LookWest.ie, the Western Development Commission’s online guide to living, working, and doing business in Ireland’s Western Region, is in the running for a Social Media Award at tonight’s award ceremony. The campaign has been shortlisted in the Use Of Social Media By A State Body category.
The awards, which celebrate the best of social media, are organised by Damien Mulley, one of Ireland’s leading authorities on social media, and winners will be announced at an event in Dublin this evening (Thursday ). Winners will be selected by a panel of judges comprising a combination of industry experts and members of the public who have been selected as judges because of their interest in and knowledge of online social networking.
The WDC uses social media to help deliver LookWest.ie as the definitive guide to living, working, and doing business in the west. “Social media allows us to connect directly with our audiences both in the western region, throughout Ireland and internationally, especially the Irish diaspora,” said Ian Brannigan, the WDC’s region development manager. “By using Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube, we can gather feedback from people, drive engagement with the LookWest.ie campaign, and facilitate networking among people who are interested in living, working, or doing business in the West.”
Mr Brannigan said the LookWest.ie community is growing every day, and it now has 2,419 Facebook fans, 1,319 followers on Twitter, and 550 members in the LookWest.ie LinkedIn group, while videos featuring interviews with people who have relocated to the west or who have set up businesses in the region are popular on YouTube. The WDC is also increasingly using social media mediums to engage with regional business and stakeholder groups.
Other finalists in the WDC category include the Defence Forces, Irish Rail, Bord Bia, Tourism Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, and the Environmental Protection Agency. LookWest.ie, first launched in 2004, promotes the west as an attractive and economically-advantageous location for enterprise. The website is aimed at individuals and businesses in Ireland and overseas and is used by almost 20,000 visitors each month.
