Websites & Social Media

Social Media

The National Academies, the parent organization of TRB, has developed a new set of social media guidelines for technical standing committees. Pre-existing committee-managed social media accounts are to abide by the new requirements for a social media account, which includes a higher volume of followers and regular posting frequency. Only accounts that post a minimum of 3-posts per week and an average of 25 engagements per month are eligible to remain open. The goal of this extremely challenging requirement is to streamline The National Academies' social media presence by reducing smaller accounts. This consolidation unifies our message by mainly using authorized accounts operated by TRB/Academies staff.

If your committee’s social media account does not already meet these requirements, please sunset your social media account. One way to sunset the account is announce it with a post and a change the profile description to state it is "no longer active as of <date>."

Please consider sending your committee social media post requests to TRB in which they can be posted through the official TRB social media accounts. As of 2024, TRB’s official accounts have 60,000+ followers with all social media accounts combined. See above icons/links for TRB's Twitter/X, LinkedIn, and Facebook.

The TRB Communications Department developed a helpful file with common social media practices for assisting committee members navigate social media. See the bottom of this webpage for an embedded version of the PDF.

Submit your committee social media post requests here:
https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/5732064/TRB-Committee-social-media-posts.

Personal Accounts

In your personal profile, please designate yourself as a TRB “volunteer” instead of “staff.” Provided are instructions on how to designate yourself as a volunteer in LinkedIn: webpage or downloadable PDF.

LinkedIn Groups are an appropriate online forum for TRB technical standing committees, sections, or groups to share information and build networks. Depending on the committee’s purpose, a committee can choose to make the LinkedIn Group private or public.

Note: Do not use a TRB or National Academies logo in your LinkedIn Group.

Committee-managed Websites

A committee-managed website is an option for a TRB technical standing committee if the Chair and CCC determine a website supports the committee’s communication portfolio. If your committee has not evaluated your communication needs, please consider conducting a “committee communication needs survey” to find what modes of communication best suit your committee’s mission.

Chairs and CCCs are responsible for their maintenance and the accuracy of the information on the committee-managed website. TRB will provide a link from the committee description in the TRB online directory to the committee homepage and/or online forum. Please contact your TRB staff representative and Brie Schwartz to update your committee's web presence to TRB’s online directory.

The content of committee websites and online forums should relate to the committee’s purpose and should encourage and facilitate the committee’s activities and projects. Committee outputs or products, in draft or final form, are desirable components and discussions related to committee topics and activities may also be helpful. The committee chair should establish how the web presence will be maintained and monitored.

TRB suggests (but does not endorse) Google Sites because it is free and integrated with all Google services, including Google Drive (25GB storage) and Google Forms, Calendar, and other helpful modules. Making a Google Account and linking a Google Site to the Google Account is the simplest approach to administer a committee-managed website. In this manner, the Google Account password may be passed from one leadership to another during committee rotation, and all the data can be preserved for future Chairs/CCCs. We do not recommend that you purchase a website domain or host a committee website on another institution’s server, as that requires a cost/management that can get lost through the transfer of committee leadership.

Google Sites has many user-friendly professional templates that you can use.

Example Google Sites

TRB Standing Committee on Bicycle Transportation (ACH20)

TRB Standing Committee on Geographic Information Science (AED40)

TRB Standing Committee on Advanced Concrete Materials and Characterization (AKM50)

TRB Standing Committee on Critical Infrastructure Protection (AMR10)
TRB Standing Committee on Aircraft/Airport Compatibility (AV070)
TRB Standing Committee on Marine Environment (AW030)

Example Google Accounts

Gmail Account Login: trba####@gmail.com
Gmail Account Password: Cmte@###0 (the password should represent the committee and include upper case, lower case, symbol, and number)

If the Google Account requires a 2-step authentication, you can turn it off. If you are unable to turn off the 2-step authentication, and it prompts an email or cell phone, please update this information regularly when the committee rotates and change it to the contact information of the new leadership.

Save your files to Google Drive and link the files to Google Sites. Google Sites storage is 10GB while Google Drive has 25GB.

Website Requirements

DISCLAIMER: Please place this disclaimer in the footer: “Any opinions, findings, or conclusions expressed on this website are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Transportation Research Board or The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.”
NO LOGOS: No TRB or National Academies logos are permitted. The official logos signify a website that is maintained by TRB or the National Academies, and these sites are committee-managed.
MEMBERSHIP: Please link your membership to your committee’s specific page on the TRB Online Directory. https://www.mytrb.org/OnlineDirectory
FRIENDS: When inviting friends to join your committee, please use this text to help guide your written instructions.
- - Go to MyTRB
  - Enter your login information, or click on “Forgot Password” if you don't remember your login or don't think you have an account
  - Go to “Committees” on the navigation menu bar
  - Click “Become a Friend of the Committee”
  - Locate committee by committee code or name

Content That May Be Included but Require Advance TRB Staff Approval

Links to other websites (acceptable links would be sources of general information in the committee’s area of interest but would not include commercial organizations, e.g., consultants working in the area)
Questionnaires/surveys
Committee reports (e.g., as an alternative to a circular)

Items Not Allowed

TRB or National Academies logo
Commercial/advertising information
Copyrighted material, including graphics, without stated permission to use
Unreviewed reports or papers (publicly displayed)
Software or applications

COMMON SOCIAL MEDIA PRACTICES
From the TRB Communications Department

Social_media_TRB_volunteers.pdf