The 8 Most Effective Communication Channels for Fostering Civic Engagement

If you are reading this, then you may have read our comprehensive civic engagement guide: 12 Inspiring Examples of Citizen Engagement for Smart Cities Like Yours. Hopefully, you are now excited and inspired to start using a variety of channels, approaches, and programs to engage citizens and encourage them to be part of the collective voice in your community.

So where to begin?

No matter what programs you focus on, any effective citizen engagement strategy should incorporate these eight effective communication channels. Each one has been proven to cut through the clutter and noise that compete for the attention of your citizens and help you reach them with impactful, meaningful communications.

1. Social Media

If your community is not already using social media to connect to citizens and share timely news and information, it is time to start. Social media is not a passing trend. It is the new normal for how your citizens are engaging in their world, and with entities from brands to municipalities. If you are already using Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn today—the three most popular social media sites used by local governments—consider incorporating Pinterest, like Banff, AB or NextDoor, like Fairfield, OH. There are even opportunities to amplify your message with paid social advertising. For everything you could ever need or want to know about social media as a civic engagement tool, download our ultimate social media eBook.

2. Video

As we saw with Hallandale Beach, FL, video is a dynamic platform for providing news, education, and promotional information to citizens, especially when videos are accessible on your municipal website and social media.

3. Mass Notification Technology

Today, there is an ever-growing number of digital platforms available to reach citizens. From websites to smartphones, to digital road signage, and given the ever-expanding universe of the Internet of Things (IoT), an effective communication strategy needs to allow citizens to indicate how they want to be reached with valuable information, whether it be via email, phone, or text message. A mass notification system can allow you to create and issue routine and urgent communications to citizens and distribute them for consumption based on citizens’ preferences.

4. Citizen Request Management

Thanks to the immediacy of social media, the proliferation of mobile technology, and the convenience of wi-fi, today’s citizens have a desire and an expectation for immediate access to information and resources. Serving citizens at a high level has always been a foremost priority for local government, but what’s changing is the visibility and immediacy expected of such transactions. For today’s citizens, it is no longer enough to make a request by phone and wait for a resolution. Instead, they want a level of transparency and follow-up that typically has only ever been seen in the B2C space. That is why local governments are starting to use citizen request management tools to streamline request workflows and keep citizens informed every step of the way.

5. Mobile Content

The latest data from experts at the Pew Research Center tells us that one-in-ten American adults are “smartphone-only” Internet users. That means, if your municipal website is not mobile optimized, or if you do not offer a separate downloadable mobile app for your local government, you are likely not providing all citizens with accessible content.

6. Your Municipal Website

Your municipal website should serve as the foundation of your civic engagement strategy, and the endpoint to which all communications point for more in-depth information and dynamic local content. Today’s digitally savvy citizens will look to your municipal website in times of local disaster, as we saw in Zephyrhills, which is why you need access to a nimble, flexible content management system (CMS).

Citizens also want to be able to self-service their needs using your municipal website. This desire includes tasks such as paying utility bills, submitting job applications, and downloading permits. There are five must-have citizen self-service features that every modern website must offer. To determine if your website has succeeded in helping to accomplish your citizen engagement goals, consider polling citizens, the way that The Township of Radnor, PA did when it launched its redesigned website.

7. Activity Reservation Features

Citizen engagement is just as much about encouraging citizens to get out of the house and take part in community events as it is about distributing news and information for digital consumption. There should be zero barriers to participation in local events, classes, and activities. Using an online activity feature, or a more robust recreation management solution will allow citizens who receive their quarterly community event information, like The City of San Gabriel’s Grapevine Guide, to learn more. They can even register and pay all in one step, with no manual processing needed by your office.

8. Email Marketing

Email marketing is still one of the most effective communication channels, even in the public sector. Email is inexpensive, customizable, and offers limitless possibilities to link to more in-depth information elsewhere. Click here to get inspired to use email by reading about Athens-Clarke County, GA. This municipality is leveraging email to target citizens at the neighborhood level to keep them informed about local development projects.

If you are tired of crafting engagement communication initiatives that require the use of individual software systems, it is time to partner with one resource that offers a comprehensive platform for all your engagement needs. Demo CivicPlus software solutions today.