Social Media Strategies

Social media has moved from a pastime to a professional endeavor. This course will give future media and communications professionals the tools and experience to successfully utilize social media for strategic endeavors. Lindenwood University // Spring 2013 2:30-3:45 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays Spellman 4095 Instructor: Erica Smith Contact: @ericasmith // email

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Congratulations, you made it to the end of the semester! 

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How influential are you? The follow-up

See how influential you are on Klout, Kred, PeerIndex and STL Index. Use these forms to record your statistics:

Klout

Kred

PeerIndex

STL Index

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Getting started with Instagram

  ASSIGNMENTS

Case study: Follow a news source, brand, celebrity and a college student for 48 hours. Note with each of the sources:

Were photos personal or professional?

What types of photos does each publish?

Which photos did you like? Why?

Note differences between the four.

Due before class May 9.

Recommendations: Suggest five users classmates should follow. They can include any of the people/brands part of your case study. Include the nature of recommended users' photos: professional, personal, humor, etc. Identify why each is a good follow. Share your recommendations as a Facebook group post. Due before class May 9.

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Evaluate your personal social media plan

Reflect and evaluate how your personal Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterst and Google+ social media plans went; use the following as a guideline. Each reflection should be at least 250 words.

FOLLOW-UP

How many followers/fans do you have?

How many people do you currently follow?

How many times a day do you post?

How often do you interact with others?

What time of day do you most frequently post?

Are your posts focused on a topic or category? If so, what is that focus?

Do you consider your audience when posting?

STRATEGY EVALUATION

How well did you stick to the plan you developed? 

Looking back on your expectations, how did the semester go compared to how you thought it would?

Was it easy or difficult to stick to your focus? What did you learn about the ratio of posts being on-focus versus off-focus? If posts did not stick to your focus, what made you change?

Was it easy or difficult to respond to people and post?

Has your view of this social network changed?

Will you continue to use this social network? Will you continue to use your plan? 

Due before class May 9.

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How to verify news tips from social media

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How to create an online resume and portfolio site

ASSIGNMENTS

Create an online portfolio: The portfolio should include a complete bio and at least five links — either to social networks, stories or both. Submit your online portfolio through the class website. Due before class April 25

LinkedIn case study: Follow a news source, brand, celebrity and a college student for 48 hours. Note with each of the sources:

Are profiles complete/up-to-date?

Were posts personal or professional?

Are endorsements personal or professional?

What types of posts does each publish?

Which links did you follow? Why?

Note differences between the four.

Due before class April 30

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What you should know about copyright and fair use

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'Hush': Communicating from 3 perspectives

Welcome to "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." Teenager Buffy Summers has been chosen by mystical forces (as so often happens) and granted superhuman powers to defeat vampires and other monsters in the fictional town of Sunnydale, Calif. Her friends Willow and Xander and mentor Giles often assist in these exploits.

In "Hush," which originally aired Dec. 14, 1999, The Gentlemen steal everyone's voices — part of their larger evil plan. There are vampires and witches and monsters and an astonishing lack of cellphones. (It was that time when people had cellphones, but Hollywood wasn't sure what to do with them.) The 44-minute episode has about 17 minutes of dialogue. 

ASSIGNMENT

Watch the first 26 minutes of "Hush." (You can watch the rest later. If you missed it in class, "Buffy" is available on Hulu and Netflix.) This "emergency" occurred before Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook or YouTube. (Blogs existed, but they weren't as prevalent as they are today.)

Imagine this situation happened here today, where we have Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and much more. Identify how and what you would communicate from three perspectives: As a journalist, as an emergency management agency and as yourself. What would you say or do? Where would you publish it? Each perspective should be at least 400 words. The assignment should be typed and is due before class April 11.

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Final project: Create an outline

Just in case: Here's a list of common KPIs. Pick measurements that will mean the most to your organization. This is a basic list -- your plan may require something not listed here or more complicated.

ASSIGNMENT

Create an outline. Follow the guidelines in the presentation above. This does not have to be formal -- a bullet point outline is fine. Use information from previous assignments to identify your goal, target audience, strategies and tactics. Explain each of your tactics. Explain how you will measure success for each tactic. Due before class April 11.

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Strategy vs. tactic: What's the difference

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Getting started with Google+

ASSIGNMENTS

Personal strategy: Create a semester-long personal strategy for yourself, following the guidelines previously outlined. At the end of the semester, you will evaluate how your plan went. Due before class March 26.

Case study: Follow a news source (local, national or international), a brand, a celebrity and a college student (from any college or university) for 48 hours, and create a Google+ case study. (They cannot be the same people or businesses that you followed for your Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr or Pinterest case studies.) Follow the guidelines previously outlined. Due before class March 26.

Follow recommendations: Suggest five Google+ users, pages and/or communities that your classmates should follow. They can include any of the people or brands that were part of your case study. Include the nature of the user's posts: Professional, personal, humor, etc. Identify why each is a good follow. Share your recommendations as a Facebook group post. Due before class March 26.

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Getting started with RebelMouse

ASSIGNMENTS

Create a RebelMouse site: Use your news judgment and create a RebelMouse page built around a topic or story subject of your choice. The page must include at least five sources and 20 posts. (Remember: This is not an aggregation assignment.) Due before class March 28.

Curate a story: Use your news judgment, write a story on the subject of your choice. Include curated social posts, as well as original content that furthers the story. This story can be written using Storify or RebelMouse, or any other curation app. The assignment must include at least five sources. Due before class March 28.

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Create, curate and aggregate: An introduction

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When I read about the stuff people say to female journalists

Check out Said to Lady Journos

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Checking in on Foursquare

ASSIGNMENT

Case study: Follow a news organization (local, national or international), a brand, a celebrity, and a college student (from any college or university) for 48 hours. (They sources cannot be the same people or businesses that you followed for your Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr or Pinterest case studies.)

Identify how each uses Foursquare, how often they check in, what kind of lists they create, whether they cross-post on other social media sites and what types of tips they offer. Share any surprises in your findings. Write your case study using Storify, embedding applicable links and posts. Due before class March 12.

Remember: Spelling, grammar and punctuation count.

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Pining for Pinterest: An introduction

ASSIGNMENTS

Personal strategy: Create a semester-long Pinterest plan for yourself, following the guidelines previously outlined. At the end of the semester, you will evaluate how your plan went. Due before class March 12.

Case study: Follow a news source (local, national or international), a brand, a celebrity and a college student (from any college or university) for 48 hours, and create a Pinterest case study. (They cannot be the same people or businesses that you followed for your Twitter, Facebook or Tumblr case studies.) Follow the guidelines previously outlined. Due before class March 12.

Follow recommendations: Suggest five Pinterest boards or users that your classmates should follow. They can include any of the people or brands that were part of your case study. Include the nature of the user's pins: Professional, personal, humor, etc. Identify why each is a good follow. Share your recommendations as a Facebook group post. Due before class March 12.

Remember: Spelling, grammar and punctuation count.

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Came across this in my archived bookmarks this morning. Laurie Deschene on how to tweet mindfully.

Background via Tricycle:

For the last two years, I have provided a daily wisdom quote through a Twitter account called Tiny Buddha. Since the follower count has grown by leaps and bounds, people have suggested I tweet more often throughout the day. I’ve realized, however, that the greatest lesson we can all learn is that less is enough. In a time when connections can seem like commodities and online interactions can become casually inauthentic, mindfulness is not just a matter of fostering increased awareness. It’s about relating meaningfully to other people and ourselves. With this goal in mind, I’ve compiled a list of 10 tips for using social media mindfully.

Read the list.

FJP: Twitter (in my mind, and for most journalists) is supposed to be this noisy place where news breaks and people make funnies and debate. Mindful tweeting then, is fact-checking, verifying, and creating meaningful conversations. But she takes it further. It’s different, sweet, and interesting to think about. —Jihii