HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014 PubComm Year In Review2014 20152013 2016
YEAR IN REVIEW
OFFICE OF PUBLIC COMMUNICATIONS
T hat’s the question that plagues virtually every city’s communications and
marketing operation. City employees who are heavy users of our services
have a deep understanding and appreciation for the full-service marketing, public
relations and media relations work we do. But for those who don’t interact with us
on a regular basis, our operations remain somewhat of a mystery.
This 2014 Year In Review is intended to remove the mystery and provide insight
into the work we performed for our city departments and City Council — all in an
effort to benefit College Station citizens, visitors, students, businesses and other
important stakeholders.
On behalf of my extremely talented staff, I thank you for the opportunity to work
with yours.- Jay Socol, Director
CITIZEN ENGAGEMENT ......5 SOCIAL AND DIGITAL MEDIA ......29
STAFFED FOR SUCCESS......9 VIDEO PRODUCTION .............33
ISSUE MANAGEMENT ......13 PHOTOS ......................34
MARKETING SUCCESS......17 MEDIA SURVEY RESULTS . . . . . . . . .38
MEDIA RELATIONS ........25 STAFF ........................49
WHAT WOULD YOU SAY...YOU DO HERE?
A College Station resident shares his thoughts at the city’s Comprehensive Plan 5-Year Checkup meeting at College Station Middle School. Photo by Mike Neu
Citizens University
More than 20 residents participated in the annual Citizens University, a free 11-
week course organized and hosted by Public Communications that focuses on city
departments, budgets, services and activities, along with the roles and responsibilities
of city staff and elected officials. Participants asked questions, gave comments
directly to department directors, staff and elected officials, and took part in hands-
on activities to discover what it’s like to work in each city department. Several Texas
cities inquired about our CU program in 2014.
“(Citizens University) is a great program. It really expanded my understanding of what goes into operating and sustaining a good, thriving community. I learned that city employees are people, too.”
2014 CU PARTICIPANT
Neighborhood Seminar Suppers
More than 200 neighborhood leaders and citizens attended our eight Neighborhood
Seminar Suppers in 2014, which featured informative discussions with various city
staff members on topics that impact College Station neighborhoods.
Community Meetings
Public Communications staff attended 18 homeowner association, neighborhood
association and community meetings in 2014. We also participated in the
Neighborhood Plan Implementation Team, which is responsible for implementing
and reporting neighborhood-related items in the city’s four completed neighborhood
plans. This activity helped the city maintain its Neighborhoods USA certification.
200+
NEIGHBORHOODLEADERS
18
COMMUNITY MEETINGS
20+
CITIZEN USTUDENTSCITIZEN ENGAGEMENT
5
A College Station family fishes at Stephen C. Beachy Central Park pond during one of the city’s neighborhood fishing clinics. Photo by Mike Neu
Neighborhood Partnership Program
In 2014, 16 new homeowner and neighborhood associations joined the
Neighborhood Partnership Program, which provides an educational forum about
local and regional topics, and networking among neighborhood leaders. The program
was created to help the city build positive collaborative partnerships regarding area
development and city services.
Town and Gown Relations
Public Communications continues its relatively new objective of devoting
equal resources to outreach efforts with college students in 2014. Our student
outreach plan complements our neighborhood outreach plan, and is designed to
accommodate our ever-changing population. Those who own or manage rental
properties are included in these outreach efforts.
Public Communications staff regularly meets with Texas A&M Student Senate,
Student Government Association, Aggie Up Committee, The Big Event and The
Battalion. The city has a presence at key off-campus and new student events to
share city information and be on-hand to answer questions. Strategic ads were
placed in student and on-campus publications to give students the information they
need to become fully integrated into the community. Staff also utilized the city’s blog
and the Inside College Station newsletter included in CSU bills to encourage students
to establish and maintain good neighbor relations with permanent residents.
College Station was named among America’s top-10 cities for Town and Gown
Relations by the Princeton Review.
CITIES FOR TOWN & GOWNRELATIONS -Princeton Review10top
7
Marketing & Community Outreach Coordinator Lacey Lively keeps her eyes on real-time sentiment (via social media) toward College Station. Photo by Mike Neu
The Public Communications Office was reorganized in 2014 to assume additional
responsibilities and take better advantage of our staff skills and talents:
• Mike Neu became external relations manager after several years as multimedia coordinator. Mike serves as the city’s liaison with the CVB, works closely with the City Manager’s Office on economic development issues, and is developing a website dedicated to promoting economic development.
• Lacey Lively became Marketing & Community Outreach Coordinator after serving as communications and marketing assistant. Lacey serves as the city’s liaison with the student community while continuing her role in marketing city events and programs.
• After being part of Community Services, Neighborhood Services Coordinator Barbara Moore returned to Public Communications while maintaining the same responsibilities. The move is intended to integrate communication and engagement with community groups, especially neighborhoods.
• Jon Carpenter replaced Mike as multimedia coordinator after a decade as graphic design manager for the Texas A&M Athletics Department.
Internal Communications
Public Communications took on greater responsibilities for internal communications
in 2014, including more than 200 blog posts crafted for city employees via CityNet.
The department also assisted the CMO in preparing various messages to employees.
No new employee surveys were conducted by the department but are expected to
resume under the direction of the city manager in 2015.
200
CITYNET BLOGPOSTS
1
STRATEGICPLAN
4
STAFFCHANGESSTAFFED FOR SUCCESS
9
Mayor Nancy Berry and Councilmember Julie Schultz pose with cyber-participating Councilmember James Benham during a council meeting break. Photo by Mike Neu
Strategic Communications
Public Communications began writing the city’s first comprehensive strategic
communications plan, which will see phase-one completed in 2015. The plan
outlines the department’s goals, objectives, tactics and measures while providing a
framework for the city’s overall public communications efforts. Sub-plans will cover
the city’s policies and procedures for media relations, internal communications,
social media, marketing, hotel tax fund marketing, branding, crisis communications,
student and neighborhood outreach, educational-governmental (EG) funding, and
advertising/sponsorships.
City Council Services
Public Communications continued to provide support services to city council,
including the development of a major presentation that the mayor presented to a
planning meeting in Los Angeles about the possible re-development of the current
city hall property. The department also helped write various speeches, facilitated
council member blog posts, assembled PowerPoint presentations and developed
discussion points for media interviews.
11
Café Eccell, a popular restaurant among residents and visitors, vacated its original location on Church Avenue in 2014. Photo by Mike Neu
Café Eccell
In early January 2014, owners of Café Eccell contacted local newsrooms, claiming
the city was forcing the restaurant to vacate the building with virtually no notice. The
restaurant, which had leased the former city hall for 20 years, was a College Station
mainstay and public sentiment rapidly turned hostile toward the city council and staff
for such insensitivity.
The narrative was false, but media outlets quickly launched coverage that had the
organization on its heels — an issue compounded by the owners filing a lawsuit
against the city.
Public Communications stepped in to advise City Manager Kelly Templin — barely
60 days on the job — on a response that was aggressive and somewhat rare
considering the litigation. Templin’s statement to the media on Jan. 12 clearly showed
that restaurant ownership had been aware of the deadline for 11 months. The
statement was a game-changer and produced a dramatic shift in public sentiment.
While the issue remained controversial for several more weeks, city officials were
perceived by most as proceeding appropriately. The property was sold to Asset Plus
Realty Corporation for nearly $3 million, and the development is expected to have at
least $25 million in taxable valuation.
Tax increase and budget
In August, staff unveiled the city’s proposed FY15 budget, which included a
significant property tax rate increase of about 2.6 cents per $100 of value. Bracing
100K
COLLEGE STATIONPOPULATION
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FISCAL YEAR 201
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Public Communications developed a simple, easy-to-understand infographic to communicate the city’s proposed tax rate increase. Design by Mike Neu
for a negative reaction from residents, Public Communications worked closely with
Fiscal Services and the City Manager’s Office to develop consistent messaging that
underscored the legitimate need for the tax increase. Our aggressive public relations
campaign included multiple blog posts, an eye-catching infographic, a Budget
101 session with local reporters, and a video on Channel 19 outlining the budget
proposal. We also live-blogged from the three budget workshops.
This transparency, along with resounding council support, resulted in minimal public
pushback and the proposal passed quietly and unanimously in late September.
100,000 inhabitants
In January 2014, College Station finally surpassed 100,000 in its monthly estimate
of inhabitants, which we announced through the city blog on Feb. 17. The blog
described how reaching the milestone would affect the city’s extraterritorial jurisdiction
and financial disclosure requirements for public officials. Public Communications also
distributed a podcast on the subject with now-former City Planner Morgan Hester.
Football Game Day Issues
With the opening of the expanded Kyle Field and its 110,000 seats, the city faced
tremendous challenges regarding game day traffic, parking and housing rentals. We
worked with Public Works, Planning & Development and Police to craft several blog
posts that addressed these issues in a clear and forthright manner and were among
our most widely read blog posts of 2014. The Texas A&M Transportation Institute also
extended our game day parking messaging through its new Destination Aggieland
smartphone application.
15
A Texas State 7-on-7 participant runs across one of two recently installed synthetic fields at Veterans Park and Athletic Complex. Photo by Jon Carpenter
City Accolades
Public Communications aggressively promoted a number of accolades the city
received from various outside publications and entities in 2014, including being
named by Forbes as the No. 2 small city in the country for business and careers. To
keep better track of the city’s recent honors, we developed a special webpage that
includes links to major accolades received since 2010. We also developed a separate
webpage dedicated to prestigious honors earned by various departments and staff.
Mosquito Abatement Program
Several mosquitoes tested positive for West Nile Virus during a highly active mosquito
season in 2014, which led to a wide-ranging and proactive public education effort.
Neighborhood Services, now part of Public Communications, distributed 2,600
mosquito dunks – a record distribution – through the Mosquito Abatement Program,
which grants funds to neighborhood and homeowners associations for the purchase
of mosquito abatement products. The awareness campaign consisted of two blog
posts, repeated emails to registered HOAs, multiple TV/radio interviews and pitched
news stories, notifications for targeted mosquito spraying by the Public Works
Department, frequent social media posts, a podcast, and a video on Channel 19.
Athletic Tourism
Public Communications helped build and refine bid proposals for future events on
behalf of Parks & Recreation and the BCS Convention and Visitors Bureau in 2014.
As a result, College Station was awarded three events – 2015 TAAF Flag Football
Championship, 2016 ASA/USA 16U National Championship and the 2018-19 TAAF
Games of Texas – that are worth millions of dollars in economic impact.
2.6K
MOSQUITO DUNKSDELIVERED
3
TEXAS-SIZED EVENTS
No.2
SMALL CITYRANKINGMARKETING SUCCESS
17
Public Communications designed dozens of Games of Texas marketing and collateral materials in 2014. Among the variety of requested products were ads, videos, posters, billboards, banners (top), programs (left) and badges (right). Design by Mike Neu
ARCHERY • BASEBALL • BOWLING • BOX
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L
•
B
O
W
L
I
N
G
•
B
O
X
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
TRAININGTRAININGTRAINING • COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • SO
F
T
B
A
L
L
•
S
W
I
M
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
•
T
R
A
C
K
&
F
I
E
L
D
COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • SO
F
T
B
A
L
L
•
S
W
I
M
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
•
T
R
A
C
K
&
F
I
E
L
D
COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • SO
F
T
B
A
L
L
•
S
W
I
M
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
•
T
R
A
C
K
&
F
I
E
L
D
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
TRAINING COMPETITION •
SOFTBALL • SWIMMING • TENNISSOFTBALL • SWIMMING • TENNISSOFTBALL • SWIMMING • TENNIS • TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBA
L
L
•
B
O
W
L
I
N
G
•
B
O
X
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
• TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBA
L
L
•
B
O
W
L
I
N
G
•
B
O
X
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
• TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBA
L
L
•
B
O
W
L
I
N
G
•
B
O
X
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
LIFEGUARD LIFEGUARD LIFEGUARD TRAINING • COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER
•
S
O
F
T
B
A
L
L
•
S
W
I
M
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
•
T
R
A
C
K
&
F
I
E
L
D
COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER
•
S
O
F
T
B
A
L
L
•
S
W
I
M
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
•
T
R
A
C
K
&
F
I
E
L
D
COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER
•
S
O
F
T
B
A
L
L
•
S
W
I
M
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
•
T
R
A
C
K
&
F
I
E
L
D
BASEBALL • BOWLING • BOXING • DISC G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
BASEBALL • BOWLING • BOXING • DISC G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
BASEBALL • BOWLING • BOXING • DISC G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
TRAINING COMPETITIONTRAINING COMPETITIONTRAINING COMPETITION
SOCCER • SOFTBALL • SWIMMING • TENNISSOCCER • SOFTBALL • SWIMMING • TENNISSOCCER • SOFTBALL • SWIMMING • TENNIS • TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBALL
•
B
O
W
L
I
N
G
•
B
O
X
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
• TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBALL
•
B
O
W
L
I
N
G
•
B
O
X
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
• TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBALL
•
B
O
W
L
I
N
G
•
B
O
X
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
KICKBALL • LIFEGUARD KICKBALL • LIFEGUARD KICKBALL • LIFEGUARD TRAINING • COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER
•
S
O
F
T
B
A
L
L
•
S
W
I
M
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
•
T
R
A
C
K
&
F
I
E
L
D
COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER
•
S
O
F
T
B
A
L
L
•
S
W
I
M
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
•
T
R
A
C
K
&
F
I
E
L
D
COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER
•
S
O
F
T
B
A
L
L
•
S
W
I
M
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
•
T
R
A
C
K
&
F
I
E
L
D
ARCHERY • BASEBALL • BOWLING • BOX
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
ARCHERY • BASEBALL • BOWLING • BOX
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
ARCHERY • BASEBALL • BOWLING • BOX
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
TRAINING COMPETITIONTRAINING COMPETITIONTRAINING COMPETITION
SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • SOFTBALL • SWIM
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • SOFTBALL • SWIM
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • SOFTBALL • SWIM
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
• TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBALL • B
O
W
L
I
N
G
•
B
O
X
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
• TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBALL • B
O
W
L
I
N
G
•
B
O
X
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
GOLF • GOLF • KICKBALL • LIFEGUARD GOLF • GOLF • KICKBALL • LIFEGUARD GOLF • GOLF • KICKBALL • LIFEGUARD TRAINING • COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • SO
F
T
B
A
L
L
•
S
W
I
M
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
•
COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • SO
F
T
B
A
L
L
•
S
W
I
M
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
•
TRACK & FIELDTRACK & FIELDTRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBALL • BOWLING •
B
O
X
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
• ARCHERY • BASEBALL • BOWLING •
B
O
X
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
COMPETITIONCOMPETITIONCOMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • SOFTBALL • S
W
I
M
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
• TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBAL
L
•
B
O
W
L
I
N
G
• TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBAL
L
•
B
O
W
L
I
N
G
• BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF • KICKBALL
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
• BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF • KICKBALL
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
• BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF • KICKBALL
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
TRAINING • COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER
•
S
O
F
T
B
A
L
L
•
COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER
•
S
O
F
T
B
A
L
L
•
SWIMMING • TENNIS • TRACK & FIELDSWIMMING • TENNIS • TRACK & FIELDSWIMMING • TENNIS • TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBALL • BOWLING • BOX
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
• ARCHERY • BASEBALL • BOWLING • BOX
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
TRAINING COMPETITIONTRAINING COMPETITIONTRAINING COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • SOFTBALL • SW
I
M
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
• TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBALL
•
• TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBALL
•
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
TRAINING • COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • S
O
F
T
B
A
L
L
COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • S
O
F
T
B
A
L
L
• SWIMMING • TENNIS • TRACK & FIELD• SWIMMING • TENNIS • TRACK & FIELD• SWIMMING • TENNIS • TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBALL • BOWLING • BO
X
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
• ARCHERY • BASEBALL • BOWLING • BO
X
I
N
G
•
D
I
S
C
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER •
S
O
F
T
B
A
L
L
•
S
W
I
M
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
•
T
R
A
C
K
&
F
I
E
L
D
COMPETITION • SKATEBOARD • SOCCER •
S
O
F
T
B
A
L
L
•
S
W
I
M
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
•
T
R
A
C
K
&
F
I
E
L
D
• ARCHERY • • ARCHERY • • ARCHERY • • ARCHERY • • ARCHERY •
BASEBALL • BOWLING • BOXING • DISC
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
BASEBALL • BOWLING • BOXING • DISC
G
O
L
F
•
G
O
L
F
•
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
TRAINING COMPETITIONTRAINING COMPETITIONTRAINING COMPETITIONTRAINING COMPETITIONTRAINING COMPETITIONTRAINING COMPETITIONTRAINING COMPETITION
SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • SOFTBALL • SWIM
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • SOFTBALL • SWIM
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • SOFTBALL • SWIM
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • SOFTBALL • SWIM
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
SKATEBOARD • SOCCER • SOFTBALL • SWIM
M
I
N
G
•
T
E
N
N
I
S
• TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBALL • • TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBALL • • TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBALL • • TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBALL • • TRACK & FIELD • ARCHERY • BASEBALL •
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
T
R
A
I
N
I
N
G
C
O
M
P
E
T
I
T
I
O
N
•
S
K
A
T
E
B
O
A
R
D
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
T
R
A
I
N
I
N
G
C
O
M
P
E
T
I
T
I
O
N
•
S
K
A
T
E
B
O
A
R
D
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
T
R
A
I
N
I
N
G
C
O
M
P
E
T
I
T
I
O
N
•
S
K
A
T
E
B
O
A
R
D
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
T
R
A
I
N
I
N
G
C
O
M
P
E
T
I
T
I
O
N
•
S
K
A
T
E
B
O
A
R
D
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
T
R
A
I
N
I
N
G
C
O
M
P
E
T
I
T
I
O
N
•
S
K
A
T
E
B
O
A
R
D
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
T
R
A
I
N
I
N
G
C
O
M
P
E
T
I
T
I
O
N
•
S
K
A
T
E
B
O
A
R
D
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
T
R
A
I
N
I
N
G
C
O
M
P
E
T
I
T
I
O
N
•
S
K
A
T
E
B
O
A
R
D
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
T
R
A
I
N
I
N
G
C
O
M
P
E
T
I
T
I
O
N
•
S
K
A
T
E
B
O
A
R
D
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
T
R
A
I
N
I
N
G
C
O
M
P
E
T
I
T
I
O
N
•
S
K
A
T
E
B
O
A
R
D
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
T
R
A
I
N
I
N
G
C
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M
P
E
T
I
T
I
O
N
•
S
K
A
T
E
B
O
A
R
D
BOWLING • BOXING • DISC GOLF • GOLF •
K
I
C
K
B
A
L
L
•
L
I
F
E
G
U
A
R
D
T
R
A
I
N
I
N
G
C
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M
P
E
T
I
T
I
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N
•
S
K
A
T
E
B
O
A
R
D
• SOCCER • SOFTBALL • SWIMMING • TE
N
N
I
S
•
T
R
A
C
K
&
F
I
E
L
D
•
A
R
C
H
E
R
Y
•
B
A
S
E
B
A
L
L
•
B
O
W
L
I
N
G
•
• SOCCER • SOFTBALL • SWIMMING • TE
N
N
I
S
•
T
R
A
C
K
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OFFICIALPROGRAMOFFICIALPROGRAM20142014
Above are more examples of the materials created for Games of Texas in 2014. Branded promotional items (top), photo backdrops (left) and medal ribbons (right)were made available to participants at each event facility. Photos by Mike Neu
Young athletes slug it out during a TAAF Games of Texas boxing event held at the
Hilton Hotel and Conference Center in College Station. Photo by Mike Neu
Games of Texas
In 2014, College Station hosted the Texas Amateur Athletic Federation’s Summer
Games of Texas, an Olympic-like festival that featured 8,438 athletes from across
the state competing in archery, lifeguarding, boxing, golf, skateboarding, soccer, disc
golf, swimming, tennis, and track and field.
Only 220 participants were from College Station, which means the rest – along with
about 20,000 of their coaches, family members and friends – were visitors who
dropped an estimated $6 million into the local economy from July 31-Aug. 4. The
good news ... most of them will be back for another round of games in 2015.
Public Communications created the local Games of Texas brand, designed dozens
of signs, banners and other promotional materials, and developed a comprehensive
marketing plan in collaboration with the city’s Parks and Recreation Department.
Economic Development
The city took a number of steps in 2014 to reestablish its commitment to economic
development. As resources were moved to accommodate new initiatives, Public
Communications was asked to work closely with the City Manager’s Office to facilitate
new business development and attract new industries to College Station.
In support, Public Communications activated an economic development microsite to
consolidate online information, developed several fact sheets and print advertising
materials to solicit new business, and appeared before several internal and
community committees on behalf of the city.
21
A family poses for a photo during the city’s Trick-or-Treat at Werewolf Creek event
held at the Wolf Pen Creek Park festival grounds in October. Photo by Mike Neu
Brazos Valley Senior Games
Public Communications assisted Parks and Recreation in promoting registrations
for the 2014 Brazos Valley Senior Games held in February. Participation more
than doubled, with 401 athletes between the ages of 49 and 88 who competed in
track and field, swimming, basketball, cycling, golf, volleyball, tennis, a road race,
pickleball, disc golf, horseshoes and washers. Among the competitors were 348 out-
of-town visitors — including one from South Dakota — and 133 women. The most
popular sport? Pickleball, with 112 entries.
Trick or Treat at Werewolf Creek
New to 2014 was Trick-or-Treat at Werewolf Creek on Halloween. Public
Communications created all of the marketing materials, placed and designed all of
the advertising and created the onsite signage. Through these efforts with Parks
and Recreation, the event brought in 5,000+ to Wolf Pen Creek Park to enjoy family-
friendly activities.
Employee Recruiting
In 2014, Public Communications helped multiple departments recruit qualified
individuals for open positions. Efforts included creating videos, designing print
advertisements, crafting handouts, establishing webpages, utilizing the city’s social
media accounts, and coordinating radio and television interviews.
23
CS-referred news articles 3,403Jan. 1-Dec. 31, 2014
Police 1,602 47%
City Council 443 13%
Parks 340 10%
Economic Development 272 8%
General Topics 204 6%
Fire 136 4%
Total 88%
(See page 34 for complete results)
PubComm is helpful to my reporting
PubComm meets my expectations
PubComm responds promptly
PubComm is trustworthy
City news sources meet expectations
City news sources are pleasant
City news sources are trustworthy
MEDIA SURVEY RESULTS
MEDIA TONEMOST-COVERED CATEGORIES
Positive 1,191 35%Neutral 2,007 59%Negative 205 6%
100
% TRUSTWORTHYPER MEDIA
94
% STORIES+ or NEUTRAL
5
YEARS OFBUDGET 101MEDIA RELATIONS
Led by Public Communications, the city continued to have positive relationships with
local media outlets, which advanced the city’s overall reputation and image with the
public. Data shows that the city’s credibility has greatly improved in the last five years.
Biggest Stories of 2014
National
• 12-foot python takes over Texas woman’s bathroom• Texas A&M football players arrested• Bryan-College Station to be first Texas “GigaSpeed” Community• Cement truck rollover captured by a minivan dashcam• CS driver blames turtle, cat, squirrel, tree in wreck• McDonald’s ordered to pay $27M in deaths of teens
Local
• CS Police Honored for Actions During Shooting• Cafe Eccell• CS reaches 100,000 inhabitants• E-cigarettes• Rental Registration, Neighborhood Integrity• Texas 7-on-7 State Tournament
Budget 101
For the fifth consecutive year, Public Communications and Fiscal Services teamed
to provide a Budget 101 session for local media to foster a deeper understanding of
the city’s budget issues and processes prior to the series of budget workshops. The
result was appreciative newsrooms and more accurate stories.
25
Councilmember James Benham discusses Suddenlink’s announcement of ultra-high-speed Internet in Bryan-College Station by summer 2015. Photo by Jon Carpenter
Suddenlink broadband announcement
On Sept. 22, it was announced at a Texas A&M press conference that College Station
and Bryan residents would have access to ultra-high-speed Internet from Suddenlink
by mid-2015, making ours the first Suddenlink market in Texas – and among the first
nationally – with community-wide “GigaSpeed” connectivity.
The intent was for the news to be covered beyond local borders, but the timing
of the announcement and the limitations of our event partners required Public
Communications to develop and execute an eleventh-hour story pitch to media
markets across the country. The following was achieved:
2,600+ Newsrooms reached 1,200+ Engaged recipients
250+ Total online pickups 90,000+ Headline impressions
EMBRACE grant funding
In July, the city council agreed to repay $180,000 to the U.S. Department of Housing
and Urban Development that was misused by a local nonprofit organization called
EMBRACE, which had also violated three other federal requirements related to HUD
funding. The city then sought repayment from EMBRACE for breach of contract.
Misinformation distributed by EMBRACE’s attorney about the city’s handling of the
matter inflamed online forums. Public Communications worked diligently behind
the scenes with The Eagle to ensure the accuracy of the newspaper’s investigative
story. As a result, the story was accurate and did not improperly impugn the city’s
reputation, and the negative attention quickly dissipated.
27
Top 2014 Council Presentations viewed on Slideshare
2,653 views Kyle Field Game Day Transportation Plan
1,439 views Door-to-Door Solicitor Regulations1,401 views The Great Escape at Central Park1,133 views Common Game Day Parking Violations1,063 views Lick Creek Nature Center
342,258 views Home Page130,990 views Utility Customer Service96,228 views College Station Utilities64,266 views Employment58,239 views Police
MOSTVIEWED PAGES ONCSTX.GOV
1,667 2,961 583 57.6k 85k 10k
FACEBOOKlikes TWITTERfollowers LINKEDINfollowers BLOGviews SLIDESHAREviews YOUTUBEviews
SOCIAL MEDIA GROWTH in 2014
LinkedIn
This Public Communications endeavor saw a 57 percent increase in followers of
the city’s page on LinkedIn, a business-oriented social network that has become
a key tool in employee recruitment. Of our 1,026 followers, 24 percent are current
employees, 36 percent work in government and 38 percent are entry-level
professionals.
Slideshare
The world’s largest community for sharing professional content has become Public
Communications’ secret weapon for outreach. Slideshare allows us to easily upload
and share presentations, infographics, and documents to provide more in-depth
information to the public. In 2014, we shared 121 PowerPoint presentations that
attracted almost 85,000 views. In addition, local media frequently embedded these
presentations in their news stories. Embeds on WTAW’s website alone produced
more than 2,700 views. Since we began using Slideshare in May 2012, we’ve posted
348 city presentations that have resulted in more than 178,000 views. Prior to our
use of Slideshare, only those citizens attending city council meetings or watching the
video feeds would’ve seen these presentations. We now have greater transparency.
Facebook promoted posts
Public Communications utilized paid Facebook promoted posts for the first time in
2014. These posts allow Facebook page owners to target audiences by age range,
location and interests. During the marketing campaign for the city’s first Trick-or-Treat
at Werewolf Creek event, Public Communications reached 88,960 Facebook users
with promoted posts.
2.4
MILLIONWEBSITE VIEWS
120
NEW BLOGPOSTSSOCIAL & DIGITAL MEDIA
29
85K
SLIDESHARE VIEWS
3,418 views The bonfire memorial you may have missed
2,917 views Your account number is key when reporting an outage
1,232 views 5 handy tips to help students thrive in College Station
1,143 views Spike in drug-related overdoses leads to advisory
1,065 views 10 game day parking violations you can easily avoid
Councilmember blog posts
783 views Mooney: Benefits of Blinn campus outweigh concerns
619 views Nichols: Managing the impact of neighborhood rental properties
460 views Brick: Why I support adding e-cigarettes to tobacco ordinance
Top blog posts of all time
6,505 views Is your drinking water dangerous?
5,145 views Treasure found in a drainage ditch
3,418 views The bonfire memorial you may have missed
TOP BLOG POSTS of 2014
Blogging success
The city blog continues to be an effective cornerstone of our content marketing
and public outreach strategy. The blog showed significant growth in 2014 with a 52
percent increase in average daily views, and the 120 new blog posts attracted more
than 57,000 views. In addition, the blog ranks high on search engine queries, which
produced almost 11,000 views. Since we began blogging in August 2010, we’ve
generated nearly 500 posts, resulting in about 170,000 views and 5,500 shares.
Our live city council meeting posts and previews continue to be popular with local
media outlets, which resulted in far more accurate and consistent news coverage in
2014. We also live-blogged the election blog from the Brazos Center in November.
They have effectively set the narrative on the city’s most important issues, rather than
allowing someone else to do that for us.
City website
An analysis of cstx.gov shows that website traffic is increasingly driven from mobile
devices. While our overall page views remained about the same in 2014 at 2.4
million, access by mobile devices such as iPhones increased by 26 percent. Mobile
now accounts for about 36 percent of our web traffic, while desktop access is about
57 percent. To put that in perspective, desktop computers accounted for about 94
percent of our website traffic in 2010.
CityNet
Public Communications assumed a prominent role in creating content for the city’s
internal website in 2014. A total of 245 blog items were posted, an average of
almost one post every working day. News headlines and story links relevant to our
employees are updated almost daily.
31
In the above screenshot from the city’s @CityofCS Twitter feed, a College Station resident responds to a Takin’ It to the Tweets video. Video by Mark Beal
BCS Lemonade Day
We recruited several local school kids to participate in a short, entertaining video
promoting Lemonade Day in Bryan-College Station. The video helped make the
event a huge success as hundreds of local kids set up lemonade stands across the
community as their first experience in entrepreneurship.
Fire Department Recruiting
Public Communications worked with CSFD to produce a three-minute video that
expressed the camaraderie and pride in the department and encouraged those
interested in a career in the fire service to become a part of the team. The video, to
date, has an impressive 1,100 views on YouTube.
Takin’ it to the Tweets
This recurring series of short videos tackles tweets expressing genuine frustrations
about the city in a fun, self-deprecating way and encourages interaction. The two
editions posted in 2014 were about traffic congestion and drinking water, and each
received about 1,400 YouTube views. The reaction, mostly from college students (the
intended audience), was exceptional. They caught the humor, responded positively
and shared it.
Emergency Communication
Hall of Fame broadcaster Dave South, the Voice of the Aggies, narrated a 4-minute
video written and produced by Public Communications describing the many ways for
citizens to get vital information before, during and after large-scale emergencies such
as tornadoes. The video is not time-sensitive and should be useful for several years.
VIDEO PRODUCTION
33
100+
CITY VIDEOS PRODUCED
Batting practice at Central Park (left); Benoit Lutgen, mayor of Bastogne, Belgium, visits Veterans Park (top); Councilmembers Julie Schultz, Karl Mooney and Blanche Brick are sworn in for their second term (bottom). Photos by Mike Neu
Token in memory of late City Manager Frank Simpson (top); Danielle Singh talks with citizens at the Comprehensive Plan 5-Year Checkup at CSMS (bottom); CSU Electric lineman on the job (right). Photos by Mike Neu and Jon Carpenter
A close-up of the Vietnam War Memorial, dedicated May 2014 (left); A Habitat for Humanity volunteer helps build a house on Phoenix Street (top); Bowling event medal winners from the Brazos Valley Senior Games (bottom). Photos by Mike Neu
Kyle Field before its final demolition in 2014 (top); Dogs race during Wienerfest at Wolf Pen Creek (left); Sgt. Travis Lacox receives the Law Enforcement Congressional Badge of Bravery from U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (right). Photos by Mike Neu and Jon Carpenter
MEDIA SURVEY RESULTS
Those responsible for handling media relations within College
Station’s Office of Public Communications are helpful to my news
gathering and reporting.
“I wish all City of College Station officers operated at the same level.”
“Jay and Colin are extremely helpful on deadline and off. They understand the media has a job to do whether they agree with the story or not....”
“Jay Socol and his crew are really great at responding...CS does it right.”
1
2 0 14 Me d ia S u rve y R e s u lt s
Those responsible for handling media relations within College Station’s Office of
Public Communications are helpful to my news gathering and reporting.
COMMENTS:
Both Jay and Colin are always helpful.
I wish all City of College Station officers operated at the same level.
Jay and Colin are extremely helpful on deadline and off. They understand the media has a job to do whether
they agree with the story angle or not. I appreciate that both have picked up their phones after hours and on
weekends and then go out of their way to get information to us. Mike Neu has been a big help, too, especially
with getting quality photos to us. He's always helpful in getting information when Jay and Colin are out. Well-
deserved Employee of the Year.
Jay and Collin and very good in working with local media!
They are so fast and so helpful!
There are several situations where you guys were extremely helpful, including meeting tight deadlines that
reporters are often held to. One in particular is when Colin saved a couple of video files to a DVD that I needed
as B-Roll for my story. I know this sounds small and simple, but it helped me out a lot considering I wouldn't
have been able to complete the story without it.
Jay Socol and his crew are really great at responding to our needs. Bryan, on the other hand, desperately
needs a restructuring of its PR department (first, it needs one), moving it from the city secretary's office to the
city manager's. CS does it right.
Those responsible for handling media relations within College
Station’s Office of Public Communications meet my expectations
for accessibility.
“Always available via phone, text and email.”
“Nights, weekends, text messaging - truly great job. I’d imagine your wives are amazing for being so chill with you being almost constantly on call.”
“I’ve never not been able to get hold of Jay when I need him.”
2Those responsible for handling media relations within College Station’s Office of
Public Communications meet my expectations for accessibility.
COMMENTS:
I wish all City of College Station officers operated at the same level.
See above.
Always available via phone, text and email
They are always available via phone or email when I need them.
Absolutely, you guys are always willing to come to us or make yourselves available when/where we need you.
Nights, weekends, text messaging - truly great job. I'd imagine your wives are amazing for being so chill with
you being almost constantly on call.
I've never not been able to get hold of Jay when I need him
39
Those responsible for handling media relations within College
Station’s Office of Public Communications respond to me in a
timely fashion.
“They always respond to calls and emails pronto!”
“Jay and Colin are BOTH wonderful in this area. Also, if they don’t know the answer, they know the person who knows the answer, which is just as great!”
3Those responsible for handling media relations within College Station’s Office of
Public Communications respond to me in timely fashion.
COMMENTS:
I wish all City of College Station officers operated at the same level.
See above.
They always respond to calls and emails pronto!
Jay and Colin are BOTH wonderful in this area. Also, if they don't know the answer, they know the person who
knows the answer, which is just as great!
Those responsible for handling media relations within College
Station’s Office of Public Communications are trustworthy.
“While I don’t distrust the public communications officials, I don’t look to place trust in them either. I have to stay objective and think critically about how it’s the public relations department’s ultimate objective to make the city look good...”
“...and if you’re not I’m gonna report on it.”
4Those responsible for handling media relations within College Station’s Office of
Public Communications are trustworthy.
COMMENTS:
While I don't distrust the public communications officials, I don't look to place trust in them either. I have to stay
objective and think critically about how it's the public relations department's ultimate objective to make the city
look good. I trust that they will ethically provide me the information I am looking for.
I wish all City of College Station officers operated at the same level.
...and if you're not I'm gonna report on it
Jay tells it like it is.
41
News sources, whether city council or city staff, meet my
expectations for accessibility.
“Nearly all city employees are very accessible and are reliable about calling back and providing information...”
“Some city council/staff do not want to talk about negative issues. That is frustrating for journalists trying to tell a balanced story. Guess what, the angry constituent will talk 99/100 times. It looks bad when the city will not.”
5News sources, whether city council or city staff, meet my expectations for
accessibility.
COMMENTS:
Nearly all city employees are very accessible and are reliable about calling back and providing information in a
reasonable time frame. Same goes with the council. There are exceptions, however, who do not return calls.
The mayor is not helpful and has declined several interviews.
Some city council/staff do not want to talk about negative issues. That is frustrating for journalists trying to tell a
balanced story. Guess what, the angry constituent will talk 99/100 times. It looks bad when the city will not.
Sometimes difficult to catch a council person on deadline, or they defer to the mayor. Overall, fine though. City
staffers extremely helpful, especially city manager and David Coleman.
Yes, city staff are always willing to work with reporters on different topics. As for city council, I definitely think
there needs to be a more streamlined process. It's always more difficult to get in contact with these guys since
they are working jobs other than the council. I believe there should be a group email system that we can send
out a topic to and whomever is able to speak or interested should email us back.
News sources, whether city council or city staff, are pleasant to
deal with.
“Not all conversations have to be pleasant, depending on what is being discussed, but they are professional...”
“City employees have dropped whatever they’re doing to help our newsroom out. We appreciate the fact they have a difficult job, but still find time to answer our endless questions.”
6News sources, whether city council or city staff, are pleasant to deal with.
COMMENTS:
Not all conversations have to be pleasant, depending on what is being discussed, but they are professional
and when I give them advance notice about what I need to talk to them about, they almost always take time to
prepare numbers or have information ready during the interview.
Yes!
For the most part.
City employees have dropped whatever they're doing to help our newsroom out. We appreciate the fact they
have a difficult job, but still find time to answer our endless questions.
Sometimes they are nervous, but they are always pleasant!
City staff are always pleasant to deal with. City council -- no opinion.
Staff isn't always.
43
News sources, whether city council or city staff, are trustworthy.
“...The city council is a political entity, and I would not be doing my job if I trusted them. While I trust city officials to comply with laws...I think it is only healthy in my position to keep a healthy distance and distrust...”
...once again, if this proves not to be the case, that’s totally fine for me because it’s probably a story. But for the record, I have had no issues.”
7News sources, whether city council or city staff, are trustworthy.
COMMENTS:
Similar to my answer about whether the public relations department officials are trustworthy. I am not looking to
trust them. The city council is a political entity, and I would not be doing my job if I trusted them. While I trust
city officials to comply with laws about open records, I think it is only healthy in my position to keep a healthy
distance and distrust in order to ensure that I can be objective and critical if that is what the story calls for.
For the most part, yes.
...once again, if this proves not to be the case, that's totally fine for me because it's probably a story. But for the
record, I have had no issues.
In what areas does College Station’s Office of Public Communications excel in helping
you gather and report news?
Accessibility and a very good understanding of my deadlines. Those two things go hand in hand to helping me
get the people I need on the phone, to email back, to start looking into things, etc.
Timeliness, accessibility and an understanding of news.
They get back to us in a timely manner either by phone or email. and they're always willing to refer someone if
they can't help themselves.
The live blog of council meetings and the Things To Watch for are both immensely helpful. It can be tough to
make heads or tales of a Council Agenda.
* Secures accurate information in a timely fashion. * Available at all hours, even if it's to say they can't
comment or direct us elsewhere. * Tracks sources who are the most qualified to answer questions. *
Understands the job of the media. * Works patiently with revolving door of reporters to educate them on how
the city works and its budget. * We love ""Taking it to the Tweets"" humor on Channel 19 and the creativity
behind the Halloween shows.
Quick reaction and help on City Council stories.
In what areas does College Station’s Office of Public
Communications excel in helping you gather and report news?
“Accessibility and a very good understanding of my deadlines. Those two things go hand in hand to helping me get the people I need on the phone, to email back, to start looking into things, etc.”
“Timeliness, accessibility and an understanding of news.”
“The live blog of council meetings and the Things To Watch for are both immensely helpful. It can be tough to make heads or tales of a Council Agenda.”
“Secures accurate information in a timely fashion. * Available at all hours, even if it’s to say they can’t comment or direct us elsewhere. * Tracks sources who are the most qualified to answer questions. * Understands the job of the media...”
“Quick reaction and help on City Council stories.”
“Website blogs, particularly city council recaps.”
“Availability. Getting me any and all information related to a subject I am covering. Taking the time to explain things, and re-explain them...”
8
45
In what areas does College Station’s Office of Public
Communications need the most improvement?
“Nearly all my interactions are with Jay, so I am not sure if the other members of the office can be of more help. If there are good, feel-good stories out there, send them The Eagle’s way.”
“I have 50 blue USB drives and I haven’t a clue which one is which.”
“Helping all city department’s understand it is better to talk to the media - and for TV outlets to do so on camera - than to ignore the issue or make yourself unavailable.”
“More suggestions on story ideas...”
“The process of finding someone to interview could always be quicker, but CS does a good job at scheduling.”
“Maybe, if they had access to everyone’s schedule they would be able to provide a better ballpark estimate of when people are available.”
“Arranging interviews with city council. I know its difficult to work around their schedules, but there needs to be some streamlined system for making the process smoother.”
9
College Station’s Office of Public Communications utilizes a wide
variety of methods to proactively alert media. Which methods do
you utilize most, and which alternative methods would you like us
to consider adopting?
“Text alerts.”
“Emails work best. It’d be nice to sign up for text messaging alerts for the
important stuff since much gets lost on Twitter and Facebook thanks to
overcrowding. Social media has a lot of mundane information, so it’s not a
must-read.”
“None at this time.”
“I don’t know how much useful information you could communicate
through Snapchat. But it would make my day.”
“8-track tapes.”
10
College Station's Office of Public Communications utilizes a wide variety of methods to proactively alert media of fast-breaking information, scheduled events and other
story opportunities. Which methods do you utilize most, and which alternative
methods would you like us to consider adopting?
COMMENTS:
Text alerts
Emails work best. It'd be nice to sign up for text messaging alerts for the important stuff since much gets lost
on Twitter and Facebook thanks to overcrowding. Social media has a lot of mundane information, so it's not a
must-read.
None at this time.
I don't know how much useful information you could communicate through Snapchat. But it would make my
day.
8-track tapes
47
Public Communications staff: Lacey Lively, Barbara Moore, Jay Socol (top), Mike Neu (middle left), Colin Killian, Jon Carpenter, Mark Beal (bottom).
Jay Socol Director of Public Communications (5th year)
Specializes in media relations and developing strategic messaging for city council, City Manager’s Office and city departments.
Colin Killian Public Communications Manager (5th year)
Expertise in media relations, internal communications, writing, editing and developing traditional and non-traditional communication solutions.
Mike Neu External Relations Manager (7th year)
Helps internal and external stakeholders strategically use and track HOT funds. Provides marketing and design expertise to economic development efforts.
Lacey Lively Marketing & Community Outreach Manager (4th year)
Develops, executes and manages targeted marketing plans for city departments, including a separate outreach plan for college students. Leads the city’s social media presence and coordinates the annual multi-week Citizens University class.
Barbara Moore Neighborhood Services Coordinator (7th year)
Problem-solver. The city’s trusted, primary liaison to 80+ registered homeowner and neighborhood associations. Focuses on keeping residents informed of issues affecting them.
Mark Beal Broadcast Media Specialist (8th year)
Specializes in shooting/editing video, animation, after-effects and photography. Need a good video? Mark will create a great one.
Jon Carpenter Multimedia Coordinator (1st year)
Specializes in graphic design, photography and managing integration of the city brand in marketing and media forms.
49
City of College Station
Office of Public Communications
City Hall
1101 Texas Avenue
College Station, Texas 77840
979.764.3445 office
979.764.6258 fax
CSTX.GOV
/cityofcollegestation
@CityofCS
/company/city-of-college-station
blog.cstx.gov