HigherEdSocial is a professional network for social media managers working in higher education; beginning as a small online group, it has now developed into a network of more than 9,000 members and as of 2021, is a full professional society. Their growing community needed somewhere more permanent than a social media groupbuild a fully functioning and futureproof membership community, and to keep learning from one another, and so they launched their new online platform, powered by ToucanTech, in 2021. 

“When we were looking for our new membership platform we had a long list of must-haves. Not only did we need something that would allow members to create profiles and process membership payments, but we needed something that could allow for public-facing pages that could serve as our website, as well as private members-only pages where we could have our education and training resources hosted. We needed a platform that would allow us to continue our mentorship program, which is currently the only professional mentorship program for social media managers in the industry. Most importantly we needed something that was combined in a beautiful, clean and modern aesthetic. Going with the TT platform has allowed us to hit all of these must-haves, and so much more.” 

Dr Kasandrea Sereno, Founder of HigherEdSocial

Launching a dedicated online community

Since launching their new membership community platform, many new members have joined, gaining access to exclusive discounts & services, downloadable templates, a professional mentoring programme, member newsletters and reports/whitepapers to support learning. Members can renew or purchase a new annual membership directly through the online community platform, with different membership tiers available for students, professionals and corporates. 

Sharing careers opportunities

With members joining from 73 countries around the world and hundreds of organisations, the HigherEdSocial platform is a brilliant tool for social media managers worldwide to network and search for new opportunities. One of the ways that the platform facilitates this is through their jobs board, with over 20 jobs currently listed for a wide range of positions. Members can see a full description of the role and apply directly through the platform. 

HigherEdSocial also has the world's only professional mentoring program for social media managers in higher education, and for the last several years has been matching mentor pairs to help one another navigate job searches, professional development opportunities, access training, and to become good friends! Members can now find mentors via the online platform searching by industry, job title or mentoring goal, or volunteer themselves to be a mentor.

Creating value for members

Transforming from a small social network to a full professional membership body has increased the value for members, as they are now partnered with a range of sponsors and companies that provide discounts to the network. From free trials, to discounts of up to 50%, members can try out new tools and services to help them with their everyday tasks, while official sponsors can display their company profiles on the community website. 

Peer-to-peer engagement is also encouraged through participation in the first HigherEdSocial virtual awards ceremony by nominating another member, to taking part in discussions or joining a dedicated group. 

Launching their official online platform has been an important milestone in the HigherEdSocial journey, enabling them to fulfill their strategy by not only serving as a way to connect with those working in social media roles at educational institutions, but also now to showcase work, support careers, provide training, and set up a mentoring programme. They are also able to build a business through their network by providing membership options and delivering added value to their community. With an engaged, global community that is always looking to learn, we’re excited to see this network grow even bigger in the coming years! 

“The ToucanTech team has been absolutely fantastic, every step of the way - whether that's helping us with content for our pages, or answering technical questions or platform issues, the ToucanTech staff have been right there, every step.” 

Dr Kasandrea Sereno, Founder, HigherEdSocial

If you’re looking for a new community platform for your members, with membership tiers, online payments for memberships and a connected CRM, speak to a member of the ToucanTech team.