Post in Social media & local gov event 29th October

Sep 04 12:01 UTC

2008/9/2 Mick Phythian <mick@phythian.org.uk>

>> As to getting the citizens writing - nice idea but I await people truly
>> getting involved online, apart from a very small minority, normally with
>> a grudge! We established forums on our council web site which haven't
>> been used either by staff or the public, we have tried online budgetary
>> involvement with statistically insignificant feedback.

I think the problem in the past has been the attitude of 'if we build
it they will come', which usually is the death knell for any social
web offering. This is especially true of forums, which I don't think
are the best way for online engagement to be run effectively. They are
good for support scenarious, and maybe to have an online presence of
an already existing offline community, but otherwise take up far too
much time to get going.

There are several important messages, I feel, for any level of
government wanting to get involved in the social web space:

1) dont expect people to turn up. As Paul C has written, publicise,
publicise, publicise
2) make it an imperitive (sp?) for officials to respond where
appropriate. It will die if nobody gets any replies.
3) Make it an as-well-as not an instead-of - new media doesn't kill old media
4) Accept criticism and messiness - stuff will happen you don't like.
But by engaging and being involved you've got a better chance of
turning it round than if you ignore it
5) choose the right tool for the job. Sometimes it will be a forum,
sometimes a blog, sometimes some other third thing. Make the barriers
to entry as low as possible. Don't try and force every project or
exercise into the same platform

More discussion around this stuff will of course be taking place in
Peterborough in October. Make sure you book your place!!