McKinney | May 2024

Government

BY SHELBIE HAMILTON

McKinney sta aim to ‘humanize’ communications

When Meredith Haynes took over social media communications for the city of McKinney in July 2021, she said her goal was to increase transparency and “humanize” city government communications. Communications and Media Manager Denise Lessard said when she joined the team 10 years ago, communications shared on the city’s Face- book page were formal and simple. Haynes said she and the team now aim to share useful informa- tion in a more engaging way, as well as to interact with commenters on social media posts. “Whether they’re asking questions, or just oering their own feedback, we really try to reach out to each one just so they know that there’s a person behind this account,” Haynes said. The big picture The city has social media pages on multiple platforms, including Facebook, Instagram and X, formerly Twitter. In 2023, the city saw more than 3 million impressions on Instagram. Haynes, the city’s digital communications man- ager, and a team of city sta members have won awards for incorporating pop culture and humor into social media content. The content is focused on sharing useful information, such as updates about city events or programs, road construction or weather notices. “We get a lot of comments saying, ‘I never knew government could be fun or interesting, ... and I’ve learned so much’ and that’s, to me, one of the highest compliments,” Haynes said.

Meredith Haynes and various other city sta members contribute to creating social media content for the city of McKinney.

COURTESY CITY OF MCKINNEY

Diving deeper Haynes has created content series, such as Trash Talk, a series featuring information about trash and recycling services. Videos in this series have featured information on what can and cannot be recycled, how to request a bulky-item pickup, and when and where to put trash and recycling containers on pickup day. “That [series] was where we rst noticed residents really responding and saying, ‘I had no idea I’ve been doing it wrong this whole time,’” Haynes said. Looking ahead Haynes aims to continue growing follower counts and engagement across the city’s social

"We love that our residents follow us for fun updates and humorous videos, but that also means they are following us when we really need to reach them."

MEREDITH HAYNES, DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER

media pages, she said. “It’s both scary and exciting to think about how it’s going to evolve because who would have thought two years ago that this is what social media would look like [now],” Haynes said.

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