CAS Social Media Best Practices and Account Request

The article outlines best practices for managing CAS social media accounts and provides guidelines for requesting new account creation to ensure consistent branding and effective communication.

CAS OPERATIONS

Services Model
Communications

Social Media

The College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) encourages the official use of the following social media platforms: Facebook and Instagram. Department YouTube channels are not permitted; however, departments/centers may request for videos to be published on the official University of Delaware YouTube channel at the discretion of CAS and the Office of Communications and Marketing (OCM). UD Capture can also be used as an alternative. LinkedIn requests will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. All social media activity must comply with the University’s Use of Digital and Multimedia policy and the Social Media Guidelines and Standards.

What should you know about posting to social media?

• Social media helps engage students, amplify voices and share time-sensitive updates.
• Social media is only one part of UD’s and a unit’s broader digital presence.
• Social media may be a person’s first impression of a unit and of UD as a whole.
• Avoid text-heavy graphics and flyers; they’re digitally inaccessible and usually get lower reach on social media. They will not be reposted by the main CAS accounts.
• Posting on social media does not guarantee increased enrollment.
• Posting about an event does not guarantee increased attendance.

New Accounts

All new social media accounts must be requested and approved by the CAS Digital Communications team. Accounts not approved through the proper channels may be pulled down due to failure to comply with University branding, copyright laws or CAS procedures. Social media account requests must be sent via the CAS project request form. Following a department/center’s initial request, the Digital team will require the following:

• A brief description of the department/center’s purpose and target audience for the account
• A one-month social media content plan
• Commitments of two staff/faculty members to run the account (students are not permitted to run official accounts full-time and may not be given passwords)

The CAS Digital Communications team will review each request and inform the department/center of approval or denial in a timely manner. If a department’s request for a social media account is denied, the Digital team will assist with developing a social media strategy using established platforms, such as the CAS Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn accounts, or suggest other effective marketing methods.

Independently Managed Department/Center Accounts

Once a department/center receives approval, it can proceed with creating the social media account(s). Each UD-affiliated social media account must include the following:

• “University of Delaware,” “UD” or “Blue Hens” in its name and handle
• An on-brand avatar (see the Social Media Policy for Official CAS Accounts and OCM’s Social Media Guidelines and Standards - Account Branding)
• Description of the department with references to UD and/or CAS accounts

Once an account is set up, its URL must be sent to CAS for final review before posting begins. The department must also submit passwords to CAS once the account(s) are approved.

Content Guide

Are there style or content guides faculty and staff can review?

• OCM’s Digital Brand Style Guide provides general guidance on UD-branded content.
• The Editorial Style Guide provides guidance on written content.
• Additional UD brand resources are available through OCM.
• UD’s current guidance on accessibility in social media is available online.
• CAS offers a Knowledge Base article on How to source images for social media.

What content is suitable for social media?

• Best practice is to post high-resolution images without embedded text. All important information should be written in the post content. Include ALT text for any images (see Accessibility below).
• Adding text or heavy graphic elements can make posts digitally inaccessible and difficult for screen readers.
• Text-heavy or flyer-style graphics are also ranked lower in feeds and may not reach the intended audience, as platforms favor authentic, non-promotional content.

CAS Communications offers a Photo and Video Best Practices Knowledge Base article with tips for capturing accessible, social-ready visuals.

Accessibility

Digital accessibility ensures all University content reaches the widest audience possible.

All University of Delaware digital content must comply with the following digital accessibility standards:

• Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1, level A & AA
• Accessible Rich Internet Applications (ARIA) Guidelines

To comply with these standards, all social media posts must be accessible to everyone, including those with visual and hearing impairments. To ensure content is screen reader friendly, each published photo must have alternative (ALT) text, or text that describes the image. Adding alternative text is different for each social media platform. Below are how-to resources for each:

• Facebook
• Instagram
• UD’s accessibility website has additional how-to’s for social media platforms.

Videos featuring dialogue must always contain closed captions. UD Capture can be used to auto-generate captions. Be sure to review and edit the captions for accuracy before downloading the video and uploading to social media. The following tutorials are available on UD Capture:

• How to edit captions
• How to download a media file

Closing Accounts

Before closing social media accounts, please consult the CAS Digital Communications team. If social media analytics confirm that the account no longer benefits the department or center, a plan must be developed to shut down the account. The plan should include a timeline for notifying followers, archiving content and deactivating the account. Departments/centers should provide at least a month's notice to followers, noting alternative methods of communication with the department and linking CAS social media. Pin this post to the top of the account if possible. Also, ensure that the CAS Digital Communications team has the most recent password and username for each deleted account.