Managing the Image of An Educational Institution in The Social Media Era

This article presents the use of social media in marketing activities, which aim at creating a positive image of the organization. Social media play an increasingly important role in the contemporary marketing. The attributes of social media predestine them to be used in the process of image creation. They are used in practical areas. Therefore, it does not to be checked or proven that social media should be applied in image management, but rather if social media are used in a diligent and effective manner? Market economy principles apply not only to business organizations but also, increasingly, to other types of organizations, including educational institutions. Similarly to enterprises, educational institutions must also build a positive image of the organization, which will translate to good reputation in the long term. The main purpose of this article is assessing the scale of using social media in the process of managing (creating) the image of educational institutions. In the presented results of empirical studies, the analysed entity was limited to one type of educational institutions - secondary schools. The research has shown that all analyzed schools use social media and the school's website as tools to promote and build their image in the local community, which is undoubtedly a strength. However, low effectiveness of using these tools is the weak point.