the CDC is on Facebook and so much more! CLICK on picture to visit the CDC
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is considered one of the organizations today that has proactively and effectively integrated social media into their various health campaigns, including crisis communications. Their actions and message strategies were highlighted particularly when they were in the midst of the H1N1 crisis. I remember this time last year, I was part of the Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication (CERC) Certification workshop. It was a two-day workshop event in Atlanta, and we discussed how to appropriately handle a crisis, what are some risks that we need to consider, and where the field is going next. We also had a chance to go and visit the CDC as well – very cool! It was a very wonderful experience for me both as a student, but as a researcher / practitioner as well.
The thing that I have really enjoyed learning about from the CDC is their lessons and best practices on not only understanding social media, but also being aware of how it is strategically applied to communicate effectively to different audiences. What is exciting as well is the fact that they are willing to share their knowledge and experiences with other professionals – which will help advance the communications fields, particularly in crisis communications and emergency management.
The CDC just came out with their Social Media Toolkit, which outlines some of the major sites that they use, how to use them, and what are some of the best practices associated with each site. This is extremely useful not only for research and application purposes for public relations professionals, but a wonderful resource to share with students in the classroom. This is a great document and site to show the students on how one organization is really being cutting edge with how they use and implement social media in all of their business communication practices – both externally and internally. Here is the link to the CDC Social Media Kit – very fabulous social media resource! 🙂
The CDC has a wealth of resources available to download and review – including their own social media site (very useful to see how they used social media in particular cases). I would highly recommend that you all check it out! If more organizations were willing and able to share their knowledge, experiences, and best practices with others like the CDC has done with social media – our disciplines and practices will continue to grow. 🙂
Hope you all are having a wonderful day!
Best Wishes,
Karen
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