Connecting with communities through conversations - Liz Copeland

Did you know...?

• More than two thirds of online adults are connected to one or more social media platforms.
• Half of Facebook’s 30 million UK users log on every day.
• 70 per cent of businesses ignore complaints made via Twitter.
• However 83 per cent of people who received a response to a complaint via Twitter were positive about that response.

Social media represents an enormous opportunity for councillors to interact with local people where they are.

We know there are loads of examples of councils using social media to great effect to communicate with residents. For example, the Twitter Gritter tweets during periods of bad winter weather, real time coverage of the progress of the Olympic torch relay and live webcasts and tweets from council meetings. You can find loads more examples in our #localgov gets social group.

However, social media is more than just broadcast – it’s also a conversation. It offers the chance for councillors to talk to people in their communities they might not otherwise have the opportunity to speak to.

To support members in all things social media and build confidence in using online social networking to engage with different audiences, the LGA will be holding a series of social media surgeries at our stand during conference.

The sessions will be an informal opportunity to ask questions of other councillors and officers about their experiences of using social media in their role. They'll be happy to discuss what works and what doesn't, the benefits of using social media and the things to avoid. Plus we'll be able to help you set up accounts there and then.

The social media surgeries will take place on all three days of the conference (26-28 June) over lunch times (12.15-2pm). Everyone's invited and you can drop in any time, so please come and find out more and share your own experiences.

Come along and join the conversation!