A&S Social Media // Analytics Report Spring 2013 // January 2013 - June 2013
In this report, the Hive measures the engagement and effectiveness of The College of Arts & Sciences’ presence in social media. By taking monthly Analytics Reports that detail the status of each social media platform A&S has and compiling them into one report over a longer period of time, the Hive can not only archive that information but zoom out to notice overall trends emerging from the A&S brand. In this report, you will find data gathered from Facebook, Facebook Analytics, Twitter, Twitter Anayltics, Tumblr, Instagram, Bitly, Hootsuite, and GoogleAds:
// Facebook Overview // Twitter // Instagram // Tumblr // Campaign Results // Facebook // GoogleAds // Twitter // Conclusions & Looking Ahead
26%
418%
increase in page likes
increase in followers
25%
increase in followers
21%
increase in followers
Prepared by Shannon Ruhl Cheyenne Hohman, Social Media Coordinator
Facebook Spring 2013 Total Number of Page Likes:
New Page Likes in Each Month:
Average Page Views a Day v. Page Views a Day With Class:
2000
250
40
Percentage of Engagement Types, Likes v. Comments v. Shares:
35 200 30 150
JAN
APR
FEB
MAY
MAR
JUN
25
1500 20
100
15 50
1000
jan
feb
mar
apr
may
jun
Over the course of the spring semester, the UK College of Arts & Sciences page received 394 new likes, bringing the page’s total number of likes from 1,493 to 1,887.
0
10
jan
feb
mar
apr
may
jun
The number of new page likes peaked during February and March, totalling in 368 new likes in just these two months. These numbers can almost directly be attributed to the successful promotion of our page while running a short-term Facebook campaign at the time.
5
jan
feb
mar
apr
may
jun
= avg. page views a day = avg. page views a day with class
In comparing the average number of page views a day with the average number of page views a day with class, it is apparent that our Facebook gets more traffic on days with class in session. This could indicate both when A&S primarily makes posts to the page and when people are seeing these posts.
= likes = comments = shares
Each pie chart measures the types of engagement per post (or interactions in terms of the number of likes, comments, and shares) and compiles them to form a ratio over the course of a month. In comparing each month, A&S users engage with the page via likes by majority. A&S users are generally less compelled to respond to a post with a comment or share a post.
Facebook Spring 2013 Types of Posts v. Engagement:
Because A&S primarily makes “caption and image” posts, data is limited for other post types. However, the average number of interactions for text statuses and shared instagram photos is positive. Text statuses are particularly engaging when universally prevalent at the time, such as “Happy July 4th!” However, text statuses should not become the majority of posts made. Instagram photos are especially exciting because of their spontaneous and interactive nature. Posts with link thumbnails can also be used to make more general posts, such as “Lexington Named Top 10 College Town.”
50
Here, engagement is measured in number of interactions (the total number of likes, comments, and shares) per post. To find out what kind of post is most engaging, individual posts are categorized by post type. Post types are defined as below:
40
30
caption or quote, w/ photo or other image
total posts
caption or quote, w/ link thumbnail
47
Total Number of Posts
263
20
10
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15 16
17
18
19
>20
10
total posts
text status
5
10 total posts
instagram photo shared to page
9
10
0 0 total posts
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
Number of Interactions Per Post:
14
15 16
17
18
19
>20
~5.0 ~3.0 ~8.4 ~7.6
avg. number of interactions = caption w/ photo or image avg. number of interactions = caption w/ link thumbnail avg. number of interactions = text status
avg. number of interactions = shared instagram photo
Facebook Spring 2013 Number of Posts and Post Types:
Examples of Successful Posts:
120
JAN
100 80
FEB
60 40 MAR
20 0
jan
feb
mar
apr
may
jun APR
= caption w/ image = caption w/ link = instagram = text
The number of posts differed from month to month. Here, you can see April had over double the amount of posts made than in months previous, reflecting the increase in A&S events and promotional output regarding summer courses. This graph also offers a visual breakdown of the distribution of post types over time.
MAY
JUN
41
total number of posts
44 46
total number of posts
total number of posts
105 60 29
total number of posts
total number of posts
total number of posts
Throughout the past six months, many posts received an exceptional amount of engagement and feedback. Some of these are listed below as examples of successful posts:
+
Big announcements, such as breakthroughs in research: “A&S is leading breast cancer research...”
+
Socially relevant posts, such as Floating Sheep’s GIS projects: “Are you #StandingWithWendy...”
+
Articles quoted with visually interesting image or photo, such as an editorial on Appalachian economics: “Ron Eller and Al Smith in the Herald Leader...”
+
Faculty & student awards, such as NSF grants and Fulbright scholars: “Frank X Walker is named KY’s Poet Laureate...”
+
Time relevant posts, such as during a holiday or welcoming students at the start of the semester: “Wishing you a happy and safe July 4th...”
+
Hive-specific posts and photos, such as congratulating a fellow Hiver: “Congratulations, Sarah...”
Twitter Spring 2013
New Followers Each Month:
Total Number of Followers:
Total Number of Tweets:
50
1000
Number of Retweets (RT), Mentions (MT):
150
60 50
120 40
40 90
800
30 60
30
20 30
600
jan
feb
mar
apr
may
jun
The @UKarts_sciences Twitter account has seen a very steady increase in number of followers in the past six months.
20
jan
feb
mar
apr
may
jun
As stated in the previous graph, the increase in followers has remained surprisingly steady, with four months each coming in at 31 new followers. The only outlier, March with 46 new followers, could be attributed to the sponsored tweets campaign running at the time that promoted summer courses. Data was insufficient prior to the month of January.
0
10 0 jan
feb
mar
apr
may
jun
The number of tweets each month reflect similarly as the number of Facebook posts with increased activity in April. However, because of the fast-paced nature of Twitter, over saturating our followers’ home newsfeeds with tweets is less of a concern than it would be with Facebook posts.
jan
feb
mar
apr
may
jun
= retweets = mentions
This graph shows a rate of engagement (through interactions such as retweets and mentions) that is consistent with the number of tweets sent out each month. These numbers also show that people are not only compelled to share our content (RT) but also engage directly with A&S (MT).
Instagram Spring 2013 Total Number of Followers:
Total Number of Photos:
New Followers Each Month: 20
80
50
70
200
40
15
60
Total Number of Interactions (Likes, Comments):
150 30
50 10
100
40
20
30
5
20 10 jan
feb
mar
apr
may
jun
The @ukartsci Instagram profile has seen a strong response from followers over the past six months, increasing by 418% from 17 followers to 71 followers.
0
50
10
0
0 jan
feb
mar
apr
may
jun
As stated previously, our Instagram profile seen a positive response as more people follow our profile. Currently, the number of new followers increases at higher rate each day due to increased activity and engagement.
jan
feb
mar
apr
may
jun
Here, the bar graph may correlate adversely with the previous line graph comparing number of photos shared with number of new followers each month. While increased activity has generally resulted in a positive return, in terms of follower engagement, it may be advisable to monitor the amount of photos shared versus new followers to avoid over-saturating followers’ home newsfeeds.
jan
feb
mar
apr
may
jun
This graph shows a clear correlation between number of photos A&S shares with the number of interactions (likes and comments) each month. A&S is sharing engaging content. Yay!
Tumblr Spring 2013 Total Number of Followers:
3.0
40
35
2.0
30
1.0
25
Total Number of Posts:
New Followers Each Month:
feb
mar
apr
may
jun
The UK College of Arts & Sciences Tumblr has gained very few additional followers over the course of six months. However, there has been a 21% increase in the number of people following since January.
5
5
4
4
3
3
2
2
1
1
0
0
0.0 jan
Total Number of Interactions (Likes, Reblogs):
jan
feb
mar
apr
may
jun
Because less attention has been focused on our Tumblr, the number of new followers and our overall engagement with them has been inconsistent and less effective than any of our other social media networks.
jan
feb
mar
apr
may
jun
This graph shows how few posts have made it to the Tumblr page. Obviously with fewer posts, our presence is limited.
jan
feb
mar
apr
may
jun
= likes = reblogs
Here, the relationship between our output of posts and the number of interactions (likes and reblogs) is unclear. Some of our most successful posts have been in the form of photosets and blogging academic achievement (such as research from our Fulbright Scholars).
g
Campaigns Spring 2013
A series of campaigns ran through March and April, promoting summer and online courses offered through A&S. This was done by sponsoring tweets in Twitter, running an advertisement on Facebook, and advertising on search engines using Google AdWords. (A&S also ran featured stories on Facebook; but these ads were less significant than the ones analyzed here.) The Google campaign generated the highest number of clicks, which is reflected in its cost. The Twitter campaign was a newer strategy made more feasible due to credit A&S received from Hootsuite valued at $100. Each ad sent people to the interactive summer course catalogue.
39
$108.00
63
$1.71
TWITTER: sponsored tweets
46
$76.73
215
$0.36
FACEBOOK: “Summer Ad 2013 Beach Ball”
55
$400.87
798
$0.50
GOOGLE ADWORDS: “Summer 2013”
total clicks
cost per click
length (in days)
(-$100)
total cost
01
Each campaign was slightly different in length, but generally ran through the months of March and April.
$
total number of clicks
total length in days
The amount of clicks received reflects the amount invested and available audience in each campaign.
g 0
10
20
30
40
50
60
(The reduced cost in Twitter campaign due to use of Hootsuite credit.)
0
$
total campaign cost
The Google Adwords search engine campaign was clearly the most expensive, but had the widest audience.
g 100
200
300
400
500
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
average cost per click
The data is calculated disregarding any discounts used. 0
g
g 0.0
0.5
1.0
1.5
2.0
g
Campaigns Spring 2013
Top Ten Keywords, Most Impressions:
In 2012, A&S ran a similar campaign promoting summer and online courses using Google Adwords. By expanding and targeting the list of keywords used, the 2013 campaign was virtually able to reach the same total amount of clicks during the 2012 campaign for almost half the cost.
89
$739.14
55
810
$400.87
length (in days)
2012 GOOGLE ADWORDS: “Summer & Online Courses”
$0.91
798
$0.50
total clicks
cost per click
total cost
2013 GOOGLE ADWORDS: “Summer 2013”
Top Ten Keywords, Most Clicks:
1. university of kentucky**
1. university of kentucky summer classes***
2. oceanography**
2. university of kentucky online summer classes***
3. summer internships
3. summer school in usa
4. indiana university**
4. online classes
5. summer college
5. university of kentucky appalachain studies
6. japanese film**
6. uk summer classes***
7. sustainability
7. online science classes
8. university of kentucky summer classes***
8. summer psychology courses
9. uk summer classes***
9. murray state summer courses
10. blue planet**
10. summer program uk**
0
5k
10k
15k
20k
25k
0
30k
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
Top Ten Keywords, Highest Click-Through-Rate:
01
0
$ g
1. university of kentucky summer classes***
total number of clicks
total length in days 20
40
60
80
2. university of kentucky online summer classes*** 3. summer school in usa 0
100
200
400
600
800
4. online classes
1000
5. university of kentucky appalachain studies
$
total campaign cost 0
200
400
600
800
6. uk summer classes***
average cost per click 0.0
7. online science classes 8. summer psychology courses 0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
9. murray state summer courses
1.0
** keywords appear on 2 top ten lists *** keywords appear on 3 top ten lists
10. summer program uk** 0
g
Campaigns Spring 2013
Here, one can see that the sponsored tweet with the highest total number of impressions was the most general of the five. Other more specific or targeted tweets reached fewer followers.
Number of Engagements Per Sponsored Tweet:
“Stay on track! Take UK Core requirements and unique electives in our summer courses.” total impressions = 460
“Learn a new language this summer! Take French, German, Japanese, Italian, Chinese, Spanish - or medical terminology.” total impressions = 2,493
“Take classes anywhere this summer with A&S - online, on campus, or abroad!” total impressions = 4,235
“Pre-med? Pre-law? Pre-pharm? We’ve got you covered for summer classes!” total impressions = 5,015
“What are your summer plans? A&S is offering more than 150 courses this summer!” total impressions = 9,017 0
20
40
60
80
100
Conclusions Fall 2013 & Beyond
Throughout the past six months, A&S has engaged with thousands of people. By sharing relevant content and interacting with others - always with a fair share of puns - A&S has increased number of followers across all of its social media networks. Landmark Events:
Landmark events promoted within the college included English faculty Frank X Walker being named Kentucky’s poet laureate; the Summer Kickoff Event and beach ball giveaway; the Summer Courses Instagram Scavenger Hunt; the geo-tagging group, Floating Sheep, in the national spotlight; as well as numerous faculty and student awards. We also quadrupled the number of followers of our Instagram profile.
1st 418% In keeping track of specific data in our monthly analytics reports, the social media team has been able to notice trends in what is most engaging over each profile. Important events proved to have higher levels of engagement across various social media networks. In other words, people are coming across our posts and are interested in what’s going on. Better still, people are sharing these events and updates with their friends and colleagues through social media.
Successes and Suggestions:
Areas of improvement could include providing more of an instantaneous and interactive online presence - particularly via Twitter and Instagram highlighting campus activities, student work, faculty events, special lecturers, etc. A&S could further promote engagement and external connectivity through the use of hashtags and tagging others in our own posts. Our social media outlets can be better promoted during college-wide events, making students and faculty aware of our presence on social media and encouraging them to engage with us. This can also apply to any contests that are going on: in promoting the contest, we also promote us. A&S improved its use of the online campaign and sponsored ads, as shown in increased click-through rates and lowered costs. Campaigns are valuable ways to promote A&S social media networks and college-wide initiatives. A successful campaign uses its resources strategically and efficiently. Certain online platforms lend themselves to specific audiences and types of content. Utilizing the advantages of each platform can mean carefully choosing the phrasing, expanding the database of keywords, or including a more interesting and relevant image - all to best reach the appropriate audiences. Continuing to compile specific data in analytics reports will create a more impressive and useful archive of information to track long-term and short-term trends. Over time, the social media team should incorporate new data to help expand on the role of social media networks and appropriate goals of the college.
At times in the year when the academic calendar gets busy, A&S social media networks should not act as the primary promoter for events specific to any one department - as this decreases the chances of a follower finding content that is consistently engaging. This spring, the A&S Facebook page saw its highest number of unlikes in any month during April and May - months with the most posts made, many of them being event announcements. Here, individual department pages can be utilized to provide targeted information for more successful rates of engagement. These unique department social media networks can be structured in a way that is helpful and progressive to those involved. Each department can have a social media “manager” who periodically confers with the Hive Social Media Coordinator to ensure consistent engagement from each social network within the college. Constructive discussions can include how to manage a profile, advantages of specific social media networks, tips other social media managers have found helpful, how to showcase interdepartmental work, and how to run a successful contest, etc.
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