When New York Times best-selling author Sarah Maas ’08 posted on Instagram about her return to campus, Hamilton’s social media channels lit up and the number of College Instagram followers jumped.
That experience has given rise to a new campaign — #HamiltonPride — aimed at improving the College’s visibility and reputation through greater awareness on social media of its alumni and their accomplishments.
Social media is a powerful and authentic way alumni can help tell Hamilton’s story.
“Sarah has more than 180,000 followers on Instagram, her primary social media channel, so when she posted about her visit in April, many more people learned about Hamilton through those posts,” said Tim O’Keeffe, the College’s senior director of interactive media. “Few alumni have as many followers as Sarah,” O’Keeffe added, “but all alumni can help with this campaign.”
O’Keeffe asked that alumni make sure their social media profiles and business web pages mention Hamilton College and, when possible, they should work Hamilton into the conversation when posting or speaking publicly. Posting photos with fellow Hamiltonians (especially when wearing Hamilton apparel) is another simple way to support this campaign. “And don’t forget to tag your social media posts #HamiltonPride and #getscrolled,” he said, adding that The Scroll still plays an important role in the College’s digital outreach efforts.
“Social media is a powerful and authentic way alumni can help tell Hamilton’s story,” said Assistant Vice President for Communications Mike Debraggio P’07. “It’s also a way for the College to amplify the work of our graduates, while providing them with another way to support Hamilton.”
