Being socially active and interactive online is more important than ever before.
There should be communication with former students, current ones, and, most importantly, new ones.
If you are offering online classes, this is an immediate requirement, but it is also important for maintaining your relevance and letting the world know you will soon be accepting new students.
Let’s get a firm grasp on some foundational ideas in social media before diving into some extremely useful survival advice.
Value of Materiality
In an ideal world, we’d have plenty of funds to create professionally-designed social media content (high-quality images, videos, etc.).
But it’s entirely possible to make and exploit a great deal of content without spending a fortune on it.
For your content to be effective, it must be read by the right people.
You can schedule this kind of update to go up on your blog at the same time every week.
Help spread the word about local establishments by including them in your posts. You can use photos you’ve taken or find them elsewhere with no shame.
Create a Content Calendar
The first step in creating a content calendar is to note all of the important dates.
Internet resources provide a virtually endless catalogue of items. Take into account any and all holidays that might affect your plans for school or travel.
According to Google, it was “National Smile Power Day” when this article was written, a day dedicated to spreading happiness through smiling. Why not display pictures of happy teachers and students?
Showcase User-Generated Content (User Generated Content)
This is likely the simplest approach, as it requires so little effort on your part other than to spread the work of others. Encourage current and former students to share their experiences at your institution by offering them financial incentives to do so.
A contest with a modest prize might look like this (not expensive). If you do it in an interesting way, a lot of people will want to participate.
Right now, you could have former students post about their experiences during lockdown back in their home countries or about their time spent in your city.
Get personal. There will be a response from the public.
Requesting an Interview
Propose substituting your own interviewing services. You can learn a lot by conducting interviews with people like past students, employees, homestay families, etc.
Still, it’s a good idea to broaden your horizons beyond your fellow students and professors. Take into consideration the knowledge and experiences of others with whom you may wish to travel or further your education.
You can make a post about the current situation if you know someone who works for an airline or a local store. Encourage them to share how much they appreciate and look forward to reuniting with international students.
Disseminate Area-Specific Knowledge
Students should be regularly reminded of the great resources available to them in their immediate area.
You probably know (or can ask) where your students hang out for meals, drinks, and parties.
Post about these “areas of local interest” once a week on the same day. The same location can be used multiple times, but each time a new story is told with new images.
Tagging a local eatery or coffee shop almost guarantees a response, even if you haven’t specifically asked for one.
Assert Your Group’s Worth
Take advantage of your amazing group by making it feel like a family. Create a series of blog entries in which you briefly describe your faculty members, highlighting their areas of expertise, accomplishments, or just who they are as people.
The alums’ own followers will be exposed to your brand content because it is the type of thing that typically interests and resonates with them.
If a student has a strong emotional connection to a former teacher, they are much more likely to engage with a post about that teacher by giving it a “like” or leaving a comment.
Make A Time-Lapse Or Hyperlapse Video
There are two types of time-lapse videos that are both simple to make and highly engaging to watch online: those shot over a long period of time from a stationary filming position, and those shot while following a fixed subject along a predetermined route. You can make them really short and they’ll still be useful.
Again, you need not resort to Hollywood-caliber production values; simple videos shot on a smartphone will suffice.
A full day’s worth of shooting at the school. Film a student participating in a group activity or eating breakfast with his or her host family. All of these have a low barrier to entry and produce excellent content for user participation.
Hold Online Chats and Broadcast Lectures Through a Facebook Group
Teachers can also stream Facebook Live lectures, post discussion questions, assign homework, and announce class events by making use of Facebook Groups that they create for their students. Keep students interested and engaged during school breaks and snow days by posting reminders and assignments.
Teachers can create a Facebook Group without having to add students as friends in order to maintain a professional barrier when using social media in the classroom. Send a message to parents and students with a link to the Facebook Group.
It is often much simpler to get to know other students in an online course if they are part of a group.