Don’t let social media overwhelm you

Marie Forleo has some great tips for you if you are feeling pressured about being on all social media platforms and posting constantly.

I particularly like her tip about finding one or two that you can be successful on, commit to those and get good at them. I would even take it a step further and say that once you feel confident with those, widen your circle and bring in another. You will need to evolve and find that sweet spot of where your audience responds and where you feel comfortable communicating.

How many social media platforms are you on?

I’d love to hear from you!

-Tina

How will you get your job?

Courtesy blog.enthosweb.com

This is a cool infographic that shows just how important social media has become in getting a job.

I’m shocked that Facebook has gotten more people their job than LinkedIn! The idea of getting a job via Twitter is so intriguing to me. I think I need to beef up my posts…

What do you think? Are you surprised that over 18 million people say they have their current job because of Facebook?

I’d love to hear from you!

-Tina

A little about my podcast

courtesy podcastdojo.com

The podcast I’ve posted about podcasting was a really cool experience. Interviewing people is so cool to me!  I’ve done film interviews and enjoyed that immensely. ->NERD ALERT<-

I was so nervous for the interviews on podcasting!  Not only was I doing something I didn’t know squat about, I was interviewing people who I’d heard interview other people on the radio for years now. Actually, nervous was an understatement.

It helped that I had a plan. I knew my questions, and I had a good idea of the answers that would benefit people the most.

My interviewees were so kind and gracious, even giving me tips on using the technology. I couldn’t have asked for a better experience. I learned what equipment I like using for audio interviews and why.

I’m pretty jazzed that I will have an opportunity to use this new experience soon. I’ve already set up a time with one of the other program hosts on WETSFM to see how we can make podcasting work there.

I once thought of podcasting as something for big shows like “This American Life,” or “To the Best of Our Knowledge.” I didn’t see how it could be beneficial for the short, informational shows by individuals. I have a whole new respect for the medium now.

Have you started podcasting? What podcasts do you like to listen to?

I’d love to hear from you!

-Tina

Podcasting Advice from the Experts

Podcasting Advice from the Experts.

If you’ve ever considered podcasting, this is the interview to listen to.

Stewart Harris, host of Your Weekly Constitutional; Wayne Winkler, producer of YWC and station manager of WETSFM; Jim Blalock, program director for WETSFM bring insight, and advice on how to get started and be successful at podcasting.

Do you podcast? What has your experience been like?

I’d love to hear from you!

-Tina

Take criticism. It’s a gift.

Courtesy CliveSimpkins.blogs.com

It takes practice to see criticism as the gift it is.

The first thing you need to do look at criticism from a little different perspective. This of it as an opportunity. It means that there has been miscommunication or there is a genuine screw up. Both of these things need to be rectified so if someone takes their precious time to let you know about the problem – be glad.

I think of it as someone telling me I have something green in my teeth. Someone who likes you will tell you while someone who doesn’t care about you won’t. Granted, you may not get called names or cussed at when they tell you that there’s something in your teeth, but the favor is still there.

Let me provide a recent example. I work on a fundraising event called Holiday Market. I’ve purchased advertising on Facebook to hit all the women in the area. One of the women in the area was kind enough to leave an unflattering post that was along the lines of “I haven’t supported you since you changed your name to Holiday Market.” Alluding to the fact that we went all PC and changed from Christmas Market to Holiday Market. It’s always been Holiday Market.

This is where charm and grace took over and I thanked her for the post. I didn’t correct her or get defensive. I simply explained the reason we have our name and that I hoped she would join us for the best shopping experience of her life.

I used the opportunity to explain who we were, why we did what we did, that we love her and her input and that we want her in our family. Will she come to our event? Who knows. I do know that she can’t honestly tell her friends and family that we are rude and hate Christmas. Other people who read the exchange will see our organization as kind, attentive and thoughtful. You never know who is watching on social media.

Even if someone cusses you and your mother, stay cool. This could be just the chance you’ve needed to change a broken process; to update outdated information; to find out the way you do things is totally jacked up and needs improvement.

Courtesy ios.wonderhowto.com

I’m not saying it doesn’t suck and sometimes people are mean and life isn’t fair, BUT if you try at some point in the criticism to find the nugget of gold in the pile of bullsh*t you could come out smelling like a rose.

How do you handle criticism?

I’d love to hear from you.

-Tina

OMG Fundraising!

courtesy SignUpGenius.com

This post is primarily for those who are going into non-profits. There are probably some tips for sales too so if that’s your thing please stick around.

Money is what makes the world go around. Just because an organization is a non-profit doesn’t mean that money doesn’t have a huge influence on how they do “business.” Having more money coming in than going out can be an obsession – and a drag – if you aren’t prepared for this going into non-profits.

You can’t operate without income. Pure and simple. Whether your heart is in animal rescue, giving voice to abused children, cancer research, or saving an historical landmark, you need income to get the word out and address the issue of your heart.

“Everyone will support poor, hungry children. All I have to do is show pictures of the kids we’ve helped and share their stories and ask for money. No one wants to see a kid go hungry,” you think. “I’ll just do my fundraising  in November and December. Heck, this year I might even get out there in October.”

StaffingRobot.com

Fundraising is about building relationships ALL year long. Sure, your money may all get to you in Q3, but you have to earn it all year long! This is why e-newsletters, social media, press releases, events and appearances are so important. Communicate all year long. Have you gotten a prestigious grant? Everyone needs to know about it. Regulations change that affect your mission? Talk about it.

Find out why the folks support you already. Capitalize on that to bring in more people. Particularly with charities, people will support you when their friends do. It’s called trust.

Fundraising is only as successful as they relationship you’ve built with the community.

Do you have cool tips on how to build relationships for fundraising?

I’d love to hear from you!

-Tina

Sorry sweetheart, your personal Facebook page isn’t social media experience

Courtesy ChadKaser.wordpress.com

This seems pretty obvious but I’m willing to bet that there are some knuckleheads who get into this because they are prolific personal social media posters. They think, “How hard can social media for a brand be? You just post stuff and get likes. I’ve got 862 friends on FB and 1637 followers on TW, I’m a freaking natural.”

So what’s the difference?

• You need a Strategy to reach communication goals. You don’t post just because the urge strikes. You don’t post just because you see something funny you want to share.
• You’ve got to Research your audience. What do they want to hear? When do they want to hear it? How do they like to hear it?
• You should be Crafting a message based on your strategy and research. Just throwing out slop loses the respect of your intended audience. When you lose the respect of your audience you lose their attention. When you lose their attention often enough, you lose your job.
• Posting comes back to strategy. Don’t post when your target won’t hear it. Don’t post where your audience won’t see it. Don’t post what will lose/alienate your audience.
• You’ve got to be Listening to your audience. It’s not just what they say, it’s what they do. Look at your metrics. What do people respond to the most? When are they responding and where?
• If you’ve been listening, you will certainly need to make Tactical Adjustments. That’s your life now: making adjustments – All.The.Time. Social & digital media move so fast that everything you do will be about adjusting to changing responses from your audience, changing conditions on the Interwebs, and changing technology.
• Revisit Strategy.
• Continually Research.
• Always Be Crafting new messages.
• Ad infinitum into this ouroboros thing where the head swallows the tail – no beginning or end. (look it up)

When was the last time you did research on your personal followers before you posted that picture of the ultimate ice cream sundae on Instagram? Do you know your strategy for your tweets about your displeasure at a college football game? What message are you consciously crafting for Pinterest?

See the difference?

Have I left out any considerations or steps in this social media cycle? Which step do you like best? In which step are you weakest?

I’d love to hear from you.

-Tina

Intern every chance you get

Archive100.com

Seriously, if you can intern every semester of college – including summers – you will not regret it. Better yet, be such a good intern that you get hired while you go to school.

In Mass Comm at ETSU, you only get one three-hour credit for an internship and many students are cool with that. It was my experience however, that the first internship was just to get acclimated to the process. I did learn a LOT – most notably what I wanted and didn’t want in my future job. I didn’t get paid and I worked my ass off.

When my internship was over, I had good experience, great samples for my portfolio, and an A. Most importantly, I got a gig with the company after that. I was a (well) paid contractor doing the same stuff I was doing for free as an intern. If they had an opening I’m sure I’d be working there right now.

I did another internship the next semester after that. I didn’t get a paycheck, but I did get an in-kind payment that both my husband and I were able to enjoy. Everyone was happy. I loved that work experience, have even MORE stuff for my portfolio, and some great relationships.

Now, I’m in the internship that I hope becomes my job after graduation. You listening WETS?!

Through each internship I gained not only valuable experience and cool samples for my portfolio, I developed strong relationships and built a network. I have valuable insights into the work I want to do, the type of employer I want to work with, and I have narrowed my focus and path forward.

A lot of students think that the internship is just to fulfill a requirement, that it doesn’t matter because they’re moving away to follow their career anyway. That’s too bad for them but awesome for me (and students like me). Their attitude makes it easier for me to get a job  – even if I move away because the competition has a poor attitude.

Of course, there are students who have to work their way through college. It sucks that our system is set up that way. Because of recent Supreme Court ruling on internships, most companies now have to pay their interns. I doubt seriously they will pay very much, and the intern opportunities will most likely shrink.

That said, you may need to take a look at your finances to figure out how you can accommodate internships that may not pay well. How much spending can you cut? Living like a pauper as a college student is perfectly acceptable. Living like a pauper after college…mmm, not so much. Do you want a good career later, or do you want a good hourly job now? Do you want Nine West shoes now or Louboutin shoes later? Good internships are worth the sacrifice now for the career you want in the future.

Also, for the love of pete, don’t wait until the last minute to find an internship!! Start thinking about your next internship before the next semester starts. Be ready to apply, do some due diligence to make sure it’s a good fit. You are more likely to get the internship you want when you start early because everyone else is lazy. Don’t be lazy.

Speaking of lazy competition, imagine what your resume is going to look like when it shows college full time and a roster of awesome internships! Seriously, it makes a difference.

What do you think about internships? Are they worth the trouble?

I’d love to hear from you

-Tina

So many resources…

Courtesy NerdyorCool.webs.com

I love marketing communications. I dig the data-driven strategy combined with the possibility of innovative tactical maneuvers. I thrive on thinking outside the box and project implementation to achieve measurable goals.

I’ve learned that just because you love something doesn’t make you good at it. You may have the best of intentions, but if you don’t have some knowledge to pull from you’re going make bad mistakes. (I’ll talk about good mistakes in a later blog.)

So where can you get marketing communications knowledge? I have some awesome resources that I pull from for my personal edification that you might want to check out.

1) Social Media Examiner  I recently discovered this one and I LURVE it! They have revived my enthusiasm for email newsletters. Their newsletters are short, heavy on links, and don’t employ “click bait.” I hate click bait. (hmmm that sounds like a blog subject.) These folks are also on Twitter and Facebook. They do podcasts and online summits. SME is pretty pimp if you dig this stuff.

2) Social Media Today  This is overall industry news. I like it because they have neato infographics (which I love), and they talk about developing technologies and other things I may not go looking for but will impact my work eventually. I’m usually the first to know about a lot of tech stuff because of these guys.

3) Mashable  I like how they integrate pop culture and social media/tech news. They are also rife with click bait. Mashable is worth it because that fusion of pop culture and social media keeps me on the ball and informed.

4) MarketingProfs  They are geared more towards larger businesses. I like keeping up with what the Big Boys are doing because I want to know what my potential employer is doing. They also offer a lot of VERY useful hints and primers. Unfortunately, most of the good stuff you have to be a PRO member and that is $$$$. I guess it costs a lot of money to be so big and slick…

Anyhoo, those are my big references, and they are in order of value to me. If you aren’t familiar with them you really ought to check them out. They are all in my Twitter and Facebook feeds so I have knowledge being pushed to me all the time. Of course, I’m a nerd and read this stuff for fun. Did I mention that I LOVE this stuff…..?

What resources do you rely on? What do you like about them?

I’d love to hear from you.

Tina

Social Media is a 24-Hour Gig. Can you hack it?

Courtesy under30CEO.com

You’ve gotta sleep sometime!

I’ve learned the hard way that you can’t be on 24/7. Since I can’t be the 24-hour-a-day Social Media Mama I’d like to be, I’ve found a couple of easy hacks to help me get the message out and stay engaged around the clock.

I’ve taken a tip from 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey. It’s the idea of putting all your big rocks (in this case, your message) into your glass (your schedule) before it gets filled with other stuff. Trust me, it will get filled with other stuff if you don’t take control of your schedule and get the important things scheduled first.

Since you have a finite amount of time, attention, and space to communicate in, make sure you have the important messages out there first. I do this by scheduling my posts at least a week into the future.

I figure out what is the most important message/s to get out this week and schedule those posts first, typically one post a day at different times. Those are my big rocks. No matter what goes on in the world, this is what must be communicated.

Then I have space in between those rocks. I can play in this space. This is where I bring in breaking news, polls, funny videos. I can engage fully and respond quickly when I’m not worrying if I’ve fully communicated my message/s. I can focus.

Zack Levine via HudsonHorizons.com

To schedule posts, I prefer HootSuite to any other scheduling options out there. It’s fairly comprehensive; you can schedule & monitor Twitter, FB, Google+, LinkedIn, WordPress and others. It’s also easy to manage many accounts in one place. There is a free version for up to five networks. I highly recommend tinkering with it if you aren’t already in HootSuite. Of course, they do have an app for smartphones and tablets too.

I also use the smartphone and tablet apps for the various networks I’m on. So far, I’ve set my notifications only for retweets, shares, comments, new followers. This makes it manageable for me to respond and engage immediately without much negative feedback from friends and loved ones. (Stay tuned for my blog about monitoring digital media 24/7 while having analog relationships.)

What do you use to hack your social media posting schedule? Are you managing it all or crumbling under the pressure?

Speaking of being under pressure, enjoy this sweet video from the incomparable band Queen. Do you ever feel like this?

I’d love to hear from you.

-Tina