Fans of The Shafer Street
Fugitive:
The following post is an
assignment for my Social Media Marketing class. My usual Monday post
with news about the band will be posted later today.
In MDIA 4902: Social Media
Marketing, I have learned that social media marketing is very
different from traditional marketing. While traditional marketing is
characterized by point-to-multipoint communication, social media
marketing could be described as multipoint-to-multipoint
communication; social media is a two-way street, allowing consumers
to actively participate in the creation of a brand's identity. Social
media can be a powerful tool for marketers because they provide an
opportunity for consumers to form a community, allowing the consumers
themselves to market a given brand. As Shama Kabani writes in her
book The Zen of Social Media Marketing,
traditional marketing is concerned with, “pursuing leads,” while
social media marketers are concerned with, “nurturing
relationships.” It is about turning strangers into friends, and
friends into customers. I have also come to understand that obtaining
a large number of followers or likes on social media does not
necessarily make a social media campaign successful; what is
important is starting a conversation with followers.
After
this class, I am confident that I will continue to apply the skills I
have learned to maintain a professional personal brand on social
media. I am now capable of Search Engine Optimization, executing a
social media campaign, and effectively using a host of different
social media platforms. I am also now capable of identifying whether
or not a campaign is successful by comparing different social media
metrics. I look forward to applying these new skills not only to
market myself, but my band, as well as other student organizations I
participate in on campus.
One
of the things I really liked about this class was the hands-on
approach. The blog assignments, social media portfolio, and group
work meant that we not only had to understand the theory, we had to
understand how to apply it as well. The best thing about this class
was the practical experience we gained. I also like that this class
complements my major in Video Production. Understanding how to market
using social media provides me with a cheap way to promote and raise
funds for video projects I am working on.
There
are only two things I disliked about this course. The first was the
way it was scheduled. I personally feel I get a lot more out of a
class when the lectures are shorter, and scheduled for multiple
sessions a week. I know I can speak for many of my classmates when I
say that it is hard to maintain enthusiasm and focus when the class
is two hours and forty minutes long. I understand this is most likely
out of the professor's control, but I felt it was worth mentioning.
The other thing I disliked about this course was the presentation of
social media portfolios in class. I learn much more from lectures and
in-class activities than I do from watching my classmates present
their social media portfolios in front of the class. I often found
myself wishing that our presentations were scheduled with Quan,
rather than presented during class.
Overall,
MDIA 4902 has been one of the most practical, useful courses I have
taken at Ohio University. I am sure I will put my new skills to good
use.
