What is social media?
Social media is best understood as any online communication platform that allows you to interact with stakeholders on a scalable format. It can be public- or private-facing – below are some examples.
Predominantly public facing, allowing you to post content accessible to everyone |
More private-facing messaging platforms that facilitate one-on-one and small group communications |
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In summary, most public-facing online platforms can serve the following functions:
These platforms have varying intended uses depending on its built-in demographic and features. Below are some recommended platforms depending on your desired usage.
Platform | Average User Age | Feature | Recommended content |
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The Faculty team currently operates its social platforms under the handle @HKUMed. Below is an overview of existing platforms and its intended demographic of audiences.
Managing your School, Department, Centre, or Unit’s social media presence is crucial to engaging with your stakeholders in meaningful capacities. As such, you should consider the 5 Ws before launching on a new platform.
1. Who...
2. What...
3. When...
4. Where...
5. Why...
HKUMed is a community of healthcare professionals who constantly seek to innovate, both in its teaching and learning endeavours and research pursuits. As such, we aim to embody the following values in its social presence:
Professionalism – to promulgate staff and student achievements as well as their success stories
Expertise – to highlight HKUMed’s position as one of Asia’s leading research institutions
Open-mindedness – to value different voices in our community
Though social media typically targets younger audiences, that does not mean content on social media platforms need to rely heavily on slang, humour, or emojis, as these elements often do not translate as intended to up-and-coming professionals which form the bulk of our stakeholders’ demographic.
In summary, platforms under HKUMed should be used to amplify meaningful and genuine voices. Student success stories, recently published research, interesting scientific facts for the general public – these can all be valuable narratives on social media that can be communicated in a neutral tone and manner that maintains a sense of professionalism inherent to HKUMed.
Ready-made and freely available tools can help you create better social media posts. Here are some tools we recommend:
Grammarly – an AI-powered writing assistant that checks for grammar, syntax, style and formatting that enhances readability
Canva – a graphic design platform used to create social media graphics, presentations, posters, documents and other visual content
Shutterstock – a paid stock photo library service
If you are looking to promote an upcoming seminar, symposium, public lecture, or online initiatives using social media, we also encourage PICs to first contact the Faculty’s social media team at hkumedsocial@hku.hk to coordinate promotion via our existing platforms on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
Follow HKUMed