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Lodi PIO outlines social media growth and calls for a formal plan; council presses for Spanish translations and coordination

Lodi City Council · January 28, 2026

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Summary

The city’s public information officer and marketing consultant reported growth on Facebook and Instagram, described goals for 2026 and urged cross‑department coordination; councilmembers recommended creating a formal social media plan and expanding Spanish translations.

Nancy Soraya, the City of Lodi’s public information officer, and consultant Bailey Caswell presented the council with an update on the city’s communications and social media strategy on Jan. 27.

Soraya said the city has formalized a public information function with a full‑time PIO and that the office uses a five‑pillar approach to guide communications: speed and relevance in the news cycle, public education and awareness, community engagement, consistent branding and emergency communications. She described distribution channels — local media, TV, the city website and a suite of social accounts — and said the PIO acts as a central hub to make city information accessible and to route resident feedback back to staff.

Bailey Caswell, owner of Bloom Creative Marketing, described a project that began in March 2025 to create cohesive branding and a consistent posting cadence across Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. Caswell said the city’s Facebook views after the program tallied nearly 2,000,000 (noting the number is skewed by prior Facebook livestreams) and that Instagram grew from zero to about 625 followers in a few months. “We create impactful day to day content, social media content that makes city resources more accessible,” Caswell said.

Councilmembers asked for a formal social media plan that would set priorities (including how to use AI), improve coordination across department accounts and formalize distribution to Spanish‑language outlets. Soraya said agenda items are being translated under the Brown Act Modernization Act and that public‑safety emergencies are translated on a case‑by‑case basis; she said the city also includes Latino publications on its media list and will continue to expand translations and review machine translations with Spanish‑speaking staff.

Councilmembers thanked staff for the work and encouraged continued outreach and a formal plan that the council can review.