IVY TECH’S APPROACH TO
SOCIAL MEDIA
Although social media is a relatively new technology, Ivy Tech has made great strides in engaging our
students, especially on Facebook. As of January 2013, Ivy Tech has over 70,000 fans on Facebook. Ivy Tech also
has social media profiles on Twitter and YouTube.
Before you jump on the social media bandwagon, please be aware that Ivy Tech has taken an official
stance that there shall be one centrally managed social media presence for each tool, for example, one
Ivy Tech Facebook page (facebook.com/ivytech), and those accounts are managed by the Marketing and
Communications Department within the Office of the President.
We strongly discourage the creation of other social media accounts because of the following factors:
• Ivy Tech is one institution, therefore, it should be a singular presence in social media (for example,
Starbucks has thousands of locations but only one Facebook page).
• Much time and effort is required to properly monitor social media. In fact, our Facebook page is monitored
by staff nearly 24x7.
• If social media is not monitored properly, the consequences could be very damaging to the Ivy Tech brand
and could even have legal ramifications.
• Building a fan base in social media is the biggest hurdle to success. Creating a Facebook page, for example,
starting with zero fans is not an efficient way to communicate.
Instead of creating new social media accounts, we offer the following alternatives:
• Use Facebook groups, rather than pages, to communicate to select groups of people.
• To communicate important information, consider building a stronger web presence on www.ivytech.edu.
Our website averages millions of hits each month, therefore, it is a great tool for communicating important
information.
• The Marketing and Communications Department can work with you to create a communication plan,
which may include Campus Connect announcements, emails to students, and Facebook postings (the
communication must apply statewide, cannot be regionally specific).
If you have any questions about Ivy Tech’s approach to social media, please contact Michele Morrical, Director
of Web, Social Media and Student Communications, at mhygema@ivytech.edu or 317-921-4411.