Due to the fact that I want to separate my social life from my teaching life, I never wanted to associate with my students on Facebook. This month I jumped in by adding a fan page for my 3D program. With a fan page, I do not have to be “friends” with my students, but can still build a strong social network. It helps community members & leaders, parents, present students and future students to stay up to date with my program. It also keeps present students in contact with past graduates for networking, which is key in the 3D industry or just about ever industry. In past years, I created our own program web based forum, but it was too difficult to maintain and was just one more thing to check every day. Not that I spend my nights on Facebook, but it is a very powerful networking/marketing tool.
Now I know that majority of people over 35 do not have a Facebook account . . . yet, but it is still growing and if not Facebook some other form of social networking will be around; it is just too powerful. Even with 3DTeachers.com I have hundreds of followers via the main site, but only a handful on our Facebook fan page. Anonymity . . . I think there is just something about it that you have to buy into and our students bought into it day one.
On the other hand, my 3D program fan page is growing everyday and even with a month in, I can see its potential. I have over 150 students per semester, probably 200+ per year and building that dynamic sense of community particularly with graduates is huge. I also think inviting community members and getting them more connected with what you are doing can really develop more community involvement and support.
Now my main sites will still be the actual focus, I just want to give a few more options to get the word out and build more of a sense of community. I came across RSS Graffiti which will dynamically update my main sites content to Facebook with little or no effort.
So the question is . . . Are you Facebook official? --- Cornell
Here is our Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/3DTeacherscom/117382278311855?ref=ts#
