinder.gov:http://www.healthfinder.gov/widgets/
NIH.gov:http://www.nih.gov/widgets.htm
3DPregnancy.comsBaby&PregnancyCountdown
Ticker:http://3dpregnancy.parentsconnect.com/widget/
GetYourselfTestedLocatorWidget:
http://www.itsyoursexlife.com/gytweek?utm_source=gytnow
WidgetResources
CDCsWidgetsOverviewPage:http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/Widgets.html
eCards
WhatisaneCard?
eCardsareelectronicgreeting
cardsthataresenttopeoples
emailaccounts.CDCdeveloped
HealtheCardstoencourage
healthybehaviorby
communicatingprograms,
productsandinformationto
individuals.(CentersforDisease
ControlandPrevention,2010e).
eCardsareaneffectiveandinexpensivewaytoreach
individualswithpersonalizedandtargetedhealth
information.PeoplecanuseeCardstosenda
personalmessageaswellashealthmessagestotheir
friendsandfamily.AneCardoftenopenswitha
colorfulgreeting,andincludesamessagethat
encourageshealthyliving,promotessafeactivities,orcelebratesahealth andsafetyrelated
event.
CDCprovidesalargecollectionofHealtheCardswithmorethan200cardsonawiderangeof
healthtopics.eCardscanbedirectedtoclinicians,healthcareworkers,publichealth
practitionersandthegeneralpublic.PartnerscanutilizeCDCseCardstosendpersonalhealth
19
http://www.cdc.gov/widgets/http://www.healthfinder.gov/widgets/http://www.nih.gov/widgets.htmhttp://3dpregnancy.parentsconnect.com/widget/http://www.itsyoursexlife.com/gyt-week?utm_source=gytnowhttp://www.itsyoursexlife.com/gyt-week?utm_source=gytnowhttp://www.itsyoursexlife.com/gyt-week?utm_source=gytnowhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/Widgets.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/Widgets.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/Widgets.htmlhttp://www.itsyoursexlife.com/gyt-week?utm_source=gytnowhttp://3dpregnancy.parentsconnect.com/widget/http://www.nih.gov/widgets.htmhttp://www.healthfinder.gov/widgets/http://www.cdc.gov/widgets/8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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Americansofallages.AccordingtotheGreetingCardAssociation,an
xamplesofHealthrelatedeCards
v/eCards/
messagestotheiraudiences.Partnersalsohavetheoptiontopostthumbnailimagesandlinks
toCDCeCardsontheirwebsites,connectingtheiruserstotheCDCeCardapplicationwhere
individualscanpersonalizeandsendcardstotheirfriends,familyandcoworkers.
WhoUseseCards?
Cardsarepopularwithe
estimated500millionecardsaresenteachyearworldwide(GreetingCardAssociation,2010).
E
CDC.gov:http://www.cdc.go
er.gov/ecards/DisplayCard.aspx?CardID=20 Healthfinder.gov:http://www.healthfind
TobaccoFreeCalifornia:http://www.tobaccofreeca.com/ecards.html
InSpotsSTDNotification
eCards:http://www.inspot.org/TellThem/tabid/58/language/enUS/Default.aspx
ixTipsforDevelopingeCards
ythetargetaudience,thekeyhealthmessages,and
nganeCardwithaparticularaudiencein
formoreinformation.IncludeaspecificURLinsidetheeCardtodirectthe
ort
avarietyofexisting
dingonyour
rdhasbeensentandviewed.
S
1. Definethepurpose. Identifcommunicationgoalspriortodevelopingcontent.
2. Createcontentrelevanttoyouraudience. Designimindrequirescarefulconsiderationofcontent.Therearetwoaudiencestoconsiderwhen
developingeCardsthesenderandtherecipient.eCardsshouldcontainmessagingand
imagesconsideredappropriateforsendingandreceivingbyfriends,familymembers,or
colleagues.
3. IncludeURLrecipienttoadditionalinformationonthetopic.Oncelinksaredetermined,developash
textdescriptionthatisacalltoactionforthehyperlinkedtext.
4. Utilizecrossmarketing.ToincreaseexposureforneweCards,leverageandnocostchannels,includingyourwebsiteandothersocialmediachannels.
5. Evaluate.Aswithallcommunicationsactivities,evaluationisimportant. Depenwebanalyticssoftware,metricsmaybeavailabletoassistwiththeevaluation. Forinstance,
youmaybeabletomeasureortrack:
ThenumberoftimeseacheCa
http://www.cdc.gov/eCards/http://www.healthfinder.gov/ecards/DisplayCard.aspx?CardID=20http://www.inspot.org/TellThem/tabid/58/language/en-US/Default.aspxhttp://www.inspot.org/TellThem/tabid/58/language/en-US/Default.aspxhttp://www.healthfinder.gov/ecards/DisplayCard.aspx?CardID=20http://www.cdc.gov/eCards/8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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TheThenumnumberberofofclickthrouclickthrougghhssfromfromthetheeCardeCardtotoyouryourwebsite.website.66.. ReviewReviewthetheCDCsCDCsGuideliGuidelinneessandandBestBestPrPraaccttiicecessforforDDeevelopivelopingngeCeCardsardslistedlistedininthethereresousourrccee
ssectionectionbelobelowwforformoremoretitips.ps.
21
eCardeCardResources:Resources: CDCsCDCsHealHealththeeCards:Cards:
http://www2c.cdc.gov/http://www2c.cdc.gov/ecaecards/rds/
CDCseCardsOverviewPage:http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/eCards.html
CDCsGuidelinesandBestPracticesforDevelopingeCards:http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/ecards.pdf
WhatareeGames?
Electronicgames,oreGames,are
interactivegamesthatareplayed
throughanelectronicapplication
suchastheInternet,avideo
gameconsole,oramobilephone.
CentersforDiseaseControland
Prevention,Prevention,(2009h).(2009h).
ElectronicGames
eGamescanreachnewaudiences
withpertinentandtargeted
healthmessages.Infact,eGames
havebeenshowntoinfluencepositivehealthrelated
changesinavarietyoftargetaudiencesandfora
numberofhealthissues(Baranowski,Buday,
Thompson&Baranowski,2008).
HowDoIStartDevelopinganeGame?Generally,eGamestakesignificantskillandresourcestodevelop.Ifyouchoosetodevelopan
eGame,thereareanumberofgroupsandorganizationsthatspecializeingamesforhealthor
seriousgames.
WhoUseseGames?TwothirdsofAmericanhouseholdsplaycomputerorvideogames,accordingtothe
EntertainmentSoftwareAssociation. AlmostallteensplayeGamesandtheaveragegame
playersagein2010is34yearsofage(26%ofgamersareover50yearsofagein2010). More
menplaygames,butwomenarecatchingup.(EntertainmentSoftwareAssociation,2010)
http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/ecards.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/ecards.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/ecards.pdf8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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ExamplesofHealthrelatedeGames:
UnicefsVoicesforYouth
ExamplesofHealthrelatedeGames:
UnicefsVoicesforYouth
22
voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlvoy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlgame:http://www.unicef.org/game:http://www.unicef.org/
mes.com/ HumanaGamesforHealth:http://www.humanaga
HopeLabsRemissionGame:http://www.remission.net/site/game/
Playnormous.com:http://www.playnormous.com/
eGamesResources:
CDCseGamesPage:http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/eGames.html.
CDCsBamGameRoom:http://www.bam.gov/site_games.html
CDCseGamesCaseStudy:ReMission
Podcast:http://www2c.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574
GamesforHealth:http://www.gamesforhealth.org/
EntertainmentSoftwareAssociationsEssentialFactsabouttheComputerandVideo
GameIndustry:http://www.theesa.com/facts/pdfs/ESA_Essential_Facts_2010.PDF
MobileHealthWhatisMobileHealth?
mHealthormobilehealthisa
termusedtodescribethepractice
ofusingmobiletechnologies
mobilephones,textmessaging
services,orapplicationsto
supportpublichealthand
medimedicine.cine.
Mobileapplicationsofferremarkableopportunitiesforimprovingthehealth,safety,and
preparedness
of
people
in
the
U.S.
and
around
the
world.
Because
of
its
portability,
affordability,andavailability,thepotentialofmobiletechnologiesforsharinghealthinformation
andcollectingdisease/healthdatarepresentsatremendousopportunity(CentersforDisease
ControlandPrevention,2010i).Mobiletechnologies,particularlytextmessaging,arequickly
becomingavitaltoolforthedeliveryofhealthinformationandengaginguserstoimprovetheir
health.Recentresearchindicatesthatinterventionsdeliveredbytextmessageshavepositive
http://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.humanagames.com/http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/eGames.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/eGames.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/eGames.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/eGames.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/eGames.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/eGames.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/eGames.htmlhttp://www.bam.gov/site_games.htmlhttp://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www.gamesforhealth.org/http://www.gamesforhealth.org/http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10574http://www.bam.gov/site_games.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/eGames.htmlhttp://www.humanagames.com/http://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/mobile/smsdirect.htm?s_cid=h1n1Flu_outbre8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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to
to
einformation.
g
characterlimit,itisacceptable
gofthemessage.
alinformation.Includeyourorganizationnameinthetextso
berand/orURLtoamobilewebsite.Linkstotraditional
luationcanbeaccomplishedwithsurveysandmetricsreviews.
enevaluatingtextmessagingactivities,there
taaboutusers:age,sex,geographiclocation.
program.
2. Makemessagesengaging. Writerelevant,timely,clear,andactionablemessages. Trybegineachmessagewithaninterestingfactorquestionsothatuserswillbemorelikely
openthetextmessagetoreadtherestofth
3. Makecontentreadable.Allcontentshouldbewrittenatnohigherthanan8thgradereadinlevel.
4. Useabbreviationssparingly.Becausetextmessageshaveatouseabbreviations,butonlywhentheyareeasilyunderstoodanddonotchangethe
meanin
5. LimitLatincharacters.PleasenotethatnonLatinoraccentedlettersdonotalwayswork,dependingonthemobilecarrier.
6. Provideaccesstoadditionusers
know
who
is
sending
the
message.
Include
a
way
for
users
to
follow
up
or
respond
tothemessage,suchasaphonenum
websitesshouldbeavoided.Allphonenumbersshouldbeformattedsotheusercanclick
tocallthenumberautomaticallyfromtheircellphone.AllURLsshouldincludethehttp://
asnotallphonesworkwithoutthis.
7. Includeoptoutoptions.Textmessagesmayalsoincludeinformationonhowtooptoutofthetextmessagingprogram.Thesecharactersalsoneedtobefiguredintothemaximum
lengthof160characters.
8. Promoteyourtextmessagingefforts.Createapromotionplanthatincludespromotingonmobilesites,socialmedia,andotherspaces.
9. Evaluateyourefforts. EvaStandardsurveymessagetestingcanlookatquality,clarity,thestrengthofthemessage,as
wellastheeffectivenessofthemessage. Wh
aremanywaystoevaluatetheeffort:
Collectbasicmetricsonhowmanyusersaresignedupfortheprogramandhowmany
userstakepartininteractivemessagingefforts.
Ifpossible,collectdemographicda
Surveyuserstogatherinformationonwhattypesofmessagestheyprefer,anduse
informationtoshapemessagesforyourtextmessaging
Whenpossible,usesurveys(viatextmessagingorbysendinguserstoawebsurvey)to
evaluatechangesinknowledge,attitude,andbehavior.
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MobileResources CDCsTextMessagingMobileResources CDCsTextMessaging
Guidance:http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdfGuidance:http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdf CTIATheWirelessAssociation:http://www.ctia.org/aboutCTIA/
ingAssociation:http://mmaglobal.com/main MobileMarket ttp://mobihealthnews.com/ MobileHealthNews:h
FierceMobileHealthcare http://www.fiercemobilehealthcare.com/ Weeklynewslettercareenvironment.
andInformation:
AccesstoDataandInformation.aspx
thatprovidesthelatestnewsontherapidlyevolvingmobilehealth
PewInternet&AmericanLifeProjectsMobileAccesstoDatahttp://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2008/Mobile
Microblogs
25
WhatisaMicroblog?
Microbloggingallowsusersto
postbrieftextupdatestoa
websitethataggregatesthese
messagesforviewingbyfriends
orthepublic.Thesemessages
canbesubmittedbyavarietyof
means,includingtextmessages,
mobilewebsites,orthewebsite
hostingthemicroblog.While
severalmicrobloggingsitesexist,
Twitteristhemostpopular.
WhatisTwitter?
Twitterisanonlinemicro
bloggingandsocialnetworking
websitethatprovidesrealtime
information,commentary,and
descriptionsofevents.Twitter
userssendupdates,or"tweets,"thatare140charactersorlessin
lengthanddisplaysontheir
profilepageananddinintheirtheir
followersfollowersfeed.feed. TwitterTwitterusersusers
cancanalsoalsohighighlhlightightcercerttainainaaudioudio
ororvideovideocontcontent.ent.
CDCusesTwittertoseekandsharehealthandsafety
informationinrealtimewithpeopleinterestedin
CDCshealthtopics. Twitterhasbecomean
importantplatformforconnectingpeopleinterested
inspecifichealthandsafetyinformation.Twitter
isntjustaboutbroadcastinginformation;italso
providesopportunitiestolistenandgather
information.Twitterssearchengine
(http://search.twitter.com)isagreattoolfor
monitoringconversationsonanygiventopicon
Twitteritisgenerallylimitedtothepast2weeksof
publictweets.
http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdfhttp://mobihealthnews.com/http://mobihealthnews.com/http://search.twitter.com/http://search.twitter.com/http://mobihealthnews.com/http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/textmessages.pdf8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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WhousesTwitter?
Individuals,organizations(e.g.AmericanCancerSociety),corporations(e.g.CNN,Microsoft)and
federalagencies(e.g.NationalInstitutesofHealthandCDC)alluseTwitter.
Dueinlargeparttoitsincreasingusewithinthebusinesscommunityandamongnewsoutlets,
theearlyadoptersofTwitterarenotfromtheyoungergenerationasisusuallythecasewith
othersocialmediatools(Leggatt,2009).Recently,thisapplicationhasbecomeamore
mainstreamactivityasanincreasingnumberofcelebritieshavejoined.Still,thelargest
populationofTwitterusersareinthe1834agebracket(44%),followedbythe3549age
group(28%).Femalesrepresent53%ofusers,and43%havechildrenages017intheir
household(Quantcast,2010c).
ExamplesofTwitterProfilesAddressingPublicHealth
CDCeHealth: http://twitter.com/CDC_eHealth
AIDS.gov: http://twitter.com/AIDSgov
MinorityHealth: http://twitter.com/MinorityHealth
CAIZCoalition:http://www.twitter.com/Immunizeca
CBCHealth(Canada):http://twitter.com/CBCHealth
TwitterBestPractices
1. Accountsetuprecommendations ProfileName,ImageandBiographya. Profilename EachTwitteraccounthasauniqueprofilenamethatdescribesthesubject
matteroftheaccount,nameoftheorganizationorcontainsakeyworddescribingthe
natureoftheorganization.(e.g.CDC_eHealth,FluGov). Theprofilenameshouldbe
shortandconcise(maximum15characters).
b. Biography Thebiographyisa160characterdescriptionoftheprofile.Thisbiographical
statementshouldbethefirstpostfromanewprofile.
c. ImageAlogoorgraphicthatrepresentsyourorganizationoragency.
2. Keepcontentshortandsimple.CDCrecommendswritingtweetsof120characterssothatmessagescaneasilyberetweeted,(thepracticeofpostinganotheruserstweet),without
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editing.Ifatweetcontainsthemaximum140characters,userswhowanttoshareyour
messagebyretweetingwillneedtoeditthemessagetoreducethecharactercount.
3. ProvidemoreinformationwithashortenedURL. Ifpossible,providealinkbacktoyourmainwebsiteformoreinformation.YoucansavespacebyusingURLsthatareshorter.
Severalwebsitesareavailablethatcanhelpyou: http://tinyurl.com,http://is.gd
orhttp://tr.im.
4. PromoteyourTwitterprofile. ProvidelinkstoyourTwitterprofileonothercommunicationsmaterialsthatyouhaveprepared,includingbothtraditionalandsocial
media,andworkwithotherTwitterprofilestobuildyouraudiencebasestrategically.
5. Keepfollowersengaged.Settingaregularpostingschedulewillhelpengagefollowers.6. Postotherrelevantcontent. Developastrategyforretweetingpostsfrompartnersand
followers.
7. SearchTwitterforcommentsaboutyourorganizationorhealthtopic:Youcanusesearch.twitter.comforwaysofmonitoringTwitter.Youcanthenlistentoconversations
aboutimportanthealthconcerns,findmessagesaboutyourorganization,andmonitorhow
audiencesarerespondingtomessages.
8. Evaluateyourefforts.Trackyoureffortsandregularlyreviewthenumberoffollowers,updates,retweets,andmentionsinTwitter. Also,thereareanumberofwaystomonitor
increasedtraffictoyourwebsite,aswellasthementionsoutsideofTwitteronblogs,
websitesorarticles.WithregularmonitoringofTwitterefforts,itiseasytotrackincreased
traffictoyourwebsitegeneratedbyclickthroughsofyourlinks,changesinyourfollowers,
andtheamountofretweetsofyourmessages.ManyevaluationmetricsforTwittercanbe
collectedforlittleornocost.Whenevaluatingmicrobloggingactivities,considerthe
following:
Trackclickthroughsfromyourlinks:Websiteanalyticssoftware(suchasOmnitureSite
CatalystorGoogleAnalytics),allowsyoutotrackincreasesinwebsitetrafficfrom
TwitterbymeasuringhowmanyfollowersclickthroughfromTwitterlinksbacktoyour
site.
AnalyzeinfluenceonTwitter:Accountusersmaykeeptrackofhowmanyotherusers
arefollowingthemandhowmanyupdatestheyhavepublishedovertime.Usersmay
accesshttp://search.twitter.comtosearchforretweets,@replies(oratreplies),and
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othermentionsofhisorherTwitterusername. AnRSSfeedcanalsobesetuptotra
thesesearchresults.
Analyzefollowers:Becausemicrobloggingsitesarewebbased,itmaybepossibleto
designanonlinesurvey(throughatoolsuchasSurveyMonkey)tomeasureuser
satisfaction,increasesinknowledgeduetoyourprofile,orchangesinbehavio
attitudes.
ck
ror
TwitterResources:
CDC.govSocialMediaTools:Micro
blogs:http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/MicroBlogs.html
CDCs SocialMediaToolsGuidanceonMicro
Blogging:
http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdf
WebContent.govsTwitterBest
Practices:http://www.usa.gov/webcontent/technology/microblogging/twitter.shtml
BlogsWhatisaBlog?
Blogs,orweblogs,areregularly
updatedonlinejournalsthat
almostanyonewithaninternet
connectioncanuse.Someblogs
targetasmallaudience,while
othersboastareadership
comparabletonational
newspapers.Theymayhaveonly
oneauthororateamofregular
authors,butmostblogssharea
similarformatinthattheentries
arepostedinareverse
chronologicalorderandmay
allowreaderstocommenton
posts(CentersforDisease
ControlandPrevention,2010j).
Blogsoftenfocusonaspecific
topicortypeoftopic.
CDCoftenwantstosharecontentinawaythat
allowsreaderstoleavecommentsandengagein
discussion.Ablogcanbeusedtodiscussatopicthat
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maybetoocomplexforatweetorFacebookpost,andtogiveyourtopicorprogramamore
personalandengagingpresencethanawebsiteallows.
Whoisblogging?
Overall,bloggersareahighlyeducatedandaffluentgroup.Nearlyhalfofallbloggerswe
surveyedhaveearnedagraduatedegree,andthemajorityhaveahouseholdincomeof$75,000
peryearorhigher(Sussman,2009).Acloserlookatthedemographicsindicatesthattwothirds
aremale,60%areinthe1844agegroupandmorethanhalfareparents.
HealthrelatedBloggingExamples:
SchoolKidsHealthcareBlog:(http://www.schoolkidshealthcareblog.com/) Thisblog
targets
school
nurses,
healthcare
and
safety
professionals,
and
campus
medical
staff
allowingthemtoconnectwiththeirpeers,discusscurrentevents,andsharestoriesand
challenges(SchoolKidsHealthCareBlog,2010).
ShotofPrevention:(http://shotofprevention.com/)Thisisacommunityblogwhere
individuals,parents,medicalprofessionalsandotherscangathertodiscussquestions
andcurrenteventsregardingimmunizations(ShotofPreventionBlog,2010).
ConsumerReportsHealthBlog:
(http://blogs.consumerreports.org/health/healthy_living/) Ablogfocusingonavariety
ofconsumerhealthtopicsincludingnutrition,treatmentoptions,andpreventiontips.
AmericanSocietyforNutrition: (http://www.nutrition.org/asnblog/)Ablogdevotedto
thesharingofreliablenutritioninformation.
MassachusettsDepartmentofHealth:(http://publichealth.blog.state.ma.us/)Ablog
focusingonhealthtopicsinthestate,includingSpanishlanguagepostsbytheDirector
ofEthnicMediaEngagement.
Bloginars:
Anothermethodforreachingbloggers,ishostingbloggerwebinars,orbloginarstoreachout
tobloggersandprovideinformationaboutoutbreaksorpublichealthevents.Eachbloginar
featuresapresentationbyasubjectmatterexpert,apresentationofrelevantsocialmedia
products,andprovidesattendeesanopportunitytoaskquestions.
http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdfhttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/pdf/microblogging.pdf8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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BloggingBestPractices:
1. Observetheblogosphere.Beforebeginningablogofyourown,readotherblogsthatdealwithsimilartopicstolearnwhatworkswellandwhotheinfluencersareinthetopicarea.
OnecanfindblogsthroughtheblogsearchenginessuchasTechnorati
(www.technorati.com).
2. Providelinks.Supportpostswithlinkstootherwebpagesthatprovidecontexttoyourpost.3. Keeppostsasshortaspossible.Provideenoughinformationtosupportmainpoints,butbe
succinct.Shorterposts(acoupleofparagraphs)aremorelikelytobereadintheirentirety
thanlongerposts.However,ifanissueisparticularlycomplex,itmayrequirealongerpost.
4. Makeheadlinesattentiongrabbing.Justlikeanewspaperarticle,ablogpoststitleshouldcaptureareadersattentionandsummarizethemainpointofthepost.Looktonational
newspapers
to
get
ideas
for
writing
headlines.
5. Includenumberedorbulletedlists.Liststructuredinformationinaneasilydigestibleformat.
6. Makepostseasytoscan.Insertsubheadingswhereapplicableandmakesentencesandheadlinesshortandtothepoint.Chunkinginformationmakesiteasierforimportant
informationtostandout.
7. Keepaconsistentstyle.Readersliketoknowwhattoexpect.Findawritingstylethatworksfortheintendedaudienceandmaintainitthroughouteachblogpost.Sincethiscanbe
difficultwhenworkingwithateamofauthors,appointonepersontoreviewallpostsfor
styleandconsistency.
8. Usekeywordsstrategically.Thinkaboutwhatkeywordspeoplewouldusetosearchforapostandincludetheminthebodytextandheaders.Makesurethekeywordplacementis
naturalanddoesnotseemoutofplace.
9. Edityourpost.Goodwritingisintheediting.Beforehittingthesubmitbutton,rereadthepostandeditforbrevityandclarity.
10.Promoteyourblog.Haveapromotionplaninplacebeforelaunchingablog.IfTwitterisapartofyouroverallcommunicationstrategy,itcanbeagoodplacetopromoteanewpost.
Sendingdirectemailupdatestopartnersandthosewhohaveshowninterestinthe
organizationcanalsobeagreatwaytopromoteablog.
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ndlecomments.Willyouallowreaderstoleaveresponsesor
nsiderusingare
11.Determinehowtohacommentsabouttheblog?Ifso,considerhowthesewillbemonitored.Haveaprotocolin
placeregardinghowtohandleresponses.
12.Makeuseofwebanalyticstools.Twopopularwebanalyticstoolstocolistedbelow:
GoogleAnalytics http://www.google.com/analytics/
Yahoo!WebAnalyticshttp://web.analytics.yahoo.com/
Itisadvisedtoreviewyourpolicyandprivacyimplicationsbeforeutilizinganyanalytictools
Evaluateyourefforts.Usingawebanalyticstoolallowsyoutodeterminethenumberof.
13.
s
determine
if
the
length,
topic,
or
time
of
ware
blogtobecataloguedbyblogsearchengines,suchasTechnorati
peoplewhohavevisitedthepageinaparticulartimeperiod.Itisalsoimportanttotrackthe
numberofcommentsreceivedoneachblogpost.Itisespeciallyusefultolookforpattern
in
blog
posts
that
draw
the
most
comments
anddayyoupostedtheblogdrawsmorereaderengagement. Utilizingofficialbloggersoft
allowsa
(www.technorati.com).Technoratialsoassignsanauthoritynumbertoblogsitcatalogu
Theauthorityreferstothenumberofwebsiteslinkingtoablogintheprevioussix
months.Ahigherauthorit
es.
ymeansthatmorepeoplearelinkingtoablog,whichmayhelp
toshowtheblogspopularityand,insomecases,credibility.Technoratialsoallowsauserto
searchforotherblogsthatmaybelinkingtohisorherblog.
BloggerResources:
FormoreinformationonblogactivitiesatCDC,please
see:http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/Blogs.html
FormoreinformationonhowCDChasusedbloginars,please
visithttp://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/Bloginars.html
Technorati(http://www.technorati.com/search)
Blog
Search
(http://blogsearch.google.com/)
Blogger:http://www.blogger.com
CommonCraftvideoBlogsinPlainEnglish:http://www.commoncraft.com/blogs
ProbloggersStartingOutinBloggingfrom
Scratch:http://www.problogger.net/archives/2008/03/18/ifyouwerestartingoutin
bloggingfromscratchhowwouldyoupromoteyourblog/
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Probloggers23QuestionsforProspective
Bloggers:http://www.problogger.net/archives/2006/02/14/isablogrightforyou/
CDC.govSocialMediaTools:Bloginars
http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/Bloginars.html
32
SocialNetworkingSites
WhatisaSocialNetworkingSite?
Socialnetworkingsitesareonline
communitieswherepeoplecan
interactwithfriends,family,
coworkers,acquaintances,and
otherswithsimilarinterests.
Mostsocialnetworkingsites
providemultiplewaysfortheir
userstointeractsuchaschat,
email,video,voicechat,file
sharing,blogging,anddiscussion
groups.
Space,Linkedin,and
oursquare. Therearealsohundredsofnichesocialnetworkingsitesthattargetaudienceslike
mo addresstopicsliketravelorhealthissues.
Socialnetworkingsitesareverypopularandare
beingusedbymillionsofpeopleeverydayto
interact,share,andlearn.OnFacebookalone,users
spendalmostanhouradayonthesite.Social
networkingsitesprovideanimmediateandpersonalwaytodeliverprograms,products,and
information. ByfarthemostpopularsocialnetworkingsiteisFacebook,whichhasjustreached
over400millionusers(July2010).OtherpopularsitesincludeMy
F
msandphysicians,or
WhoUsesSocialNetworkingSites?
Therehasbeentremendousgrowthinsocialnetworkingsiteusesince2005.Infact,46%of
onlineAmericanadults18yearsoldandolderuseasocialnetworkingsitelikeMySpace,
FacebookandLinkedIn,upfrom8%inFebruary2005(Lenhart,2009).Additionaldemographic
informationaboutsocialnetworkingsitesinclude:
FacebookUserProfile:(Quantcast,2010a)
55%female
Highestpercentageofusersinthe1334yearagegroup
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46%havechildren017inhousehold
42%arecollegegraduates
Facebookusersaregenerallymoreaffluent(58%haveannualincomesover$60,000)
Caucasianusersmakeup75%ofuserswhile11%areAfricanAmericans
MySpaceUserProfile:(Quantcast2010b)
51%male
58%are1834
42%havechildren017intheirhouseholds
64%havenocollegeeducation
MySpaceusersareconsideredmiddleincomewith44%ofusersinthe$30,000 $60,000
incomebracket
26%ofMySpaceusersareAfricanAmericans
ExamplesofSocialNetworkingSitesAddressingPublicHealthTopics
ColoradoChildrensImmunizationCoalition:http://www.facebook.com/ImmunizeCOKids
AmericanCancerSociety:http://www.facebook.com/AmericanCancerSociety?v=wall&ref=ts
AIDS.govMySpace: http://www.myspace.com/aidsgov
NebraskaDepartmentofHealthandHuman
Services:http://www.facebook.com/pages/LincolnNE/NebraskaDepartmentofHealth
andHumanServices/340846025779?v=wall&ref=ts#
AlabamaDepartmentofPublicHealth:http://www.facebook.com/pages/Montgomery
AL/AlabamaDepartmentofPublicHealthADPH/235001560006
PhiladelphiaDepartmentofPublicHealth
Flu:http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&VideoID=100208789
CaringBridge: http://www.facebook.com/CaringBridge
PatientsLikeMe:http://www.patientslikeme.com/
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SocialNetworkingBestPractices
1. Becomefamiliarwiththesite.Therearehundredsofsocialnetworkingsitesavailable,eachwithdistincttargets,purposes,andfunctions.Visitthesitestogainanunderstandingofthe
participants,theculture,andthefunctionality.
2. Considertheoverallcommunicationsstrategyandobjectives.Beforelaunchingapage,makesuresocialnetworkingactivitiesmeshwiththecommunicationstrategyand
objectives.
3. Bethoughtfulaboutresources.Ensurethatadequateresources(timeandstaff)areavailabletosupporttheongoingmaintenanceofthepagetokeepcontentfreshandfans
engaged.
4. Provideengagingpostsandcommunicationmaterialonthesite.Incorporatevideos,quizzes,
widgets,
games,
images
and
other
materials
to
actively
and
repeatedly
engage
users.
5. Createacommentpolicy.Developapolicythatcoverstheresponsetoinappropriateorderogatorycomments.RefertoCDCsSocialNetworkingCommentPolicyforan
example:http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.
6. Collectandstorecomments.Developasystemtoarchivecomments.7. Developapromotionplan. Establishapromotionplanbeforelaunchingthepage;
encouragefanstoshareandcrosspromoteusingothersocialmediachannelsandweb
pages.
8. Developanevaluationplan.Haveanevaluationandmetricsplaninplacepriortolaunchtodetermineifeffortsaresuccessful. Forexample, itwillbehelpfulto:
Determinehowparticipationwillbemeasured.Evaluationcanincludesimplemeasures
ofuserengagement(e.g.Howmanyfollowers/fans/friendsdoestheaccounthave?How
manyuserscommentedonrecentposts?)
Takeadvantageoftheanalyticpackagesavailableonthesocialnetworkingsites.These
canbeutilizedtodeterminethenumberofpeople(fans)participatingintheactivity
andobservehowusersengagewiththesite. Forexample,FacebookInsightsare
availabletousers(administrator)whomaintainapageforanorganization.Facebook
Insightsallowtheadministratortoseedemographicinformationandfaninteractions
withthepageovertime.
http://www.facebook.com/ImmunizeCOKidshttp://www.facebook.com/ImmunizeCOKids8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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oftrafficbeingdriventoawebsitefromanorganizations
ebookpage.
page,or
inbehaviororattitudes.
Considertrackingtheamount
Facebookpage.Ifusingananalyticstoolforawebsite(suchasGoogleAnalyticsor
WebTrends),thattoolwillshowthesourceoftraffictoapage,andthenumberofusers
whoarevisitorscomingviaalinkontheFac
Plantoevaluatewithanonlinesurvey(throughatoolsuchasSurveyMonkey)to
measureusersatisfaction,increasesinknowledgeduetothesocialnetworking
changes
SocialNetworkingResources:
CDCsSocialNetworkingGuidanceandBest
Practices:http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/SocialNetworking.html
FacebookforGovernment:http://www.facebook.com/government
CommonCraftvideoSocialNetworksinPlain
English:http://www.commoncraft.com/videosocialnetworking
WebContent.govSocialNetworksand
Government:http://www.usa.gov/webcontent/technology/social_networks.shtml
GovLoop:http://www.govloop.com/(Agovernmentcommunity)
VirtualWorlds
WhatisaVirtualWorld?
Avirtualworldisanonline
environmentwhereuserscan
createavirtualpersona,or
avatar,andinteractwithother
avatarsinacreatedonlinevirtual
environment.Inrecentyears,
virtualworldshavebecome
increasinglypopularwith
growingnumbersofparticipants
whoenjoytheimmersiveexperience.(CentersforDisease
ControlandPrevention,2010k).
Virtualworldsprovideanimmersiveexperience
whereuserscangethealthinformationandpractice
healthybehaviors.Researchinhealth
communicationdemonstratesthatbehaviorsfrom
virtualworldscantranslatetotherealworld. Real
lifebehaviorscanbeinfluencedforuserswhoengagein
arangeofhealthrelatedactivitiesinvirtualworlds(Beard,Wilson,Morra&Keelen,2009).
http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/CommentPolicy.html.8/4/2019 Social Media Toolkit - CDC
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CDCparticipatesinavirtualworldcalled
Whyvillethathasbeendevelopedfor
tweens(sometimescalledpre
adolescents). InWhyville,userscreate
avatarsthatinteractwithotherusers
andparticipateinengagingeducational
activitiesandgames.
Forseveralyears,CDChasworkedwith
Whyvilletopromotevirtualvaccinations
forseasonalinfluenzaandprovide
influenza
prevention
information,
empoweringtheparticipantstopractice
betterhealthbehaviorsduringtheflu
season.Educatingtweensempowers
themtopassalongvaccinerelatedinformationtoothersintheirhouseholdswhowouldbenefit
frombeingvaccinated.DuringarecentWhyvillecampaign,Whyvillecitizenshadthe
opportunitytobevirtuallyvaccinated,preventingthemfromcatchingthe"WhyFlu",which
involvedredspotsonanavatar'sfaceandsneezeswhilechatting.Duringthesix weekactivity,
thousandsofWhyvillianswerevaccinated.
ExamplesofHealthrelatedVirtualWorldActivities
HealthandMedicineinSecondLifeBlogfromtheNationalLibraryof
Medicine:http://healthinfoisland.blogspot.com/
WhyEatinWhyville:http://b.whyville.net/top/pdf/the_whyeat_handout.pdf
VirtualWorldResources:
CDCsVirtualWorldOverview
Page:http://www.cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/VirtualWorlds.html
AIDS.govsVirtualWorldPage:http://aids.gov/usingnewmedia/tools/virtualworlds/
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PLE
danumberofintegratedsocialmediacampaigns,
H1N1fluevent,theSalmonellaTyphimuriumoutbreak
utcontainingproducts,aswellasannualseasonal
campaignintegratesinnovativesocialmediaproducts
thatCDCprotectsandpromotesthehealthofdiverse
0H1N1andSeasonalFluOutbreakCampaignbelowprovidesone
xampleofhowyoucanusemanyofthetoolsoutlinedinthistoolkitinamajorhealth
SeasonalFluOutbreakCampaign
SeasonalFluoutbreak,theCDCandtheU.S.Departmentof
kedtogethertocreatesocialmediatoolsthatprovided
dible,sciencebasedinformation.Acomprehensivesetoftools
varietyofembeddabletoolsweremadeavailabletopartnerstofacilitatethesharingand
lswithportablecontent,suchaswidgets
vocates.
But s llyfor
artnersandorganizationstopostontheirwebsitestoinformvisitorsofstepstotaketostop
asonalfluanddirectthemtoadditionalinformation.
SOCIALMEDIACAMPAIGNEXAM
Inthelastfewyears,CDChasdevelope
includingcampaignsforthenovel
associatedwithpeanutbutterandpean
influenzavaccinationcampaigns.Each
withresearchdrivenstrategiestoensure
audiences. The2009201
e
communicationcampaign.
20092010H1N1and
Duringthe20092010H1N1and
HealthandHumanServices(HHS)wor
consumersandpartnerswithcre
wasdevelopedandutilizedtoencourageparticipationandachievetheoverallgoalof
communicatingkeymessagestoinfluencehealthdecisions.Byutilizingmultipleformatsto
disseminatemessages,usershadtheoptiontoparticipatebasedontheirknowledge,levelof
access,andengagementwithsocialmedia.
A
promotionofH1N1andseasonalfluinformation.Too
andonlinevideo,alloweduserstoeasilysharemessagesandbecomehealthad
ton ,orgraphicsutilizedforonlinepromotionofcampaigns,werecreatedspecifica
p
thespreadofH1N1andse
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Badges,orgraphicsthatincludeamessageandalinktoawebpage,
werecreatedforsocialnetworkusers.Userspostedbadgesonindividual
socialnetworkingprofilesorpersonalblogs.
ButtonsandbadgeswereavailableinSpanishandEnglishandcontainedhealthmessages
targetedtomultipleaudiencesincludingpregnantwomen,healthcareproviders,schooland
businesses.
Theimagesbelowdemonstratetheuseofbuttonsonpublichealthpartnerwebpages.
ButtonspromotingCDCs
textingprogramandFlu
messages
Source:OhioDepartmentofNaturalResourceshttp://ohiodnr.com/
ButtonspromotingCDCstextingprogram
Source: NorthGeorgiaHealthDistrict http://www.nghd.org/
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Widgets,smallportable
applications,werecreatedfor
userstoaddtoblogs,social
networkprofiles,orwebpagesto
allowthesharingofH1N1and
seasonalfluguidanceandhealth
tipsfordifferentaudiences.Atotalof11flurelatedwidgetsprovidedameanstoshareand
interactwithvaluableresourcesonavarietyoftopicsincludingprevention,schoolguidance,
seasonalfluupdates,aninteractivequizandtheFluViewNationalActivityMap.CDCfluwidgets
wereviewedmorethanfivemilliontimes.
The
use
of
Online
Video
sharing
sites
allowed
for
the
dissemination
of
tailored
health
education
andhealthcommunicationmessages,andalloweduserstoupload,view,share,andcomment
onpostedvideos.CDCs
YouTubechannel,
CDCStreamingHealth,has32
videoscoveringH1N1topics
includingsymptoms,antiviral
usefortreatmentand
preventiontips,whichwere
viewed3.13milliontimes.The
mostpopularvideo,SymptomsofH1N1(SwineFlu),was
viewedmorethan2milliontimesandrankedinthetoptwo
videosacrossYouTubeinthenewsandsciencecategory.
39
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TheCDCTextMessagingcampaignwaslaunchedinSeptember2009.Theprogramprovided
threehealthmessagesaweektomorethan16,000subscribersonimportantCDCinformation
aboutH1N1flu,seasonalfluandotherhealthrelatedtopics.
41
Buttonpromotingtextmessagecampaign Sampletextmessage
Toreachchildrenwithhealthmessagesrelatedtofluprevention,CDCpartneredwithWhyville,
aVirtualWorldfortweens,childrenages812years.Thismultiawardwinningandbestin
classchildrenswebsiteisaneducationvirtualworldwherechildrenlearnandplayina
dynamicsocialenvironment.
TheWhyvilleflucampaignfeaturedtwodifferentvirtualfluviruses,theWhyFluandthe
WhyMeFlu.Inworldpreventionactivitiesincludedencouragingparticipantstovirtuallywash
theirhandsandtocoughandsneezeintotheirelbow.Avirtualvaccinationcelebration,which
allowedWhyvillecitizenstointeractwithCDCsubjectmatterexpertsinrealtime,washeldin
conjunctionwithNationalInfluenzaVaccinationWeek.Apreventionvideocontestwasalso
conducted.Attheendoftheactivity,14,749WhyvillecitizenswerevaccinatedfortheWhyFlu
and12,369werevaccinatedfortheWhyMeFlu.
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VaccinationStationatWhyvilleCityHall
animation
Sampleavatar Handwashing
TheuseofTwitterprovidedCDCthe
opportunitytocommunicaterapidlywitha
wideaudienceofengagedusers.CDC
providedrealtimeupdatesduringthe
outbreakresponseonTwitterfromseveral
officialCDCTwitterprofiles.TheCDCFluand
CDCemergencyaccountswereused
primarilytosharebriefupdatesonnew
guidelines,resources,andthestatusofthe
outbreak,includingweeklyupdatesonthenumberofcasesanddeaths.TheCDCeHealthprofile
wasalsousedtoshareinformationaboutnewsocialmediatoolsreleasedthroughoutthespan
oftheresponse.ThethreeprimaryCDCTwitteraccountsusedtoshareH1N1informationgrew
toacollectivefollowingof1.28millionusers.
CDCteamedupwithWebMDtolaunchtheFocusonFlublog.CDCsubjectmatterexperts
servedasguestbloggerstoprovideinformationonavarietyoftopicsincludingH1N1vaccine
safety,guidanceforschoolsandchildcareprogramsandvaccinerecommendationsforolder
adults.
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ThroughCDCsContentSyndicationapplication,H1N1andseasonalflurelatedcontentwas
madeavailabletopartnerstodisplayCDChealthandsafetyinformationontheirownwebsites.
Contentsyndicationprovidedastreamlinedprocessfordisseminatingcurrent,credibleand
automaticallyupdatedflucontentinrealtime.Morethan150publichealthpartnersincluding
stateandlocalhealthdepartments,hospitals,universitiesandfederalagencieshave
implementedcontentsyndicationontheirwebsites,andsyndicatedcontenthasbeenviewed
morethan500,000times.
CDCflucontentonCDC.gov Syndicatedflucontentonpartnerwebsite
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Toengageusersandfacilitateinteractivecommunication,CDCparticipatedinSocial
NetworkingSitessuchasFacebooktoshareinformationandexpandreach.
TheCDCFacebookpage,launchedin
May2009atthestartoftheH1N1
response,hasseenasteadyincreasein
numbersoffans,nowtotalingnearly
56,800fans(July2010).
TheCDCFacebookpagewasusedtoshareH1N1andseasonalfluupdates,providesocialmedia
tools,suchasbadgesandwidgets,foruserstodownloadandshare,linktoCDC.govfor
additionalinformation,postblogsfromCDCsubjectmatterexpertsandpromotetheCDCtext
messagingcampaign.ByutilizingFacebooktoshareH1N1andseasonalfluinformation,CDC
wasabletoexpandreachtoayoungeraudiencethanCDC.gov.
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MORESOCIALMEDIARESOURCES
Becauseofthedynamicnatureofsocialmediaandemergingtechnologies,newinformationand
researchisbeingreleasedatarapidpace.Thefollowinglistofselectedresourcesprovidesa
samplingofadditionalinformationonsocialmedia:
Mashable http://mashable.com/socialmedia/ Theworldslargestblogfocused
exclusivelyonWeb2.0andSocialMedianews.
PewInternet&AmericanLifeProject http://www.pewinternet.org/ Oneofsevenprojects
thatmakeupthePewResearchCenter,theProjectisafacttankprovidinginformationon
howinternetandtechnologytrends,issues,andattitudesareshapingtheU.S.andthe
world.
Siteanalytics http://www.compete.com/about/ Awebanalyticcompanypoweredbythe
largestpoolofonlineconsumerbehaviordataintheindustry.
Quantcast http://www.quantcast.com/ Siteprovidingdetailedaudienceprofile
information.
Technorati http://technorati.com/ Ablogsearchengine.
HubSpot http://www.hubspot.com/products/ Leadingmarketinganalyticcompanythat
providessocialmediainformation,trainingandwebinarsonaperiodicbasis.
NielsonOnline http://enus.nielsen.com/ Theworldsleadingmarketingandmedia
informationcompanymeasuringaudienceanddemographicinformation.
comScore http://www.comscore.com/ Asourceofdigitalmarketingintelligence
providingonlineaudiencemeasurementinformation.
CTIATheWirelessAssociation http://www.ctia.org/ Aninternationalnonprofit
membershiporganizationthatrepresentsthewirelesscommunicationsindustry.
FierceMobileHealthcare http://www.fiercemobilehealthcare.com/ Weeklynewsletter
thatprovidesthelatestnewsontherapidlyevolvingmobilehealthcareenvironment.
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SOCIALMEDIACOMMUNICATIONSSTRATEGYWORKSHEET
Usethisworksheettohelpyoustrategizeaboutyouraudience,andthepotentialsocialmedia
toolsandchannelsyoumaywanttouseforyourcampaignorcommunicationactivity.
1. TargetAudienceDescribetheperson(s)youwanttoreachwithyourcommunication;beasspecificas
possible.Morethanoneaudiencemaybelisted.Includeaprimaryandsecondary
(influencers)audienceifappropriate.(Examples:Mothersofchildrenyoungerthantwoyears
oldlivinginAtlanta,PediatricianspracticinginNevada.)
I.
II.
III.
2. DetermineyourobjectiveWhatdoyouwanttoachievethroughyoursocialmediaoutreachandcommunication? This
couldincludesomethingyouwantyourtargetaudiencetodoasadirectresultof
experiencingthecommunication.Objectivesmayinclude(butarenotlimitedto)the
following:
a) Provideinformation
Highlightacampaign
Encourageahealthbehavior
Reinforcehealthmessages
Encourageinteraction
Obtainfeedback/exchangeideas
Collaboratewithpartners
(Example:Increaseawarenessofimmunizationcampaign.)
I.
II.
III.
b) RestateyourobjectivesinSMARTterms:
Specificstateinconcrete,detailedandwelldefinedtermsWhatexactlyarewegoing
todoforwhom?
Measurableshouldbequantifiableandthesourceofmeasurementhasbeen
identified.
Attainable/Achievablecantheobjective beachievedintheproposedtimeframewith
theresourcesavailable?
Relevant/Realisticistheobjectivedirectlyrelatedtotheoverarchingcommunication
goalfromyourcommunicationplan?
Timeboundhavedeadlinesbeenset?
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(Example:ByDecember2012(timebound),therewillbea5%increase(measureable)in
recognitionofth