Part 2

Points: 30 pts (team task)
Due date: Sun, Oct 11 at 11:59 pm
Resources: Google Docs, Weebly, Facebook for Business, Instagram for Business, Google Analytics
Summary: Complete preliminary setup of your mock company digital channel strategy, website, and social channels.

Assignment Components

310 Semester-Long Project Part 2 Overview

Initial Setup of Website & Social Channels

Note: Click for an assignment template and task sheet

Digital channel strategy for your website and social channels

Initial setup of website in Weebly including preliminary site structure and navigation, initial content on core pages, connection of site to social channels, Google Analytics setup, and integration of search engine optimization on every page

Initial setup of TWO social channels. Instructions are provided for Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter but you can choose any two social channels you think will best reach your target audience.

Step 1: Access Part 2 template here.

Part 2 Team Assignments
Part 2: Initial Setup of Web and Social Channels Template
See Tutorials tab for step-by-step instructions for each step

Step 2: Begin your Digital Channel Strategy

2A: WEBSITE

What is the primary objective for your site?
Why would a target audience member what to visit your site?
When you consider sites you visit often (or sites you just like) – what about the home page catches your eye? What aspects of the layout appeal to you?
Outside of assignment requirements, what additional features would you like to include on your site?
What top 1-3 calls to action will be displayed on your site? What actions do you want visitors to take?

2B: SOCIAL MEDIA

What type of audience engagement are you hoping for with your social channels? What actions do you hope to inspire?
What type of content is your audience already engaging with? How can you create similar content or apply those techniques?
What type of content do you want to be known for? Choose 2-3 topics that align best with your organization or initiative?

Step 3: Preliminary Website Setup in Weebly

Sample site: Front Row Sports

3A: INITIAL CONTENT

Home Page (aka landing page): This is the first page your visitors will see. You should feature your visual identity and showcase your overall theme and tone through colors, fonts, images or video.

Who We Are: Using core messaging content crafted as part of Part 2 – create an overview statement for your organization or initiative (name, industry, location, products, and services). This will be 2-4 paragraphs summarizing name, type of organization, key people in the organization, location, history, purpose, an overview of services and vision. This information can appear within this section or your home page.

This section should also include “meet the team” information. Each person on the team should have a bio. Bios should include name, major, career aspirations, personal selling points, hobbies, or attributes. Note: Bios will be created by individual team members as the Lesson 2 Creative Activity.

What We Do: In narrative and visual format, begin to outline and showcase your core purpose and services (at initial launch these can be brief with limited details)

Who We Serve: Use this page to summarize and describe the individuals, companies, industries or regions you serve.

Blog: The blog page will house all of your upcoming blog posts. Create your first post: Intro to your semester-long passion project – a short blog post showcasing who you are and what you do. Include your logo or photo. Sample Blog: Front Row Sports

Let’s Connect: Incorporate a contact form so you can build your database. Use team Gmail account for contact information. Incorporate a fake address related your geographic area or feel free to use 445 Veteran’s Way, Pullman, WA 99164-2520. Do not publish a real phone number.

Social Media Links: Return to your social media bar > Manage Icons > copy/paste the direct URLs for your social channels

Optional Pages: Menu, Pricing, Photos, Videos, Locations, Merchandise, News, Events

3B: SET UP GOOGLE ANALYTICS

See tutorial for step-by-step instructions

3C: INTEGRATING SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION ON EVERY PAGE

See tutorial for step-by-step instructions

Give your site a Site Description. For your overall site will be an introduction and overview of your organization or initiative (160-180 words) + 5-10 keywords or phrases

Each page of your site should have a title, description and meta keywords (see tutorial for instructions)

Step 4: Preliminary Setup of TWO Social Channels

4A. FACEBOOK FOR BUSINESS

Sample Facebook Page: Front Row Sports

Required elements at initial setup:

@username
Admin access granted to all team members
Profile image
Cover image
About section information
Create your first post that introduces your organization or initiative – who you are, what you do, etc.
Link organization or initiative Instagram

4B. INSTAGRAM FOR BUSINESS

Sample Instagram page: Front Row Sports

Required elements at initial setup:

New account linked to team Gmail or Facebook page
Profile image
Username
Business profile (see tutorial)
Brief bio
Create your first post that introduces your organization or initiative – who you are, what you do, etc.

4C. TWITTER FOR BUSINESS

Create a Twitter Profile: https://business.twitter.com/en/basics/create-a-twitter-business-profile.html > select Sign In
Select Sign Up Now to create a unique account for your semester-long project
Type in your name, valid email, and password > select Sign Up
Type in a phone number or skip
Select a username
Select “Let’s Go” button and continue through set up steps
What are you interested in? Select areas related to your semester-long project (select 3-5 or search for new ones)
Import contacts or say No Thanks
Choose influencer accounts to follow (or you can do this later or as you go)
Turn on notifications or ignore
Walk through setup guide or skip
Add a profile image (logo or icon)
Edit profile

Add a header photo (Image should represent your industry. Recommend checking Pixabay or Pexels or another royalty-free source – see list in the left column in Blackboard. Reminder it’s best practice to be consistent across channels)
Write a bio
Insert location or region
Copy/paste link to your website
Select a theme color in line with your brand

Step 5: Turn it in

Upon completion, review document layout and formatting (consistency in bold, ital., underline, spacing) and that your sections are clearly labeled
Proofread and check grammar, sentence structure, and punctuation
Verify all elements and sections are complete
Run spell check
If applicable, verify all attributions to any quotes or citations for any research or other resources are included
Save your final document as a .docx or pdf
Have one person on the team upload your completed document in Blackboard

Grading Criteria

Students will be graded for completion of the task including all elements of the template and outline. Other criteria:

Target and purpose: Demonstrated understanding of who the site was created for. All elements of the site are engaging and appropriate for the target audience.
Layout and design: Initial setup of pages are attractive, text spacing, and alignment make reading easy, photos and backgrounds enhance the appearance. All required pages and sections are accounted for with preliminary content present.
Graphics: Brand is present and consistent throughout site and social pages including application of logo, font, color palette. Photos, icons, clipart is used creatively and are in line with the brand.
Writing: Preliminary content is complete, accurate, readable, and free of errors.
Navigation, links, and functionality: Best practices are demonstrated in navigation and flow for enhanced user experience. All links have been checked and lead the user somewhere. Functionality intrigues the target audience and enhances the purpose of the site.