The value of social media for law enforcement
The bottom line for encouraging community engagement is communication, specifically opening the lines of communication to allow for a two-way dialog. Social media offers an avenue to engage community members to a degree that has not been possible before. Many cities and towns are successfully using social media within their police departments for both investigative purposes and community engagement. There are numerous free or inexpensive social media tools available, and new ones appear almost regularly. What social media platforms should you have. Should you have a profile on Facebook , NextDoor or Twitter . The actual tool used in not that important. In fact, it should be last item on the list of decisions that need to be made. It is more important to determine why you want to use the tools, who you want to reach, what resources are available to sustain the initiative and how will you know if you have succeeded in meeting your goals. Once these questions have been
