Social Media Does, In Fact, Matter — To Every Kind Of Business

Let me be honest: I’m sick of seeing posts on LinkedIn looking for volunteers or interns to run social media. Furthermore, many of those that do offer pay, they are only suggesting a $30,000 salary.

The fact is this: those businesses misunderstand what social media is about — as do plenty of fresh-faced college graduates who think the job description consists of tweeting.

Social media managers and strategists don’t post on social media. They create, plan and execute marketing campaigns.

It’s all about social media strategy. Social media matters simply because of this fact — it’s new-age savvy marketing, not a just social tool.

2014: the year of salaried social media jobs

OK, so many businesses aren’t understanding the full importance of social media, but it’s at least important that businesses of every kind — non-profits, corporate and small businesses — recognize its potential. A staggering 88% of marketers would like to know the most effective social media uses.

Forbes declared last month that in 2014, investment in social media would be more than just a luxury — it will become necessary. A quick scan of social media-related postings on LinkedIn show that it’s true — many listings have the words “new position” embedded in there somewhere.

And there’s even data to back up that claim: Business Insider cited Constant Contact’s Small Businesses: Then and Now Survey saying that 87% of small businesses are using social media as a legitimate marketing tool.

The publication also predicted there’d be a vast expansion in these six social media-related jobs: SEO Specialist, Social Media Strategist, Online Community Manger, Social Media Marketing Manager, Social Media Marketing Coordinator, and Blogger or Social Media Copywriter.

This expansion makes sense. The Internet is accessible almost everywhere and folks are consuming more tidbits of information than ever.

People certainly take advantage of it.

According to Chelsea Krost, the average person has their smartphone with them 20 hours out of the entire day. And 80% of people reach for their smartphone when they wake up.

But why are so many skeptical to jump on the bandwagon?

Here’s the big question in social media for businesses: how do I measure the return on investment (ROI)?

That question isn’t easily answered — because there’s no way to be 100% sure you’re tracking the right data to prove this… or that you even can track the right data.

Every company is different. And sometimes it’s about trial and error to figure out which platform is most effective for your business. B2B companies seem to have a lot of success on LinkedIn; while B2C companies, depending on what they do and if they’re business or service oriented, can see great success on Twitter or Instagram.

Regardless, Social Media Examiner reported that some businesses actually have mastered tracking ROI. It seems like most of those businesses don’t have direct proof per se, but use of social media is the differing variable when the company started to see decreases in spending or increases in sales.

Either way, Social Media Examiner’s 2013 Report finds 89% of marketers surveyed claimed increased social media marketing increased exposure and site traffic.

Social media matters — and here’s why

When I talk about social media use I don’t mean quoting eccentric family members at Thanksgiving dinner on Twitter (though I’m guilty of this). I mean using it for marketing, branding, developing brand trust, hearing from individual customers, and doing damage control.

It’s pretty much a given that businesses, marketers, and even individuals (in a lot of fields, you market yourself) should care about these things.

A lot of businesses may not see an ROI on their social media, but the question should be this: why?

Sometimes it’s not about the use of social media as much as how it’s used. Social media can be used poorly or used well. Someone doing a company’s social media should be paid for their expertise — because social media is not just about posting on the platforms, it’s about posting content to the platforms.

According to HubSpot, companies that blog 15 times or more per month see an increase of five times the traffic on their site.

The other key to social media is persistence. Social Media Examiner’s 2013 Report also cited that companies using social media for three or more years said it helped by improving search rankings, creating more partnerships, generating ideas, increasing traffic, providing marketplace insight, and reducing marketing expenses — to name a few things.

Social media in use — effectively — isn’t just about posting. It’s about executing a strategy specifically tailored to a company — and it is proven to help marketing efforts.

So why aren’t you investing in social media?

Lane Blackmer is a self-employed former journalist. Although she’s no longer a newsie, Lane since discovered other uses for social media such as public relations, marketing, job searching and trying to win gift cards from her favorite local businesses through contests. Lane inhabits Philadelphia, where’s it’s not always sunny…but at least there’s cheese steaks. You can follow her on Twitter at @LaneBlackmer.

Image courtesy Social Media Examiner 2013 Report. Featured image courtesy Dan Meyers.

More Than a Game: The Impact of Education

What if games replaced books? What if higher education was replaced overall? We know education is important for personal development, but how much do we realize the impact of education on the creation of a just and more civilized society. These questions are becoming of increasing importance.

The near future could bring us just that. Gabe Zichermann, Chair of The Gamification Summit is an expert on gamification; not to mention a powerful and energizing speaker. Last year at SMW NYC, Gabe’s session was a packed house – for good reason, too. He unloaded his knowledge of motivation, gaming techniques and how gaming can be used for education, training and overall behavioral change.

Anya Kamenetz gives Gabe a run for his money. Author of DIY U: Edupunks, Edupreneurs, and the Coming Transformation of Higher Education, Anya is invested in really examining higher education and how we can innovate in that space.

And on Tuesday at the Global HQ, the two will lead us in a deep conversation about where gaming and education meet and how we as a society can use both to create a more just and collaborative world.

College Students at SMW…or Not

This post is a series of blogs contributed by SMW NYC media partner Differences Magazine. To learn more about Differences Magazine and to see the original post by Vivian Nunez, please click here

Taking on Social Media Week NYC for the first time was everything I expected and much more. Nonetheless, I could not help but noticing that there was an obvious lack of college students at the events I attended. I am both a current college student and new to the entire #SMWNYC experience. As a result, I inferred that the lack of college students might be rooted on the fact that they don’t know what to expect or that they are unaware of how insightful it is into any kind of career path to be a part of this conversation.

Social media is not just a tool to communicate with your friends or to find out what your favorite celebrity is doing, they actually might not even be the one tweeting figured that one out in the Ghostwriter panel. If used to its fullest potential social media has the power to change our world, think Arab Spring or OWS, but on a smaller scale it can also change the amount of networking connections we establish. Social Media Week really helps to put this power in perspective regardless of the event you attend. I attended events that varied from Sports, Gaming, and Social Media to an event focused on Education, and I learned something from each of them.

There is a lens through which you are able to see different industries and their use of social media that you are just not able to get in a classroom. Listening to different panelists speak on how essential it is to market yourself as a brand and to really use social media as a leverage to establish connections is valuable advice. The tips and facts I learned throughout SMW resonated deeply because they were all techniques I could implement in the present to help me become a well-rounded candidate when it comes to entering the workforce.

College students might think it is a little too early to be attending events that are filled with established social media personalities, but I personally believe that this is the best time for that. Being exposed to so many successful people is not only motivation itself, but it is also an opportunity to network and pick the brains of those that have already traveled the path. It might be slightly intimidating at first to be the youngest and probably only student in an event filled with experts in a specific area, but it is also eye opening. By attending these events as a student or a person in the industry you really show that you are interested in learning more and have a true desire to experience social media first hand and to its full potential.

To see people speak on their experiences with social media and just exactly how it has helped them get to where they are is inspirational. Even more interesting and insightful is to learn how social media is implemented in everything from fashion to politics. All the events really build on the fact that social media is not only here, but it’s here to stay. I think it would only benefit students to take part in these events because they will be able to handle their online brands appropriately, learn how exactly social media affects their career of interest, and ultimately enjoy meeting such incredible experts in social media.