Improving Your Approach to Social Media

Background: See summary.

Program background: See summary.

Evaluation Methods and Results: See summary.

Conclusions: See summary.

Implications for research and/or practice: See summary. Summary and purpose: The final presenter on this panel, Amanda McGukin Hagen, is a high-tech marketing professional who focuses on tactical intelligence for Marketing Programs, and is generally known as a social media guru. Ms. McGukin Hagen will focus this session on non-traditional (social) media. The purpose of this session is to teach participants how to take social media to the next level, when it is appropriate, as an effective tool for bringing attention to a campaign or program. Participants will develop an understanding of how to successfully utilize non-traditional media sources, in concert with traditional outlets, or as the sole focus of dissemination efforts. One of the most exciting aspects on non-traditional media is the almost instantaneous feedback available through web analytics. Participants will be guided through the current “market” of social media tools and learn how and when these tools are best used. They will also learn about the available vendors, resources and services for measuring media coverage, and what those available metrics can really demonstrate. Participants will leave the session with the resources and knowledge they need to take advantage of the appropriate non-traditional media outlets and tools, evaluate their efforts, and apply what they learned through monitoring and evaluation to better their work. Throughout this session, examples from the previous sessions will be referenced as an illustration of the successful implementation of a mixed-media approach.