Mooresville PD Wins National Award for Best Facebook Presence
The Mooresville Police Department (MPD) was recently honored for Best Facebook Presence in the national Government Social Media 2023 Golden Post Awards. MPD was one of 10 government organizations across the country selected as finalists for the category and received the top award at the 2023 Government Social Media Conference. The award symbolizes the department’s effort to increase engagement with the community through public service announcements.
In 2022, MPD Facebook began several social media initiatives to highlight the department, officers/staff, and the tools/resources used by MPD to better engage the community. After an increase in calls for animals being unattended left in vehicles, MPD decided to create a PSA post utilizing MPD’s therapy dog Ella to help educate the community. The initial post received very positive reactions, with local business owners requesting posters to display.
The Ella Says campaign—with PSAs ranging from hot car warnings, to locking vehicles, to not leaving wallets unattended—quickly gained traction in the community and sparked multiple meet and greets and a coloring contest in the summer of 2022. There are now several Ella Says campaign posts and printable flyers/posters available on the department’s Facebook and Instagram pages.
In February 2023, the Town of Mooresville’s Communications & Marketing Department submitted MPD Facebook’s Ella Says campaign to the Government Social Media awards. However, judges felt the department’s achievements on social media were not limited to the Ella Says posts.
“MPD has a Facebook presence that shows they genuinely care about their community and put a lot of thought and strategy into their online presence,” noted a Golden Post Award judge. “They’ve found ways to humanize their officers and staff and bring creativity to their posts.”
Ella is Mooresville Police Department’s first and only therapy dog. Handler Tiffany Rivera adopted Ella, an American Staffordshire, in 2016 from a Catawba County shelter, where Ella spent five months as part of a cruelty case. Rivera only intended to foster Ella, but as Ella does, she stole Rivera’s heart! After six months, Ella passed her therapy dog certification. Rivera and Ella graduated from the Paws & Stripes College (therapy dogs for law enforcement training) in 2019 and Ella also obtained her Canine Good Citizen certification. Ella currently works alongside Rivera in MPD Dispatch, providing a calming presence for telecommunicators, officers, and staff. Ella’s tough exterior is countered by her loving, gentle demeanor. Missing quite a few teeth due to age and previous trauma, Ella is often seen with her tongue hanging out, giving her a whimsical appearance and a unique “voice” for Ella Says posts.
Mooresville Police Department and Ella are thrilled to receive national recognition for their Facebook efforts! Follow MPD on Facebook @MooresvillePoliceDepartment or on Twitter @MooresvillePD.
About the Golden Post Awards
The Golden Post Award program recognizing outstanding use of social media by government agencies in the U.S. The free award program features 10 categories focusing on social media strategy, techniques and results, and is open for eligible government agencies to enter in the United States. Additionally, special categories are awarded by the social networks and Government Social Media LLC.
The Golden Post Awards program has been held seven times since debuting in 2015, with winners being honored at the annual Government Social Media Conference. Learn more at governmentsocialmedia.com/golden-post-awards.
Previous
