Social Guidelines by Platform

It can help to have a social media presence as one way to share information your department, program, or unit information with your audiences. Other important ways to share information include updating web content and emailing regular newsletters to your audiences.

If you are no longer updating and posting to a social media account regularly, you should set posts or your account overall to be private instead of public. That way social account inactivity will not show up beyond the account’s followers.

Accessibility

While photos, graphics, and videos are important on social media channels, so is accessibility.

  • Photos, graphics, and illustrations need to include alternative text (alt text). Alt text should describe what is pictured, including any text that may be part of a graphic or illustration.
  • Any text on a graphic or illustration should be minimal for clarity and readability on mobile screens. Text should also be a part of the alt text for that graphic or illustration.
  • Make sure the color contrast is high between text and image or graphic backgrounds.
  • Videos should have burned in captions, auto-captioning (that is reviewed/edited), or a caption file loaded with the video depending on the social platform capabilities.

Additional Accessibility Resources

LinkedIn

We don’t recommend departments or programs start new LinkedIn pages apart from the College of Arts & Letters LinkedIn page. This platform works by leveraging larger professional brands like Michigan State University and then college-level educational pages.

However, there may be opportunities related to a private, by-invite group on LinkedIn for a highly targeted audience with highly focused content. For example, a program may use a private LinkedIn group as a way to share information with invited current students and alumni of the program.

There could be other communications strategies on LinkedIn that could work for sharing information, including leveraging employee accounts and sharing, sharing information from the college-level account in some way, and exploring paid advertising for job or program promotion.

Facebook

Facebook is a news/feature platform with a focus on networking with graduates/alumni and audiences like parents of students. Facebook is also great for providing general information about a unit, including contact and location information. Generally, you shouldn’t post more than one a day or more than five times during a week.

Overall posts with photos increase engagement. You can add a gallery and can also tag related organizations within photos. Remember to add alt text to any photos, graphics, or illustrations, and keep text to a minimum on graphics and illustrations.

Facebook Tips

  • Generally use short, concise copy.
  • There is space to add more details or narrative text if needed based on more story-focsued content.
  • Always use images with a post. Upload a relevant image if the article does not auto-populate with one​.​​​​​​​​​​
  • Take advantage of video content – shorter and vertical content is more attention grabbing (up to 90 seconds). All videos on Facebook are now considered Reels, like on Instagram.
  • When possible upload the video file to Facebook instead of linking to a video.
  • You can also share Instagram Reels to the Facebook platform while in Instagram.
  • Put links in a comment to your post to help with the Facebook algorithm.

Facebook Audiences

Facebook’s primary audience tends to be alumni and staff. A secondary audience is parents of current or prospective MSU students. These groups tend to engage most with photo galleries, MSU nostalgic content, and MSU pride points.

Meta for Business: Marketing on Facebook (Source: Facebook/Meta)

Facebook Events

Creating a Facebook Event can increase the reach and visibility. A specific Event post also doubles as a promotional post and includes co-hosting/co-branding options with other people and organizations on Facebook.

If it’s an Event is posted as public, people across Facebook (not just your page followers) can search and find the Event post. It also allows followers, friends of followers, and anyone to post and share the event spreading the information more organically among people. Additionally, Facebook users can invite their friends/followers to a public events.

Instagram

Instagram is a visual-based platform that appeals to creative audiences, as well as younger audiences. In addition to photos and graphics, Instagram also allows you to add video Reels and Stories. A focus on Instagram is building community and strengthening your brand.

Posting to Instagram can vary in frequency based on your goals, though posting at least weekly or biweekly shows an account is active. Between 3-5 times a week or more helps with visibility and prioritization through the Instagram algorithm.

You’ll also want to make sure to post your strongest visual content on this platform. Remember to add alt text to any photos, graphics, or illustrations, and keep text to a minimum on graphics and illustrations.

Image resolution of photos you share on Instagram (Source: Instagram Help Center)

Instagram Tips

  • Instagram posts should be predominately visual and not rely on text in graphics.
  • Instagram photo carousel posts experience higher engagement than posting a single photo or graphic.
  • The optimal image ratio on Instagram is now a vertical 4:5 image (not square).
  • Most if not all text-based information should be in the social media post text. If text is included on a graphic, that text also needs to be a part of the alt text.
  • Engage with your followers by liking, commenting, and sharing their posts, as well as tagging them in your posts.
  • Ask for a native image and permission before sharing user’s photos or work. Also credit and tag them in your post.
  • Utilize features like Stories and Reels, which can increase your reach across broader audiences on the platform.

Instagram Audiences

A primary audience tends to be current and prospective students. Instagram is also a platform that naturally appeals to artistic and creative people — including faculty and alumni — who want to share their projects and work.

Instagram Stories

With Stories, you can share photos and videos that disappear from your profile, feed, and messages after 24 hours, unless you add them to your profile as Story Highlights.

Stories can be good for sharing time-sensitive event content and content from other MSU or organizational accounts that may not fit with your normal Instagram account aesthetic. (Learn more about Stories.)

Instagram Reels

Reels can be filmed natively on a phone or you can load pre-recorded and edited video files. Instagram features Reels more broadly across other Instagram feeds beyond your followers, so Reels can expand your account reach.

Reels should be in a vertical 9:16 vertical orientation for optimal viewing and sharing. Reels can be up to 90 seconds long. (Learn more about Reels.)

Video Reels are also gaining in importance in terms of reach and engagement on Instagram. Authenticity is key.

Since you can’t add an SRT captioning file to Reels, it’s important to add captions directly to the video for accessibility. Also many people watch Reels without the volume on so it’s helps with content context regardless of how consumed.

Reels upload requirements on Instagram (Source: Instagram Help Center)

Instagram for Business: Marketing on Instagram (Source: Instagram/Meta)

X

X (formerly known as Twitter) is a social media platform for providing news updates, timely information, and communicating to your audience on a frequent basis. Posts are limited in characters, and can include text, links, photos, videos, GIFs, polls, and location information. You can post multiple times a day if the information is relevant to your audience.

Overall posts with photos increase engagement. You can add a gallery of up to four photos in a post. You can also tag related people and organizations within photos. Remember to add alt text to any photos, graphics, or illustrations, and keep text to a minimum on graphics and illustrations.

X Tips

  • Tag relevant users (other initiatives/colleges/departments/professors).
  • Re-post or share related content from MSU, the College of Arts & Letters, or other departments/units/people.
  • Use language that a public audience can understand. Avoid jargon.​​​​​​
  • Put links in a comment to your post to help with the X algorithm.

X Audiences

There is an active academic audience on Twitter/X of faculty, graduate students, and higher education organizations. Media and reporters also remain active on the platform.

X for Business (Source: X)

The role of organic content for businesses on X (Source: X)