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| Jang Jae-i, police officer with Busan Metropolitan Police Agency |
With over 130,000 page likes and a long thread of comments following every post, one might assume that this Facebook account is that of a celebrity.
The source of the engagement, however, is the Busan Metropolitan Police Agency (BMPA), which routinely racks up thousands of "likes" with its status updates as it reaches out to the community with a neighborly tone.
Behind the BMPA's online success is its social media guru, police officer Jang Jae-i, who has been credited with turning the agency into a model for public engagement.
Facebook is not the only platform where Jang has helped the agency dominate: BMPA has 30,000 Twitter followers and interacts with citizens on photo-sharing app KakaoStory as well.
Due to her efforts, the agency recently won the Grand Prize at the Korea SNS Awards 2014 organized by the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning.
The key is developing rapport with the community, says Jang, who has helmed BMPA's social media accounts since last year.
"I adopted a narrative style for the posts to get closer to the public," Jang said in a recent phone interview with The Korea Times. "I try to sound light and amusing, as if I'm talking to a friend."
Most of her posts are accounts of police cases, many written in a humorous tone. The posts often include videos and photos as well.
Recently, Jang wrote about an elderly woman with Alzheimer's who was found lost on the streets, attempting to deliver warm soup to her daughter, who was in labor. The post went viral, and news agencies turned it into one of the feel-good stories of the year.
Other posts include "wanted" posters, which help the police search for suspects; or ones to spread practical information such as what to do if you leave your phone in a taxi cab.
Jang has also appointed celebrities as "honorary ambassadors," including poet Ha Sang-wook and comedian Lee Gook-ju.
"Some people have raised concerns over the page's light tone…but as long as I don't make any big mistakes, the senior officers are fine with what I do," said Jang. "I uploaded a post nominating my superiors for the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, and they actually did it."
The BMPA is attempting to create a friendly reputation offline as well. Last year, it launched an outdoor public relations campaign that included, for example, a billboard with an actual police car appearing to plow through it. The installation meant to show that police were willing to go to any lengths to do their job.
Asked what she considered her best post, Jang said that reaching the public was her only concern.
"I put the utmost effort into every single post I upload, so I can't pick a single one as the best," she said. "Eventually, it's about the results. If I get good feedback, then I'm satisfied."
