Social Media
Social Media
Below you will find information about the social platforms we use to stay connected with our members. If your organization is interested in using social media tools, LeadingAge Minnesota encourages you to take a look at LeadingAge's Social Media Policy.
Facebook is designed to give people the power to make the world more open and connected. Users can share photos and information, connect with friends and colleagues, post status updates and join groups that reflect their interests or areas of expertise. If you've never used Facebook, check out this introductory guidebook from Mashable.com.
Twitter is a "micro-blogging" service that allows users to send and receive 140-character messages known as tweets. These posts are displayed on a users profile page as well as delivered to the user's followers. Tweeting offers a great opportunity to share news and information about your organization and the field of aging services. You can connect with Twitter online, via external applications, or on most all of the major smart phones. Meanwhile, Mashable's introductory Twitter guidebook is a great place to start if you are new to Twitter.
LinkedIn is a social networking site created to connect current and past business colleagues. The site touts the fact that executives from all Fortune 500 companies are members. LinkedIn also allows companies and individuals to connect with new employment or business opportunities and join groups on a variety of professional topics. Using LinkedIn is a great way to connect with your fellow members and other experts in our field as well as stay informed on interest areas.
YouTube is a website allowing users to upload and share videos. It is a great resource for individuals and organizations that don't have the bandwidth to store and stream videos on their own sites. Many members already use YouTube to share videos about their organizations with the world. Why not join them?
Mobile Applications
Mobile devices are so much more than cell phones these days, and Applications or “Apps” provide users a way to customize your mobile device to provide the wants and needs of the user. They are generally easy to find and install. For example, prior to the Institute, members can download LeadingAge Minnesota's Institute mobile application to get the latest information on the Institute. Easily check out session times and locations, your favorite exhibitor booth and much more!
Watch for an announcement about future mobile applications from LeadingAge Minnesota.
RSS Feed
RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is a family of web feed formats used to publish frequently updated works—such as blog entries, news headlines, audio, and video—in a standardized format.
RSS feeds benefit publishers by letting them syndicate content automatically and benefits readers who want to subscribe to timely updates from favorite websites or to aggregate feeds from many sites into one place.
RSS feeds can be read using software called an "RSS reader", "feed reader", or "aggregator", which can be web-based, desktop-based, or mobile-device-based. The user subscribes to a feed by entering into the reader the feed's URI or by clicking a feed icon in a web browser that initiates the subscription process. The RSS reader checks the user's subscribed feeds regularly for new work, downloads any updates that it finds, and provides a user interface to monitor and read the feeds. RSS allows users to avoid manually inspecting all of the websites they are interested in, and instead subscribe to websites such that all new content is pushed onto their browsers when it becomes available.
QR Codes
Quick Response (QR) codes are those trademark matrix barcodes consisting of black square dots arranged in a square pattern on a white background. Able to encode far more information than traditional barcodes, scanning a QR code with a mobile device can easily direct you to information online. LeadingAge Minnesota places QR codes in various locations, such as brochures, posters, etc. to easily lead members to information quickly and easily. All you need to do is download a free QR Code reader on your mobile device.