Do you remember life before Facebook? Life before you could share your thoughts and pictures with the rest of the world?
The social media revolution, while good for keeping up on what your favorite celebrity is having for lunch or for stalking an ex‑girlfriend, is also having a profound affect on important issues in our lives. Australia’s Griffith University has made Twitter a required class for journalism students, citing an increase in demand from employers for new hires who are well‑versed in social media. Still yet, dissemination of info on Twitter and the Internet helped drive the momentum of the recent green revolution in Iran.
So what’s this mean for you?
It’s time to start taking Twitter and other interactive media seriously, especially if you’re looking to get into [public relations] or business.
From reputation management to branding, social media is getting its sticky fingers into all aspects of the business honey jar. Social media is being used to increase brand awareness, influence a consumer’s decision‑making process, and to help position companies as leaders in their respective industries.
For PR people, knowing what the public is saying in the “blogsphere” about your company or client is something that needs to be dealt with head on. Social media is a word‑of‑mouth campaign on crack, where the message is traveling through numerous media in a matter of minutes.
Wherever your focus, knowing how to properly utilize social media will give you a leg‑up on the competition. So get on LinkedIn, open that Twitter account, write a blog, and start sharing (preferably not the picture of you taking that keg stand like a champ.)
Jordan M Fylonenko
WMU student
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