Online Activity

We've put together our top tips for you to attract members and keep members engaged online.
Student group at Welcome 2022.

Online activities guidance

Utilising social media and digital resources

Online event ideas

We've put together a few fun ideas for online activities for you and your groups to help you stay connected, no matter the distance!

  • Encourage your members to get involved with some fun & cv boosting opportunities with Virtual Volunteering (don't forget to log this on Legends!)
  • Run a tutorial for people to follow at home, whether it be learning a new dance routine, baking a delicious treat or getting craft. We'd love to try too - Contact us at info@thesu.org.uk do an Instagram Takeover at the same time!!
  • Run a virtual quiz on Kahoot and test your members' knowledge.
  • Ask your members to share their favourite society memories and photos- this is great for sharing all those nostalgic vibes!
  • Organise a scavenger hunt - first person to share photos of them completing all the challenges wins! Extra points for creativity.
  • Host a Virtual book or podcast club (you can take over our instagram to run this too!)
  • Host a Netflix Party.
  • Create a blog for your members. Upload content related to your group or provide a platform for your members to write about things they love!
  • Host a virtual coffee morning! Caffeine and a chat sparks joy.
  • Run an online fundraiser for a charity or cause.
  • Run a live cookery class - maybe a 3-ingredient challenge? or host a virtual bake off - get your community to judge your members creations!
  • Organise a virtual gathering for your members to discuss a topic, share study tips or run a group session. Maybe create a discord group and integrate it with Spotify, gaming programs and other activities?
  • Release a creative activity for your members each day- maybe ask them to create a fort or landmark out of household objects or to share their favourite quote!
  • Run an online fitness class which members can follow along at home (did we mention Insta takeovers?)

Don't forget you can maximise your coverage and participation by putting your event on The SU website and message our Comms Team at info@thesu.org.uk to get it on Facebook and Instagram.

Top tips for successful online events

  • Choose a quiet place in your home where you're not likely to get interrupted, with good internet connectivity. Consider your background... what's behind you and is it a suitable backdrop for your event?!
  • Test the technology beforehand! Use your committee members as a trial so that you can become familiar with the system you are using and how it works.
  • Be ready to start the event at least 5 minutes before! The last thing you want is your members waiting for you to start your event and thinking it's not happening!
  • Let participants know guidelines for how to interact on these platforms- this will make your whole event run more smoothly and improve the experience for your guests/ viewers/ participants!

Creating online content

The importance of graphics for online activity

With the internet being oversaturated with online activity you need to make sure yours has that little something that makes it stand out from the crowd. This can be achieved by creating eye catching, engaging and interactive content for your members. You could make your own Instagram society bingo (see the template we've created below!) make quiz cards to be posted online, share photos, or even make a video! Making engaging graphics doesn't have to involve taking a graphic design course or incurring high costs- there are lots of free sites online which will provide you with templates and tools to create your graphics. We've provided two of these below with some examples of how you can use them to create graphics. The graphics took us no more than 10-15 minutes each and were super easy to put together!

Canva

Canva is an online graphic design website where you can create custom graphics to catch the eye of your target audience. All you need to do is sign up with your email! You can purchase a premium membership to access more graphics, images and photos, however, the free version still has a large selection. You can either create a custom design or use one of their templates which you can adapt and make your own. Once you've created your design you can download a copy to use. The site is really easy to navigate and helps you to create some really eye-catching graphics in a short space of time!

Canva

Adobe Spark

Adobe Spark is a media suite by Adobe which provides a platform to create social media graphics and videos. There are different plans you can sign up to. Their starter plan is free and gives you access to create graphics, social media graphics, posters and more. Much like with Canva, you can either create designs from scratch or adapt the templates they provide. Spark is great for creating social media content and short videos. Once you've created your design you can download a copy to use. The suite is easy to follow and has a bank of icons, music and animations which you can add to your designs.

Adobe Spark

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Falmouth & Exeter Students' Union
Penryn Campus
Penryn, Cornwall
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