Join the Popular Crowd in Social Media and Be “Liked”, “Talked About” and “Shared”!

Presenters: HorseQuest CoP members and Laura Fisher, Michigan State University, My Horse University.

Extension has always been the face of the land grant university. Our clients expect science based, non-biased answers delivered in an understandable way. How do we translate this easy communication and trust into the daunting world of social media? How do we condense the vast amount of valuable information and research into 140 characters or less, perhaps accompanied by a picture or video that is interesting enough so that people will view it, use it, and tell others about it? Extension specialists at Michigan State University have been working with various forms of social media through eXtension HorseQuest, My Horse University, Equine Business Network and Michigan Equine News. While some of our attempts have been more successful than others, we have stumbled on a formula that seems to resonate with our audience, even generating some international recognition for our efforts. In this session, we will demonstrate what has and hasn’t worked with our Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and blogging efforts as well as the metrics we use to measure our success. We will encourage discussions about the value of entertainment, educational and event posts, along with other issues that arise in the world of social media.