Technology Enhanced Learning Blog

eLearning, mLearning, Blackboard, Blogging, Social Media, and the stuff in between / David Hopkins

Why do Universities use Social Media?

Just how are Universities using Social Media, and how do they measure ‘success’ of the channel? I haven’t heard or seen an adequate response to these questions yet, but this infographic does give a little hint of what is going on:

Goals Behind Social Media Use – Click to enlarge

By far the biggest effort is put into engaging their alumni networks and creating and maintaining the ‘brand’ image of the Institution.
Over 4/5ths of Universities use social media to engage their alumni network.
One in three Universities claim their use of social media is more “efficient” in reaching their target audience … but is this efficient in staff time or efficient in results?
Nearly 2/3rds of Universities say the number of likes or friends or followers is a measure of success, yet only 1/10th say the link between social media use and student applications is important.
1/5th of Universities think they are “very successful” with their use of social media, so that leaves 80% who think there is room for improvement … I wonder what they think they need to do that they’re not already, and why they’re not doing it yet then?
While Facebook is the biggest social network the Universities studied are using, services like Flickr and blogs have had the biggest investment (time or effort) since 2010.