As a college student, you've probably been using Facebook for years. You understand how to upload pictures, create events and start groups. You're probably a "fan" of too many silly things that have shown up on your suggestions. Most importantly, you understand Facebook's potential for actively engaging publics.Luckily for us, we grew up during the Information Age and understand all these social media platforms without much effort. That gives us an edge in the job market over a majority of experienced professionals. So, you have the basic skills, but in order to wield these skills as an asset in your internship or first job, you need to hone them a bit.
Understand the value of pages vs. groups:
- Pages send updates, groups send inbox messages
- Pages can have applications + Twitter connect
- People become "fans" of your pages rather than members of your group
- You can upload pictures and videos to pages, and only events to groups
- Pages are indexed in search engines
- Groups are valuable to clubs or common interest groups because they can be more private
- Pages are valuable to businesses because they show more content, which leads to more engagement from the audience
- Thus, a page will probably be more valuable to your client
Connecting Facebook to Twitter:
- Add the Twitter application
- Twitter will update its feed with each Facebook page update
- This way, you produce more Twitter and Facebook content simultaneously with no extra effort from you
- It's a simple procedure that will impress your client
Maintain your humanity through social media efforts:
- Although it seems paradoxical to seem human over the Internet, this is an important part of social media
- People need to feel like there's a real person with whom they are communicating
- User-generated (real people) material is your goal. Think of ways to create a discussion
- Upload content that represents the company culture. If it's an easy-going, fun culture, upload YouTube videos that your audience may not have seen. It will keep them coming back
Great Facebook page examples:
Remember, engagement is key with social media. Constant, but quality, updates are a must. If your audience is bored, then you're not doing your job, and it's a waste of time. It may even make your client look bad.
If you want to learn more about social media, check out the ultimate social media guide Mashable. Also, YouTube has great tutorial videos that show you how to do anything on Facebook step-by-step. And when all else fails, Google it.
