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University of Florida

DIGITAL ENGAGEMENT

Digital engagement such as Video and Social Media is at the core of how UFIT communicates with our target audiences.

Video

UF Information Technology produces three types of videos:

  • Academic Use - Videos used for teaching and learning
  • Contracted Clients - Fee-based video production services
  • UFIT External Engagement - Event, digital, outreach, and social media use

 

For the UF Community:

UFIT’s Center for Instructional Technology and Training is responsible for the academic use and fee-based productions offered by UFIT. For information on services, studio availability, or to initiate a quote for a video project, please submit a https://citt.ufl.edu/request-assistance/ request.

For UFIT Staff:

There are brand standards and accessibility requirements for videos. UFIT staff may produce and share videos with approval from their director. Videos can be made with an iPhone, Mediasite, other platform, in UFIT’s On-Demand Studio, or with the assistance of CITT or IT-Communications staff. Questions about brand standards should be sent to it-comm@ufl.edu. 

VIDEO STANDARDS AND PRODUCTION

UFIT adopted a set of standards to brand our content for the university community and beyond. Additionally, complying with UFIT standards includes accessibility requirements (ADA compliance). 

UFIT has full production studios as well as the On-Demand Studio in the Hub. Staff can also produce video content on their own equipment or from their UF workstation. A handout online explaining the branding requirements for UFIT. Videos produced for use with UF audiences must include:

  • Incorporation of the brand standards found on it.ufl.edu/about-ufit/ufit-brand/
  • An intro and outro card featuring the UFIT wordmark
  • Proper use of UF digital assets if any are used
  • Correct titles of faculty, colleges, business units, and UF campuses
    • Faculty titles should follow AP Style when appearing in a video
    • Named colleges must be fully cited on first reference. For example, the UF Law School should be presented as the Levin College of Law
  • A full caption that mirrors the on-camera speaker and/or the voiceover speaker

The UFIT Communication Office is here to help with any questions you may have about video standards, adherence to the UF Style Guide and AP Style.

Social Media

OVERVIEW OF UFIT SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGEMENT

The official UF Information Technology social media channels — YouTube, Instagram, X, and Facebook — are managed by UFIT Communications. Suggested content may be sent to
it-comm@ufl.edu. (Please clear content suggestions with your director prior to emailing them).

The channels are managed and tracked by IT-Comm staff, who report on engagement, trends, and conduct a peer review each month of fellow top-10 publics. 

IT-Communications staff strive to make UFIT social media content as accessible as possible (ADA compliance). IT-Comm staff adhere to these accessible social media guidelines as much as possible when posting content. All UFIT staff are encouraged to think about accessibility when publishing to their unit or personal websites and social media accounts. UFIT Web Services has accessibility recommendations on their site, and IT-Comm welcomes any questions about accessibility on social media.

CREATING ACCESSIBLE SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT

Although you may not be creating social media for an official UF account, if you have an Instagram, Twitch, X, or other account, you might share information about UFIT services or events. It’s always great to have social media advocates among the ranks…thank you! But remember when representing UF in any way — i.e., sharing social media content about UF/UFIT — you should always take steps to ensure content is accessible. Here are some tips:

Alt-texting of Photos

When alt-text is used on an image in social media, it means that a description about the image was added to aid anyone using an accessibility device to consume your content. In the example below used on UFIT’s Twitter account, the black ALT box in the bottom left corner means that Alt-text was successfully applied to the image. A person using an accessibility device would get the following text read to them when hovering over this image: “Close-up photo of a two-factor login push notification on a Smartphone device at the University of Florida.”

Close-up photo of a two-factor login push notification on a Smartphone device at the University of Florida

Alt-texting helps give everyone the opportunity to fully experience content online. It’s the right thing to do! 

Helpful Hints – Graphics and Emojis

Try and stay away from very busy images or graphics on social media. Complicated visuals may make it more difficult for assisted devices to decipher content.

Emojis are fun, but… emojis in social media still have to be described by a screen reader. The 👏 emoji, for example, will be read aloud as “clapping hands.” But others are harder for devices. Consider the experience of a screen reader user when encountering a “shruggie” ¯\_(ツ)_/¯: This will be read aloud by a device as: “Macron, backslash, underline, katakana, underline, slash, macron.”