azgs.arizona.edu | repository.azgs.az.gov

OPEN-FILE REPORT OFR-20-01February 2020

F.M. Conway

Reaching Beyond the Choir: Using an integrated social media-web platform to share the research

products of a state science agency

Arizona Geological SurveyUniversity of Arizona

P.A. Pearthree, Arizona State Geologist and Director

Manuscript approved for publication in February 2020 Printed by the Arizona Geological Survey

All rights reserved

For an electronic copy of this publication: www.repository.azgs.az.gov

For information on the mission, objectives or geologic products of the Arizona Geological Survey visit azgs.arizona.edu .

This publication was prepared by the Arizona Geological Survey at the University of Arizona. The University of Arizona, or any department thereof, or any of their employees,

makes no warranty, expressed or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or pro-cess disclosed in this report. Any use of trade, product, or firm names in this publication is

for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the University of Arizona.

___________________________

Recommended Citation: Conway F.M., 2020, Reaching Beyond the Choir: Using an integrated social media-web platform to share the research products of a state science agency. Arizona Geological Survey Open-File Report-20-01, 18 pages.

Corresponding author: fmconway@email.arizona.edu

Arizona Geological Survey, University of Arizona, 1955 East Sixth Street, P.O. Box 210184, Tucson, Arizona 85721-0184

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TABLE of CONTENTS

2 Introduction

2 ScienceCommunicationPhilosophy

2 AZGS Target Audience3 CommunicationStrategy&Objectives4 CommunicationTactics

4 PartI:SocialMediaOutlets

5 ReturnonInvestment5 ComparisonwithotherStateGeologicalSurveys5 Facebook|AZ.Geological.Survey5 Twitter|azgeology5 Youtube|azgsweb5 LinkedIn|ArizonaGeologicalUniversityatUniv.ofArizona6 Instagram|azgeology

6 PartII.AZGSWebEnvironments&Blog

7 AZGSPortal|azgs.arizona.edu7 AZGSMineData|minedata.azgs.arizona.edu7 AZGSDocumentRepository|repository.azgs.az.gov8 ArizonaGeologyBlog|blog.azgs.arizona.edu

8 ConcludingStatement

9 References

9 Acknowledgments

10 AppendixI:Tables&FiguresShowcasingAZGSSocialMedia&WebsiteActivity

ReachingBeyondtheChoir:Usinganintegratedsocialmedia-webplatformtosharetheresearchproductsofa

stategeologicalsurvey

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AZGS social media posts reached about 8,700 people a day in 2019!

IntroductionThoseinthepublic,private,andgovernmentsectorincreasinglyrelyoninformationandnewsfromsocialmediaoutletsandwebsites.AZGSstakeholdersarenoexception.About60%ofUSadultsrelyontheinternetastheirprimarysourceofinformationforscience-basedinquiries(Brossard,D.andScheufele,D.A.,2013).APewResearchCenterreportshowsthatYoutubeandFacebookareaccessedby73%and69%,respectively,ofalladultUSinternetusers(PerrinandAnderson,2019).Instagram(37%),LinkedIn(27%)andTwitter(22%)followintheirwake.

Inlightofthisincreaseininternetuse,scienceinstitutionsandsocietieshavearesponsibilitytoestablishrobustsocialmediaandwebresourcestodelivertheirresearchandproductstothosebeyondtheircorestakeholders.InthecaseoftheAZGS,ArizonaStatestatute,AZRevStat27-152,tasksAZGSto: provide geologic information to enhance public understanding of the state's geologic character, geologic hazards and limitations, and mineral resources; and to inform, advise and assist the Arizona public in matters concerning the geological processes, Earth materials, landscapes, and the development and use of mineral resources.

Socialmediaplatformsprovideinexpensiveandpowerfulavenuesfordisseminatinggeosciencematerials.AccordingtoRowlandsandothers(2011),researchersincreasinglyusesocialmediatoolsto:1)communicatetheirwork;2)developandsustainnetworksandcollaborators;and3)tolearnwhatothersaredoing.TheTravelingGeologistintegratedsocialplatformisapioneeringefforttoinspirebuddingscientistsandfosteringsciencecommunication(Spencerandothers,2017).

Forstategeologicalsurveys,socialmediaoutletsprovideanunequaled,andcost-effective,opportunitytoshowcaseanddelivertheirproductsandservicestostakeholders,policy-makers,andthepublic.

AnoriginalAZGSFacebookpost,whichfrequentlyreachesthousandsofviewers,requiresfour-toeight-minutestobuild;apostontheHouseMtn.shieldvolcanoon4Jan2020reachednearly14,000viewers.Twitter,LinkedIn,andInstagrampostsrequireone-totwo-minutestopreparebecausethecontentistypicallyimmediatelyathand.Conversely,originalArizonaGeologyblogpostscantakeone-tothree-hourstodraft.Inaggregate,aweekofsocialmediapostsrequiresroughly90-minutes,withanadditional

one-tothree-hourstodraftanoriginalblogpost.Overanaverage7-daystretch,AZGSFacebookandTwitterpostsreachapproximately60,000people,orabout660individualsperwork-minute.

Designingandpopulatingattractiveandcontent-richwebsitesisorderofmagnitudesmorecostlytodevelop.Theydo,however,provideastable,easilyaccessedplatformfordeliveringbasicgeoscienceinformationaddressingpopulargeologicthemes:geologichazardassessmentandmonitoring,energyresources,andthenatureofmineralresourcesandthestateofminingandresourcerecovery.

ScienceCommunicationPhilosophyPosition AZGS as a statewide and regional

leader implementing innovative geoscience communication model to disseminate geologic

products and services

CommunicatingAZGSobjectives,goals,projectsandaccomplishmentsisofmission-criticalimportancefortheSurvey.TheSurveyleadershipteam,withinputfromselectstakeholders(e.g.,ArizonaLandSubsidenceGroup,STATEMAPAdvisoryCommittee,ArizonaGeologicalSociety,andothers)developsmessagingandsocialmediaproductscongruentwiththeoverarchingobjectivesandmissionlaidoutbystatestatute.

Overthepastdecade,weexpandedourcommunicationsandsocialmediafootprinttoinformandengageourstakeholders,decision-makers,andthebroaderpublicregardingtheroleofAZGSgeoproductsinbuildingastronger,moreresilientArizona.Weemployed‘contentmarketing’tacticscreaterelevantandvaluablecontenttoattractandengageabroaderaudience,withtheobjectiveofinformingandempoweringstakeholders.

AZGSTargetAudiences. TheAZGSCommunity,i.e.,foundationalstakeholders,includesourlong-timestakeholdersinstate(e.g.,ADOT,ADWR)andfederalgovernment(e.g.,USGS)thatrelyonAZGS’productsandservices(Figure1).Thiscommunityisengagedandisawareofthevalueandhighqualityofourservicesandproducts.

TheAZGSNetworkcomprisesgroupsandscientificsocietiesthatshareAZGS’values(e.g.,transparency,unbiasedscientificresearch,andimpactofgeologicprocessesandhazardsonsociety)andinterests,andincludes:ArizonaGeologicalSociety,ArizonaHydrologicalSociety,AmericanInstituteofProfessionalGeologists,AEG,SME,Arizona’sminingandmineralcommunities,environmentalconsulting&geotechnicalcommunity,ArizonaRockProducts

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Association,ArizonaMiningAssociation,LowellInstituteforMineralResources,andEarthandspacescienceprogramsattheUniversityofArizona,ArizonaStateUniversity,andNorthernArizonaUniversity(Figure1).WeengagetheAZGSNetworkviaquasi-regulare-mailsforwardedbyinstitutionalgatekeepers(e.g.,theSecretaryoftheArizonaGeologicalSociety).

Thebroadercommunitycomprisesdecision-andpolicy-makers,andthepublic.Thisaudiencerequiresconstantandcompellingmessaginginordertoengagethem,and,ideally,tomovethemtotheNetwork.Reachingthisaudiencewillalwaysprovedifficultbecausetheirinterestsruntowardstheephemeralandidiosyncratic,e.g.,homebuyersseekinginformationonearthfissuresorproblemsoilswhenselectingnewquarters.TheneedsofthisaudiencemaybebestservedbyprovidinggeneralgeologicinformationservedatAZGS’sportalpage.

CommunicationsStrategy. A chiefstrategicgoalistoengageandinformAZGSstakeholdersondevelopmentsinprojects,products,importantmilestones,funding,andotherAZGS-relatedmattersthatimpactourstakeholdersandthepublic.AZGSsocialmediaoutlets,websites,andtri-annualnewsletterserveastheprimaryvehiclesforsharinggeologicinformationandnewdevelopments.

AZGSoutreacheffortsshouldsupportandcomplementourcommunicationstrategy,whilepromotinggrowthandsustainabilityofthe

Survey’smissionthrougheffectiveandengagingcommunication.Bywayofexample,publishingablogposton‘Hypothetical earthquake scenarios: a planning tool for civil authorities’marriesouremphasisongeohazardassessmentwithtoolsdesignedfortheplanningcommunitytomitigateimpactsofgroundshaking.

Objectives.Wehavethreeprincipalobjectives.First,showcasetheAZGStheme‘GeosciencesatworkforArizona’aswegrowandstriveforsustainability.Thereby,remindingourimmediatestakeholders–seetheFoundationandNetworkgroupsinFigure1-ofthevalues,strengths,andcontributionofAZGStounderstandingandmanagingArizona’smineralresourcesandgeologichazards.

Second,conductbroadoutreachtotheEarthsystemssciencecommunity–academia,government,geoinfomatics,industryandbusiness–andtheAmericanpublicwhoselivesandlivelihoodsareimpactedbyourcollectiveandappliedknowledgeofEarthsystemsciences.

Third,identifyandembraceoneormoresimplemessagestoinfuseintooutreachandmarketingAZGSprojects.MessagingshouldbecongruentwithAZGSvalues.AsAZGSgrowsandexpands,thenatureofthemessagingshouldbefine-tunedtoparallelprogressandgrowth.Example: AZGS Geoscience at work for Arizona (Lizzuoandothers,2019); AZGS– using geoinfomatics to power geoscience research.

Figure1.ThreeprincipalaudiencesforAZGSsocialmediapostsandwebsites.

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CommunicationTactics.TohighlightAZGSgeologicproducts,weemploytacticsemphasizingthevalueofthoseproductstothegeosciencescommunity,AZGSstakeholder(s)communities,andArizonapolicy-makers. Weusesocialmediaoutletstoreachthebroadercommunitywhilepromotingprudentnaturalresources(minerals)useandnaturalhazardawarenessforastrongermoreresilientArizona.

Someexamplesoftacticscommonlyemployed:showcasefreshcontentfromazgs.arizona.eduviasocialmedia;outreachusing‘AskaGeologist’;deploygeotourismcontent;networkingwithothergeoscienceagenciesandsocieties;engageinpresentations,conferences,andworkshops.Table2detailsthedaily,monthly,andquarterlyresponsibilitiesoftheAZGScommunicationsteam.

Table 1.ResponsibilitiesoftheAZGScommunicationsteam.

i. Dailysocialmediaoutput–Facebook,Twitter(&LinkedIn);

ii. Draftanddistributequarterlynewslet-ters&annualreport;

iii. CanvassAZGSstaffforinformationtosharewithourstakeholders;

iv. MaintainandgrowAZGSdistributionnetwork–expandingtheAZGShorizon;

v. Developstorylinesforsciencemediaatthelocal,state,andnationallevel;

vi. SurveytheAZGSleadershipandstaffonhoningandimprovingtheSurvey’smessaging;

vii. MonitorandevaluateactivityatAZGSonlinevenuestodrivenewcontentdevelopment.

CommunicationChannels&Outlets. Withthesocialmediaandwebsitesnowinplay(Figure2)theessentialelementsofanefficaciouscommunicationprogramareinplace.WeneedtoredoubleeffortstointegrateoutputtosupportandreinforceAZGSmessagingacrosssocialmediaplatforms.Bywayofexample,thesocialmediafeedsshouldservethesamecontent,albeit,packagedfordifferentaudiences,thusdeliveringpalatablemessagingandcontent.

Commonthemesandtopics.Geosciencethemesdominateoursocialmediaposts.Abarebonelistingoftopicswouldinclude:

AZGSpublications,geohazardevents(e.g.,earthquakesinAZandenvirons),environmentalgeology,earthfissures,sinkholes,landslides,volcanoesandvolcanicproducts,miningnews,minerals,naturalresources,energy,geologicstructures(folds,faults,myloniticstructuresetc.),wildfires,collaborations,geoarchaeology,rock-art,

onlinefieldtripguides,hydrology,andUSGSArizona-centricpublicationsandfactsheets(e.g.,GungleandParetti,2018),amongotherthings.

Part I: Social Media Outlets

Social media refers to a conversational, distributed mode of content generation, dissemination,

and communication among communities (Zeng and others, 2010).

TheAZGSmaintainsaccountsonFacebook,Twitter,Youtube,LinkedIn(Table3).(AnAZGSFlickraccountisinactive.)TheprimarysocialmediaoutletsareFacebook,TwitterandYoutube.In2019,AZGSFacebookfollowersincreasedby11%,Twitterby12%,andYoutubeby13%.AZGS’sLinkedInaccount,establishedin2011-2012,wasdormantuntilNov.2019.InNov.2019,attheurgingofindividualsfromtheUniversityofArizona’sCommunications,IopenedanAZGSInstagramaccount(accountstatus:40postsand64followersasof19Dec2019).

ReturnonInvestment.Anambitioussocialmediaprogramprovidesaninexpensivetool,fractional

Figure 2.DigitalandanalogoutletsfortheArizonaGeologicalSurvey.

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penniesonthedollar,versusconventionalpromotionalcampaigns,whilereachingandexponentiallyexpandingtheAZGSNetworkandBroaderaudiences.AZGS’profileonsocialmediaislargeincomparisontothetime/resourceinvestment.AnoriginalFacebookpostrequires~4to8minutes.Repostingfromoneofourmanysciencepartners(e.g.,USGS,AGI,AGU,PhenologyNetwork,ADEQ)requireshalfthattime.Tweetsrequireonlyaminuteortwotoprepare.Asthenumberoffollowersincreases,AZGS’Facebookreach(~5,800reach/day)andTwitterimpressions(~2,900impressions/day)willgrow.

ComparisonwithotherStateGeologicalSurveys.TheAZGSisnotaloneinestablishingapresenceonsocialmedia.Somesurveys,e.g.,theWashingtonGeologicalSurvey,bundletheirsocialmediapresencewiththeirstate’sDept.ofNaturalResources.Whilebundlingcanresultinagreaternumberoffollowers,geosciencemessagingisdilutedbysharingtheplatformwithstatewildlifeandothernaturalresourceagencies.

Figure3acomparesthenumberofsocialmediafollowersof17stategeologicsurveys.AZGSleadsallsurveyswithnearly29,000followerscollectivelyonFacebook,Twitter,andYoutube.TheUtahGeologicalSurveyhasmorethan6,000LinkedInfollowers;incomparison,theAZGShas~1,470followers.TheUtah,Wisconsin,Arkansas,andKansasGeologicalSurveysallhaverobustsocialmediaprograms.Figure3bshowshowAZGSsocialmediafootprintcompareswithnationalgeologicsurveysandgeosciencesocieties.Ofthese,theU.S.GeologicalSurveyfootprintonsocialmediaplatformsisexponentiallygreaterthanthatoftheothers.

FACEBOOK AZ.Geological.Survey

Facebookisourtopperformingsocialmediaplatform(Table2).Weposttoitdaily,includingweekendsandholidays.TheSPCraterpost(Figure4)representsanexampleofahighlyperformingpost:~7,700views,650engaged(i.e.,clickedontheimageortext),98peoplelikedthepost,and18peopleshareditwiththeirfacebookfriendsornetworks.Thehighest

performingpostofthepastseveralyearsinvolvedtheM5.3Duncan,AZ,earthquakeandreached~100,000people.OurFacebookfollowersarepredominantlyfromNorthAmerica,butwedohaveasmallworldwidefollowing(TableA-2).AppendixI(FigureA-1)presentsillustrationsdemonstratinggrowthinfollowersin2019;representativemonthlyreach;and,AZGSFacebookdemographics.

TWITTER azgeology

AswithFacebook,wepostoriginalmaterialdailyandretweetpostsfromothersthatarecongruentwithAZGSvaluesandwouldbeofinteresttoour7,400followers(Table2).ToaccommodateTwittercharacterconstraints,postsareterserthanFacebookposts.AllpostsareaccompaniedbyanimageandfrequentlybyaURLdirectingviewerstosupplementalinformation.FigureA-2presentsasnapshotofTwitteractivityforJuly2019.Overarecent91-dayperiod,AZGSTwitterpostsmadeanaverage3,183impressionsperday,foratotalof289.7impressions(FigureA-3).

IncontrasttoFacebook,53%and47%ofAZGSTwitterfollowersaremaleandfemale,respectively.Thirty-sevenpercentoffollowerscompletedcollegeand19%completedgraduateschool.Byinference,thehighestlevelofeducationfortheremaining46%wouldbesecondaryorelementaryschool.

YOUTUBE azgsweb

TheAZGSWebYouTubechannelhosts109originalvideos.Videocategoriesinclude:ArizonaMiningReview(69videos);VideoAbstracts(4videos),Earthquakes(16videos)GeologyPlaylist(15videos),Fissures(26videos),LikedVideos(7),ProjectVideos(2),FeaturedVideos(66);somevideosoccurinmorethanonecategory.FigureA-4presentstheYoutubedashboardanalyticsforAZGSWebformostof2019.

AZGS LinkedIn Arizona Geological Survey – Universi-ty of Arizona

Firstestablishedin2013,theAZGSLinkedInaccountwasdormantuntilNovember2019,whenI

Table 2.AZGSsocialmediaoutlets:#followers,frequencyofposts,andperformance.

Facebook 19,809 1-2times/day ~5,800/dayreach*Instagram 64 1-3times/week *LinkedIn 1,470 1-3times/weekTwitter 7,414 2-5times/dailyincluding

retweets~2,926/dayimpressions

YouTube 1,220 Episodic ~38,700views(~1,200viewinghours)in2019

Outlet #Followers PostFrequency ViewerActivity

*PostingsfirstinitiatedinNov.2019.

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recognizedthatwehadabout1,400followers.Atthatpoint,Ibeganposting1to3timesweeklytoevaluateviewerinterestandtomonitorgrowth.Asof30Dec.wehad1,470followers(Table2).

LinkedInpostsaretailoredforaprofessional,career-orientedaudienceandthusfocusonAZGSachievementsanddevelopmentsingeologicresourceexploitationandgeohazards(FigureA-5).

AZGS Instagram azgeology

TheAZGSpresenceonInstagramwasestablishedinNov.2019.InstagramcamehighlyrecommendedbyUACommunicationsstaffforreachingyoungerviewers.Instagramisbest-suitedforcompellingimagescoupledwithshort,non-technicalcaptions(FigureA-6).

PartII.AZGSWebEnvironments&Blog.Weoperatefive(5)webenvironments(Table3),excludingperipheralsites,e.g.,USGIN,NGDS,andthenowdefunctArizonaExperience.TheAZGSportal(azgs.arizona.edu)isthehighestperformingsitewithnearly94,000usersinthepastyear(Table3).

Figure 3a and b.a)Thesocialmediafootprintof17stategeologicalsurveys;datadrawnfromsocialmediaoutletsofeachsurvey.b)SocialMediafootprintofnationalgeologicsurveysandgeosciencesocieties.

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TheArizonaGeologyBlogisthenexthighestperformingwebenvironment.TheonlineAZGSDocumentRepositoryprobablyperformsaswellorbetterthantheblog,butitisnotconfiguredtoreportGoogleAnalytics.

ViewersofAZGSwebsitespreferdesktopcomputers(55%AZGSPortalto67%HazardViewer).Mobileusersoftheindividualwebsitessitesrangefrom26%to38%.Tabletusersmake-uponly7%to8%ofusers.

AZGS Portal azgs.arizona.edu

ThisistheonlinefaceoftheSurveyandsharesbasicgeologicinformationonthesetting,mineralresources,andgeohazardsofArizona.Thispageistailoredforanon-technicalpublicaudience.Itincludessixprincipalthemes:Minerals&Mining,Publications,CenterforNaturalHazards,Outreach&Geoheritage,Energy,AZGSServices,andAbout.

Themostpopularpages,andsub-pages,areMinerals&Mining,CenterforNaturalHazards,andPublications.

Ourformerstateportalenvironment,azgs.az.gov,continuestodrawviewers(~6,000in2019),becauseithoststhe40-yeararchiveofFieldnotes(ArizonaBureauofGeology)andArizonaGeologyNewsletters.

AsreportedbyGoogleAnalytics,accesstoazgs.arizona.eduisdominatedbyChrome(54%)andSafari(27%).FirefoxandIEusermakeupjust5%each.Fifty-fourpercentofusersaremale,46%female(Figure5).ThegenderbalanceisanimprovementoverFacebookdemographics(61%men).AswithourFacebookaccount,usersskewyoungwith61%betweentheageof18and34(Figure5).Eighty-ninepercentofusersarefromtheU.S.(FigureA-7).

NOTE:GoogleAnalyticsaggregatesdemographicsforAZGSwebsites.

AZGS Mine Data minedata.azgs.arizona.edu

TheAZGSpublicminingarchivecomprises~21,000miningreports,maps,andphotographsthatwereoriginallycuratedbytheArizonaDept.ofMinesandMineralResources.From2011to2016,theAZGSdedicatedfundstoscanandbroadcasttheseotherwiseunpublisheddocuments.ThoseintheArizonaminingcommunityperceivetheseresourcesassomeofAZGS’mostvaluableassets(Lizzutoandothers,2019).In2019,morethan6,800usersfromacrosstheworldaccessedarchivematerials(FigureA-7).

AZGS Document Repository repository.azgs.az.gov

TheonlineAZGSDocumentRepositorywaslaunchedinthesummerof2010.ItwasnotconfiguredtocollectandreportGoogleAnalyticsdata.Nonetheless,therepositoryisahighperformingdocumentdeliverysystem.Selectpublicationsreachaudiencesrangingfrom1,000stotensofthousandsofindividuals(Table7).

TheDocumentRepositoryisnowmirrored,document-for-document,attheUniversityofArizonaLibraryAZGSDocumentRepository(https://repository.arizona.edu/handle/10150/628301).Thisassuressurvivaloftherepositoryreportsandmaps.

Figure 4.SPlavaflowpostof6Dec.2019.PhotobyTedGrussing.

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Table 4.Performanceoffiveofthe~1,400documentsavailableattheAZGSDocumentRepository.

i.GeologicMapofPetrifiedForestNationalPark,Arizona,viewed30,600timessincereleasein2012;

ii.GeologicmapofthePhoenixMountains,CentralArizona,viewed44,000timessinceonlinereleaseca.2012.

iii.MetallicMineralDistrictsandProductioninArizona,viewed8,300timessinceonlinereleaseca.2015;

iv.AGuidetotheGeologyofOrganPipeCactusNationalMonumentandthePinacateBiosphereReserve,viewed3,600timessincereleaseca.2016;

v.InvestigationsofthePossibleUndergroundExtentofLaPostaQuemadaSinkhole,ColossalCaveMountainPark,PimaCounty,Arizona,viewed1,300timessincereleaseinMay2018.

Arizona Geology Blog blog.azgs.arizona.edu

FormerAZGSDirectorandStateGeologistLeeAllisonlaunchedtheArizonaGeologyblogca.2007.Hepublished~4,400posts,sometimesaveraging2.2posts/day/year.FollowingLee’sdeathinAug.2016,wecontinuedtopublishtheblog.In2018,theblogmovedtoblog.azgs.arizona.edu/.Itcontinuestoperformwell(Table3).

Bywayofpromotingblogposts,wedistributeshorte-mailstoutingpoststogatekeepersofEarthsciencesocietieslistserves:e.g.,ArizonaGeologicalSociety,AmericanInstituteofProfessionalGeologist(Arizonabranch),AssociationofAmericanStateGeologists,ArizonaHydrologicalSociety,Assn.ofEnvironmentalandEngineeringGeologists(Arizonabranch),SocietyofMining,MetallurgyandMineralExploration(PhoenixandTucson),ArizonaRockProductsAssn..

Foranexampleofarecentblogposting,see:EnhancingAZGS’DigitalGeologicMapswithGISDataFormats~https://blog.azgs.arizona.edu/index.php/blog/2019-12/enhancing-azgs-digital-geologic-maps-

gis-data-formats.MostpeopleaccessingtheblogarefromtheU.S.,butthereisasmallworldwidefollowing(FigureA-7).

ConcludingStatementThemajorityofUSadultsusetheinternettogathernewsandscienceinformation.Inresponsetothistrend,AZGShasdeployedacogentcommunicationsprogramcomprisingsocialmediaplatformsandwebsitestoinformourstakeholders-geoscientists,geotechniciansandhydrologists,academicians,educators,local-county-tribal-stateandfederal

Website Users Sessions PageViewsPageV/UsersAZGSPortal 93,902 114,415 226,182 2.4

AZGeologyBlog 12,316 15,433 23,333 1.9MineData 6,779 11,721 79,474 11.7Azgs.az.gov 5,987 7,043 10,712 1.8HazardViewer 4,984 7,170 8,810 1.8AZGSDoc.Repository NA NA NA

Table 3.PerformanceofAZGSwebenvironmentsfrom1Jan2019to19Dec2019.

Figure 5.GoogleAnalyticsdemographics-genderandageforAZGS’principalwebsite,azgs.arizona.edu.The18-24and25-34agegroupscomprise61%ofallusers.

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governmentstaff,decision-makers,andthepublic-ofthevalue,products,andservicesthatweprovide.

Socialmediaoffersefficaciousandinexpensiveplatformsforcommunicatingwiththousandsofindividualsdaily;inaggregate,wespendthree-tofour-hoursperweekonsocialmediaandinpublishingaweeklyblogpost.OursocialmediafootprintissubstantiallylargerthanthatofotherstategeologicalsurveysandrivalsthatoftheAmericanGeosciencesInstituteandtoalesserextentthatoftheBritishGeologicalSurvey.

GrowingAZGSDigitalFootprint.ThereareanumberofactionstogrowandenhanceAZGSperformanceonsocialmediaplatformsandatourwebsites.Thefollowingisabrieflistofactionitemstofollowupin2020.

Facebook/Twitter:ImprovethequalityofpostsbyemphasizingplainlanguageandbysharingmorepostsfromgeologicalsurveysandsocietiesinthesouthwesternU.S.

Instagram:Increasenumberofpostsweekly.CallonAZGSstafftoprovideimages,orprovidestaffwithindividualaccesssothattheycanuploadimagesontheirown.

LinkedIn:ConferwithotherswhohavegreaterexperienceonLinkedIntoshapeacomprehensivestrategyforengagingLinkedInfollowers.

YouTube:AZGSWebchannelisbadlyinneedofcuratingwithaneyetowardsre-catalogingthevideostohelpviewersfindtheappropriatevideo.TheVideoAbstractsserieshasthepotentialtoreachnon-technicalstakeholderswithbrief,plainlanguagesummariesofAZGSresearch.

ArizonaGeologyBlog:Striveforcontinuityinposting,i.e.3-to4-postsmonthly.Enlistguestbloggerstobroadenourtopicsandgrowreadership.(Wehavereachedouttopotentialguestbloggersinthepastwithmixedsuccess.Lotsofinitialenthusiasmfollowedbylonglagtimesandpromisestocontributeatanothertime.)

AZGS.Arizona.edu–Continuetoaddcontentandincludeadynamictheme,e.g.,landslidemappingalongI-17corridor,toillustratethescopeandnatureofAZGSresearch.

Repository.azgs.az.gov–TheAZGSgeoinfomaticsandprogrammingteamareredesigningtheinterfaceandstructureoftherepository.Theresultshouldbeasubstantialimprovementinappearanceandaccessibility.

Minedata.azgs.arizona.edu–Thesiteneedsanewinterfacebadly.Thesitesearchtoolsworkwell,with

theexceptionofthegeographicsearch.GoogleMapshasdiscontinuedsupportofthisfeatureandusersarewarnedthatthesearchisunavailable.

AZGS.az.gov–Ourformerstateportalpage.Featuresstillresidingthere,e.g.,FieldnotesandArizonaGeologynewsletters,shouldbemigratedtoeitherAZGS.Arizona.eduorasecondindependenthost.AZGS.az.govshouldbeshutteredandmovedoffline.

ReferencesBrossard,D.andScheufele,D.A.,2013,Science,NewMedia

andthePublic.Science,V.339,www.sciencemag.org Greenwood,S.,Perrin.A.,Duggan,M.,SocialMedia

Update,2016,PewResearchCenter,https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2016/11/11/social-media-update-2016/

Gungle,B.W.andParetti,N.V.,2018,AssessmentofenvironmentalflowsinthemiddleVerdeRiverwatershed,Arizona.USGeologicalFactSheet2018-2062(https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/fs20183062)

Lizzuo,C.,Bartels,A.,Brands,C.C.andYashi,A.,2019,ArizonaGeologicalSurveyEconomicImpactReport.ArizonaGeologicalSurveyContributedReportOFR-19-A,21p.,3appendices

Perrin,A.andAndersonM.,2019,ShareofU.S.adultsusingsocialmedia,includingFacebook,ismostlyunchangedsince2018.PewResearchCenter,https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/04/10/share-of-u-s-adults-using-social-media-including-facebook-is-mostly-unchanged-since-2018/.

Rowlands,I.,Nicholas,D.,Russell,B.,Canty,N.,andWatkinson,A.,2011,Socialmediauseintheresearchworkflow.LearnedPublishing,v.24,p.183-195.https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1087/20110306

Spencer,C.J.,Gunderson,K.L.,Hoiland,C.W.andSchleiffarth,2017,Earth-ScienceOutreachUsinganIntegratedSocialMediaPlatform.GeologicalSocietyofAmerica:GSAToday,https://www.doi.org/10.1130/GSATG333GW.1

Zeng,D.,Chen,H.,Jusch,R.Li,S.-H.,2010,SocialMediaAnalyticsandIntelligence.IEEEIntelligentSystems,v.25#6,4p.https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/567858

AcknowledgmentsOverthepastdecade,developmentoftheAZGSsocialmediaprogramwassupportedbyArizonaStateGeologistsM.LeeAllisonandPhilipA.Pearthree.Contentwasgraciouslyprovidedby:J.P.Cook,B.F.Gootee,J.E.Spencer,A.Youberg,C.A.Ferguson,T.Grussing,S.Rauzi,B.Johnson,R.Clark,P.A.Pearthree,M.L.Allison,R.Kamilli,andothers.

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AppendixI:Tables&FiguresShowcasingAZGSSocialMedia&WebsiteActivityThisappendixcomprisesimagesandtablesdrawndirectlyfromAZGSsocialmediaoutlets:Facebook,Twitter,Instagram,LinkedIn,Youtube,andAZGSwebsitesandblog.

TableA-I:Anabridgedlistof275scienceagencies,Arizonastateagencies,academicdepartments,societies,andmediaoutletsthatfollowatleastoneAZGSsocialmediaaccount.

TableA-2:Facebookfollowersbycountry,city,andlanguage.Limitedtothetop10ineachgroup.

FigureA-1a,b,c:Facebookparametersforcalendaryear2019.

FigureA-2.TwitterdashboardforJuly2019.

FigureA-3.AZGSTwitteractivityfora91-dayperiodendingon20Dec.2019.

FigureA-4.YoutubeAZGSWebChanneldashboardwith2019analytics.

FigureA-5.RepresentativepostatourAZGS-UniversityofArizonaLinkedInpage.

FigureA-6.ArepresntativepostfromAZGSInstagramaccount.

FigureA-7.WorldwidedistributionofselectAZGSwebsitesforcalendaryear2019:azgs.arizona.eduportalpage;AZGSMineData;andtheArizonaGeologyblog.

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4th Oil, Gas & Petrochemistry Conf. Bearded Lady Project Geologos del Mundo Maricopa County Emergency Mgmt SEPM US Geological SurveyAAPG CairoUniversity BLM Arizona Geology at UWE Bristo Mass. Geological Survey ShakeOut USGS ArizonaAAPG Energy Policy BLM Careers Geology is the Way MEC Education Simona - Project Simona USGS KentuckyABWC Arizona British Geological Survey in Scotland Geomorphology Rules Mexico Mining Center Sky Island Alliance USGS Land CoverACS Earth Space Chem British Geological Survey Landslides GeoNewsfeed Mining Hall of Fame Social Media followers USGS MineralsADEQ British Sedimentological Research Group Geoparc Jbel Bani Monash Univ. Earth, Atmosphere & Environment Society for Geology Applied to Mineral Deposits USGS Pubs WarehouseAEG - New York-Philadelphia Chapter British Sedimentological Research Group GeoPrac.net Musee de Mineralogie Somali Geological Association USGS SeismicAEG-MSU Cal Poly Geology Geoscience Daily Museum of Northern Arizona Sonoran Institute USGS VolcanoesAfrica Geo Tours California Dept. of Conservation Geoscience EnvAgency NASA South Wales Geological Society USGSCoopUnitsAGI Critical Issues California Land Surveyors Association Geosciences ParisSud NASA's OSIRIS-Rex Southern Arizona Assn for Women Geoscientists Utah Seismic Safety CommissionAGI Education Canadian Geotechnical Journal Geoscientist Magazine NASEM Earth Southern California Earthquake Center Virgina DGMRAGU's EOS Canadian Jounal of Earth Science Geothermal Resources Council National Assn. of Abandoned Mine Land Programs Southwest CASC Virginia Div of Mineral MiningAlabama Geological Survey CAZCA Geothermie Conseil National Mining Association Southwestern Research Station - AMNH Volcanica MagazineAmerican Exploration - trade assn. Centre for Resources and Earth Energy Systems Durham U Gila National Forest National Weather Service Tucson Stonehammer Geopark WaterForColoradoAmerican Geophysical Union Climas GIS Congress Nature Reviews Earth & Environment Sustainability @ ASU Water-Use It WiselyAmerican Geosciences Institute Coconino County Emergency Management GIS Day NCAR Earth Observing Lab SW Fire Consortium Water Well JournalAmerican Society of Dam Safety Colorado School of Mines GIS Services - City of Tucson NESTA-US Temblor - hazards site Western Kentucky Univ. GeologyAmerica's Wildlife Community Watershed Alliance Grand Canyon Conservancy NMMNHS Paleontology Texas State University System Wiley Earth and Space ScienceAMWUA Concord University Geology Grand Canyon Trust NOAA The American Geographical Society Wisconsin Geol. & Natural History SurveyAppalachian State Geo&Env Sci CRWUA GSA Energy Geology North American Helium The Disaster Channel Women in STEM Student CouncilArizona Ag. And Resource Economics CSIR - National Geophysical Research Inst. GSA Environmental and Eng. Geology Division Okalahoma Geological Society The Student Jounal of Natural Sciences Women of GeologyArizona Capitol Museum Data Discovery Studio GSA Hydrogeology Division Oxford School of Archaeology Tucson CERT WRB 2015 Soil Classification SystemArizona Daily Star DataONE GSA Sedimentary Geology Division Paleoseismicity Tucson Water WRRCArizona Daily Sun Deep Carbon Observatory Hawaii Groundwater and Geothermal Resources Center PavementGeology U Mass Geosciences WSSPCArizona Dept of Water Resources Durham Earth Science Hydrology-Journal Pima County Office of Emergency Management UAA Geosciences Dept Wyoming Geological SurveyArizona Emergency Services Assn. Earthworks Idaho Geological Survey Planet - remote sensing lab Uarizona Ag & Life Sciences Yavapai County Flood Control DistrictArizona Forward Earth & Space Open House - SESEASU IEEE Earthzine Plants Map Uarizona CAPLAArizona Highways Earth and Environmental Sciences - UIC iGlobes Pleistocene Park Uarizona Environmental ScienceArizona Humanities Earth Science & Climatic Change IISD Water Prescott National Forest Uarizona GeosciencesArizona Mining Association Earth Science for Society-Canada Illinois State Geological Survey PrescottAZ History Uarizona ResearchArizona Museum of Natural History Earth Science Picture of the Day Imperial Earth Science & Engineering Princeton University Geosciences UASNREArizona Project Wet EcoWatch - news site Institute of Geologists of Ireland Prospectors & Developers Assn. of Canada UAZGlobalArizona Remote Sensing Center EERI Instituto Geologicl Minero Public Understanding of Science Journal UAZScienceArizona Science Desk Energy News Now International Assn. for Geoethics PubSciX UNAM Hydrogeology GroupArizona SRP eNewsAZ International Association of Geomorphologists Pusat Survei Geologi UNAM Museo de GeofisicaArizona State Parks Environment and Social Responsibility Society of Canada International Seismological Center Raspberry Shake -Citizen Science EQ UNESCO Global GeoparksArizona Wildlife Federation Environmental Reporting British Columbia Interplanetary ASU RealTime Earthquakes UNESCO Land SubsidenceAssn for Women Geoscientists - New Zealand EnviroSolve Iowa Geological Survey Renewable Energy World News Union Square Research GroupASU Future ESIPfed IRIS Restoration Consortium USU Univ. of Alabama Geological SciencesASU Meteorites ESRI - J. Kerski IRIS Earthquake Science RHUL Earth Sciences Univ. of Alberta SEG Student ChapterASU_CEMHS European Geoparks Israel Geological Society Rockd Univ. of Chile Dept de GeologicaAxial 3D Seismic Expedition EWU Geology Journal of China Geol. Survey & Academy of Geol. Sciences Rockstone Research Univ. of Nebraska School of Natural ResourcesAZ DEMA Flood Control District of Maricopa County KJZZ Santa Cruz County Flood Control District Univ. of South Wales GeologyAZ EIN Flyover Country Journal of Geophysical Research Saudi GIS Symposium Univ. of Sydney School of GeosciencesAZ Women's History Alliance Foro Espanol de los Geoparques Mundiales de UNESCO KQED Science SaveTheColoradoDelta Univ. of Wisconsin Geology MuseumAZAEP - AZ Environmental Professionals Fossil Portal Kuwait Geological Society SciBlogHub University of ArizonaAZCentral Education Friends of the Tonto Natl Forest Landslide Reporter SciReach University of Nevada PressAZDEQ Friends of the Verde River Macquarie Univ Dept of Earth & Planetary Sciences SciStarter - Citizen Science University of Utah Seismograph StationsAZPM News GEM - Global EQ Model Magma Geopark SEG Publications US Fish and WildlifeBasin and Range Watch Geologia y Volcanes MalawiGeoSociety SEG Wiki US Fish and Wildlife

Table A-1.Anabridgedlistof275governmentagencies,academicinstitutions,andEarthSciencesocietiesthatfollowatleastoneAZGSsocialmediaaccount.

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Figure A-1 a, b, c.AnalyticsforAZGSFacebookaccount.a)IncreaseinFacebookfollowersfrom1Janto20Dec.2019.b)Facebookactivity,i.e.,‘PostReach’from16Nov.to19Dec.2019.c)AZGSFacebookdemographics,genderandage,for2019.ThegendersplitandageenvelopesdisplayedherearecharacteristicofourdecadeonFacebook.AccordingtoFacebook‘PeopleReached”,notallofwhomarefollowers,ismorebalanced-55%maleto44%female.

Table A-2.AZGSFacebookfollowers:top10countries,cities,andlanguages.CourtesyofFacebookanalytics.

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Figure A-2.AsnapshotofAZGSTwitteractivity(78tweets,100,000impressions,and84newfollowers)forJuly2019.Severaltweetsareincludedtoillustratewhatatypicalpostlookslike.DatacourtesyofTwitterAnalytics.

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Figure A-3.Twitteractivity(i.e.,impressions)atazgeologyforthe91-dayperiodfromSept.toDec.2019.Onaveragewegarnerednearly3,200impressionsperday,foranaggregatetotalapproaching290,000impressions.DatacourtesyofTwitterAnalytics.

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Figure A-4.OverviewofAZGS’YouTubechannelanalyticsfromDec.2018toDec.2019.Ofthe38,700views,~65%(25,116)and~12%(4,707)originateintheU.S.andGermany,respectively.ViewsoriginatinginCanadatotalalmost1%(356).Remainingviewsaresubdividedco-equallybetweenEurope,Asia,Africa,andAustralia.

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FigureA-6.RepresentativeInstagrampostingsfromNo-vember2019.

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Figure A-7.WorldwidedistributionofAZGSwebsitesfor2019.

FigureA-5.RepresentativeLinkedInpostpromotingtherecentArizonaMiningReviewinterviewofGregHahn,ArizonaSilver.

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