Council spends big on Facebook
TOOWOOMBA Regional Council spent thousands of ratepayer dollars to pay for sponsored Facebook posts in the past 12 months, The Chronicle can reveal.
A total of $12,942.60 was invested to “amplify content” across the council’s seven Facebook pages.
In a series of posts on the Oakey Cultural Centre, Highfields Cultural Centre, Toowoomba Regional Libraries, Milne Bay and Highfields Aquatic and Fitness, Toowoomba Library - Local History, Toowoomba Region and YouthConnect TRC pages, the council reached an audience of 470,919.
Finance and business strategy portfolio leader Cr Megan O’Hara Sullivan said the average cost of a campaign boost was usually between $10 and $50.
She said that helped ensure content was delivered to a wider audience and to give the community a greater voice.
Cr O’Hara Sullivan said the council had embraced digital technology as a cost-effective option to reach even more residents.
She said the TRC was one of many in Queensland that sometimes undertook paid Facebook advertising to increase the number of people seeing content to help share events, major projects and updates on important council and community information.
“Boosting content via social media platforms has proven to reach the target audience, in both a timely and cost-effective manner,” Cr O’Hara Sullivan said.
“Council is committed to ensure its investment in media is prudent and effective to ensure best value for money.
“The council has seen significant growth with a collective follower increase of 196% in two years across its social media platforms.
“The Toowoomba Region Facebook page now has over 16,000 likes with an average daily reach of over 10,000 people.”
Facebook fails
But the focus on Facebook hasn’t come without its problems.
In May this year a resident was threatened with a ban from the Toowoomba Region Facebook page, purportedly because of a comment relating to councillor overseas trips.
A council administrator hid a comment linking to a Toowoomba Chronicle report relating to a fifth rate-payer funded overseas trip which was endorsed on Wednesday.
Donna Brown posted a link to The Chronicle’s post here, and was told it was in breach of the council’s official Facebook page’s known as Toowoomba Region - community guidelines.
It is understood an administrator took issue with a post labelling Toowoomba Mayor Paul Antonio as “pathetic” which may have been in breach of the guidelines and that led to a warning message being sent.
Council is committed to ensure its investment in media is prudent and effective to ensure best value for money. — Cr Megan O’Hara Sullivan
Customer service
Cr O’Hara Sullivan said the council used its Facebook page as a platform for customer service and boasted a 100% response time within seven minutes for residents who inboxed the page and asked questions.
“The council will continue to utilise new technology to promote the region’s rich traditions and bold ambitions of fostering strong communication and a greater sense of community pride across the region,” she said.