About this Social Media Week Guest Blogger: Though Rebecca recently graduated from The University of Texas at Austin’s Advertising program, she has been a social media enthusiast for years, and is honored to guest blog at #smwnyc. To learn more, visit her blog and follow her on Twitter @rebeccaweiser.

Women in Social Media
Panel at the JP Morgan Chase Building, NYC

Panelists: Alexa Hirschfeld, Meghan Muntean, Casey Carter, Joran Reid.

The panel of strong, successful women featured those who, after spending time with traditional and realizing that digital is the future, have found their niche in the digital space. Their entrepreneurial spirits and experience provided insight into the two biggest issues addressed:  “Why go social?” and “What is the right way to do it?”

Why: “Bloggers just get it.”

One issue addressed was that of the FCC’s new restrictions on bloggers, essentially mandating that they issue full disclosure whenever gifted or paid to create content. The panel agreed that this is completely in line with the informal blogging code: be honest.  Bloggers should give full disclosure regardless of the FCC, as they owe it to their readers.

Have fun: Blogging should be a safe, fun space in which like-minded individuals can express themselves.

Whenever a blogger posts about an item, readers can immediately click through and potentially be moved to purchase. This immediate response truly separates traditional from digital, allowing for faster and much more effective ROI.

How : “What is the right way to do it?”

• Before starting anything, either business, blog, or any other type of venture, it’s important to make sure you talk to others. If you have friends who have done this before, ask them for guidance, or “learn the expensive way.”
• In order to gain traffic to your blog, try getting your name out there. Try guest-posting on a blog that you like. If readers like your style and content, they’ll want to read more.
• Take calculated risks, and go exploring in the digital realm. “Buying domain names is like a 21st century landgrab.”