Register Your Social Accounts

All social media accounts managed and coordinated on behalf of a campus department, program or unit are required to be registered with the Office of Strategic Communications & Marketing (MarCom).

Register Your University Social Media

Please don’t hesitate to contact MarCom. We are pleased to be a resource for you, and we can provide training and support.

Have a Plan

When considering using social media for your department or program, keep in mind that it should be one of several tools used toward achieving your departmental goals. Identify how social media can contribute to your department’s goals and then create a plan that will keep you consistently engaged in social media throughout the busy academic year including how you will measure the success of your social media.

Choose a coordinator.

Know who will be primarily responsible for coordinating your social media presence and have the support of your department manager. Have someone in your department trained and granted access to back up your primary social media coordinator at all times. It is strongly recommended that your department manager be an administrator and/or have access to your University social media accounts. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask MarCom to help you set up social media admin roles. A member of the MarCom team can also serve as the backup administrator for University social media accounts.

Start small and grow from there.

Creating a social media presence can be fun and exciting — it will also take time and dedication. Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok — taking on more than one social platform at once can be overwhelming. Start small: Begin with one platform and evaluate how well your department is able to maintain that channel. Then, roll the others out over time. Building a foundation on one channel will make it easier for you to launch the next one by creating a library of content and an audience to grow from.

What platform should I use?

Use the social media tools that will help you reach your goals. Are you looking for a platform to engage with prospective or current students? Do you want to share department news and accomplishments with alumni? Does your department want to draw the public to events or activities? Your goals and your audience will help determine the best social platform to start with.

  • Instagram: This highly visual social channel is popular with a younger audience including current students, prospective students, alumni and community.
  • Facebook: An excellent platform to engage in conversation and build a community with alumni and the public.
  • LinkedIn: The strength of this platform is its ability to engage alumni and professionals in networking and community building.  
  • TikTok: A platform for creating, sharing and discovering short videos popular with younger audiences.

How to...

To setup a Facebook page, you will need to have a Facebook account. Please keep in mind that Facebook’s Terms of Service and Meta’s Community Standards require that you provide accurate personal information and not create more than one personal account. Do not create generic Facebook profiles. If you have questions about what Facebook profile you should use to manage a Facebook page, please contact the Office of Strategic Communications & Marketing.

  • Go to Facebook.com and complete the requested information to sign up for an account.
  • Once your account is in place, you can create a Facebook page for your department of program at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/create
  • Choose Company/Business/Institution > Education
  • Be sure to select a name, web address and profile image for your page following the recommendations in this guide.
  • Provide a description for your department or program that will tell people who you are and what you do.
  • You can identify your preferred audience to get started with your page and also key in the interests that are relevant to your department or program. This information will help you connect with individuals who have already expressed an interest in the topics that you will be posting about.

While posting from a mobile device is a preferred method of content creation for Instagram, you can also set up your Instagram account and create content from a desktop computer.

  • Install the Instagram app on your mobile device from the appropriate mobile app store or go to www.instagram.com.  
  • Open the app and sign up or sign up in your web browser. Click “next” or “sign up.”
  • Add a photo and create a username following the recommendations in this guide along with your email address and password.
  • Enter the full name of your department or program.
  • You can connect with followers from Facebook, if you have a Facebook page established.
  • Follow other Instagram users who are posting about your field or other Stanislaus State departments or programs. You can favorite, comment and mention them to begin building your Instagram network.
  • It is a best practice to connect your Instagram account to a Facebook page, if one is available.

LinkedIn provides a platform for professional discussion and networking. To learn about setting up a LinkedIn Group or an affiliated LinkedIn page for your department or program, please contact the Office of Strategic Communications & Marketing .

Naming Your Account

When choosing a name for your social media account, use the name of the University first (use the informal name or the nickname), followed by the name of your department, program, etc.

  • Stanislaus State Alumni Association
  • Stanislaus State Department of Theatre
  • Stan State Men’s Basketball

Choose a succinct web address (e.g. www.facebook.com/stanstate), username or handle (for platforms like Twitter or Instagram) that uses the nickname followed by your department or program name or abbreviation. Usernames and web addresses that direct people to your account should follow the branding guidelines whenever possible — please do not use CSUStan, CSU Stanislaus or CSUS.

Here are some great examples of usernames:

  • instagram.com/stanstatesa
  • instagram.com/stanstatecareer
  • facebook.com/stanstatealumni

Student Organization Names

Use of the University name within a student organization name is NOT permitted. Recognized student organizations (RSOs) are permitted to use the name of California State University, Stanislaus, Stanislaus State or Stan State only as a means of identifying the location of the organization. Such use should not imply University sponsorship or that the organization is an official agent of the University. Thus, the “Social Club of/at Stanislaus State” would be correct, but the “Stanislaus State Social Club” would not be correct. Please contact the Office of Student Leadership and Development for more information for student clubs and organizations.

Ready to Launch

Now that you have a social media account in place, you are ready to post exciting, meaningful content and build your audience.

Here are a few tips to help you launch and strategically cultivate your social media presence:

  • Create a schedule for posting that reflects the best practice for your platform. Having a schedule in place will keep you on-track, especially during busy times. Here are some examples:
    • Post 3-5 times throughout the week on Facebook to reach your audience regularly without overwhelming them with content.
    • Keep your Instagram photos and videos fresh and exciting, you can post a few times a week or daily. Think of this as a window into what’s going on in your department.
  • Ask permission to tag others in your posts and ask them to tag you.
  • Post links that will drive readers back to your website for more information.
  • Share posts from others that are relevant to your followers and give credit to the original author — it’s a respectful way to acknowledge them and to cross-promote your common interests.
  • Keep it social – Respond to comments, questions and inquiries.  
  • Ask questions to encourage others to comment, share and like your posts.
  • Monitor your posts daily and respond appropriately. Encourage conversations.
  • Be a valued member of the social community within your field: Like and comment on pages and posts that are relevant to your department or program.

Once you have built out your social media channel with content and you have a plan in place, invite students, alumni, friends, colleagues and others to like or follow you. Include social media links in emails, other correspondence and on printed collateral.

Measuring Your Success

Reporting on the progress of your social media efforts will help determine the value of your time spent in this area, and it can give you a sense for what works and what doesn’t. You will also be able to see how your social media presence is serving the Stanislaus State community and how you can improve.

Consider tracking some of the following measurements and determine which ones can indicate if you have been successful in achieving your goals. Create a timeline to review your analytics regularly.

  1. Growth: How many new followers do you have? What is the rate of your growth? Do you see an increase or decrease in the overall number of likes, comments or views on your content?
  2. Timeliness: When is your audience most active? Did your posts perform better at certain times?
  3. Top-rated content: What did your followers like the most? What posts generated conversation? What content was shared the most?
  4. Key messages: Did your content share your department’s key messages and goals? How many times were those messages liked, clicked or shared?
  5. Key interactions: Was there an online interaction where the help that you provided to someone made a difference? Share those key interactions with screenshots or links to demonstrate how your work is helping the Stanislaus State community.
  6. Trends: Is there a certain topic that drives conversation on your page or feed? Does a certain subject consistently show a spike in questions or comments? Think about ways to tailor your content for these trends to best serve your audience.
  7. The big picture: What is the meaning behind your social media presence? Are you bringing about awareness or education? Measuring your analytics can help show people why having a social media presence is valuable.

Updated: February 14, 2024