I originally posted this on my blog for my Intro to Marketing class. I thought it was worth sharing with all of you as well!
This past weekend was Elon University's
Homecoming, which coincided with the announcement of the expansion of our
Communications School building. The school hosted several
communications-related events, including a presentation called "Smart
Social Media for the 21st Century: Becoming a Social Media Tastemaker" led
by Raj Rawal. Raj, a graduate of the Elon Class of 2012, formerly worked with
What's Trending and was Streamline Producer for MissGlamourazzi. He's currently a producer for multiple YouTube artists, a developer of three TV shows, and a social media strategist.
I learned more from Raj's presentation than I ever
have in such a short period of time so I wanted to share some of his tips about
how to best utilize social media.
Tastemakers
What exactly is a tastemaker? Someone with over 1,000
followers on social media who has the power to influence people's views.
YouTubers, like Tyler Oakley and John Green, are a great example of tastemakers
because they have the ability to change people's views and actions. Do you want
to have a large presence on social media with a dedicated following of fans who
actually care about what you have to say? This is the buzzword that describes
what you're yearning for.
Quality not Quantity
It might seem cliche, but your content is truly more
important than the number of followers you have. Don't waste time following
people for follow-backs; create good content that's worthy of being noticed. To
gather more attention, use appropriate hashtags and comment on other people's
posts.
YouTube is Golden
According to Raj, YouTube is one of the most important
social media platforms right now. YouTube videos get shared on every other
platform from Facebook to Twitter. And becoming a successful YouTuber is all
about consistency and creativity.
Building Relationships
Raj stressed that the most important part of social
media is audience engagement and building relationships. He recommended
interacting with other users on social media, like Twitter, and building a
network. The most successful social media users are the ones who listen to
their followers and talk to them.
Raj happens to be a
friend of my cousin's, so we got together to chat. The selfie we took is below
(because when social media people get together, they take selfies). You can
find Raj on Twitter and Instagram, if you want to find out more about his cool
life in LA.
