How to Use Social Media in an Emergency Situation

How to Use Social Media in an Emergency SituationPresented by Sarah K. Miller, MPA, CEM

First, why use it at all?The public is using it and expects to find us thereNIMS Refresh includes social media componentsSpecifically as part of Public Information and Situation UnitOpportunity to keep members engagedAvenue for recruiting and fundraising

Who Uses Social MediaAccording to Pew Research in 2015: 90% of 18-29 year olds35% of those 65+Higher income levels are more likely to use, but 50%+ of those in the lowest income bracket now do also58% of rural residents, 68% of suburban residents, and 64% of urban residents

Platforms

Most popular platforms

Most popular platforms by age

How is Social Media Evolving

More from Pew Research68% of Americans have smartphones86% of those ages 18-2983% of those ages 30-49Nearly 45% of adults have tablet computers

General Pro TipsHave a policyCover organizational use (who, what, when, how, why)Cover personal use (can employees or volunteers be disciplined for what they do on their personal time?)Train all employees and volunteers on the policyGreat policy examples at Government Social Media (resources section)Abide by platform policiesLearn what platforms your target community is usingPost messages specific to each platformIf you post engaging content, the crowd will spread your message

Security Pro TipsUse two-factor authentication (https://twofactorauth.org/)Use strong passwordsAt least 8 characters, using letters, numbers, symbolsDO have at least one other trusted person who has critical passwordsDont share passwords/accounts with anybody else (use team features)Limit use of 3rd party appsSee a more detailed presentation on security and privacy here

Privacy Pro TipsDont share personal information about yourselfDont share personal information about people youre posting aboutGet permission before sharing photos (if not in a public place)Dont tag people in photos

Two Basic ConceptsPush InformationGeneral public informationEmergency informationRequests for informationShould be interactivePull InformationSentiment monitoringCrowdsourcingDataminingGenerally not interactive

General Public InformationBuild an audienceBuild your reputation and credibilityPost interesting, relevant content

Emergency InformationKeep it succinctMake it actionableMake it relevantMake it easy to repostBe prepared to deal with rumors

Live StreamingPeriscopeFacebookYouTube (beta)

Live streaming Pro tipsAlways take your video horizontallyBe prepared for rapid shutdown if something goes wrongBe aware of changing conditions

Pulling informationRequests for assistanceSentiment MonitoringCrowdsourcingData mining

Use for operational purposesUse for intelligence gathering

Requests for AssistanceFrom Standby Task Force/Nepal

From IMSOCIO/Super Storm Sandy

Gas Station Map

Data mining and CrowdsourcingGathering up the large amounts of data that the public sharesHas to be analyzed and turned into actionable intelligenceSome is readily actionable, while most has to be confirmedWe can get some information thats geotagged, but harder now that people are more privacy savvy

DC Earthquake Data Mining

Tagboard

Cree.py A geolocation OSINT (Open Source Intelligence) toolCustomizable monitoring toolPulls geotagged posts from Flickr, Twitter, and InstagramPulls account based posts from Flickr, Twitter, Instagram, and Google+Can be based on accounts or on location

Person based search

Donald Trumps geotagged posts on Twitter and Instagram

Location based search

Drilled Down

Pinpointed

IAWACS

IAWACS Personality Profile

IAWACS GEOLOC

Managing All ThisTweetdeckHootsuiteVolunteers/VOST

Hootsuite

Hootsuite featuresFree versionSchedule postsUp to three networks/accountsColumnsMobile appPaid VersionUnlimited networksAdd team members

Tweetdeck

Tweetdeck featuresTwitter onlyColumnsScheduled postsManage multiple accountsTeam function (free)

Volunteers & VOSTsYes, you CAN use volunteers to do thisVirtual Operations Support Teams (VOSTs)Volunteer to help YOU, but are often pros in this fieldOther volunteersCan monitor from wherever they areHam RadioCERTExplorers, other police volunteersGeneral public

Examples of Volunteer WorkStandby Task Force: http://www.standbytaskforce.org/Humanity Road: http://humanityroad.org/Crisis Mappers: http://crisismappers.net/

Available Free TrainingFEMAIS-42: Social Media in Emergency Management (online)http://training.fema.gov/is/courseoverview.aspx?code=IS-42NDPTC http://ndptc.Hawaii.eduPER 304: Social Media for Natural Disaster Response and Recovery (classroom)Social Media Engagement Strategies (coming soon)PER 344: Social Media Tools and Techniques (classroom)

Contact meSarah MillerTwitter: @scbaLinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/skmillerSlideshare: http://www.slideshare.net/scba21E-mail: sarah@skmillerconsulting.com