Experienced Officials: 2013 Leadership Conference

This conference focused on communications challenges. Attendees:

  • Learned why cities need a strategic communications plan.
  • Identified the most effective tools for delivering messages.
  • Learned how to communicate effectively if and when a crisis hits.
  • Overcame hesitations about social media—and discovered how to use it to engage citizens in new ways.

Below are presentations and handouts from this conference.

Avoiding the Crisis Management Circus Through Communications Planning
The way your city tells its story can define your city for your residents, business owners, legislators, and other key stakeholders. How you communicate through a crisis can create a lasting reputation for your city—good or bad. This communications workshop provided an introduction to the acts of strategic communications planning and message development. Attendees shared tools for getting your message out and learned how to prepare for a crisis and practice communicating when faced with difficult situations.

Taming the New Media Beast: Networking and Communicating with Social Media
Blogs, Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ are here to stay—and grow! Confront your biggest social media challenges. This session allowed attendees to jump into the social media ring and use these tools to connect with and engage the public in new ways.