Regional governments in the Czech Republic and Slovakia and communication with the public using social media

Abstract

The two past decades have seen changes in communication between regional government and the public. Namely, the new Y and Z generations are skilled in ICT use and accustomed to immediate access to information using Internet. They also expect not only information but also interactive communication using ICT to be personal and tailored to their specific needs. Governments, including regional governments, have to improve the way they communicate with the public and also include social media in integral marketing communication. Some regional governments put a great deal of emphasis on their social media strategies. On the contrary, some regional governments are not yet able to use social media to communicate with the public. The results of this study show how regional governments from the Czech Republic and Slovakia use social media in 2019. The study is focused on specific aspects of Public Relations and provides ideas for how regional governments can better communicate with their target groups using social media such as Facebook and Youtube.