PREPARED BY:
Communications Department
DATE:
June 15, 2023
SUBJECT:
April 15, 2023 – May 14, 2023, Communications Update
BACKGROUND/PURPOSE:
Provide regular marketing and communication updates to the Board of Health.
| SOURCE | April 15 - May 14 | March 15 – April 14 | DIFFERENCE |
|---|---|---|---|
|
News Releases, Media Advisories and Statements, or Notices Issued |
5 |
8 |
-3 |
|
Media Requests Received |
22 |
17 |
5 |
|
Wechu.org pageviews |
86,896 |
103,458 |
-16,562 |
|
YouTube Channel Subscribers |
1,729 |
1,737 |
-8 |
|
Email Subscribers |
7,438 |
7,467 |
-29 |
|
Emails Distributed |
7 |
10 |
-3 |
|
Facebook Fans |
19,069 |
19,046 |
23 |
|
Facebook Posts |
58 |
117 |
-59 |
|
Twitter Followers |
8,697 |
8,706 |
-9 |
|
Twitter Posts |
59 |
67 |
-8 |
|
Instagram Followers |
1,539 |
1,535 |
4 |
|
Instagram Posts |
31 |
37 |
-6 |
|
LinkedIn Followers |
1,456 |
1,423 |
33 |
|
LinkedIn Posts |
17 |
30 |
-13 |
|
Media Exposure |
57 |
214 |
-157 |
Data Notes can be provided upon request
Media Exposure Overview Graph
Notes: During the time frame of April 15 – May 14, we experienced three peaks in media exposure:
Wednesday, April 19 – We issued a Media Advisory and hosted a media event at SafePoint, where the official launch date was announced. This resulted in a total of 29 news stories.
Friday, April 21 – We issued a news release announcing the hiring of the new Acting Medical Officer of Health, which resulted in 11 news stories.
Friday, April 28 – We issued a news release announcing COVID-19 policy updates for staff and clients (e.g., removal of masking requirements and active symptom screening). This resulted in a total of 13 news stories.
Website Overview Graph
Notes: During the time frame of April 15 – May 14, website visitor traffic remained consistent when compared to the previous March 18 to April 14 timeframe.
Social Media Overview Graph
Note: On April 20, 2023, Twitter removed the Blue Verification Checkmark from user profiles and introduced a tiered system which involved payment for various types of verification. This resulted in many users leaving the platform, which may account for the change in our followers. The WECHU applied for a grey checkmark which denotes a verified government agency, which is now displayed on our account.
DISCUSSION
The Communications Department worked closely with the Chronic Disease & Injury Prevention team to announce the opening of SafePoint, which included planning a media event and a series of public open houses.
A Media Advisory was issued on Tuesday April 18, inviting the media to an on-site event on Wednesday April 19. The media event was attended by representatives from all six of the major local news outlets, and yieled 29 news stories which highlighted the public open houses as well as the official first date of service. The WECHU also issued a News Release to the General Subscribers list in MailChimp to notify the public of the open house sessions.
To further communicate the public open houses, two social media posts were issued on the WECHU’s Facebook and Twitter platforms, using a poster designed by the Communications Department Graphic Designer.