Social Media Copy

ASUCD Social Media Copy in bold black text. Background includes abstract colorful geometric shapes in the corners.

Social Media Copy

Embracing Your Organization's Personality

  • Each unit has its own voice that is made up of their personality traits.           
  • What is your unit’s voice?

Know Your Audience

  • Each social media post should begin with the question: “Who is my audience?” Campaigns or posts may target specific groups of people, but our audience is essentially the general public. Therefore, content should not be too niche in interest, but rather, accessible, relevant, and inclusive. 
  • Consider what makes sense for your organization to be posting. 
  • Look at who is engaged with your channel(s) and focus on commonalities that unite your audience. Build a persona based on insights/data and think about brand-compatible traits your messaging can speak to. 
  • Additional audience guidelines to keep in mind include:
    • News and information should speak to a broad audience with accessible language and adequate context & framing. Avoid jargon, acronyms, or dependence on insider knowledge.
    • Amplify programs for public use and participation open to everyone.
    • Visual quality is important! Every post should include an engaging element: photos, video, GIF, etc. For link share posts, work with Aggie Studios to make sure thumbnails are showing up and that photos being posted are of high quality. 

Commenting

  • Engage with your followers in the comments section! This is a great way for you to keep your followers engaged and supported.
  • When commenting, ensure your content is consistent with the UC Davis Principles of Community. If it’s not nice, don’t say it! (UC Davis Brand Communications Guide) 
  • If responding to a comment or direct message will not result in a positive dialog, leave it alone. You are not expected to respond to everyone. Trolls thrive on conflict and in general are not online to listen to reason. Don’t give them the satisfaction of engaging in debate. Take a break before engaging or replying and use this litmus test “would I be proud if this post/reply was published by [insert huge media company here]?” If the answer is no, don’t post it. (UC Davis Social Media Policy and Guidelines)
  • If you see a negative, threatening, or critical comment, follow the guidance in the UC Davis Brand Communication Guide for when to delete or hide a comment, or block an account. 
    • All social media platforms have the ability to block users from accessing your social media content or being able to direct message you. If someone is leaving you unwanted messages, comments, or tagging you on your own social media posts or pages, hit that block button. (UC Davis Social Media Policy and Guidelines)
    • Report users and profiles who are engaging in harassing behaviors, making threats or are impersonating you directly to the social media platform. Most platforms act quickly on these reports as it is generally against the terms and conditions of use and once verified that the offending actions are against its harassment policies, user comments and accounts can be deleted. In extreme cases, users can be banned outright from using the platforms. (UC Davis Social Media Policy and Guidelines)

Transparency is Key

  • Write copy that is true to your unit and ASUCD’s brand. 
  • Remember that you’re posting on behalf of ASUCD, which is made up of a diverse group of people. So do not post personal views on your ASUCD account. 
  • Remember to fact-check and quote where appropriate.
  • Writing clear copy for your audience will prevent inaccurate interpretations of your copy. 

Privacy

  • Never post personal contact information (eg., cell phone numbers, home addresses, personal emails, etc.).
  • Reminder: Anything you post on social media is public and can live on forever.

Be Professional

  • When managing a business/company page affiliated with ASUCD, you are speaking for the University. 
  • Absolutely no slurs, insults, profanity, etc. in social media copy.
  • Triple-check your spelling and grammar before posting. 

Stay on Topic

  • Create appropriate and easy-to-remember hashtags for event-centered content.
  • Ensure that your content and social media actions are meaningful and will add value to people’s timelines.