Addressing questions about climate change, energy security, and other concerns expressed by young voters in a recent survey, Student Pugwash USA launched From Electrons to Elections, a science and technology policy guide to the 2008 elections. SPUSA conducted this informal survey through the popular social networking website, Facebook. We found that Facebook is a useful tool for engaging students, though its current limits as primarily a social platform should be acknowledged.

Facebook boasts more than 67 million active users, half of which are college students. Traditionally, the site is used for connecting with friends, sharing pictures, and joining groups of like-minded people. We wanted to tap into this ready-made audience of young adults to see if the site could be used to engage students on substantive issues.

Survey Planning: We started by building a core community of supporters on the site by recruiting from our existing networks. We then contracted with Dave Lester, a web developer at George Mason University with experience in Facebook surveys, to design the survey. The survey is a Facebook application, which users can download onto their profiles. Only 18-25 year-olds were allowed to take the survey; the application checked the users’ birthday on their profile to confirm they were eligible. The users then shared their opinions on science policy issues, the impact each issue would have on their vote in the ’08 elections, the overall impact of science policy on their vote, and demographic information.

Recruitment: Student Pugwash advertised the survey through its own networks and with the help of other nonprofits. We also posted on the Facebook walls of relevant groups to inform their members about the survey. The viral nature of communication on Facebook is the most efficient means of advertising; when a Facebook user downloaded the application, an RSS feed informed all of their friends that they downloaded the application. Users could also invite their friends to download the survey application.

Additionally, we purchased pay-per-click Facebook flyers, advertisements that pop up on the side of user’s profiles. Though the click-through rate on these flyers is very low (we received about 140 clicks during the month,) the flyers showed some success. 75% percent of the people who completed the survey through Facebook were not Student Pugwash participants, which demonstrates that it was disseminated beyond our immediate network of friends.

Limitations: Considering Facebook’s large population, we anticipated a larger response rate. About 170 people completed the survey through Facebook; about 300 people downloaded the application. Overall, Facebook shows a lot of promise as a student engagement tool, but it should be acknowledged that, at least for now, it has its limitations. The site is still used primarily for relaxing and connecting with friends, so I wouldn’t expect to have sustained substantive debate on the site. However, it is good for connecting your members and putting a face on your organization. Additionally, as Facebook continues to evolve and expand I think it will become increasingly effective as an engagement tool. If you have any questions about our experiences using Facebook, please ask.

This post was contributed by: Sharlissa Moore

Program Manager
Student Pugwash USA
1015 18th Street, NW Ste. 704
Washington, DC 20036
Phone: 202-429-8900
Fax: 202-429-8905
smoore@spusa.org
http://www.spusa.org/mindfull