Social Media Handbook: Tips for Civil Society Users

"...what is the biggest change you hope to achieve with your social media?"

The purpose of this handbook is to help civil society in Cambodia better use social media to share information and prompt interactive communication. From the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)'s Development Innovation project in collaboration with the Cooperation Committee for Cambodia, the handbook and accompanying worksheet provide tips and tools for civil society organisation (CSO) communications staff to plan and manage effective social media communications.

According to Geeks in Cambodia, Facebook had a total of 4.8 million users recorded in July 2017, amounting to a 1.4 million growth since 2016. The Open Institute reports that Facebook has overtaken radio as the second most common place Cambodians get their news, only trailing television. In this context, many CSOs are finding that simply having a Facebook page is not enough; creating an engaging social media page requires a different approach to traditional CSO communications.

The lessons in each section of the Social Media Handbook are building blocks for CSOs to improve their social media communications and understand the level of resources required to manage an effective Facebook page. The handbook contains 8 steps for using and managing Facebook pages, including:

• Define Goal, the Objectives & Targets for Social Media
• Promote Your Facebook Page
• Know your Audience
• Develop Social Media Guidelines
• Create Engaging Content
• Use Best Practices for Posting Photos, Video & More
• Develop a Content Plan
• Monitor and Improve your Social Media

Each step has screenshots, figures, tables, flow charts, and case studies to illustrate how the strategies can be applied in the real world. For example, in the section "Promote Your Facebook Page", screenshots of how a Facebook page is promoted through social media influencers are included as well as photographs of how offline promotion is used to promote the page.

Other sections share tips for managing an ethical social media page and addressing Facebook page privacy and security.

The handbook also includes 9 worksheets to help plan, organise, and clarify objectives and content. Handbook users may either to use the entire handbook and worksheets in order to develop a complete social media strategy, or refer to the section that meets user needs.