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Strategic Communications Plan

City of Rocklin

January 2020

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TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ........................................................................................................... 4

I. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................. 6

II. SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS ..................................................................................................... 7

OVERVIEW ......................................................................................................................................... 7

ROCKLIN DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION ........................................................................................ 7

INTERNAL LANDSCAPE ...................................................................................................................... 9

COMMUNICATIONS BEST PRACTICES FROM FOLSOM & ROSEVILLE ........................................... 10

COMMUNICATION ASSETS, OBSTACLES AND OPPORTUNITIES .................................................... 13

III. COMMUNICATIONS GOAL & OBJECTIVES ........................................................................ 15

GOAL ................................................................................................................................................ 15

OBJECTIVES ...................................................................................................................................... 15

IV. TARGET AUDIENCES & PERSONAS ................................................................................... 16

PRIMARY TARGET AUDIENCES ........................................................................................................ 16

SECONDARY TARGET AUDIENCES ................................................................................................... 16

PERSONAS ........................................................................................................................................ 16

V. GENERAL COMMUNICATIONS STRATEGIES for COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT & STAKEHOLDER OUTREACH ................................................................................................... 20

MESSAGING ..................................................................................................................................... 20

COMUNICATIONS CHANNELS, TOOLS & RECOMMENDATIONS FOR USE .................................... 22

VI. BEST PRACTICES AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR KEY COMMUNICATIONS TACTICS ......... 26

A. MEDIA RELATIONS.................................................................................................................. 26

MEDIA LANDSCAPE ......................................................................................................................... 26

MEDIA TOOLS .................................................................................................................................. 31

INTERNAL PROCESS ......................................................................................................................... 33

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B. COMMUNITY PARTNER RELATIONS ........................................................................................ 34

PARTNERSHIP DEVELOPMENT & OPTIMIZATION .......................................................................... 34

ROCKLIN COMMUNITY PARTNER LANDSCAPE .............................................................................. 35

OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUTREACH ................................................................................................... 35

INTERNAL PROCESS ......................................................................................................................... 42

C. SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY ....................................................................................................... 43

CURRENT CITYWIDE SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS ........................................................................... 44

ADDITIONAL DIGITAL CHANNELS ................................................................................................... 45

RECOMMENDATIONS TO STREAMLINE CITY SOCIAL MEDIA ACTIVITY ........................................ 45

BEST PRACTICES FOR DEVELOPING SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT ..................................................... 46

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR SOCIAL MEDIA ADVERTISING ............................................................. 52

INTERNAL PROCESS ......................................................................................................................... 52

D. WEBSITE ................................................................................................................................. 53

GENERAL ANALYSIS OF CITY OF ROCKLIN WEBSITE ...................................................................... 53

TOP LEVEL INSIGHTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS .......................................................................... 54

E. ADVERTISING .......................................................................................................................... 55

ADVERTISING TACTIS OVERVIEW ................................................................................................... 55

CURRENT ADVERISING OPPORTUNITIES & RECOMMENDATIONS ............................................... 58

EXAMPLE OF INTEGRATED PAID MEDIA TO SUPPORT IMPORTANT MESSAGE………………………..59 VII. MEASURING SUCCESS .................................................................................................... 60

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

BACKGROUND

The City of Rocklin engaged Sagent to develop a Strategic Communications Plan to ensure effective communications with Rocklin residents, businesses and key stakeholders, while optimizing City and partner resources. The plan outlines strategies, best practices and tactics to help streamline messaging, expand opportunities for businesses and residents to receive City communications, continue to drive positive Rocklin stories, optimize partnership relations, leverage citywide advertising opportunities and utilize social media to amplify messages. The City of Rocklin needed a plan that identified best practices and tactics for the limited City staff to most effectively reach residents and business, create a unified City voice through streamlined messaging and reinforce a positive City perception.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Summarized below are Sagent’s most important recommendations for the City of Rocklin in order to successfully implement a citywide Strategic Communications Plan.

GENERAL MESSAGING

• Consider the target audience you are trying to reach when developing a message. Build or use the personas in the Target Audiences & Personas section in order to identify key segments of your audience.

• Before developing a message use the messaging guidelines in the General Communications Strategies for Community Engagement & Stakeholder Outreach section in order to create consistent messages that support City goals and resonate best with your audience.

• Utilize the monthly communication meetings to become a more action-oriented space for developing and reviewing content for the upcoming month’s editorial calendar.

NEWSLETTERS

• Enable easy sign up for City newsletters through social media channels. • Encourage residents to sign up at citywide events and create the opportunity for residents to sign up

when coming to visit the City office locations.

MEDIA RELATIONS

• Utilize additional tactics to pitch proactive news stories to media outlets to better control the narrative of how Rocklin is covered.

• Identify key messages and create talking points that can be used by all Rocklin departments and spokespersons.

• Identify City and Department stakeholders that can be the face of each department.

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• Create an online media toolkit for the City of Rocklin that includes a fact sheet, press release, press contacts and the Rocklin logo.

COMMUNITY PARTNER RELATIONS

• Evaluate existing partnerships to identify further opportunities for City communications efforts. • Utilize annual City events to partner with different organizations in Rocklin. • Determine any further needed partnerships and identify strategic opportunities for engagement. • Communicate new partnership opportunities during monthly communication meetings to identify

possible joint engagement across departments.

SOCIAL MEDIA

• Develop and identify additional shared content that several City departments can promote to their followers.

• Create a citywide social media thematic calendar at the beginning of each calendar year. • Encourage using shared hashtags and tagging community partners in social media posts. • Reduce the number of social media accounts.

WEBSITE

• Add search optimized headings and copy to website landing pages.

ADVERTISING

• Utilize and consider the free billboards from Clear Channel for every important messaging opportunity.

• Consider advertising on social media, to get the highest return on investment with a limited budget. • If possible, tie in citywide messages when the Parks and Recreation Department uses paid

advertising to promote events.

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I. INTRODUCTION The City of Rocklin has seen a boom in growth in population over the last 15 years. For two years in a row, Rocklin has been included in the top five fastest growing cities in the state, based on annual percentage population growth. As a result, the residents and businesses in Rocklin are more diverse than ever and there are more services being offered by the City. This expansion necessitates modified strategic communications to ensure that Rocklin representatives continue to communicate shared, targeted and effective messages. To address this need, the City of Rocklin engaged Sagent to develop this Strategic Communications Plan to more effectively communicate with Rocklin residents, businesses and key stakeholders, while optimizing City and partner resources. The Plan includes the following components:

• Situational Analysis – An overview of the City of Rocklin, including city history, demographic information, a presentation of the internal communications landscape for City staff, comparisons from other cities (Folsom and Roseville), and an analysis of City communication assets, obstacles and opportunities.

• Communications Goals & Objectives – An outline of the City’s communications goals and the objectives developed to help City staff achieve those goals.

• Target Audiences & Personas – Identification of primary and secondary target audiences for City communications and presentation of personas for the core audiences.

• General Communications Strategies for Community Engagement & Stakeholder Outreach – An overview of recommended messages, and best practices for communication channels and tools.

• Best Practices and Recommendations for Key Communications Tactics – A deep dive into key communications tactics including media relations, community relations, social media, website, and advertising.

• Measuring Success – An evaluation grid with recommendations for key performance indicators by tactic.

The Best Practices and Recommendations for Key Communications Tactics section includes the below components:

• Media Relations – A media relations landscape, including key media outlets, and best practices and tools for media relations.

• Community Partner Relations – An assessment of the current partner landscape, successes, and recommendations for partnership development and outreach opportunities.

• Social Media – An overview of social media platforms, an assessment of the current citywide social media landscape, and recommendations for social media.

• Website – Analysis of the City of Rocklin’s website and presentation of how the site can be optimized to enhance and streamline messaging and user experience.

• Advertising – An overview of paid media tactics and recommendations for City advertising.

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II. SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS

OVERVIEW

The City of Rocklin was incorporated in 1893 and is located in Placer County, approximately 22 miles away from Sacramento. Rocklin is intersected by Interstate 80 and Highway 65, both highways are the source of most traffic for Rocklin residents. The City encompasses 19.87 square miles and there is a population of approximately 69,200 residents, 21,600 households and an estimated civilian work force of 31,000.

Rocklin has a mixture of first-class business, retail, and recreational opportunities often offered by larger cities, but also combines those amenities with neighborhoods that maintain their sense of community and small-town values. The vision statement for the City of Rocklin is to become a city that provides its citizens with exceptional quality of life, while maintaining its small-town sense of community. Messages pertaining to parks, schools and safety seem to resonate most with Rocklin residents. Rocklin was recently named the best place in Placer County to raise a family by Niche.com and the reputation is well-earned. Rocklin schools are consistently listed among the best in the Sacramento region. Low crime rates and top-notch public safety departments have also placed Rocklin in the top 20 safest cities in California. The City has the great advantage for residents and visitors that a park is located less than half a mile from almost every door in the city. In addition, the historic Quarry District, specifically, is experiencing a transformation and public and private development is creating a downtown environment that supports vibrant entertainment, commercial activity, and residential life.

ROCKLIN DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION

According to State of California Department of Finance, between January 2018 and January 2019 the population of Rocklin grew from approximately 66,711 to 69,249 which is a 3.8 percent change.1 The City of Rocklin median household income in 2017 was $91,995 which is significantly more than the median household income of $57,652 across the United States. There is an estimated 7% of people living below the poverty line in Rocklin.2 The map below shows all of the places in Rocklin, CA colored by their median Household Income.3

1 State of California Department of Finance for Rocklin City, California: http://www.dof.ca.gov/Forecasting/Demographics/Estimates/E-1/ 2 United States Census Bureau. Quick Facts for Rocklin City, California: https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/rocklincitycalifornia 3 Data USA for Rocklin, CA: https://datausa.io/profile/geo/rocklin-ca/

“Our City’s vision for the future, ensuring that Rocklin provides its citizens with exceptional quality of life while maintaining its small-town sense of community.”

- Strategic Plan, 2019-2020

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According to the U.S Census Bureau, the ethnic composition of Rocklin City is mostly White. White Alone residents make up (71.3%) of the population, Hispanic or Latino (12.2%), Asian Alone (8.67%), two or more races (6.6%), and Black or African American Alone (1.9%).4 A majority of Rocklin residents (85.1%) speak only English, while 14.92% speak other languages at home. The non-English language spoken in households by the largest group is Spanish, which is spoken by 5.44% of the population. The most common education attained by a Rocklin resident above the age of 25 is a bachelor’s degree (42.9%). In 2017, the City of Rocklin showed that the overall median age is 37.7 years old, 35.8 years for males, and 39.5 years for females. Rocklin also has an overall marriage rate of 55%.

4 United States Census Bureau. Quick Facts for Rocklin City, California: https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/rocklincitycalifornia

City of Rocklin Income by Location Map – Data USA for Rocklin

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INTERNAL LANDSCAPE

The Mayor of Rocklin is a member of the five-member City Council. The City operates under a Council- Manager Form of Government. The City organizational chart displays the relationships between units of the City government, and day-to-day operations are handled by the City departments. The City contracts for water services, sewer treatment services, and garbage services.

Rocklin Communications Staff The City of Rocklin employs one full-time employee focused on overall City communications, serving all departments out of the City Manager’s Office.

• The communications staff member provides assistance to the Public Services and Community Development Departments, since these departments do not have communications staff.

• The Parks and Recreation Department also employs a full-time staff member focused on marketing parks programs and events.

• The Police Department handles most of its communications with residents through a team approach.

A cross-departmental volunteer team of employees working in public-facing areas meet monthly to discuss communications projects and anticipated needs in their respective departments.

City Organizational Structure FY 2019-20 – Rocklin Strategic Communications Plan RFQ

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Discovery Process Prior to developing this Strategic Communications Plan, Sagent conducted one group discussion and three key informant interviews to gather information on the current communications landscape within the various City departments and inform our strategy and recommendations.

• Group Discussion: Participants in the group discussion included representatives from the City Manager’s Office, the Public Services Department, the Police Department, the Fire Department and the Community Development Department.

• Three Key Informant Interviews: The key informant interviews were conducted with two members of the City Council and one representative from the Parks and Recreation Department.

The information collected through this research is incorporated throughout the Plan.

COMMUNICATIONS BEST PRACTICES FROM FOLSOM & ROSEVILLE

In addition to our research into the current internal communications landscape for Rocklin, Sagent conducted research on the communications practices from the cities of Folsom and Roseville in order to identify communications best practices from similar cities in the greater area.

• Folsom was chosen because the population size and city structure is similar to the City of Rocklin. The City of Rocklin is similar in terms of the amount of resources, city employees and number of residents.

• Roseville was chosen due to the close proximity between the two cities. The City of Roseville also has similarities in the ethnic makeup of residents.

Our research included an analysis of each city’s website and social media platforms. The strategies and tactics we found that the City of Rocklin can mirror to enhance their own communication efforts are described below.

FOLSOM

The City of Folsom has 78,038 residents. Their main communication channels include a weekly newsletter, e-blasts, social media platforms and website. The City of Folsom utilizes a bimonthly newsletter that is mailed to residents and businesses that covers news, information and events. In addition to the bimonthly newsletter they have a weekly e-newsletter that is delivered to residents every Monday. Social Media Insights The City of Folsom is active on their Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. In addition, they utilize YouTube with recent videos that include City of Folsom information. They also have several videos about their Community Service Day, but all of these videos were produced in 2016. The City of Folsom also has a LinkedIn but has never posted information here. All social media platforms for the City have the same handle (@CityofFolsom). Below are key insights gathered from the three top City social media platforms – Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

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The City of Folsom also has social media channels for the following departments: Fire, Police, and Parks and Recreation. The City of Folsom Police Department is the most successful channel with 15,287 followers. The number of followers for each social platform listed below was updated on December 6, 2019. Facebook – @CityofFolsom 8,486 followers

• The City of Folsom has an active presence on Facebook. They post approximately 4 - 6 times per week and they have approximately 4% more residents following their Facebook page compared to the City of Rocklin.

• Most popular posts include videos. The City of Folsom posts at least a few videos a month, and all of these posts get high engagement with likes and comments. They also utilize Facebook live.

• Popular posts showcase residents, and gives a more personable, human touch to the account. • Consistently post content to help people get involved, and always post their weekly email

newsletter with things happening around the community. This is a good tactic to increase the length of their mailing list.

• Pictures that showcase the beauty of their city, showcase safety, or honor the police and firefighters get many likes.

• Folsom also utilizes hashtags (#ServeFolsom and #MeetYourCity) to increase their reach. • They use emojis to make the copy on their posts more playful and fun. • Folsom advertises their city events on the events tab.

Instagram – @cityoffolsom 2,853 followers

• The City of Folsom uses Instagram to get their message out to even more residents. They post approximately 1-3 times per week on Instagram.

• The pictures most often posted are faces of people in the community, the fire or police department, and photos of the landscape around Folsom.

• Instagram has more image driven content – usually showcasing community members and landscape views of Folsom. They have less informational content such as newsletters, events and city meetings. Information driven content lives mostly on their Facebook social media page.

Twitter – @CityofFolsom 2,342 followers

• The City of Folsom Twitter account is also active, 2 – 5 posts a week. • The content on Twitter is very similar to Facebook, and they often have the same posts.

Website Insights

• The City of Folsom website is very outdated aesthetically speaking and the photos are small. • On the navigation bar, the hamburger menu includes a tab to easily find each city department.

Rocklin currently has city departments under the government tab. • The calendar on their website is organized allowing visitors to filter by event type, date or

specific event.

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ROSEVILLE

The City of Roseville has 135,329 residents. In addition to their social media platforms, the City of Roseville has several different e-newsletters and alerts that residents can sign up for. There is a general City of Roseville News e-newsletter as well as a Business Matters e-newsletter. They also allow residents to sign up for specific emails for traffic alerts, job opportunities, Public Safety & Neighborhood News, and many more. Social Media Insights The City of Roseville is active on all main social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. However, they also utilize YouTube, Nextdoor and LinkedIn. Roseville is very active on YouTube, posting a “What’s Happening in Roseville” at least once a month, and consistently post on LinkedIn, focusing on business development and job opportunity. Through a Pinterest account, there are many postings of library events and more. All social media platforms for the City have the same handle (@CityofRoseville). The City of Roseville also has social media channels for the following departments: Fire, Police, Utilities and Parks and Recreation. Similar to the City of Rocklin and the City of Folsom, the City of Roseville’s most successful channel is the Police Department with 38,033 followers. Below are key insights gathered from the three top City social media platforms – Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. The number of followers for each social platform listed below was updated on December 6, 2019.

Facebook – @cityofroseville 12,386 followers

• On Facebook, the City of Roseville posts about 5-7 times per week. • Utilizes video and show a monthly video of what is happening around the community. • Includes updates for residents on new buildings – these posts have the most engagement. • The City uses stock photos – these posts do not get as much engagement. Posting photos with

faces in the community are more popular. • Roseville always advertises their upcoming events, and on the events tabs have all upcoming

event pages ready for the next two months. In comparison, Rocklin does not post upcoming events on the main city account events pages.

Instagram – @cityofroseville 4,627 followers

• Roseville is also active on Instagram; they post approximately 3-4 times per week. • Most popular posts are high quality photos of the city and spotlights of people who work in the

city. • Some posts and content are similar to Facebook. However, they also have original content such

as spotlights on residents and community workers as well as some graphics that teach about recycling, composting, etc.

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Twitter – @CityofRoseville 10,500 followers

• Roseville’s Twitter account is also active, with daily posts, approximately 7 posts a week. • Does not have high engagement. • There is similar content to Facebook and Instagram, however there is also news driven content

such as traffic or road closure alerts.

Website Insights

• The City of Roseville has short news articles that come out at least once a day if not more. • The City of Roseville makes the local calendar and upcoming events prominent on the

homepage and organizes it by age groups (Adults, Seniors, Teens, Family, Kids and Tots).

COMMUNICATION ASSETS, OBSTACLES AND OPPORTUNITIES

Our Discovery Process provided insights into the current communication assets that Rocklin currently has, the communications obstacles that the City is currently facing, and opportunities that the City has to improve citywide communication to residents and businesses. These assets, obstacles and opportunities are identified below.

ASSETS

• Impressive reputation for schools, safety, and parks, “family-friendly” • Community events • Strong existing community partnerships • Social media accounts with strong following • Media outlets (Placer Herald, Good Day Sacramento) • Monthly eblasts • Free electronic billboard • Website • Monthly cross-departmental communications meetings

OBSTACLES

• Limited staffing • Communicating cross-departmental messages • Crafting technical or complicated messages that residents positively respond to • Limited advertising budget • Monitoring and engaging with Facebook pages or groups created by residents themselves • Sensationalized news coverage • Keeping department website content dynamic

OPPORTUNITIES

• Reinforce positive City perception and a unified City voice through shared and streamlined messaging

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• Create messages that resonate with residents • Generate positive and proactive news stories • Make shared citywide messaging and alerts more easily accessible on website • Audit and learn from Facebook pages created by residents

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III. COMMUNICATIONS GOAL & OBJECTIVES This Strategic Communications Plan is informed by research and outlines strategies, best practices and tactics to achieve the below communication goal and objectives identified by the City.

GOAL

To more effectively communicate and engage with Rocklin residents, businesses and key stakeholders, while optimizing City and partner resources. OBJECTIVES

• Streamline City communications and messaging to residents and businesses. • Expand opportunities for residents and businesses to receive City communications. • Engage media to cover important positive Rocklin stories. • Expand and optimize partnerships with local organizations to continue to build trust and a

community network. • Streamline City social media activity across departments. • Use citywide social media platforms in a strategic way to amplify messages, events, and key

actions. • Ensure the City website is user-friendly and communicates key messages. • Leverage citywide advertising opportunities to get the most from a limited budget.

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IV. TARGET AUDIENCES & PERSONAS Identifying your target audience is the first step to any successful communications strategy. Keeping your target audience in mind and crafting messages that will make sense to the audience you intend to reach will make your communications efforts more effective. Primary target audiences are the main or priority people you intend to reach. Secondary target audiences can include other key stakeholders that you would like to reach, if able. Secondary target audiences can also influence primary target audiences. The City of Rocklin has the below primary and secondary target audiences.

PRIMARY TARGET AUDIENCES

• Rocklin Residents • Rocklin Businesses

SECONDARY TARGET AUDIENCES

• Community partners • Surrounding community members • Non-residents who work, do business, or recreate in Rocklin

PERSONAS

A persona is a composite sketch of a key segment of your audience that can be used as a tool to help target messaging to more specific groups of residents. Personas do not describe real people but are developed based on real data and demographics. Building personas for your core audience can help identify your audience and paint a realistic picture of your key audience segments. Personas also add a human element to what would remain cold facts and research. Utilize personas to help you create content and messaging that better solves your audience’s concerns or identifies issues they care about. To better understand the opportunities in communicating to the different Rocklin residents and businesses that make up the community, below are personas of typical Rocklin residents and a Rocklin business owner.

ROCKLIN OLDER ESTABLISHED RESIDENT

Name

Maureen Brooks

Demographic Information

 Female  Aged 65-70  Married  Retired, worked as a nurse.  College-educated.

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 Has lived in Rocklin for over 30 years.  Household income: $90,000

Psychographic Information

 Loves to spend her time with her grandchildren.  Often looking for fun things to do with her husband around town.  Enjoys music and arts and crafts.  Likes to feel involved in her community. Occasionally attends City of Rocklin council

meetings.  Concerned about how the growth in Rocklin might affect crime.  Technology can be difficult for her, but she is trying to learn to use social media to

keep up to date with her children.

Motivators & Influencers

 Reads the hard copy newspaper every day and influenced by the articles she reads.  Motivated by what her neighbors, who have also lived in Rocklin for a significant

amount of time, think.  Cares that Rocklin is always seen as a great place to live, and is motivated to keep it

beautiful and wholesome.  Influenced by the pages and friends she follows on Facebook.

Primary Media Channels

 Social Media: Facebook, Nextdoor  News: Local newspapers: Placer Herald, Sacramento Bee (print).

NEW ROCKLIN RESIDENT

Name

Jose Alvarez

Demographic Information

 Male  Aged 35-45  Recently moved to Rocklin with family  Married, with two kids  Works as a lawyer  Household income: $110,000

Psychographic Information

 Concerned with work/life balance and not having enough family time.  Always searching for new things to do and places to visit with his family.  Previously lived in Midtown Sacramento, sometimes misses the busy downtown area.  Wanted to live in a place that was more family friendly.  Wants to send his children to prestigious colleges.  Loves the outdoors.

Motivators & Influencers

 Is active on social media.  Influenced by friends and family.  Influenced by TV news and watches every night.  Hopes to retire early and is frugal with money.  Influenced by the news, local economy, and costs.

Primary Media Channels

 Social Media: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn  News: Local news (TV) and newspaper: Sacramento Bee (online)

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ROCKLIN MOM OF SCHOOL-AGED CHILDREN

Name

Jillian Anderson

Demographic Information

 Female  Aged 40 – 50  Lives in Rocklin  Married, is a stay at home mother for three kids.  College-educated and previously worked as a high-school teacher.  Household income: $150,000

Psychographic Information

 Meticulously organizes everything from her kid’s schedules to the décor of the house.  Is the team mom for all of her kids’ sports teams.  Often seeks engaging activities when the kids are at school so volunteers for

community and school events.  Is religious and attends church every Sunday.  Often enjoys reading blogs, especially those by other stay at home mothers.  Sometimes responds emotionally to common negative news and events; is concerned

Rocklin is becoming unsafe whenever she hears about a crime or break in.

Motivators & Influencers

 Influenced by the school district news and prioritizes her children’s education.  Keeps up to date with local news.  Is signed up for the Rocklin newsletter and often hears about city updates and events

through this.  Always checks Nextdoor to see what is happening in her neighborhood.  Is very active on social media and influenced by the stories and posts her neighbors

talk about.

Primary Media Channels

 Social Media: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Nextdoor

ROCKLIN BUSINESS OWNER

Name

Dereck Dietrich

Demographic Information

 Male  Aged 30-45  Lives in Citrus Heights but works in Rocklin  Single  Owner of a retail store in the Quarry District  Holds a Bachelor’s degree in business administration  Salary: $75,000 - $85,000

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Psychographic Information

 Gets frustrated with local traffic  Values finding efficient ways to save money in his business.  Is very friendly and knows many of his customers by their first name.  Looking for ways to become more involved in Rocklin events.  His father used to be a policeman, and he often donates money to the Police Officer’s

Association.  Hopes to one day start a family.  Is very athletic and loves to work out and go hiking.

Motivators & Influencers

 Looks to other local businesses for advice and tactics. Often networks with other business and is influenced by their thoughts.

 Motivated to have a successful business and influenced by the needs of his customers.  Learns of City news and updates from his customers.  Charity is important to him and he is influenced by causes that promote safety and

honor the Police and Firefighters.

Primary Media Channels

 Social Media: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn News: Local news TV, radio and newspaper: Sacramento Bee and Sacramento Business Journal (online).

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V. GENERAL COMMUNICATIONS STRATEGIES FOR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT & STAKEHOLDER OUTREACH Currently there are multiple City staff members carrying out communications efforts on behalf of different departments. While some departments have their own communications or social media approach, others rely on the City communications staff. In order to more effectively communicate and engage with Rocklin residents, businesses and key stakeholders, it is important that there is an overarching citywide communications strategy and approach that guides the various and simultaneous efforts. Furthermore, City departments can take advantage of each other’s platforms by sharing common messages and leveraging existing communication channels. The section addresses the below objectives:

• Streamline City communications and messaging to residents and businesses. • Expand opportunities for residents and businesses to receive city communications.

MESSAGING

Messaging is where the magic happens. The right words and the right tone, when paired with the right context, create a strategic message designed specifically for a targeted audience that will achieve meaningful results. When similar messaging is shared across multiple channels and from different sources (i.e., different departments), the message will reach more Rocklin residents and businesses and will be more likely to be retained by the target audience. According to a research report done by Heinz Marketing, companies that use multichannel marketing experience 3x higher effectiveness rates as those that use non-integrated campaigns.5 This shows that sharing your message on multiple social media accounts, through eblasts and when applicable in non- digital channels such as earned media and billboards the message becomes more effective. Pair this with multiple departments sharing your message, and you will have a message that not only reaches more people but has a higher recall. A unified messaging strategy will demonstrate to residents and businesses in Rocklin that the various citywide departments are in close communication, and the City will increase opportunities to engage them. Below are tips and recommendations for creating messages. CONSIDERATIONS FOR MESSAGING Before developing a new message, consider the following:

• Type of message • Priority level • Time sensitivity • Target audience • Tone • Departments and communications channels to share the message

5 Heinz Marketing. 2017. Research: Integrated Multichannel Marketing Twice As Effective As Operating in Silos.

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MESSAGE RECOMMENDATIONS Once you have determined the above aspects of the message that you want to create, you can use the below guidelines to help develop the specific wording of your message. These message guidelines were developed based on key areas of interest expressed by City staff members and stakeholders during the discovery process. General citywide/cross-departmental messaging to residents:

• Have a similar voice and be easily digestible. • Highlight messages about safety, schools and parks, “Rocklin is safe, has great schools and

parks” and tie other key messages and topics back to these as relevant. (E.g. “This new construction project will ensure better flow of traffic and create safer driving.”)

• Highlight that Rocklin is rising and has great events and fun things to do. • Position Rocklin as a place for families, professionals and businesses when developing messages.

General citywide/cross-departmental messaging to businesses:

• Have a similar voice and be easily digestible. • Consider the benefits to businesses/business owners. • Tie messaging to economic development, when possible. • Position Rocklin as a place to do business. • Highlight business owners as important community members.

Messages relating to the City’s growth:

• Highlight the exciting opportunity brought by growth. • Highlight the fiscal responsibility that ties in with growth. Rocklin needs to grow to continue to

provide great services and facilities. • Consider the impact the message might have on long-standing Rocklin residents who may be

opposed to growth. Are there benefits that can be highlighted for them? • Development fees pay for infrastructure improvements and offset development impacts. • Residential growth encourages business growth. For example, “Construction of the new

residential development will support the growth of business opportunities in Rocklin.”

City alerts and notices: • Be clear and concise. • Include a link for more information. • Include other key resources. • Tie back to how the alert or notice contributes to Rocklin being safe, good schools and parks.

Messages related to traffic/road closures:

• Provide clear updates with your audience in mind. • Explain the benefits of any work being done. • Include a link for more information. • If possible, include a map. • Tie back to how the traffic/road closures contribute to a safer Rocklin. For example, “This new

project will ensure better flow of traffic and contribute to safe driving.” • Ensure that all key information is included in the message like where, when, why, who’s leading,

etc.

TIP Always consider your target audience when developing messages.

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PROCESS RECOMENDATIONS

Ideally, City communications staff will be provided the opportunity to review important citywide messages created by communications staff in different departments. This will allow them to provide feedback and to make recommendations for cross-departmental message promotion and additional communication channels to amplify the message. For recurring citywide alerts like traffic and road closure messages, using a standard form could be helpful to ensure that the departments are sharing the key information about the alert – where, when why, who’s leading – with the communications staff.

COMUNICATIONS CHANNELS, TOOLS & RECOMMENDATIONS FOR USE

The communication channel(s) that you use to share your message is just as important as the message you create. If you use a channel that does not effectively reach your target audience, the opportunity for impact will be missed. Following are the different communication channels available to the City and recommendations for use, as well as recommendations for communications tools that can help the City plan and unify messages.

ONLINE

A rich online presence is essential for reaching people. It is even more important when you are trying to reach people locally. According to Hubspot, 46% of all Google searches are for local information.6 Your website serves as your “front door” and your other online tactics are supporting key messages and need to drive people to your website for more information. The City’s online presence already includes multiple tactics. An overview and recommendations for use of these tactics are highlighted below.

City Website

The City of Rocklin website (www.rocklin.ca.us) was redesigned in 2016. In this day and age, your online presence is often the most effective way to reach your target audiences. Your website is the flagship of your online presence and all other online platforms (e-newsletters, social media) should drive traffic to the website for more information.

The Rocklin website is modern and visually appealing. The home page highlights “Recent News,” “Calendar,” and @CityofRocklin Tweets. Currently, the calendar includes citywide events. We recommend that the City continues this practice. Any new messages or information that the City or City Departments want to highlight should be included on the website. More information about Website strategy and recommendations can be found in the website section of this Plan. City of Rocklin E-blast

E-blasts are a great way to highlight upcoming events, news, and important asks to Rocklin residents and businesses. The City of Rocklin has a newsletter signup page on the website homepage (https://www.rocklin.ca.us/newsletter-signup). Residents can sign up for the City Newsletter or 6 HubSpot. 16 Stats That Prove the Importance of Local SEO. e

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automated e-notices on Bid Notifications, City News Page updates, City Council Agendas, Board of Appeals Agendas, Parks, Rec & Arts Agendas, Planning Commission Agendas, Planning Applications, Public Hearings, Events, and Job Openings. City Departments should continue to share their messages via citywide e-blasts as a communication tool as it is effective and also supports an integrated citywide communications approach. Given the thoroughness of the monthly newsletter and staff capacity we do not recommend starting a blog. Currently general news stories are sent to a short list of subscribers the day it is posted. Instead of automated emails for news stories, we recommend to instead compile and package the news stories in a weekly email. In order to increase City newsletter sign ups, share the City newsletter on social channels with the opportunity to sign up for future newsletters through email. In addition, always encourage people to sign up for the newsletter at City events and allow people to sign up when they come visit City office locations. Encouraging people to sign up through online and in person tactics will broaden your reach and increase sign ups. City Social Media Pages

Social media is a great tool to easily reach your audience and engage with your community. It allows you to increase awareness, start conversation, build positive sentiment, and create call-to-actions. Currently, the City of Rocklin is active on Facebook, Twitter and Nextdoor. The City also has a YouTube channel, Pinterest, Instagram and LinkedIn accounts where posting is infrequent or not used. In addition, multiple departments in Rocklin have their own social media channels, including: The City of Rocklin, Parks and Recreation, the Police Department and the Firefighters Union. All of the social media accounts can be found on the city website at https://www.rocklin.ca.us/social-media. Departmental social media accounts should consider posting shared messaging from the City and other departments, as relevant. In addition, the cross-departmental communications staff should consider implementing a citywide hashtag and other key hashtags for key notices or alerts. More information about social media strategies and recommendations can be found in the Social Media section of this Plan. IN THE COMMUNITY

While your online channels are vital to sharing important messages with residents and business, placing messages in the community is also essential for reaching community members where they are. Rocklin already has multiple communication channels available to reach residents and businesses within the city. An overview and recommendations for use of these tactics are highlighted below. Billboard

Billboards receive a high volume of impressions and are great tools for general awareness campaigns. The City has access to three Clear Channel-managed digital billboards on a space available basis. Two are located along Highway 65 and one is located on I-80. City Departments should continue to take advantage of this free advertising opportunity to strategically promote key messages and events.

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City-Owned Community Centers

As city-owned venues, places like parks or government buildings provide an opportunity to share important information with residents in the community. Also, partnerships could be created with other popular public venues like libraries and/or post offices to share key information and events that could be added to their events calendars, bulletin boards or other public display areas. Flyers are effective materials to be shared at these locations as well as at community outreach events. Outreach Events

Many departments have their own events throughout the year to engage the community directly. The Fire Department, for example has a Pancake Breakfast every year. The Parks & Rec Department hosts multiple large events, including concerts. The large-scale events are a particularly effective space for all departments to connect with the Rocklin community in a fun environment. City departments should continue to take advantage of existing outreach opportunities to table at these events and strategically plan citywide participation. These events are great spaces to share promotional items, brochures, pamphlets, and other giveaway items. A comprehensive list of annual outreach events is included in the Community Relations section of this Plan. CITY COMMUNICATIONS TOOLS

The City already has some key communications tools in place, like the monthly communications meeting. Below are recommendations for enhancing the outcomes of these monthly meetings as well as some other communications tools that could help the city staff streamline and increase the effectiveness of current communications efforts.

Monthly Communications Meetings

Currently, there is a monthly meeting that Michael Young, Communications and Special Projects, hosts for all the departments to meet and give updates on what is happening in their department. These meetings are a perfect opportunity to share upcoming items with representatives of other departments, as is already happening. These monthly meetings could be optimized by having participants come to the meeting ready with contributions for the next monthly editorial calendar with input from other stakeholders in their department. The meetings could then move from serving as a space for updates to an action-oriented space where developing and reviewing content for the upcoming month’s editorial calendar is the focus. The meeting can also serve a monthly opportunity to discuss what is working well and what could be improved. Editorial Calendar Editorial calendars are an essential tool for ensuring that shared content is strategic, diverse, current, and streamlined. The City should consider developing a monthly editorial calendar to inform and guide content that is being shared from the City and from the different departments. The strategy for monthly content can be discussed during the monthly communications meeting. An example of an editorial calendar is included in the Media Relations section of this Plan.

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Identifying City and Department Communications Stakeholders

Effective communications efforts include communications staff as well as experts “in the field.” In order to ensure that all newsworthy messages are reaching the editorial calendar, it is important that representatives from each department consult department heads and other key stakeholders to ensure that they are abreast of all upcoming and potentially newsworthy events. Further recommendations for involving department stakeholders in communications are outlined in the Media Relations section of this Plan.

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VI. BEST PRACTICES AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR KEY COMMUNICATIONS TACTICS

A. MEDIA RELATIONS

The Placer Herald has been the most consistent outlet in generating positive Rocklin stories over the past year. And broadcast morning feature news shows, such as Good Day Sacramento, have covered community events and programs leading to positive coverage. The Parks and Recreation Department, the Police Department and the Fire Department can attribute some of their media relations success to having a proactive strategy when it comes to media coverage. In general, however, reporter activity has been in-bound, meaning local reporters contact the communications staff for the city when inquiring about a story. While the city approach has worked, a proactive media relations strategy and plan will help Rocklin proactively and strategically engage the media to cover important positive stories. The section addresses the below objective:

• Media engagement plan to drive positive Rocklin stories.

MEDIA LANDSCAPE

Our recommended media relations plan for Rocklin includes identifying key media outlets, developing partnerships with key journalists, introducing digital media toolkit components, illustrating the importance of key messages and how to develop them, and creating an editorial calendar with story ideas to pitch to local press. We have helped identify Rocklin spokespeople who can be positioned as the experts closest to the success stories that we recommend you tell. The goal of the media relations strategy is to create consistent, positive coverage for Rocklin across a variety of media platforms highlighting the community’s strengths. Key Media Outlets An integrated media outreach strategy includes local print, radio and broadcast news. The following table includes the outlets we recommend you reach out to with positive news stories to achieve media coverage that increases awareness and amplifies key messages. Please keep in mind the best way to reach the network affiliates—NBC, CBS, ABC, FOX—with a proactive news story pitch is to reach out to their news desk on the morning the news breaks. The broadcast news teams are sent to cover stories based on news desk assignments throughout the day.

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Outlet Name Contact Beat KCRA News Mike TeSelle [email protected] News reporter; covers Placer

County news

News Desk [email protected]

Breaking news

ABC10 News Kevin John [email protected] News reporter; covers Placer County news

News Desk [email protected] Breaking news

FOX40 News Lonnie Wong

[email protected] News reporter; covers Placer County news

News Desk [email protected] Breaking news

CBS13 News/Good Morning Sacramento

Dina Kupfer [email protected] Good Day anchor/Sacramento region feature news

News Desk [email protected] Breaking news

KFBK Radio Kitty O’Neal [email protected] Local news reporter

News Desk [email protected] Breaking news

Sacramento Bee Alexadra Yoon- Hendricks

ayoon- [email protected]

Reporter for “Beyond City of Sacramento” stories

Placer Herald Matthew Nobert

matthewn@goldcountrymedi a.com

Rocklin/Roseville/Lincoln news/government news

Joshua Gutierrez

[email protected] om

Rocklin/Loomis news/government news

Roseville Today Todd Schofield

[email protected] Local business/entertainment news

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BEST PRACTICES

Proactive Media Relations for Positive Stories A proactive approach to working with the media is important for Rocklin to better control the narrative around how it is covered by local news outlets. According to the Discovery Process and Results, Sagent found Rocklin has been successful at a departmental level in working with the media proactively and has found success from the Parks and Recreation, Police Department and the Fire Department in bringing proactive story ideas to the local media. The story ideas introduced in the editorial calendar are the type of “feel good” story the Rocklin communication’s team can introduce to media partners. The best way to control the media coverage for Rocklin is to bring the story idea directly to the media. When developing a proactive news story idea consider the components a journalist will need such as:

• Is there a strong local angle? • Would an audience outside of Rocklin be interested? • Do you have a strong spokesperson, and can you offer secondary sources? • Can you tie the story to something timely such as an event, or calendar day/month?

When pitching a proactive news story, you are offering the journalist everything they need to be able to take the idea to their editor. Print media is a good target for proactive media relations as they have a longer lead time than broadcast TV—meaning they usually have a longer time period to develop their story. Or a broadcast news morning show such as CBS13 Good Morning Sacramento is a good target as they will accept story ideas in advance. Keep in mind, however, though they are open to hearing proactive news stories pitched, the broadcast news affiliates are driven by news in real-time. Contacting the broadcast news journalists you would like to target is a good idea for proactive stories, however if coverage is needed that day the best strategy is to contact the general news desk. Messaging/Talking Points Messaging and key talking points need to be consistent across all Rocklin departments and used by each approved media spokesperson. Communicating with your target audience can be a challenge, particularly for those who are not formally trained or experienced speaking to the media. To ensure Rocklin spokespeople get the right point across to the media, it is essential to establish key messages prior to communicating with the media. Communication with the media can occur in multiple forms through in-person interviews, phone interviews, and via email communications. Key messages are the core messages you want your target audience to hear and remember. They allow your spokesperson to control the communication and enhance the relationships with your target audience—which is primarily the Rocklin citizens. It is recommended to focus on 3-5 key messages. Key messages need to be relevant, positive and consistent. Tips to think about when developing key messages include:

• Keep it Simple – They should be short and specific.

• Use Targeted Messaging – Consider target audiences, and if there are multiple targeted audiences. If so, develop key messages for each target audience. For local media your target audiences include Rocklin residents as your top audience and the entire local Sacramento

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community as a secondary audience. Though key messages will be similar, they will differ slightly between those two audiences.

• Review and Refresh – Key messages are dynamic and change with time and the evolution of

Rocklin. Reviewing key messages regularly is vital to ensuring they stay relevant and reflect your core community goals.

Talking points are the actual statements Rocklin spokespeople will use to support each overarching key message. They should be used when communicating key City messages with the press. Before talking with any member of the media, Rocklin spokespeople should be prepared with a background document on hand that lists each key message, as well as bullets under each key message that includes talking points to reflect the message. Even if the actual conversation is on a different topic where the key messages may not 100 percent apply, we recommend spokespeople still have the overarching key messages for the City in front of them in case there is an opportunity to use them. Key messages will need to be printed in newspaper articles, broadcast over television and heard on the radio over and over in order to begin to take hold with audiences. We recommend Rocklin spokespeople take advantage of any conversation with the media to stress key messages, even if they are not applicable at the beginning of the conversation. Spokespeople will want to try to steer the conversation in a direction that allows for key messages to be conveyed, even in situations where is isn’t apparent at the outset that they apply. An example of a key message and supporting talking points: Rocklin is a great city to raise a family.

• Named One of Money Magazine’s Top 100 Best Places to Live in September 2019; and the Best Place to Raise a Family in Placer County by Niche.com.

• Rocklin is safe with very low crime levels. • Rocklin has great family entertainment venues such as Quarry Park Adventures and multiple

movie theaters. • Rocklin is known for its great parks. Its latest example is the newly opened Sunset Whitney

Recreation Area. It is critical that all city departments and all approved spokespeople use the same messaging platform for it to be the most effective. We recommend developing one document that includes all overarching key messages and supporting talking points and distributing it across all city departments to be used as a tool by spokespeople for every interaction with the media. At the very least all spokespeople will have this key message document at their fingertips in the event of an inbound press call. Spokespeople and Identifying who can be the face of each department. We recommend that Rocklin have one unified “voice” even if multiple spokespeople are used. The general messaging and talking points introduced need to be used any time an approved spokesperson talks with a member of the media. Approved spokespeople must be media trained and each department should know exactly who their approved speaker is in case a member of the media reaches out for comment on a story. When a story breaks—especially when it comes to the local broadcast news stations—reporters will call around and look for anyone for comment. Offering them a prepared,

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approved spokesperson familiar with key messages is important to shaping the narrative about Rocklin with media. Recommended spokespeople include:

City Spokespeople: Greg Janda, Mayor Jill Gayaldo, Vice-Mayor Michael Young, Communications and Special Projects Departmental Spokespeople: Justin Nartker, Director of Public Services Phil Lewis, Director of Parks and Recreation William Hack, Fire Chief Chad Butler, Police Chief or Designated Dept. PIO We recommend that, for now, City communications staff speak on behalf of other departments. Once the Directors above have gained some experience as spokespersons, City staff can consider developing other key spokespeople. Responding to Negative Stories Responding to negative press stories about Rocklin requires finesse opposed to aggressive defensive tactics. Some tips include:

• Correct any false information – Quickly correct false or incorrect information that has been circulated in a news article or news broadcast. Journalists take pride in delivering true, balanced news stories and are quick to fix factual errors in their stories.

• Avoid appearing defensive – If there are factual errors in an article, that is one thing, but if you simply do not like the tone of the article or if the news appears negative about Rocklin be aware that aggressive acknowledgment of the article could have a side effect of simply drawing more eyes to it.

• Comment with other positive messages about the community – If the negative article does

necessitate comments from the City in the comments section, take the opportunity to highlight positive attributes that were not mentioned in the article. Better balance a story by countering negatives in the news story with positive statements and facts. Or draft a blog that lives on the City website that subtly refutes any of the negativity the news article may have created. A blog is one of the more powerful actions that can be taken to turn negative press into positive attention.

• Take advantage of social media – In addition to balancing a story by posting a comment and/or

developing a blog, use social platforms at the city’s disposal to further spread the positive messages you would like to convey. If a blog was drafted use all social platforms—Twitter, Facebook, Instagram—to drive traffic to it. Or simply spread positive messages using social media posts.

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• Cover up bad press with good press – Try to immediately cover up a negative news stories with a positive news story. A benefit of having an editorial calendar is it includes both timely news stories “driven by the calendar”, as well as evergreen story ideas that are not tied to key dates. If negative news about Rocklin hits, quickly pitch one of the strongest story ideas on the editorial calendar with the goal of the journalist taking the idea and wanting to cover it.

It is important to remember that when responding to negative press, remain credible by using facts and pushing positive messages rather than appearing overly defensive. MEDIA TOOLS

Following is a deep dive into the tools to help the City implement a proactive earned media strategy, including an example editorial calendar, recommendations for an online media toolkit, and recommendations for using Twitter to engage media. Sample Three-Month Editorial Calendar Following is an example of a media editorial calendar. Editorial calendars can be monthly, quarterly or annual. For more information on why an editorial calendar can be helpful, see the section regarding General Communications Strategies for Community Engagement & Stakeholder Outreach.

Month Events and Stories to Consider March Month-Long: National Women’s History Month;

National Nutrition Month; Social Workers Month By Day: Employee Appreciation Day (6), International Women’s Day (8), St. Patrick’s Day (17), First Day of Spring (19) Story Ideas: Celebrate Women-Owned Businesses in Rocklin; Focus on Sierra College’s National Top 30 Higher Education Natural History Museum Ranking; Rocklin Culinary Expertise: Highlight its Most Health-Focused Restaurants; First Spring of Sunset Whitney Recreation Area: Rocklin’s Latest Jewel of a Community Park; Capitalize on Being Named One of Money Magazine’s Top 100 Best Places to Live

• Though the designation was in Sept. 2019, highlight the reasons why Rocklin will likely improve its ranking in 2020 due to its job growth, average commute and clear days

April Month-Long: Keep America Beautiful Month; Stress Awareness Month; Distracted Driving Awareness Month By Day: Passover (8-16), Easter (12), Tax Day (15), Earth Day (22) Story Ideas: How do Parks and Open Space Help Lower Stress? Earth Day related stories: Trail Keepers volunteer program or Creek Volunteers Local Brewer Focus: Sacramento Beer Week 2020; Education on Distracted Driving and Teens (In time for Graduation and Prom Season)

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May Month-Long: Graduation Season; Spring/Summer Bridal Season; National Police Week By Day: Cinco de Mayo (5), Mother’s Day (10), Memorial Day (25) Story Ideas: Where do Rocklin High School Graduates go to College/Percentage Who go to College? A Day in the Life of a Rocklin Police Officer: Following Those who Make our Community Safe; Focus on the Fallen Local Armed Forces Heroes: How Does Rocklin Honor its Veterans?

Online Media Toolkit The Rocklin City Newsroom is quite robust and includes good information about the City itself and city government profiles and events. We recommend an additional link under the City News section that includes an online media toolkit for media. When it comes to today’s journalist, they are generally in a rush and “on deadline” to turn in any news piece they may be working on. And this goes for all Sacramento regional media—broadcast TV, print and radio. An online media toolkit is another source for a journalist to quickly gather the necessary materials to supplement their story. Media toolkits generally consist of the items below:

• Fact Sheet – This is a one-pager presenting data in a format that emphasizes key points about Rocklin concisely in bullet points. A fact sheet should include the most basic information about Rocklin for someone seeking quick answers. Good fact sheets are not overly cluttered and when possible, use facts and data to support each message. When it comes to media relations, fact sheets will help fill any holes in an article a journalist is working on through its up-to-date info about Rocklin.

• Press Release – Writing and distributing a press release is an effective way to get your message

out to local media. Rocklin already has an effective press release and City news page. It is recommended the City develop a separate Media Toolkit link under the City News button that includes the City fact sheet and the most up-to-date press release; or includes the press release associated with the story you are pitching the press to cover.

• Press Contacts – In order to help ensure the right, approved spokespeople are contacted, we

recommend developing a spokesperson contact list for interested press to contact if they have questions or need a source for a story. This makes it easy for interested press to contact the approved spokesperson for the city, or a specific department.

• Rocklin Logo – A high resolution version of the city logo is recommended for media to use.

Using Twitter for Earned Media City of Rocklin Twitter is already a well-followed social media platform, with more than 2,400 followers. In addition to engaging with followers through regular tweet posts, Twitter is also a tool to be used to help promote positive news and engage with local journalists.

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The best way to gain a larger audience to a positive news story—for instance an article in the Sacramento Bee about the new Sunset Whitney Recreation Area—is to amplify it through Twitter. @CityofRocklin can raise the impressions of the Sacramento Bee coverage by 2,400 through a simple tweet highlighting the news story. Another tactic is to engage with local journalists through their own Twitter handles. Retweet their news stories or engage with them directly through Twitter will help relationship building. Journalists like to know they are being read, watched or listened to which helps keep Rocklin on their radar for future stories.

INTERNAL PROCESS FOR MEDIA RELATIONS

Overall the City of Rocklin has a strong roster of spokespeople in place and an opportunity to put forward the new Mayor and Vice-Mayor, Greg Janda and Jill Gayaldo respectively, as new and exciting voices of Rocklin. Once key messages have been developed the communications team can begin pitching the proactive stories to local broadcast and print media outlets. In addition, departments such as City Manager’s Office, Parks and Recreation and Public Services will all be prepared for in-bound media requests through the creation of set spokespeople and key messages. It is important to remember that if an in- bound media request comes through either over the phone or via email, it is ok to let the journalist know you will get back to them, opposed to answering their question “on the spot.” This will help the person or department contacted to put forward the trained spokesperson in place and give the internal team time to think about the best way to answer the media request. It will also train the media to eventually learn to call Rocklin spokespeople direct, making the process more efficient for them, and more strategic to Rocklin officials to tell their story within their own terms.

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B. COMMUNITY PARTNER RELATIONS

Outreach activities and partnership development are key to any successful communications and outreach efforts. The City already has a significant amount of successful multi-sector partnership experience with notable organizations in the area. Continuing to invest in your current partners and expanding your bench of community partners will further develop trust between Rocklin residents and businesses and the City. Partnering also provides Rocklin a way to enhance select services to residents and extend opportunities that City staff would not be able to provide, such as offering internships through Sierra College or William Jessup University or promoting upcoming events and engaging the community.

Partnership development and community outreach go hand-in-hand – both tactics are effective methods for building trust within your community. Participating in outreach activities provides City staff with the opportunity to interact with residents and businesses where they are – at school and local events, concerts, fairs, etc. Having a booth or table at these key outreach opportunities will keep the City top-of-mind and will provide you with an opportunity to share information directly with the community you serve.

The section addresses the below objective: • Expand and optimize partnerships with local organizations to continue to build trust and a

community network.

PARTNERSHIP DEVELOPMENT & OPTIMIZATION

A perfect partner will vary depending on your partnership purpose. Given the vast amount of partnership opportunities within Rocklin, the below selection considerations can help you choose the right partner for your purpose. Partner Selection Considerations:

• Who is your target audience? • What is your partnership goal? Possible goals include:

o Educational – Share information o Community Outreach – Partner for a community event through tabling, sponsorship or

volunteering • What is your timeline and what partners have partnership opportunities that fit within your

timeline? • Do you have funds to contribute to this partnership?

When looking to enhance existing partnerships, consider the following: • What is our partnership goal? • What activities are we participating in that are effective? • What is this partnership missing and how can it be improved? • Is this partnership mutually beneficial? How?

TIP Have a clear goal for each of your partnerships.

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OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUTREACH

Although partnerships can provide a variety of outreach opportunities, the City of Rocklin also has access to and hosts a variety of annual opportunities. Below is a list of City events by month:

• Rocklin Cleanup Day – April • Easter Egg Hunt – April • State of the City – May • Rocklin Unified Jazz Festival – May • Rocklin Kiwanis Carnival – May • Shakespeare in the Park (Take Note Troupe Partnership) - June • Concerts at Quarry Park – Spring and Summer • Free Movie Fridays in the Park – Summer (May, June, July, August) • Celebrate America Festival – July • Woofstock – August • Rocklin Chamber Hot Chili and Cool Cars - September • Patriot Day - September • Mini Maker Faire – October • Rocklin Fire Pancake Breakfast – October • Wall of Recognition Event - October • Sunset Run at SWRA – November • Rocklin Tree Lighting Festival – December • Rocklin Fire Santa Tours – December • Breakfast with Santa – December

ROCKLIN COMMUNITY PARTNER LANDSCAPE & RECOMMENDATIONS

During the discovery process, City staff members and council members identified the following entities as current partners or organizations that the City could further cultivate or create partnerships.

The City has many existing partnerships with local organizations in Rocklin and the surrounding area. City staff should revisit current partnerships annually to determine if the partnership is still useful, whether the partnership could be improved, or if there are potential partner organizations that you would like to engage.

Community Partners

Chamber of Commerce Rotary Local Theatre Group Rocklin School District Historical Society Hacker Lab Sierra College Realtor Groups Salvation Army Sports Clubs Faith Based Groups Gathering Inn Placer Valley Tourism Rocklin Public Safety Program Stand Up Placer Girl/Boy Scouts William Jessup University Surrounding municipalities

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The following table includes existing and potential partner organizations in Rocklin and identifies potential or additional partnership opportunities. This list can be utilized as a quick reference or tool for partner engagement and is organized by communication target audience (residents, businesses, faith- based groups, and surrounding municipalities).

Organization Description, Audience & Opportunities Residents - General Historical Society https://rocklinhistorical.org/

Description: Stewards of many of Rocklin’s historical buildings; hosts tours and events to promote Rocklin’s history. Target Audience: Residents Current Partner: Yes Other Opportunities: Currently linked in website. Could consider co-hosting an educational event.

Rocklin Library http://bit.ly/2sJy9w1

Description: The Rocklin library, run by County of Placer Target Audience: Residents Current Partner: Yes – PD currently partners with Friends of the Library for Story Time at the Station. City provides low-cost lease of facility and all grounds maintenance. Other Opportunities: Potential collaboration for education or community outreach. Share City events.

Rocklin Community Theater http://www.rocklintheatre.org/

Description: Produce a yearly season of at least six shows. Target Audience: Residents Current Partner: Yes – The City of Rocklin partners with the Rocklin Community Theatre by providing free advertising space and low-cost use of City facilities. Other Opportunities: Partner for a community outreach event or sponsor a show.

Rocklin Public Safety Foundation http://www.rpsfinc.org/

Description: Supports public safety and community programs in Rocklin. Target Audience: Residents Current Partner: Yes – The Rocklin Public Safety Foundation is a key partner of City Fire and PD. The organization is set up to serve the City first responders and provide funding for items or programs the City does not have in the budget. Other Opportunities: Partner for Rocklin Patriot Day (September) or Annual Golf Tournament (May).

Stand Up Placer https://www.standupplacer.org/

Description: Non-profit working to empower survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking. Target Audience: Residents Current Partner: Yes – City provides CDBG funds for Stand Up Placer Programs. Other Opportunities: Referral on website, community outreach opportunity.

Gathering Inn http://www.thegatheringinn.com/

Description: Provides people experiencing homelessness a warm meal and a safe and secure place to rest nightly. Target Audience: Residents Current Partner: Yes – City provides CDBG grant funds for Gathering Inn services and sponsors annual dinner gala.

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Other Opportunities: Sponsor a meal or event for the homeless persons in need.

California Family Fitness – Rocklin Sports Complex http://bit.ly/2Rifj9t

Description: California Family Fitness, Rocklin Sports & Fitness is a 78,000 square foot sports complex. Target Audience: Residents Current Partner: Past partnership – Parks and Rec has had sponsorship agreements with Cal Fit in the past to raise funds for city events while promoting Cal Fit services. Partnership Opportunities: Share information from Rocklin sports program from Parks & Recreation.

South Placer Rotary Club http://www.southplacerrotary.org /

Description: Service in the community, in the workplace, and throughout the world. Serves Rocklin and South Placer. Target Audience: Residents Current Partner: No Partnership Opportunities: Collaboration on library projects or youth programs.

Residents – Children & Youth Rocklin Unified School District https://www.rocklinusd.org/

Description: The District is dedicated to providing structure and support necessary to ensure that every student receives the highest quality education to become a happy, healthy, productive member of society. Target Audience: Parents and Youth Residents Current Partner: Yes – The City of Rocklin partners with the RUSD to put on the Summer Civic Career Program, a two-week opportunity for students to work at city hall part time over the summer and expand career horizons in local government. Other Opportunities: Share information for parents and children with the leadership, participate in local school events with speaker or a table.

Rocklin Independent Charter Academy https://rica.rocklinusd.org/#

Description: Accredited K-12 school that strives to meet the growing needs of students by offering a 3-Tier blended school model that keys into student's individual passions in learning Current Partner: Limited current partnership Target Audience: Parents and Youth Residents Opportunities: Share information for parents and children with the leadership, participate in local school events with speaker or a table.

Rocklin Academy Charter Schools https://www.rocklinacademy.com /

Description: A distinct educational program strengthened by community and parent partnerships to achieve high standards, rich core content, and innovative learning. Current Partner: Limited current partnership Target Audience: Parents and Youth Residents Opportunities: Share information for parents and children with the leadership, participate in local school events with speaker or a table.

Loomis Union School District https://www.loomis- usd.k12.ca.us/

Description: Our hard-working staff is dedicated to meeting each child’s academic, social and emotional needs in and out of the classroom. Current Partner: Limited current partnership Target Audience: Parents and Youth Residents Opportunities: Share information for parents and children with the leadership, participate in local school events with speaker or a table.

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Maria Montessori Charter Academy https://www.mmcharter.org/

Description: Tuition–free, non-profit Kindergarten – 8th grade public elementary school emphasizing the Montessori philosophy within the accountability and framework of the CA state standards Current Partner: No Target Audience: Parents and Youth Residents Opportunities: Share information for parents and children with the leadership, participate in local school events with speaker or a table.

Placer Academy Charter School http://www.placeracademy.org/

Description: Placer Academy provides a variety of unique and personalized services to its students within a framework of high academic standards through a small and supportive school environment. Current Partner: No Target Audience: Parents and Youth Residents Opportunities: Share information for parents and children with the leadership, participate in local school events with speaker or a table.

Sierra College https://www.sierracollege.edu/in dex.php

Description: A public community college in Rocklin. Target Audience: Youth Residents Current Partner: Yes Other Opportunities: Internships, Events, Clubs

William Jessup University http://jessup.edu/

Description: A Christian college that seeks to develop the whole person by exposing students to a broad cross-section of knowledge in science, social science, and the humanities. Target Audience: Youth Residents Current Partner: Yes Other Opportunities: Internships, Events, Clubs

Rocklin Youth Soccer Club https://www.rocklinfc.org/

Description: Rocklin FC Competitive Program has teams playing at the highest level in NorCal. Target Audience: Youth Residents Current Partner: Yes – City partners with Rocklin Youth Soccer to assist in field maintenance. Other Opportunities: Shared media opportunities to highlight the high- achieving teams’ successes.

Rocklin Jr. Wildcats https://whitneyjrwildcats.org/Org /Home.aspx?d=XUExypcsSkLmmc5 1BgWkXg%3 Whitney Jr. Thunder https://www.jrthunder.com/hom e

Description: Youth football programs associate with RUSD high school football teams Target Audience: Youth Residents Current Partner: No Other Opportunities: Shared media opportunities to highlight coaches or volunteers.

Rocklin Swim Team https://www.teamunify.com/Hom e.jsp?team=recncslrw

Description: A non-profit swim team in Rocklin for swimmers of all ages and abilities. Target Audience: Youth Residents Current Partner: Yes – City partners with the Rocklin Swim Team to lower costs of facilities and provide open swim to the community in summer. Other Opportunities: Shared media opportunities to highlight team successes and athletes.

Rocklin Little League https://www.rocklinllb.com/home

Description: Little league baseball in Rocklin Target Audience: Youth Residents

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Current Partner: Yes – City partners with the Rocklin Little League to maintain and upgrade baseball facilities. Other Opportunities: Shared media opportunities to highlight team successes and athletes.

Rocklin Tri City Little League https://www.tricitylittleleague.co m/home

Description: Little league baseball in Rocklin Target Audience: Youth Residents Current Partner: Yes – City partners with the Tri City Little League to maintain and upgrade baseball facilities. Other Opportunities: Shared media opportunities to highlight team successes and athletes.

Rocklin Pony Baseball https://www.rocklinponybaseball. com/home

Description: Little league baseball in Rocklin Target Audience: Youth Residents Current Partner: Yes – City partners with Rocklin Pony Baseball to maintain and upgrade baseball facilities. Other Opportunities: Shared media opportunities to highlight team successes and athletes.

Rocklin Girls Softball https://www.rocklingirlssoftball.or g/home

Description: Youth fastpitch softball in Rocklin Target Audience: Youth Residents Current Partner: Yes – City partners with Rocklin Girls Softball to maintain and upgrade baseball facilities. Other Opportunities: Shared media opportunities to highlight team successes and athletes.

Boy Scouts – Troop 435 Rocklin http://bit.ly/2Pb6KLb

Description: A Boy Lead Troop with four Patrols: The Falcons, Eagles, Hawks and Ravens. Target Audience: Youth Residents Current Partner: Yes – City often works with Boy Scout troops to provide eagle scout public service project opportunities. Other Opportunities: Present at a meeting – held every Thursday evening from 7-8:30pm.

Girl Scouts https://www.gsnorcal.org/

Description: The preeminent leadership development organization for girls. Target Audience: Youth Residents Current Partner: No Partnership Opportunities: Connect with local chapter for a community service experience.

Placer Valley Sunrise Rotary Club https://www.placervalleysunriser otary.com/

Description: A community service club serving both the local and international communities since 1964. Target Audience: Residents & Businesses Current Partner: No Partnership Opportunities: Participate as a speaker at a weekly meeting.

Businesses Rocklin Area Chamber of Commerce https://www.rocklinchamber.com /

Description: Inspire people, elevate business and influence a region. Target Audience: Businesses Current Partner: Yes Other Opportunities: Sponsoring events, attending networking events, sharing information with leadership to share with their membership.

Placer Valley Tourism https://www.placertourism.com/

Description: PVT’s mission is to increase the health of the hotel industry though occupancy and average daily rate in Roseville, Rocklin, and Lincoln.

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Target Audience: Businesses Current Partner: Yes – The City of Rocklin works with PVT on numerous events and projects each year. Other Opportunities: Assist in recruiting events to be held in Rocklin through shared social media content, web coverage of events, etc.

HackerLab https://hackerlab.org/en

Description: Hacker Lab is an all-in-one makerspace, coworking facility and workforce incubator. Target Audience: Businesses Current Partner: Yes – The City of Rocklin provides Hacker Lab with significant annual sponsorship for operations and programs and meets with the local team to discuss projects and content periodically. Other Opportunities: Provide business content to be included in their blog or e-newsletter, explore opportunities to foster business incubators.

Placer County Association of Realtors https://pcaor.com/

Description: PCAR is your local real estate association. Target Audience: Prospective Residents Current Partner: No Partnership Opportunities: Host or provide a speaker for one of their education meetings for Rocklin.

Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce http://www.sachcc.org/

Description To promote and develop business growth for members and provide access to the Hispanic market. Target Audience: Businesses Current Partner: No Other Opportunities: Sponsoring events, attending networking events, sharing information with leadership to share with their membership.

Sacramento Asian Chamber of Commerce https://www.sacasiancc.org/

Description: Represents the interests of the 6,000 Asian owned businesses within the Sacramento region. Target Audience: Businesses Current Partner: No Other Opportunities: Sponsoring events, attending networking events, sharing information with leadership to share with their membership.

Sacramento Black Chamber of Commerce https://sacblackchamber.org/

Description: Organized to bring African American business owners and professionals together to create a solid economic structure within Sacramento’s business community Target Audience: Businesses Current Partner: No Other Opportunities: Sponsoring events, attending networking events, sharing information with leadership to share with their membership.

Faith-Based Groups Destiny Christian Church http://destinychurchlife.com/ http://loveourcity.com/

Description: Large Christian church in Rocklin. Also have a volunteer program called Love Our City. Target Audience: Residents Current Partner: Yes – The City is a key partner in the annual Celebrate America event. Also assists in other events held at Rocklin facilities annually. Other Opportunities: Potential educational opportunities through the Destiny Community Center.

Rocklin Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Description: Faith based organization located at 2831 Theona Way Rocklin, CA. Target Audience: Residents

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https://www.churchofjesuschrist. org/?lang=eng

Current Partner: Yes – Their helping hands program has volunteered to work on Rocklin projects, including planting trees at SWRA. Other Opportunities: Future volunteer efforts and possible outreach to members by sharing information with leadership to share with their membership.

St. Matthew Lutheran Church https://www.stmatthewrocklin.co m/

Description: Faith based group organization located at 3785 Placer Corporate Dr, Rocklin, CA 95765 Target Audience: Residents Current Partner: No Partnership Opportunities: Share information with leadership to share with their membership.

Baha’i Faith of Rocklin https://placercounty.local.bahai.u s/local/rocklin

Description: The Baha’i faith community of Rocklin. Target Audience: Residents Current Partner: No Partnership Opportunities: Potential educational opportunities through their monthly meetings at the Rocklin Branch Library. Share information with leadership to share with their membership.

SS. Peter & Paul Church https://rocklincatholic.org/

Description: A vibrant and welcoming Catholic Community in Rocklin. Target Audience: Residents Current Partner: No Partnership Opportunities: Potential community outreach opportunity through Gathering Inn or supporting Rocklin kids in need. Share information with leadership to share with their membership.

Surrounding Municipalities City of Roseville https://www.roseville.ca.us/

Current Partner: Yes Continued Opportunities: Shared messaging opportunities related to traffic, alerts, and issues of communal impact. Outreach opportunities through shared goal community events.

Town of Loomis https://loomis.ca.gov/

Current Partner: Yes Continued Opportunities: Shared messaging opportunities related to traffic, alerts, and issues of communal impact.

City of Lincoln http://www.lincolnca.gov/

Current Partner: Yes Continued Opportunities: Shared messaging opportunities related to traffic, alerts, and issues of communal impact.

Caltrans District 3 https://dot.ca.gov/caltrans-near- me/district-3

Current Partner: Yes Continued Opportunities: Shared messaging opportunities related to traffic, alerts, and issues of communal impact.

Placer County Water Agency https://www.pcwa.net/

Current Partner: Yes Continued Opportunities: Shared messaging opportunities related to water use and issues of communal impact

Placer County Transportation Agency http://pctpa.net/

Current Partner: Yes Continued Opportunities: Shared messaging opportunities related to traffic, alerts, and issues of communal impact.

Placer County https://www.placer.ca.gov/

Current Partner: Yes Continued Opportunities: Shared messaging opportunities related to alerts, economic development and issues of communal impact.

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Other Partners WAVE Broadband https://residential.wavebroadban d.com/

Current Partner: Yes Continued Opportunities: Continue to offer/expand Wi-Fi capabilities in Rocklin parks and public spaces

INTERNAL PROCESS FOR PARTNERSHIPS & OUTREACH

To ensure that partnership and outreach opportunities are maximized, best practice would be to share any new or planned engagement during the monthly communications meeting. This process will reveal any existing departmental partnerships or engagement and will also illuminate any opportunities for cross-departmental or citywide collaboration.

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C. SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY

Social media is a powerful marketing and messaging tool, affording opportunities to build awareness and loyalty on a paid or non-paid basis. Capitalizing on social media trends is an effective way to share key messages with the general public and is valuable for gaining feedback and insight through two-way communication with the community. For government, social media can serve as a useful tool to increase transparency, build trust with the community it serves, respond to misinformation and share important news like school closures, road detours, emergency power outages, floods, fires, and other vital information.7 The City of Rocklin and many of the departments have multiple social media accounts including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Some departments have a strategic process in place for posting social media content and others rely on the City communications staff. Given the array of experience with social media across departments, this section provides information on key social media platforms, presents best practices for effective social media content, and recommendations for streamlining and enhancing citywide social media messages. The section addresses the below objectives:

• Streamline City social media activity across departments. • Use citywide social media platforms in a strategic way to amplify messages, events, and key

actions. WHICH PLATFORM IS BEST FOR MY COMMUNICATIONS GOAL? 8 Given the popularity of social media among the general public (with over 2 billion monthly active users on Facebook, 330 million on Twitter, and 1 billion on Instagram9), it is an essential tool to use for communications. Taking a multi-channel social approach—meaning having a presence on more than one social media platform—is a best practice. It is important to evaluate and prioritize the use of a social platform based on the platforms in which the target audiences and communities are already active and engaged. Below is an overview of each platform, content types and best practices for posting, planning and scheduling posts. Facebook Facebook has the largest and broadest user base of the social media platforms. Facebook is ideal for reaching the most amount of people of any demographic with one general post. Additionally, Facebook is the best option for reaching educated adults. Around 74% of adults with a college degree or more use Facebook. Alerts and messages that require more in-depth posts are best served through Facebook as well. The combination of a broad user base and the ability for users to share content allows news to reach many people quickly. Twitter While the overall user base is lower on Twitter than Facebook, more young people between the ages of 18 and 29 use Twitter than any other age group. News can spread very quickly on Twitter because of the

7 Diligent Insights. 2019. The Importance of Strong Communication in Local Government. 8 Pew Research Center. 2019. Social Media Fact Sheet. 9 Statista. 2019. Global Social Networks Ranked by Number of Users 2019.

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condensed character limit and use of hashtags. Alerts and messages that require less content are great for Twitter because users read them and share them quicker than Facebook. Instagram

Instagram is most commonly used by teenagers and people in their early 20s. Photos and videos are the ideal type of posts for Instagram. While news may not spread as quickly on Instagram as it might on the other two platforms, it is a great tool to use for targeting and influencing adolescents and young adults. Nextdoor Nextdoor is an online community of real neighbors and requires residents to verify their address in a neighborhood to access the website. Nextdoor allows public agencies and departments to build stronger relationships and safer communities. Unlike other social media platforms, Nextdoor has a built-in audience and instantly connects you with residents that live within your community. However, it is important to note that Nextdoor does not allow agency users to view content posted by members on Nextdoor neighborhood sites. Nextdoor is a great platform for posting community and safety-oriented messages. It can be used to send out alerts, but also encourage community engagement. LinkedIn LinkedIn is a social media platform geared for professionals and business owners. LinkedIn is often utilized as someone’s online professional resume. It is a commonly used tool by professionals to find and apply for jobs, build a strong professional network and access and share articles that are relevant to one’s professional life. LinkedIn is a great way to target the business community in the City of Rocklin and spread news on business development and job opportunities happening in Rocklin. YouTube YouTube is the second most popular social network worldwide with 2 billion active users. YouTube is also considered one of the most popular search engines. YouTube allows you to securely host, manage and share video content with your subscribers. Social video generates 12 times more shares than text and images combined. 10 YouTube is a great platform to share video about things happening in the community such as upcoming events or programs or showcasing the success of an event. CURRENT CITYWIDE SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS

Below is a current grid of existing social media pages and followers by department. The followers were last updated on November 27, 2019.

Department Instagram Facebook Twitter

City of Rocklin @cityofrocklin • 264 followers

@CityOfRocklin • 4,467 followers

@CityOfRocklin • 2,433 followers

Fire Department @rocklin_firefighters • 2,077 followers

@Rocklinfirefighters • 9,983 followers

@RocklinFire • 631 followers

10 SmallBizTrends.com. 2019. 27 Video Marketing Statistics That Will Have You Hitting the Record Button.

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(Social accounts are run by the Fire Fighters Union)

Police Department @rocklinpolice • 6,275 followers

@RocklinPolice • 17,630 followers

@RocklinPolice • 10,300 followers

Parks and Recreation @rocklinparksrec • 1,767 followers

@RocklinParksRec • 5,891 followers

@RocklinParksRec • 1,423 followers

Rocklin Quarry Park @rocklinquarrypark • 1,954 followers

@RocklinQuarryPark • 7,299 followers

@QuarryParkRkln • 306 followers

Rocklin Woofstock n/a @RocklinWoofstock • 1,799 followers

n/a

Rocklin Maker Faire n/a @MiniMakerFaireRocklin • 1,060 followers

@RklnMakerFaire • 92 followers

ADDITIONAL DIGITAL CHANNELS

In addition to the main social media platforms, the City of Rocklin is also present on Nextdoor, YouTube and LinkedIn. Below are some notable highlights from these accounts:

• The City of Rocklin has a YouTube account, and currently has 16 subscribers. • The City of Rocklin is present on Nextdoor, unlike other social channels residents who live within

Rocklin boundaries are automatically subscribed to any postings. • The City of Rocklin has a LinkedIn profile with 861 followers. The LinkedIn account does not have

any postings but does list available job opportunities to work with the City of Rocklin. There is also a following for private Facebook pages that were created by residents. Some of these pages include: Good Neighbors of Rocklin, The Better Neighbors of Rocklin and Placer County Community Watch. RECOMMENDATIONS TO STREAMLINE CITY SOCIAL MEDIA ACTIVITY

Given that the City of Rocklin and multiple departments each have unique social media pages on various platforms, using best practices to streamline and amplify shared messaging will increase the effectiveness of the social media platforms and pages that you use. Below is an overview for recommended social media strategies and best practices.

• Develop shared content – Shared content and messaging can help the City present a united presence online and will increase the chances that Rocklin residents and businesses will view your message. Shared content can be created and planned for posting in advance to ensure that all departments are onboard with messaging. Helpful tools for shared content development

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include a citywide social media thematic calendar, editorial calendar, using shared hashtags, and highlighting key partners within the City and external partners.

• Plan posts along a shared timeline – Shared content and messaging is further effective if it is shared within the same timeframe. Tools to help plan for shared posts include a social media editorial calendar and a social media content calendar.

• Drive audience to the City website – Your online presence is optimally viewed as an integrated

approach to communication. Since the City website is considered “the front door” of the City online, it is important that social media posts drive traffic to your website. General posts can highlight the homepage and specific posts can drive people to the website landing page that is relevant to the content in the post.

• Reduce the number of social media channels – Currently the City has 18 citywide social media

accounts. This is a large number of accounts for communicating with Rocklin residents and businesses. It is important for City staff to determine whether all these channels are necessary. A good place to start would be to consider your communication goal and objectives. According to our Discovery research, the Parks and Recreation department manages 9 social media accounts. Sagent recommends having event-based social media accounts such as Woofstock be a Facebook event instead of an entire social account. Followers are lost when content is not being posted consistently, and often accounts driven by an event are not relevant after the event is finished.

BEST PRACTICES FOR DEVELOPING SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT

Following is a deep dive into the tools and recommendations to help streamline citywide social media communication including tips for shared social media content development, a social media thematic calendar, a list of key partners to tag in your social media messaging and some example hashtags to use. Social Media Content Creating social media content that aligns with the City of Rocklin’s goals and is interesting, relevant and engaging to users is essential for successful social media implementation. Social media posts with visual content perform well and are 40 times more likely to be shared11. When using pictures and videos on posts, focus on highlighting the values and cornerstones of Rocklin, increasing interest in programs and upcoming events, and becoming a reliable informant for all relevant news. This will drive traffic to the City of Rocklin social media accounts and website. Below are recommendations for types of content to post:

• Messages tied to the theme “Rocklin is a place for families.” • Community information about upcoming programs and events.

o Consider posting the City of Rocklin monthly newsletter on social accounts. It is good content and can increase your mailing list.

11 Social Media Today. 2016. Why visuals are so important in content marketing and five ways to do them well.

OPPORTUNITY Develop shared social media content.

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o Highlight concerts and activities in Quarry Park • Share positive sentiment articles about Rocklin in the media. • Showcase local and successful businesses in Rocklin. • Educational messages that recognize city growth and development and the fiscal responsibility

of growth. • Features on City workers that highlight what they do for the community. • Public Services projects that keep the city clean, green and safe. Often, Public Services work is

unrecognized by the public. • Share and promote video content (The State of the City of Rocklin videos are good examples). • Promote events that community organizations are hosting. • Messages that honor and recognize those that keep Rocklin safe (Fire Department, Police

Department). • Engagement (general call and response – asking questions to engage audience).

o User generated content (encourage audience to share their own photos of an event or of the City of Rocklin and utilize a hashtag to track)

• Beauty of the City of Rocklin, especially highlighting the parks. • Traffic alerts and road closures

Social Media Thematic Calendar Creating a social media thematic calendar at the beginning of the year helps reassure that posts are in alignment of how you want to represent Rocklin. It focuses content on relevant, important and interesting topics that are essential messages. It also encourages diversity of content and ensures that posts never feel repetitive.

Below is an example thematic calendar for the City of Rocklin that covers relevant topics, important events and essential City of Rocklin themes.

TOPICS CONTENT

General Citywide Messages

• Why is the City of Rocklin a great place to live? • The City of Rocklin is one of the safest places to live. • The City of Rocklin has a mixture of first-class, business, retail and recreational

opportunities. • How has the City of Rocklin changed for the better over the years? • Why is living in Rocklin great for families? • Why is living in Rocklin great for professionals?

Community Engagement

• Highlight the different community programs that exist in Rocklin. • Promote programs on recycling, charity, etc. • Promote the Parks and Recreation classes and programs (Active Adults activities,

Itty Bitty Club, Guitar Lessons and Sports Programs) • Success stories of residents who participated in community programs. • Encourage people to sign up for volunteer days to be more involved in community. • Encourage people to sign up for newsletters to stay on top of community events. • Call-to-action to get involved, share posts and like page.

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Community Partners

• Highlight as many community partners throughout the year and how they are helping the community (Sierra College, Historical Society, Sports Clubs, etc.)

• Share events that community organizations are hosting.

City Departments

• Highlight all the different City Departments (Fire, Police, Parks and Rec, Community Development and Public Services)

• Showcase the work these departments do for the City of Rocklin. • Features on workers from different City departments. Day in the life of different

City Department workers. • Share and promote events of City Departments. • Posts that honor the Police and Fire department for keeping the community safe. • Tips on safety from the Police Department and Fire Department.

Business Development

• Positive sentiment articles about business development in Rocklin. • Highlight and feature unique and fun businesses in Rocklin. • Post new job openings and promote professional development opportunities. • Inform residents on new business development. Tie in how this will be good for

the community. • Create a Favorites list at the end of the year (Favorite restaurant, Favorite local

clothing store, etc.). Encourage residents to vote through a survey.

Alerts / Notices • Timely notices about road closures. • Educational information about new inspection practices or rules. • Community safety alerts when applicable. • Notices from Public Works or Community Development. • Surveys to gauge satisfaction of residents.

Parks and Recreation

• Different hikes and recreation opportunities in Rocklin. • Showcase the beauty of Rocklin. • Highlight Whitney Recreation Area: Rocklin’s Latest Jewel of a Community Park • Promote events and concerts happening in Quarry Park

Schools and Youth

• Messages about upcoming school events and programs • Feature art projects of students (grade school, high school and community college) • Stories that show Rocklin having great schools. • Encourage and promote different ways children can be involved in community • Congratulations post around Graduation time for students.

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Local Events • Research community events that Community Organizations are hosting and promote them.

• Create an Events page on Facebook to show all upcoming events. • Events to Promote:

o Rocklin Mini Maker Faire o Rocklin Woofstock o Concerts in Quarry Park o Free Movie Fridays o Holidays (Breakfast with Santa, Rocklin Fire Santa Tours, Tree Lighting

Festival Easter Egg Hunt)

Holidays Awareness & Affinity Days

• Holidays (Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, Halloween, Fourth of July) • National Volunteer Month (April) • Public Service Recognition Week, first week of May • National Parks Day (April 20) • Earth Day (April 22)

Tag Suggestions As part of building a strong social media presence and following, sharing and reposting messages and content from partner organizations, non-profits and other government agencies may increase engagement through social media followers. Tagging on social media occurs when an individual or page adds a link to another page or profile. When you tag someone or something, that content may be shared with your Facebook friends and the Facebook friends of the person or page that you are tagging. You can tag someone on any type of post, whether it be a status update, a new photo, a video, etc. Tagging other pages is a great way to increase your post and pages’ exposure. Below is a table of partners to consider following, sharing content, or tagging in your social media content. Suggestions including community organizations, business partnerships and surrounding municipalities and are informed by the list of partners identified by City staff. More information on these partners can be found in the Community Partner Relations section of this Plan. Organization Facebook Twitter Instagram

Residents - General Historical Society @rocklinhistory @RocklinHistory @rocklinhistoricalsociety

Rocklin Library

@RocklinFriends @RocklinFriends n/a

Rocklin Community Th t

@rocklintheatre @RocklinTheatre @rocklincommunitytheatre

Rocklin Public Safety Foundation

@rocklinpublicsafetyfoundaiton n/a n/a

South Placer Rotary Club

@SouthPlacerRotary n/a n/a

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Stand Up Placer

@StandUpPlacer @standupplacerthrift

@StandUpPlacer @standupplacer @standupplacerthrift

Gathering Inn @thegatheringinn @GatheringInn @thegatheringinn

California Family Fitness

@CalFitRocklin n/a n/a

Courtside Basketball t

@courtsidecenter @CourtsideCenter @courtsidebasketballcenter

Residents – Children & Youth Rocklin School Di t i t

@rocklinunifiedschooldistrict @RocklinUSD n/a

Sierra College @sierracollege @SierraCollege @sierra.college

William Jessup University

@williamjessupuniversity @williamjessup @jessupu

Rocklin Youth Soccer Club

@rocklinyouthsoccerclub @rocklinsoccer n/a

Rocklin Swim Team @Rocklinwaveswimteam @rocklinswimteam @Rocklinswimteam

Rocklin Little League @Rocklinllb n/a n/a

Tri City Little League @Tricitylittleleague @TCLL_Rocklin n/a

Rocklin Pony Baseball @rocklinponyyouthbaseball n/a n/a

Rocklin Girls Softball @rocklingirlssoftball n/a @rocklingirlsoftball

Rocklin Jr. Thunder @rocklinjrthunderandcheer n/a n/a

Whitney Jr. Wildcats @whitneyjrwildcats @WJWcats @whitneyjrwildcats

Girl Scouts @GirlScoutsUSA @girlscouts @girlscouts

Boy Scouts – Troop 435 Rocklin

@troop435 @theboyscoutsofamerica

@boyscouts @boyscoutsofamerica

Placer Valley Sunrise Rotary Club

@SunriseRotarian @rotary_sunrise @pvsrotaryevents

Businesses Rocklin Area Chamber of

@RocklinChamber @RocklinChamber @rocklinchamber

Placer Valley Tourism @placertourism @PlacerTourism @placertourism

HackerLab @RocklinHackerLab @SacHackerLab @hackerlab

Placer County Association of

@PlacerAOR @PlacerAOR @placer_aor

Faith Based Groups Destiny Christian Church

@DestinyRocklin @destinyrocklin @destintyrocklin

Baha’i Faith of R kli

@BahaisofPlacerCounty n/a n/aa

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SS. Peter & Paul Church

@ssppcommunity n/a n/a

Surrounding Municipalities City of Roseville @cityofroseville @cityofroseville @cityofroseville

Town of Loomis @LoomisTownPage @townofloomis @visitloomis

City of Lincoln @LincolnCA @CityofLincolnCA n/a

Caltrans Dist. 3 @CaltransDistrict3 @ CaltransDist3 @caltransdist3

PCWA @ThePCWA @PlacerWater N/A

PCTPA @PCTPA @PCTPA @PCTPA

Placer County @PlacerCountyCalifornia @PlacerCA @PlacerCounty

Hashtag Suggestions A hashtag is defined as a word or phrase preceded by a hash or pound sign that is used to identify different topics and messages. It is a way for the public to find information about particular topics or events. Hashtags are also a way for influencers, businesses, news outlets, and users in general to organize and increase the awareness of their content. Hashtags are great for linking posts and streamlining content. The City of Rocklin can develop and use hashtags to better reach target audiences and help members filter information. Hashtags can also encourage engagement when you ask users to use the hashtags in their own posts to further spread messaging. In addition, hashtags are an easy way to measure the success of a campaign or event.

Hashtag Purpose General Citywide Hashtags #BestofRocklin #LiveWorkPlayRocklin

• Suggested new hashtags • Use these hashtags to celebrate Rocklin achievements or to promote

fun Rocklin events. #CaptureRocklin • Current hashtag used for a photo scavenger hunt

• This hashtag can be reused. It is a great hashtag for showcasing the beauty of Rocklin. Can also encourage residents to use this hashtag when posting their own photos of Rocklin.

#rocklin #rocklinca #visitrocklin #LoveWhereYouLive

• All of these hashtags can be used for almost any post. Having these hashtags can help people filter information on social media to see posts of Rocklin.

#RocklinRocks • Suggested hashtag for any concerts happening in Rocklin.

Community Engagement/Partnerships #ExploreRocklin • Suggested hashtag you can use when showing a unique or great

feature of Rocklin.

#MeetYourCity #LoveWhereYouWork

• Suggested hashtag if you do a feature on a government/city worker or a community resident.

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#smallbusinesssaturday • Suggested hashtag for highlighting the local businesses located in Rocklin

City Departments #Thisiswherewepark #EatPlayStayRepeat #Rocklinparksandrec #LoveWhereYouPlay

• These are already utilized hashtags by the Parks and Recreation department. We suggest also using them to amplify Parks and Recreation messages.

#rocklinfirefighters • Suggested hashtag when posting any content about Rocklin firefighters.

#rocklinpolice • Suggested hashtag when posting any content related to the Police Department.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR SOCIAL MEDIA ADVERTISING

See paid media section for recommendations on use of paid advertising on social media channels.

INTERNAL PROCESS FOR SOCIAL MEDIA

Overall the City of Rocklin has a strong following on their social media accounts. The most successful departments in social media have been the Police Department and the Fire Fighters Union. Both of these departments have a large following and high engagement on most of their posts.

The City of Rocklin has one full-time employee in the City Manager’s Office focused on overall City communications serving all departments.

Departments such as the Public Services department, and Community Development do not have their own social channels. When they need to post a message, they utilize the main city of Rocklin page to reach their audience.

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D. WEBSITE

The City of Rocklin website is the main information hub for all Rocklin residents and visitors, including everything from permit requirements, utilities, and news, to events for residents and people visiting Rocklin. With a large website with many subpages, it is important to understand the audience for specific content and assure that city communications on other platforms are driving people to the correct page on the website. The section addresses the below objective:

• Ensure the City website is user-friendly and communicates key messages.

GENERAL ANALYSIS OF CITY OF ROCKLIN WEBSITE

The City of Rocklin website (www.rocklin.ca.us) is modern and visually appealing. The home page is the most visited page providing visitors with multiple ways to navigate and access information. At the top of the homepage visitors are prompted by “I Want To” and provided a number of options that provide easier access to information a visitor may be seeking, such apply for a license, report or request information. Additional quick access points on the home page include a scrolling list of What’s Happening and updates on: “Recent News,” “Calendar,” and @CityofRocklin Tweets.

Audience Needs • Find information – activities for kids, family events, updates on road construction • Solve a problem – get a permit, report illegal dumping, rent a facility • Learn something new – how to recycle, register for classes, take guitar lessons

Top Pages The most highly visited page on the Rocklin website is the Homepage, followed by the Quarry Park subpage. Quarry Park is a highly searched topic and multiple social media channels such as Facebook, Yelp and Instagram are driving significantly more users to that page than other pages. The third and fourth most highly visited pages are the Job Openings page and the Wi-Fi in the Parks page. About 79% of website visitors find the website through Google search or direct search. About 6% of website visitors come from other search engines such as Yahoo and Bing. Demographic Data 70% of website visitors are between the ages of 25-54 with the highest age demographic being 35-44 (26%). About 46% of website visitors are male and 54% are female. About 85% of website visitors are in Rocklin or the surrounding area. About 10% of website visitors came from the San Francisco area.

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The devices used by website visitors are broken out as follows: • Mobile: 52% • Desktop: 43% • Tablet: 5%

The timeline for the data analyzed in Google Analytics is between January 1, 2019 and December 5, 2019. Search and Keyword Research Below are examples of keywords and questions people are searching for in relation to the Rocklin website and how frequently the keywords are searched per month:

• Things to do in Rocklin CA: 101-200 • Events for kids in Rocklin: 201-500 • Quarry Park Rocklin: 1,700-2,900 • Rocklin Fire Department: 201-500 • Jobs in Rocklin: 201-500

Answering top searched questions on the website through clear copy can lead to improved search results for these key topics, leading those individuals to the Rocklin website, such as:

• Keyword search for “things to do in Rocklin CA”: Search Engine Results Page (SERP) – City of Rocklin website appears on the second page of Google and delivers a link to this page: https://www.rocklin.ca.us/events

• Keyword search for “events for kids in Rocklin”: Search Engine Results Page (SERP) – City of Rocklin website appears #12 position and delivers a link to this page: https://www.rocklin.ca.us/events

Consider curating or linking to a Top 10 Best Activities for Kids list and a Top 10 things to do in Rocklin on the website. In addition, content subheads can be added that clearly point to events for families and kids in Rocklin.

TOP LEVEL INSIGHTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Optimize website pages to increase search engine optimization (SEO), engagement and measurement. To improve the user experience, we recommend simplifying user navigation options. There is also an opportunity to consolidate information to fewer landing pages.

• Organize content and build out copy to address key topics people in Rocklin are searching for online that relate to services the City provides, such as events for kids and families.

• Consider updates to the menu navigation to organize and provide information through City departments and better consolidate similar information.

• Consolidate the number of subpages and organize related content on scrolling landing pages, so that users are not required to click through too many times to access key information.

OPPORTUNITY Add search optimized headings and copy to website landing pages.

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E. ADVERTISING

Advertising, also called paid media, refers to content promotion that is paid, rather than shared organically with existing networks or partners. In today’s market, consumers are exposed to an influx of messages every day on their phone and other devices in addition to more traditional advertising media like print, television, radio, buses, billboards, transit shelters, etc. Paid media allows organizations to stand out and reach audiences that they otherwise would not reach organically. An effective paid media strategy will use multiple tactics – at least three recommended – to increase reach and retention of information.12 This section presents the various forms of paid media tactics, why you would use each tactic, the existing advertising opportunities that the City has, and strategies to amplify your messages given the City’s limited advertising budget. This section addresses the below objective:

• Leverage citywide advertising opportunities to get the most from a limited budget.

ADVERTISING TACTICS OVERVIEW

Since this Strategic Communications Plan will be used by city staff who are not advertising experts, we include below information about the numerous paid media options and recommendations for using each option. The overview is presented by “traditional” and “digital” media below. Traditional Media Traditional media is trusted and popular but is not as cost-effective as digital. These forms of media are expensive for the impressions they produce. However, the quality of the impressions is high. Traditional media includes print, radio, television and out of home. Print Print media includes newspapers and magazines and is a trusted source of information and information that can be placed locally, nationally, or regionally. Placement in relevant content sections of the newspaper allow for demographic, lifestyle, or interest targeting. There are also community newspapers or publications that serve specific communities such as cultural or religious populations. Print is not highly recommended for Rocklin due to cost and lack of targeted coverage as most publications spill into the surrounding areas in the region and targeted print is very expensive. Our recommendation would be to consider Style or Gold Country media for 1-4 insertions depending on budget and target audience. Available Rocklin print outlets below:

• Style Magazine – Covers Rocklin, but also surrounding area • Gold Country Media – Placer Herald • SacBee Inserts/Post-Its (Stickers) – Can be done by zip code • Magazine Cover Inserts – Done by households/zip codes. Very expensive.

12 Hubspot. Paid Media Explained in 400 Words or Less.

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Radio Radio is traditionally delivered “over the air” across large to small metropolitan service areas (MSAs). Radio messages of 15- and 30-second length are broadcast and streamed to homes, cars and personal devices alongside music programming, news, and local weather and traffic information. Streaming radio has limited budget minimums to reach targeted areas, otherwise broadcast will reach Rocklin via the designated market area – Sacramento Area. Available Rocklin radio outlets below:

• Pandora – Minimum $25,000 NET to target by zip code, produce spot and target demographics. • Streaming Radio – iHeart or Radio.com. Not great results, very limited number of impressions

for Rocklin area. • Broadcast Radio – Sacramento market coverage only. Can do and is reasonable cost, however

no way to reach only Rocklin residents. Television Television can be expensive so to maximize your budget, you can look to advertise on channels that your target audience is most likely watching, like cooking shows or sports games. Television is still an effective media approach and can also include advertising to viewers watching programs online. A typical TV campaign needs to be at least $5,000 – $8,000. Television tactics below:

• Broadcast TV – Not recommended as it reaches a very large market – Sacramento-Stockton- Modesto. Not cost effective to reach such a small audience.

• Streaming TV – Over the Top Services (OTT) and Video on Demand (VOD) services are considered a digital product but can be targeted by zip/geo to reach Rocklin only residents. Good way to reach TV viewers in a more cost-efficient way.

• Cable TV – Can target by zones which can be zip/city or blend of several. A little more expensive, but more targeted. Good option if budget is available and wanting to do a more traditional TV type of buy.

Out of Home Out of home advertising is a mass medium valuable for a broad reach, frequency and always-on display capability. Outdoor encompasses any advertising that can be seen outside of the home, including on the road, in the store, and in public spaces. Out of home display placements are valuable in making a visual impact where people live, travel, commute and view the messages frequently. Below are some out of home options available in Rocklin:

• Billboards • Cartvertising • Move theater advertising • Transit shelters and bus benches • Transit advertising

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• Convenience stores, beauty shops, laundromat advertising • Pump toppers and handles at gas stations • Ice box advertising • Wildboards (outdoor vinyl posters used in high-traffic areas where billboards are not available) • Sports and school sponsorships

Digital Media Digital media allows for a cost-effective approach, while being able to tightly target audience segments and behaviors. Digital campaigns also allow for a wide variety of campaign messages, allowing multiple communication objectives to be delivered at one time. It also allows us to easily target both general market and Spanish-speaking residents. Digital strategies include the ability to target messages to physical locations (such as garden centers, home improvement stores or popular recreation areas), identify behaviors of interested audiences for optimization (artificial intelligence), and retargeting for increased engagement. Digital media can include display ads, email marketing, and social media advertising.Rocklinsier Display Ads Display ads include pop-ups, banner ads, and video ads. Banner ads are cost effective and provide a big bang for your buck when your paid media goal is to reach a lot of people (impressions). While you reach a lot of eyes, the quality of the impression is not as high as some other tactics because digital ads are so prolific. If your budget permits, video pre-roll – the 15 to 30-seconds ads that you see before a video that you are watching online – produces higher quality impressions with greater retention than a banner ad. Videos meant for advertising should be no more than 30-seconds long and 15-second videos are recommended since attention spans are limited. Email Marketing Email marketing (e-blasts) can produce a high return on investment, if done right. The effectiveness of an e-blast depends on the email list being used. Sourcing emails organically from a subscription, like the City newsletter, is effective because residents have sought out information. Media vendors can be brought in to send e-blasts to email lists that they have built based on target audience. For example, they could send an e-blast that targeted residents of the City of Rocklin in a certain zip code. Social Media Advertising Social media advertising is very popular now and ad spending increases every year. According to Vox, spending in 2018 was an estimated $58 billion globally.13 Social media ads are also one of the most effective ways to reach people since an estimated 79% of Americans have a social networking profile.14 Social media advertising is easy for many organizations to create and share themselves, produces a good return on investment and is a very good option for the City of Rocklin. Paid ads can be placed directly through the City’s various social media accounts.

13 Vox. 2018. Advertisers will spend $40 billion more on internet ads than on TV ads this year. 14 Statista. Percentage of U.S. population with a social media profile from 2008 to 2019.

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CURRENT ADVERISING OPPORTUNITIES & RECOMMENDATIONS

The City of Rocklin and the different departments generally have limited advertising budgets. Therefore, utilizing existing advertising opportunities and employing cost-effective tactics will be key to maximizing your reach. Currently, the City of Rocklin has the below advertising opportunities:

• Free billboard from Clear Channel – The free billboard should be considered for every important messaging opportunity. Billboard space needs should be considered during the Monthly Communication Meetings and city staff should consider bringing the integrated messages from the editorial calendar to the billboard.

• Parks and Recreation Department Advertising – The Parks and Recreation Department has the largest advertising budget citywide to promote events and concerts happening in Rocklin. There is an opportunity to promote citywide shared messaging through the ads placed by the Parks and Rec. Department, if the messaging ties in.

• Social media advertising – Advertising on social media platforms is where the City can get the highest return on investment with a limited budget. It’s also quick and relatively easy. Furthermore, you can specify your target population by age, gender, location, and interests. Budgets from $50 to a few hundred dollars yield high impressions and engagement, especially in a small geographic area like the City of Rocklin. Facebook, Instagram and Twitter are the best platforms to invest your ad money right now.15 Since these are the most popular platforms citywide, we recommend social media advertising on Facebook/Instagram (Facebook owns Instagram and advertising can be placed on the two platforms simultaneously) first.

15 BigCommerce. The 6 Most Effective Types of Social Media Advertising in 2019.

OPPORTUNITY Leverage existing, cost- effective advertising opportunities.

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EXAMPLE OF INTEGRATED PAID MEDIA TO SUPPORT IMPORTANT MESSAGE

Following is an example of an integrated paid media and outreach project plan to communicate with the public about a construction project with road closure and traffic impacts. Messaging and creative would include important facts about the road closure with positive messaging, maps and alternate route information.

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VII. MEASURING SUCCESS When measuring the successful implementation of your communications efforts, it is important to track progress and successes throughout the implementation process. This will allow you to adjust and refine tactics to assure you are meeting your communication goals and objectives. Below are some Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for each tactic and outreach effort to consider as the City of Rocklin further develops and implements an integrated communication strategy.

Communication Tactic Metrics/KPIs How to Measure

Media Relations Earned Media • Media Coverage/ story

placements • Reach • Referral links to website

• Monitor media to listen and track earned media results such as direct story placements.

• Use Google Analytics to track web increase in web traffic.

Community Partner Relations Newsletter • Reach

• Open Rate • Engagement

• Size of distribution list, number of electronic newsletters e-mailed

• Tracking number of opened emails as a percent of the total sent

Events • Set goals for each event and measure results such as: key audience numbers reached; tickets sold; materials distributed

• Tracking by event, monthly, or annually. • Track summaries of event attendance; materials

distributed; tickets purchased.

Partnerships • Number of sustained and new partnerships and their potential reach

• Information at events. • Increased traffic to online and social channels.

Social Media Social Media Platforms

• Reach • Followers • Engagement • Hashtags • Views

• Utilize Facebook and Twitter insights to track views, engagement and followers.

Online Presence Website • Unique and repeat visitors

• Page views • Search engine and referral

traffic • Inbound links • Bounce rates

• Google Analytics or other tracking code installed on the website to review landing page performance

• We recommend reviewing monthly for activity, trends and areas of strength/weakness, and to identify sources of referral traffic.

• Track the impact of linked tactics, such as newsletter send, story placement, or outreach event to website traffic.