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The Ohio State University (OSU) had been without a formal campus union since 2006. In 2010, the Ohio Union opened with much fanfare. More than 16,000 people attended the opening of the LEED certified union this past March. According to Kurt Foriska, Associate Director of the Union, social media was an integral part of the marketing of the new union. Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube were used as communications platforms to create buzz about the new union.
YouTube was used as a way to introduce the union to the OSU community. This video shows the union about 4 months prior to its opening:
Perhaps the most widely viewed YouTube video in the history of OSU has been the viral hit, "Flash Mob at the Ohio Union." Featuring a customized version of "Don't Stop Believin'" from the popular television show, Glee, the flash mob video has had more than 1.5 million views on YouTube. Jordan Davis, a senior in Political Science, came up with the idea for a flash mob after watching a popular YouTube video of a flash mob that took place at a train station in Belgium. 7 cameras and more than 30 hours of rehearsal were needed to pull off the production. Luc Nutter, a student employee of the union, was in charge of the videography and editing of the video. The union has a truly impressive multimedia production office that provided almost all of the equipment for filming.
The social media hub of the Ohio Union is the union website. Social media links are prominently featured and a Twitter feed will soon be placed on the homepage.The union's social media efforts are largely run by a cadre of student interns.
Note: This is the first of what I hope will be a series of posts about campus auxiliary units that are using social media.
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