PREPARED BY:
Communications Department
DATE:
February 20, 2024
SUBJECT:
January 15, 2024 – February 14, 2024, Communications Update
BACKGROUND/PURPOSE:
Provide regular marketing and communication updates to the Board of Health.
| SOURCE | January 15 - February 14 | December 15 - January 14 | DIFFERENCE |
|---|---|---|---|
| News Releases, Media Advisories and Statements, or Notices Issued | 9 | 1 | 8 |
| Media Requests Received | 18 | 6 | 12 |
| Wechu.org pageviews | 110,312 | 81,571 | 28,741 |
| YouTube Channel Subscribers | 1,766 | 1,762 | 4 |
| Email Subscribers | 7,170 | 7,190 | -20 |
| Emails Distributed | 11 | 6 | 5 |
| Facebook Fans | 19,186 | 19,183 | 3 |
| Facebook Posts | 74 | 45 | 29 |
| Twitter Followers | 8,643 | 8,643 | - |
| Twitter Posts | 78 | 49 | 29 |
| Instagram Followers | 1,637 | 1,622 | 15 |
| Instagram Posts | 36 | 22 | 14 |
| LinkedIn Followers | 1,668 | 1,644 | 24 |
| LinkedIn Posts | 13 | 9 | 4 |
| Media Exposure | 139 | 43 | 96 |
Data Notes can be provided upon request.
Media Exposure Overview Graph
From January 15 – February 14, we experienced three main peaks of media exposure:
January 26: Following our release about a possible measles exposure, 29 media stories were issued.
January 30 – February 1 & February 5: The announcement of the decision to no longer relocate to the University of Windsor campus resulted in 16 stories. Overlapping this, our news release with an updated number of students with incomplete immunization records received 19 stories. The spike on February 5 was an echo effect of these two stories.
Website Overview Graph
Notes: From January 15 – February 14, we saw very similar website traffic patterns as the previous month, but an increase in traffic overall. This can be attributed to the lower viewership in December over the holidays, as well as a handful of large news stories which were issued in January, driving people to our website (e.g. News Releases around measles exposure, our office relocation, and student immunizations).
Social Media Overview Graph
Lighter blue line represents the current month, darker blue line represents the previous month. Notes: We saw some increases in followers over the month.
Discussion – Student Immunizations
The Communications Department worked with the Healthy Schools department to communicate to families around the Immunization of School Pupils Act (ISPA) and the importance of keeping immunization records up to date. These communication pieces included a News Release which was issued on January 31, 2024, boosted (paid) social media posts and ads, as well as meetings with the school board communication representatives.
The News Release had an open rate of 43% from the media audience. This resulted in 19 published news stories to help raise awareness of the various ways parents and guardians can update their child’s record or receive any necessary immunizations.
Additionally, a webpage was created for school administrators which houses a variety of documents to support the ISPA enforcement process. Documents include a flow chart of next steps for parents, frequently asked questions and answers, and a communication guide with pre-created social media posts, emails, and voice recording scripts for schools to utilize. Through feedback from the communications representatives at the school boards, these documents have proven to be incredibly valuable and helpful for their administrative teams when speaking with parents and guardians.