LEXINGTON-RICHLAND SCHOOL DISTRICT FIVE - PUBLIC RELATIONS AND SOCIAL

MEDIA PLAN
Digital tools have changed the way we create, consume and interact with media and the public.
Omni-channel marketing has become crucial to marketing success as audiences continue to engage in a
growing ​number of ways.​ More than ever, public relations and social media must be utilized hand-in-hand
in order to effectively communicate to a target audience.

Digital tools have increased the opportunities to earn media time and placement. Whether it is bloggers,
online media outlets, business magazines, print journalists, radio talk shows or independent purveyors in
independent channels, public relations requires a hands-on, direct approach that depends on building
relationships with these individual gatekeepers and spending time on pitching and sharing stories. In
addition, it is important to proactively identify opportunities for positive community relations and
information sharing via social media as well. Social media is one of the fastest growing benefits in
technology today and when effectively used it can build brand awareness and loyalty. Social media has
emerged as the newest form of “earned” media and made it possible to engage with and reach audiences
in personalized and innovative ways.

We recommend the following tactics to create and find PR opportunities as well as sustain a consistent
online presence through connection with constituents for Lexington-Richland School District Five.

Goals and Objectives

● Generate awareness of the strengths and programs of Lexington-Richland School District Five
● Unify schools within the District by increasing strategic communication between the District and
the schools
● Identify and utilize community spokespersons and advocates
● Grow the social media presence for Lexington-Richland School District 5 on Facebook, Twitter
and Instagram to generate traffic and engagement and increase visibility/awareness of the
program
● Sustain the online presence by sharing a variety of content to connect fans and followers
● Establish District Five as the primary source for news related to the District
● Encourage schools and followers to consistently use #LexRich5Schools to show the district as a
whole and catalog the district experience
● Create a consistent voice and tone
● Educate teachers who run individual school social channels on proper social media etiquette

Target Audience
● Current students
● Current teachers
● Parents of current students
● Potential students
● Parents of potential students
● Realtors within the Lexington-Richland School District Five zone
● Notable alumni of the schools in the District
● Statewide and local print and broadcast media
Profile of the Target Audience
The common denominator of our target audience is that they are members of the community who care
about district and community success. Either directly or indirectly, our audiences are invested in public
education. They will successfully be reached because this target group is receptive to emotional appeal.

INTEGRATED COMMUNICATIONS
Public Relations Tactics
Community Involvement
● Identify long-term connections
○ Lexington-Richland School District Five can reach out to these local businesses,
organizations and initiatives to support and enhance the District’s public presence
■ District Five schools
■ South Carolina Department of Education
■ United States Department of Education
■ Lexington County offices
■ Richland County offices
● Create a detailed list and calendar of District and school events that members of the community
could attend to raise awareness and promote the strengths of Lexington-Richland School District
Five
○ Board meetings
○ Science fairs
○ Career fairs
○ Sporting events
○ Plays, musicals and other arts performances
○ Graduation ceremonies
● Identify opportunities to partner with​ community spokespersons and influencers
○ Ex:
■ Irmo mayor Hardy King
■ SC State Representative Micah Caskey (Dutch Fork High alumni)
■ Stevens and Wilkinson associate structural engineer David McNeice (Irmo High
alumni)
■ Irmo High School football coach Reggie Kennedy
○ Deliver press releases of weekly events and meetings to realtors, local business owners
and local government offices

News Opportunities
● Plan media tours of the District and schools’ facilities to forge relationships and create interest
with targeted press whose articles and media outlets influence target audiences
○ Football facilities
○ Arts Buildings
○ Band facilities
○ Libraries
● Draft and distribute informative news content to statewide and local print and broadcast media to
help showcase the strengths and values of Lexington-Richland School District Five
○ Profiles on outstanding teachers
○ Highlights of magnet programs, prominent school clubs and unique school
programs/electives
○ Behind the scenes of school plays
○ Infographics boasting testing scores or strong attendance
○ Q&A with prominent faculty
 ○ Videos highlighting nutritious school lunches
● Utilize community spokespersons and advocates
○ Notable alumni: ​Courtney Shealy Hart, Savannah McCaskill, Leeza Kim Gibbons,
Brigadier Jay B​urks, Jordan Roper, Alaina Coates, Jerome Singleton, Dustin Johnson,
Micah Caskey, Kev Roché
■ Featu​re their testimonies on social media channels
○ Prominent parents: PTA presidents, school improvement council, parent volunteers
■ Feature video testimonies on why they send their child to District Five schools
○ Outstanding students
■ Class presidents, students with perfect attendance, leads in school plays, merit
scholars, team captains, club presidents

Social Media Tactics

● Create a suggested social media guidebook to distribute to teachers who run individual school
social channels
○ The following is a generalized recommendation. Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
insights/analytics will reveal the best times to address and engage with your audience.
● Post frequency and timing:
○ Facebook:
■ Schools receive the most engagement on Thursday at 2 and 3
p.m.
■ Facebook generally has highest amount of engagement on
weekdays
■ Fridays and weekends drive the least amount of engagement.
■ Engagement spikes later in the evening on weekends

○ Twitter:
■ The best times to post on Twitter for education are Monday at 3
p.m. - 7 p.m. and Saturday at 3 p.m.
■ The best day to post on Twitter for education is Monday
■ Weekends still see a lot of engagement, but Sunday ranks the
lowest
○ Instagram:
■ The best time to post on Instagram for education is Monday at 8
p.m
■ Monday has the most engagement for education of the week
(think of it as the weekly updates for students)
■ Sunday has the least amount of engagement for education on
Instagram
● Tone:
○ Engaging
○ Informative
○ Proactive

STORYTELLING
Daily Content Suggestions
● What does District Five do?
● Promote District Five programs
○ Magnet programs
○ Arts initiatives
○ Student support
○ Safety initiatives
 ● Relevant South Carolina educational statistics, facts and updates
● Promote content through student testimonials, Instagram/Facebook live, live Twitter updates,
Q&A with faculty and parents

Unique Content Opportunities

○ Educational (Rational)
■ Promote the many benefits and advantages of attending a District Five school to
educate and inform followers
● “Did You Know” facts about schools, faculty, district history, alumni
○ Ex: Lexington-Richland School District Five was named the
state’s best school district for 2017, according to new national
rankings released by Niche.com.
● Share relevant articles related to academic success, new educational
initiatives and other district related news
○ Self-Promoting (Rational)
■ Share news and updates regarding new District-wide and specific school
initiatives
● Ex: share new Superintendent’s plans/goals
■ Share interesting facts that promote the strengths of the districts and schools
● Ex: above average SAT schools
○ Human Element (Emotional)
■ Seek and share student success stories of how District Five and its included
schools are helping students succeed while making a positive impact in the
community.
■ Create a district-wide program to feature District Five Outstanding Students of
the Month
■ Create a district-wide program to feature District Five Outstanding Faculty of the
Month
■ Create a district-wide program to feature #WhyIFive testimonials
○ Engagement-Based Posts (Emotional)
■ Contests
● Examples include:
○ Share a post and follow for a chance to win Principal for a Day
○ Share a photo of your school pride to win a free school lunch
○ Comment your favorite faculty member and with a description for
a chance to win a gift card that a local business donated to the
cause
○ Answer a trivia question right for a chance to win lunch with the
Superintendent
○ Comment you or your child’s favorite school meal for a chance to
be a Coach or Librarian for the day
■ Important Dates and Holidays
● District Calendars
○ August 13: Board Meeting
○ August 15: First Day for Teachers
○ August 22: First Day for Students
○ September 3: Labor Day Holiday
○ September 10: Board Meeting
○ September 12: Middle School Late Start Day
○ September 24: Board Meeting
○ September 26: Elementary & Intermediate Early Release Day
○ October 8: Teacher Work Day (No School For Students)
 ○ October 10: High School Late Start Day
○ October 15: Board Meeting
○ October 17: Middle School Late Start Day
○ October 18: Elementary & Intermediate Early Release Day
○ November 6: Student/Teacher Holiday
○ November 12: Board Meeting
○ November 14: Middle School Late Start Day
○ November 21-23: Thanksgiving Holidays
○ December 10: Board Meeting
○ December 19: High School Late Start Day
○ December 20-January 2: Winter Break
○ January 3: Students and Teachers Return
● Lesser-known holidays to engage the audience
○ August 24: Pluto Demoted Day
○ August 26: Dog Appreciation Day
○ August 28: Bow Tie Day
○ August 31: Eat Outside Day
○ August 31: National College Colors Day
○ September 6: Read a Book Day
○ September 14: Stand Up to Cancer Day
○ September 15: National Cleanup Day
○ September 17: Constitution/Citizenship Day
○ September 19: International Talk Like A Pirate Day
○ September 21: POW/MIA Recognition Day
○ October 1: International Coffee Day
○ October 4: Taco Day
○ October 13: Astronomy Day
○ October 16: Dictionary Day
○ October 20: International Sloth Day
○ November 1: Author’s Day
○ November 23: Fibonacci Day
○ December 17: Wright Brothers Day
○ December 19: Underdog Day
○ January 4: Trivia Day

Content Support
Create a multimedia library of content, compelling graphics and video for the 23 different schools in the
District to use across their individual school social media channels
● Educational Infographics (ex: informative stats, infographics)
● Evergreen content for social media
○ Examples include:
■ Q&As with students, parents, coaches and faculty
■ Step by step processes on how to register for classes, get accepted into a
magnet program, prepare for exams, be prepared for the school day
■ Lists: 10 ways to boost test performance, 15 reasons you should attend a District
Five school, 5 fantastic District Five faculty
● Short video clips
○ Stories posted on Instagram containing advice from faculty
○ Fast motion of students working on an art project
○ Timelapse of students arriving at school
● Artwork for channels (ex: cover images)
● Common messages promoting District Five and its corresponding schools
Content Generators
While creating and sharing original content is essential, the nature of social media makes it not only
acceptable, but also imperative to share information from other credible sources. To ensure that content
and language is consistent, the following (flexible) outlets/sources are appropriate for social sharing:
● District Five member schools
● SC Department of Education ​https://ed.sc.gov/
● U.S. Department of Education ​https://www.ed.gov/
● Messages from District Five Superintendent
● Messages from Richland / Lexington counties

Monitoring and Measuring Success

Monitoring social activity creates opportunities to respond to and better understand the audience,
recognize developing trends, track engagement and measure reach and sentiment - all critical to
advancing and improving the District’s social presence.
● Track progress on social media channels by utilizing a social media monitoring services like
Hootsuite, Sprout or TweetDeck
● A monthly report on engagement, followers and user feedback will help to tailor content to best fit
the needs of our audience and and advance the Lexington-Richland School District Five image
and programs
○ Summarizing conversations and trends about a brand within the weeks
○ Measuring sentiment to track the emotional connection points to Lexington-Richland
School District Five