Is Anyone Listening?How to get people to listen up on your social media networks

Presented by:

Marchae GrairSocial Media AssociateUnited Church of Christ

Publishing, Identity, and Communication

What is your social media personality?

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Who’s a social media influencer?

Influencers have:

• Reach• Number of followers

• Resonance• Potential to go viral,

long-lasting posts, likes, shares, retweets, etc.

• Relevance• Professional or social

communities respect the source

Source: digitialinformationworld.com

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The Social Media TestDoes your profile say you are an influencer?

Choose the social media account that best represents you professionally and open it on your smart phone or tablet.

Get ready to find out if you’re ready to be an influencer.

1. Does your bio list where you work?2. Does your bio list what you do?3. Does your bio link to a professional or personal website?4. Does your bio feature a fun fact or something relatable about you?5. Have you posted at least 2-3 times in the last week? (Facebook, LinkedIn)6. Have you posted at least once each day in the last week? (Twitter)7. If you look at your last 10 posts, have you linked to a useful article?8. If you look at your last 10 posts, have you tagged a social influencer?9. If you look at your last 10 posts, have you used a well-known hashtag?10.If you look at your last 10 posts, have commented on a viral trend, video, or

article?

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How did you do?Social Media Introvert (0-2): Your profile is probably

intended for friends and family. If you’re interested in expanding to new circles, today is your day!

Social Climber (3-5): You have some work to do, but you have a basic understanding about using social media to get noticed.

Social Expert (6-8): You understand what it takes to get noticed, and a few tips will help you get there.

Social Influencer (9-10): Keep up the good work. You’re ready to be a social media influencer!

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Why is social media influence important?

Many organizations and professionals believe a vibrant social media presence validates authority.

Many brands are investing in “influencer marketing” because of its success. Marketing-inspired word-of-mouth generates more than twice the sales of paid advertising, and these customers have a 37% retention rate.

Even if you aren’t selling a product, you are “selling” a message of your company or your personal brand. And that brand requires social media enforcement.

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Source: Forbes.com

How to “ beef up” your profiles to get noticed Share useful content

pertaining to your field or intended social media audience.

Make your social media bio tight, bright writing with a touch of personality.

Consider having few friends or colleagues to do a social media evaluation of your profile and content.

Pay attention to what’s trending and provide commentary related to your field or current projects.

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How many of these hashtags do you recognize?

• #BringBackOurGirls• #BlackLivesMatter• #CrimingWhileWhite• #Gamergate• #IfTheyGunnedMeDown• #NotOneMore• #NotInMyName• #NotYourAsianSidekick• #WhyIStayed• #YesAllWomen

Writing well for social mediaTalk the talk. Each platform

has an insider language. Do you speak it? (Know when to use hashtags, what common abbreviations mean, etc.)

Write conversationally. Write very short sentences and paragraphs. Talk to insiders without using insider language. Shorten links.

Mix it up. Balance text, graphics, and videos.

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No one likes a…

Your social media should have more to offer than…

Constant Complaining.

Taking a stance without providing solutions.

Self-promotion without providing an obvious benefit for followers.Publishing, Identity, and Communication.

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Don’tsThe

Debbie Downer

Groups, groups, groups

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Example:

Tribber: A Twitter-based site allowing social media influencers with similar interests to share each other’s content.

• You can’t grow a lasting audience without having the support of influencer groups.

• These groups can include:• Bloggers• Facebook Groups• Online Professional Organizations• Twitter Lists

Influencer apps

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Sprout Social:

Use the social media inbox to track all notifications from multiple platforms.

Feedly:

Keep track of your favorite blogs and websites with an easy RSS feed system. Post to social media from Feedly.

Hootsuite:

Post to many popular social media platforms from one website. Schedule posts ahead of time.

Facebook best practicesShare original articles with tags

opposed to sharing posts from others. The Facebook algorithm does not favor these posts.

Make sure you make professional posts public, even if your default privacy setting is private.

Do not post links in the text of your posts. It isn’t the “language” of Facebook

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Twitter best practices If you want to catch an

influencer’s eye, add her to a well-established Twitter list.

Never EVER start a tweet with someone’s username. EVER. Include them conversationally in the tweet or at the end of the tweet.

Don’t automatically link your Facebook to post to Twitter.

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LinkedIn best practicesPost professional

presentations, papers, and accomplishments on a regular basis.

Join groups that reflect your interests and your area of expertise.

Endorse others on a regular basis. This encourages them to endorse you without much effort on your part.

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Other places for influencers

Pinterest: Major place for influencers to aggregate content. Boards equate to areas of expertise. Great place to keep professional articles with infographics.

Instagram: A place where millennial influencers “hang out.” MUST speak the language (#instagood, #ootd, etc.). Followers usually come from an already established brand awareness, good use of hashtags, or promoted posts.

YouTube: Replacing traditional television and advertising. Amateur shooting styles and humor reign. Individuals promote themselves through simple webcam vlogging styles.

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Being a trendsetter doesn’t mean following

every trend

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Do you woo woo?

Micro vs. Macro

Networking and advertising used to focus on large campaigns and idea concepts on a macro level.

Social media changed that completely. Now, the idea is to reach a very niche audience with a niche idea in order to contribute to larger campaigns.

Every campaign can have a macro mission with a single micro approach OR a macro mission with complimentary micro approaches.

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Publishing, Identity, and Communication. United Church of Christ

Micro Strategy Example

My organization supports LGBT rights.

Same-sex marriage

TransgenderRights

LGBT discriminationlaws

Same-sex adoption

Legalization of name changes for trans people in all states

*Focus on the smaller issueto show the larger concern

Recruit Other Social InfluencersSocial media makes everyone,

even large-scale influences, more reachable.

BUT this doesn’t mean you should tag people in stuff so they will read it. Join in THEIR conversations first before you attempt to contact them to self-promote or cross promote.

Instead of tagging people for attention, engage them with thoughtful questions about your shared interests or add commentary about their popular hashtags and links.

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Why Webinar?Webinars are great for

professional and social media portfolios.

Free webinars are a great way to engage people in your industry to establish yourself as an expert.

Most social media influencers recycle content. Webinars can be reposted and shared many times and will probably find a new audience each time.Publishing, Identity, and Communication.

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Summary

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A social media influencer is the newest way to be a professional authority in one’s field. Social influencing marketing is the fastest growing ad and marketing industry.

Anyone can be a social media influencer, but you must invest time, speak the language of the social site you want to conquer, and reach out to other social media influencers in the process.

Invest times in tools that help schedule social media ahead of time or monitor social media trends with minimal effort.

Questions

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Don’t be shy!Who posted or tweeted something they learned from this session?

Now you’re ready to be an influencer!