Social Media Best Practices

Messaging

• What is the goal of the post? Content should reflect the goals and mission of the department and institution.
• Consider: Who is the intended audience? Who is the actual audience? Is the message clear to the audience? All posts should be intentional and consider the audience.
• Is the content of the post accurate? Has the content, spelling and grammar been double-checked? Ensure that all information conveyed is correct.
• Can the post be deemed offensive or misconstrued by a viewer? The social media landscape and trends are always changing, so be aware of content that can be perceived incorrectly. Avoid using emojis that can be misinterpreted or that don’t match the mood of the post.
• Engage your viewer! Captivate your audience with a hook and/or important information at the beginning of your written message.
• The messaging of the content should not comprise personal reflections. The messaging is based on the organization or department of the account.
• We encourage you to use our institutional hashtags, #OWMade and #OWnYourFuture, and to tag us, @SUNYOldWestbury! If you choose to use other hashtags, please ensure they are relevant and other content associated with the hashtag is appropriate.
• Stay connected and interact with other Old Westbury accounts! When leaving comments or sending direct messages, remember that the social media policy still applies. Messaging within comments and direct messages must be appropriate and adhere to the same responsibilities laid forth in the University's social media policy.  

Visual Content

• Use high-quality images and videos! Avoid posting blurry, unfocused and poorly lit images and videos. Content should reflect our active campus community and student life. Content must be appropriate in both the foreground and background.
• Use the aspect ratio that best correlates with the platform you are posting on.
• Please refer to Constant Contact’s online guide for aspect ratios.
• Use proper branding in the content. Avoid using outdated logos or logos that have been modified. The university seal is reserved for presidential use.
• Social media typically provides a space for short form videos and quick content. We recommend keeping videos at a length of 90 seconds or below.
• Photos should be your own. Avoid using photos that are copyrighted. If you need to use a stock image, ensure it is royalty-free.

Accessibility

Social media content is considered digital content under federal Title II regularions. All campus-administered social media accounts must make their content accessible to the degree a chosen social media channel allows.

Utilize all available accessibility features on each social media application. As the applications advance with more accessibility features, guidance will adjust to reflect those updates.

• All photos must have alternative text. Alternative text, commonly referred to as “alt text” is an accessibility feature on social media platforms that allows those who need visual accommodations access to the photo content we post.
  • Alt text should be concise. Aim for alt text of 125 to 150 characters.
    • Alt text should be meaningful and convey the message of the image.
    • For further guidance, please visit the following resources:
      • SUNY Old Westbury Accessibility Training. You will receive this once you complete the account creation and registration process. If you would like access, please contact the Office of Communications & University Relations via email request. (THIS TRAINING IS IN DEVELOPMENT)
      • U.S. General Services Administration's Guide for Section 508
    • To learn how to add alt text by platform, please view the instructions provided by each platform:
      • Instagram
      • Facebook
      • LinkedIn
• Graphics posted should contain less than 20% of text. Avoid posting flyers, charts and graphs. If there is text on the post, the text must be included in the alt text verbatim.
  • For event promotion, we recommend posting a photo and writing important information in the caption instead of posting a flyer. Between logos, formatting, images and text that typically appear on flyers, alt text cannot be concise.
• Use Pascal case in hashtags. This is when the first letter of each word is capitalized.
  • E.g. #CampusLife instead of #campuslife
• Emojis are fun... but they cannot replace text. Use emojis to supplement your text.
  • Don’t say: We 💚 to see our Panthers volunteering in their community!
  • Say: We're love to see our Panthers volunteering in their community!💚
• All videos must have accurate and meaningful closed captions, including dialogue and background ambient, sound effects and music.
• Closed captions on videos and text on graphics must be readable.
  • The text must have a high contrast with the background. Test your contrast with online tools, including the following Web Accessibility in Mind’s Contrast Checker.
  • Consider using a 16-point font.  
  • Use simple fonts such as our brand fonts or ones that are similar.
    • Brand fonts: Caslon, Corbel
  • When posting videos, create captions that reflect the content of the video.
• Where platforms allow, use Audio Descriptions for video posts.
• Avoid using acronyms, as screen readers cannot read them accurately.  
• If a post contains a QR code, you must provide instructions on how to access the page the QR code leads to in the caption. Consider linking the page in your bio.
• Only repost content that is accessible and meets the standards that you are required to meet.
  • To test, you can use your devices’ built-in screen readers, listed as follows:
    • Apple: Voiceover
    • Android: TalkBack
    • Windows PC: Microsoft Narrator 

Questions?

Contact:

• Joanna Vissichelli
  Digital Content Specialist