Queen Margaret University: social media training
In November 2019, Pickle Jar Communications was commissioned by Queen Margaret University to deliver social media training for professional services staff and academic colleagues.
Queen Margaret University identified a need for social media training through an internal staff training assessment.
The university was keen to provide this learning opportunity to develop confidence, understanding, and strategic use of social media across its many departments and academic communities.
They were particularly keen to focus on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and raise awareness of the university’s social media policy and guidance.
Whilst the flagship social media accounts at Queen Margaret University were managed to a high standard, there were inconsistencies with departmental social media channels across the university.
Not all colleagues were using social media in the most strategic way, nor were they adopting operational practices that would help them make the most of limited resources.
There were also colleagues who had doubts about the benefits of social media, whether it be for their department or, in the case of academics, their personal use.
Pickle Jar Communications helped address these challenges by delivering training workshops for professional services staff and academic staff.
The workshops covered a variety of areas including:
An overview of key platforms, their functions, and features
How to use social media to serve organisational goals
Identifying, defining and understanding audiences
Setting SMART objectives to meet meaningful KPIs
Creating compelling content: topics, formats, platforms
Maximising visibility: hashtags, tagging, influencers, advertising
How to provide regular content with limited resources
Monitoring, managing, and measuring.
The workshop for academic colleagues covered several of these topics, and also provided a focus on how to create, establish, and grow a personal social media following to help promote research.
Both workshops concluded with an in-depth look at the university’s social media policy.
The training events were well-attended, with great levels of engagement and curiosity from the staff who participated.
“Taking full account of our specific needs, Simon put together a series of two half-day social media courses which built the confidence and capabilities of academic and professional services staff across the University. Content was practical, realistic, inspiring and fun.” - Jane Scott, Director of Marketing and Communications