The SIPOA Communications Committee met on June 17, 2016. In attendance were: Chair Ed Jones, Vice Chair Bill Bane, Lynn Crane, Shawna Jarrett, and Lee Weber. The following items were discussed:
Tidelines Update
Tidelines currently has 1,282 current followers, of which 222 follow on Facebook and 1,060 view on Tidelines.
Lynn Crane presented possible subjects for future articles, including a health column, a computer column, and bios of Seabrookers of note. She added that Tidelines is initiating a program of producing “Reminder” posts with subjects ranging from upcoming important events to safety topics such as dealing with riptides, emergency preparedness, etc.
Tidelines reminds its readers that “Letters to the Editor” should not exceed 250 words in length.
The Committee reviewed and reapproved the guidelines for “Letters to the Editor” submitted to Tidelines, which began receiving submissions last week. The change was to add a phrase (shown in italics) to one item of the current “Letters to the Editor” policy: “Letters should have one topic, be concise and factually accurate, and may not be adversarial, advocative, or political in nature.” Similar language was also added to Tidelines’ Submittal Guidelines Section 5.0, Publication Guidelines where the types of content that will not be published are listed: “Content that is adversarial, advocative, or political in nature”.
Emergency Information:
Tidelines has an alternate format used during an emergency situation. This format puts the emergency information forward with an emergency banner on top.
Tidelines has formed a new subcommittee to define how the team will operate when it is necessary to generate posts with emergency information. The subcommittee is currently reviewing all emergency information resources and deciding which to rely on so that Tidelines is able to provide accurate, timely emergency information. Tidelines is also planning a series of posts describing resources available to residents that will allow them to be better positioned to deal with an emergency. These resources include:
Everbridge. Charleston County is now using Everbridge. Individuals can register for emergency notification from the Charleston County 911 Center for emergency information. You can be alerted by home phone, mobile phone, text message, email, or by fax. To sign up visit www.charlestoncounty.org and look for the banner Charleston County Citizen Alert Notification System.
Smart 911. Sign up for smart911 b y going to https://www.smart911.com. The information you provide about your household to Smart 911 will be on file for access by responders when they arrive at the crisis destination. Information might include: problem, chronic health conditions, medications, etc. For “calling” 911, text transmissions can be more reliable than voice transmissions in an emergency situation because texting requires less phone resource than voice.
Knox Box Rapid Entry System. See www.knoxbox.com. The Knox Box is a small, wall-mounted safe that holds building keys for fire departments, emergency medical services, and sometimes police to retrieve in emergency situations. Local emergency responders can hold master keys for all boxes in their response area, so that they can quickly enter a building without having to force entry.
Just Ask Me Program
In May, in a collaborative venture involving SIPOA, the Club, and the Town, 38 Seabrookers volunteered to wear “Just Ask Me” branded Seabrook hats and/or badges so property owners, renters, and guests can ask for information on Seabrook Island amenities and activities, nearby and Charleston happenings, beach rules, and other needed information. The list of volunteers.
with their home towns, emails, and areas of interest will be provided to guests and new property owners through the amenity office in the standard renters/new owner packets.
Town, Club, SIPOA Website Redesign and Objectives
The 3 governing entities of Seabrook Island are collaborating on presenting a common Website design to the public through a new URL: www.seabrookisland-sc.com . The goal is to use this URL as a landing page or point of entry to the information provided by the Club, the Town, and SIPOA that focuses on the utility of the information to the user rather than the facility maintaining the content. February 13, 2017 (the 2017 Annual Meeting) is the target date for completion and launch of the new Website gateway.
The 3 entities also are collaborating on selecting a marketing firm to promote Seabrook Island. Within the next few weeks, they will choose one of several agencies that were interviewed. Each entity has a separate mission that it brings to the collaborative effort: the Town, with a focus outside the Gate, uses its marketing accommodation tax resources to promote tourism; the Club its resources to promote its amenities and activities; and SIPOA its resources to promote amenities and facilitate information dissemination to property owners, renters, and guests, with the common mission of the entities together to promote the economic vitality and sustainability of Seabrook Island. As marketing increasing is moving to digital venues, and over 60% of SIPOA E-blasts are now opened via smart technology (mobile phones and tablets), the three entities working together will emphasize digital communications as part of this endeavor with the selected marketing firm.
Thanks to Lee Weber and Lynn Crane for their minute creation and editing skills.
– Submitted by Ed Jones
How bland will letters to the editor be if they cannot “advocate” something? What if I advocate that SIPOA focus more sharply on environmental issues rather than speeding? Is that unacceptable? Seabrookers are mature adults, fully capable of ignoring silliness and appreciating other points of view. They do not want or need “pablum” in a letters to the editor feature.
I’m a bit surprised by the changes to Letters to the Editor policy. Isn’t the whole point of letters to the editor to either express an opposing point of view or to express support for something, i.e., adversarial or advocative views? Why bother to invite letters to the editor?