Social Media Sproutlettes!
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| Happy new bloggers (and a few veterans) hard at work. |
Today we are hosting a social media for heritage professionals seminar. The offering brings together heritage partners across FPAN and northeast Florida, including representatives from the National Park Service, A1A Scenic By-way, St. Augustine Archaeological Association, Habitat for Humanity, St. Johns County Historic Resources, and FPAN staff from West Central and Central.
THEIR FIRST ASSIGNMENT: write a paragraph for the blog that features a picture, links, title and labels.
Read what our Sproutlettes suggested for this post!
Title: Sitting in the Second Row
Photo: some eyes behind a screen could be cute here.
Link: FPAN page since I mentioned it in the paragraph.
Label: workshop
NPS is representin' at the Social Media workshop in St. Augustine. Here we are taking up almost the entire second row of a room full of computers but instead of tweeting back and forth we are talking face to face with Sarah and Amber from FPAN. The normally outdorsy Rangers have traded an afternoon in the uncharacteristically frigid Florida temperatures to learn more about social media in a cozy library classroom. You can feel the presentational spirit in this room if not the tech savvy. Although many of us are still beginners, the excitement social media can elicit is catching and I am sure many a blog, tweet, and post will blossom out of this workshop.
Title: Stranded on the side of the information highway...
Photo - hitchhicker or interstate
Link - to FPAN, info on public archaeology, info to definition on social media
I am hear in St. Augustine to learn more about social media so I can buy into the program for work. As a public archaeologist, I should be all over the opportunity to share information with the public in a format that reaches out and gets read. However, my concerns lie not only in my ignorance of how social media works - but also in the thought of sharing my opinions and personality with people in a format I cannot gauge reaction nor take back or clarify my responses. So here I sit, stranded on the side of the information highway - unwilling to stick out my thumb.
Title: Learn Some, Live Some
Picture of everyone at the workshop. It's proof!
Labels: Social media, FPAN, something fun?
Ah! Social media. I'm only a fan of Facebook. Everything else seems a bit beyond me. Nevertheless, my distaste for Twitter and other social media are based more on the fact that I don't use them than an actual shortcoming in such mediums.
Like me, many other people dislike or don't understand the modern ways to interact and communicate.
Perhaps my dislike of all the websites and programs I can sign up for stems more from a fear of long term commitment than the actual program. I can't possibly have enough time (or enough interesting things to say) to continually update a Twitter account or to write blogs that other people will actually want to read. Right? I definitely don't have the motivation to try.
It seems unfair to rule out the possibilities. Without other people pioneering into the unknown, how would I ever get to experience the beauty of The Onion ?
The Woes of a Harried Archeo-blogger
{Add catchy photo of air boat}
As I sit here at the Social Networking workshop, I can’t help but feel that our own efforts to reach out through social networking is so far behind so many others that are in this workshop. To date I have learned a dozen shortcomings of my own outreach attempts. Even though our Facebook page is slowly gaining a regular audience, that audience is small and hasn’t grown all that much. It seems that without a significant investment in both resources and time that our own efforts to reach out to a larger audience are ultimately doomed to failure—or even worse to obscurity. It is difficult to envision a way in which FPAN Central can reach a much larger audience without making some radical departures from the way that we currently conduct business. Currently, our web page is fairly static and only the scheduled events are updated on a regular basis. I think that a better approach will be to really bring in some of the other activities at Crystal River.
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| Toni Wallace and Zaida Darley introduce each other to the group |
Title: Electronics Improves Social Life after 60
Photo of me surrounded by friends. Link to archaeology sites, etc.
My Social Life has just expanded 100%. Today I learned how to use several new and exciting ways to make new friends and influence people. FPAN-NE, that amazing source of info on Florida archaeology, just taught me how to use Facebook, Twitter, Blogging, and some things I’d never heard of before. Frankly, I was feeling a bit left behind. It seemed everyone else was on the bandwagon, tweeting and facebooking and connec- ting with lots of friends and associates. Now I’m up to date and able to do it. Weeee! My life is sooo exciting now! Thanks, FPAN.
Title My Day at Twitter Camp
I am learning about social media from the FPAN Northeast Region. There are some mediums I have never even heard of and some blogs sites that I will definitely follow. This is going to be a very informative session. Can't wait to see what else is in store for us.
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| Our secret weapon: fabulous bloggers who give us tips on content and tone. Thanks guys! |
[photo of me taking notes while I look intensely at the Tom and Lorenzo website on my computer screen]
link Tom and Lorenzolabel Blog Gurus
Photo- happy people sitting at computers
link-FPAN website, NPS Timucuan label- NPS goes legit with social media
Today Emily, Brittany and I attended the Florida Public Archaeology Network's workshop on utilizing social media in hopes to seriously step up the Timucuan Preserve's game (whoop whoop NPS!). Despite my questionable decision to sit directly under the air conditioning vent (It's about 40 degress outside), the atmosphere has been warm, inviting, and very informative. Who knew so many different types of organizations were dedicating so much time to getting media saavy? Hopefully by the end of this we'll have the Timucuan Preserve tweeting, facebookin', blogging, and playing foursquare like a pro.
Title: Social Media to the Rescue
We're learning to use SM to enliven and expand
our connection with interested folk that are
"out there..."
photo: happy new bloggers trying out new skills
links to LAMP, FPAN and other blogs
title Power of Blogs
link to either FPAN or Lamp and check out the fun blogs
photo - Stat page showing hits for blogs OR a great photo and caption from a blog
Label - "What the public likes"
Who knew? Loads of social platforms but the power of blogging within websites is phenomenal. Timely, engaging, personality driven and the kicker is that when it's done on a periodic basis - say weekly - it provides an "institutional history". (thanks Brendan for that phrase)
PICTURE OF SARAH AND BRENDAN STANDING IN THE FRONT OF THE ROOM 'LEARNING' EACH OTHER'S SOCIAL MEDIA
The FPAN Social Media Seminar is going very smoothly and we are sharing some great ideas. Amber Graft-Weiss led a session this morning on Facebook and Twitter accounts. This afternoon is blogs, more on facebook, linkedin, and other useful outlets for social media. Although I am new to Twitter, and have yet to determine its utility in the LAMP setting, I am more aware of its inner workings and now have an account to experiment with. Sarah pointed out how blogs can be accurately analyzed for their content, comments, viewability, and monitored in order to tailor better blog entries. Thanks FPAN Northeast!
Here's the LAMP/Lighthouse blog too, for those of you interested in maritime history!
www.staugustinelighthouse.org/blog
Wow- ten different approaches to the same content. The possibilities are endless...great job class!