Consistent with the rapid development of technology and the ever-growing desire for information sharing, social media is penetrating almost every aspect of our lives. Be it traditional forms of social media, such as newspapers, magazines, and television, or online social networking platforms, such as Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn, social media has opened up new ways of communicating.

Following this trend, local governments are also starting to pay more attention to the use of social media for mass communication. According to results of ICMA’s Digital Use Survey conducted in November 2014, 88% of respondents reported that their local government has a social media presence. We hope that some of the resources offered here help you make the best use of social media:

• This infographic, from Govloop, is a great guide on how to respond to people on social media.
• Infographics are effective tools in social media.  Check out this previous In the Know blog post on infographics.
• Twitter is among the many useful tools you can use to connect with like-minded individuals and promote your work. Here are some tips to make your Twitter profile stand out.
• Kudos to the city of Wylie, Texas, whose parks and recreation department’s communication efforts via the use of social media, #GetMobbedwithWylieRecreation, have been awarded.
• Social media plays a significant role in engaging citizens, and ICMA hosted a webinar with Dr. Thomas Bryer from the University of Central Florida on the topic of civic engagement and the responsiveness of local governments.
• Dan Alexander, chief of police for Boca Raton, Florida, was the featured presenter of a webinar designed to help public safety officials gain an understanding of how to best use social media platforms to enhance their efforts in improving public safety and dealing with emergencies.
• Learn how to leverage social media effectively in your community with this ICMA member resource: the Social Media & Local Governments Playbook.
• The Knowledge Network would also like to invite you to join the Local Government Marketing group to discuss your ideas.

Would you like to dig into more information related to social media resources for local governments? Do you have some interesting stories to share? If so, please comment and share below.

Knowledge Network Intern

Yalan Qin