Exploring New Social Media Initiatives

In the past year, SAME has transitioned its bimonthly member newsletter, SAME News, to a digital-only publication, repackaged the the online version of TME (The Military Engineer) as an interactive PDF, launched this blog and worked to develop further its presence on various social and professional networking Web sites like LinkedIn and Facebook. In an overall effort to continue to create and engage an online community of members and friends of the Society, SAME is currently considering options to evolve its communications strategy to utilize the most current and effective social media tools.

Many SAME members have been using these tools for some time. However, as a Society, with a membership as diverse as ours, our challenge is to determine which of the available technologies will best serve the greatest number of members. To now, the SAME communications strategy has been a one-way street, with newsletters, magazines and e-mail blasts being disseminated down from Posts and SAME HQ with little opportunity for response or dialogue. It is the hope of SAME that by taking advantage of new social media networks, the opportunities for interaction among SAME members worldwide will be realized. Members will soon have the ability to participate in a new, real-time marketplace of ideas not constrained by geographic location.

However, many challenges still await. For example, How will our military members, whose access to these social media tools is often restricted, participate in the new SAME online community? Will our “more experienced” members, who tend not to be as familiar with new social networking technology, be motivated to learn new tricks? How can the effectiveness of any new initiatives be measured?

To help address these and other questions, the SAME National Board of Direction has authorized SAME HQ to continue to investigate the use of social media within SAME, hiring a consultant if necessary, and to formulate a recommendation as part of the 2009 budget. In the meantime, all members are encouraged to contact SAME HQ with any comments or thoughts and to check out the Society of American Military Engineers groups on LinkedIn and Facebook.