Account Management & Creation

Before Creating A New Social Media Account

Before creating an account, please follow these steps:

  1. Review the Social Media Playbook for Student Affairs
  2. Review University Communications and Marketing’s guide on Launching a Social Media Presence
  3. Decide if social media is the correct tool for you
  4. Develop a plan for how this account will be used in the context of your overall marketing strategy
  5. Discuss your plan with the Assistant Director of Student Affairs Marketing & Communications

Account Naming

All social media accounts held by departments within the Division of Student Affairs must include Rutgers University, Rutgers, or RU in their account or display name on social media.

Page Roles

We ask that all areas establish page roles for all members who will be accessing their page. Services like Facebook and Twitter’s TweetDeck have predetermined page roles that you can use as a basis for other pages you may be managing.

For all accounts, the Director and Assistant Director of Student Affairs Marketing & Communications must be provided Administrator level roles for all accounts.

If you have questions about establishing page roles, please contact the Assistant Director of Student Affairs Marketing & Communications.

Statement of Confidentiality Agreement

All student personnel who will be managing social media accounts will need to sign a confidentiality agreement. You can use the agreement available through the office of student employment and append as necessary.

Continuity Plan and Approval Authority

In addition to developing page roles, it is also important to develop a continuity plan, establish levels of reviews, and determine who has top-level approval authority.

A continuity plan will help with succession when people who have access to the account(s) leave the area. You want to think about who will take over the account when it’s main operator leaves, or how responsibilities get transferred when student managers graduate. Have this plan in writing and share it with the Director and Assistant Director of Student Affairs Marketing & Communications.

In day to day posting, it is helpful to develop a system of reviewing posts to ensure accuracy. These levels of review will also be helpful when approaching and responding to comments and messages sent to the page. Additionally, you will want to determine who has final approval authority in case of the need for a response to emergency and other sensitive matters via social media.

In the case of emergency situations on campus, do not take it upon yourself to create a response. Instead, either wait for the official university response or escalate to the Director of Student Affairs Marketing & Communications who will confer with divisional leadership about appropriate responses.

Access List

Keep an updated list of all personnel who have access to your social media accounts at all times. This list should show which personnel have access to which accounts, as well as their role for that specific account. Be sure to share this list with the Student Affairs Marketing & Communications Office.

Statement of Use

In the about section of your Facebook page, and any other applicable account, include a statement of use in the “About” section of your page. This statement of use sets the ground rules for individuals posting content to your page and allows you to set stipulations for what kind of posts will be removed from your page if necessary.

See example:

[You Area’s Name]’s Facebook Page welcomes you to discuss and share information, thoughts, photos, and videos. However, we will review all content and will remove any posts that are inappropriate, offensive, contain insults or attacks, are duplicate posts, contain illegal suggestions, or contain advertisements/SPAM/solicitation. Please understand that comments posted to this page do not represent the opinions of [Your Area], Rutgers University Division of Student Affairs, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.