Happy New Year!

As mentioned in yesterday's Wednesday Words, we will not have an article today due to the holiday.  We hope everyone is enjoying time off, if they are fortunate enough to not be working, and having a fun and enjoyable holiday season.

I look forward to the new year with lots of new articles and answering any questions you may have.

Happy New Year!

Wednesday Words: Social Media Manager

 This is a term that comes up regularly in the job postings we share on Mondays.  The term can be fairly varied, ranging from social media manager to social media diva to social media director (or director of social media) to social media coordinator, but they all ultimately end up being the same job (unless they end up being in charge of a team of people).  A Social Media Manager is, ultimately, the person in charge of planning, developing and implementing a social media plan and content strategies for a brand, cause, celebrity or topic.

Keep in mind, companies often have different expectations of what they want their social media manager to do - including marketing at times.  Be sure to read what the responsibilities of the job are before applying as different companies do expect different things - for example some may require you to be on Reddit or Tumblr a lot as part of the job, others may only require Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

Happy New Year!  We will be skipping Thursday Tutorials this week because of the holiday.  Enjoy the time off, if you have it.

Wednesday Words are a series of definitions released on Wednesday each week regarding a word found specific to Facebook's social media platform, or may be a generic word dealing with social media. These definitions are to help provide you with a better understanding of common and uncommon terms associated with Facebook and social media. You can find all the Wednesday Words by clicking on the Wednesday Words tag below.

Tuesday Tips: Planning for the New Year

Do you have a page but haven't done much with it?  Or perhaps you haven't gotten around to making a page for your business?  What about your Twitter account, Instagram, Pinterest Business account or LinkedIn Business Profile?  Once you've narrowed down the social media outlets you want to participate in, now is the perfect time to to settle down and start creating.  This will allow you to launch your band on social media platforms with the new year and see your stats from the beginning of the year.

The important thing to remember is that likes, follows, etc., start small and slowly spread.  Don't be shy about sharing a link to your social media accounts on your personal Facebook and LinkedIn walls and asking people to like and share it.  Don't be shy about inviting everyone on Facebook that you think would be interested in the page.  And don't be shy about emailing invites either.  A great way to let people know your business can be found on social media is to add it to the signature of your email as another way to connect with you.

While you can track your statistics for any time period, starting with the new year will give you an easy launch date to remember and measure the year's progress by.  It also gives you an opportunity to start with a fresh social media plan for the new year.  The new year is only a few days away.  If you can't hit the Jan. 1 deadline, target it for sometime in the month of January.  And keep in mind - plans need to be flexible and changing.

Best of luck and Happy New Year to everyone!

Tuesday Tips are a series of tips released on Tuesday each week regarding a hint or tip to help you manage and market your Facebook presence better.  You can find all the Tuesday Tips by clicking on the Tuesday Tips tag below.

The Monday Search: Job Listings Current as of 12/29/14

There are many jobs available out there for people knowledgeable about Social Media, but sometimes finding the job isn't easy.

Don't worry! Each week (when I have time) I will be featuring 3-5 jobs currently available as of Monday. Additional sites will be linked at the very bottom of the article and listed as sources. Other sites may be listed as well.

Here are this week's job listings I found interesting:

Loma Linda University is hiring a Coordinator-Social Media in Loma Linda, CA

Responsibilities:
This position will support LLUHS`s strategic plan and the organization`s mission to continue the teaching and healing ministry of Jesus Christ, while embracing the core values of Compassion, Integrity, Excellence, Teamwork, and Wholeness. The LLUH Social Media Coordinator will help our organization coordinate, moderate and inspire communications through the use of social media tools and applications and encourage the exchange of user-generated content. This position will serve as a conduit between the LLUH organization and our online target audiences. The Coordinator manages social media elements to foster interaction, education, engagement and discussion regarding university and health system offerings and activities through the use of online communities and ensures that this activity supports LLUH strategic communications goals. The Social Media Coordinator will manage and enhance our social media efforts on Facebook, Twitter, blogs and other social media channels. Social media is always changing, and the Social Media Coordinator will need to fluently know the tools of today, but also be apprised of the evolving social media landscape and be a leader in the organization for social media into the future. The ideal candidate is a high-energy, social media maven and blogger with the desire to coordinate and expand our presence through various channels. The Social Media Coordinator will report directly to the Director-Web Shared Resources. Performs other duties as needed.

Qualifications:
Bachelor’s degree in IT and/or Business or related field required. Minimum three years of experience in journalism and digital or communications required. Minimum one year participatory expertise in social media channels required. Minimum seven years of experience in journalism and digital or communications will be accepted in lieu of Bachelor’s degree. Able to work off hours and weekends as necessary. Understands the social media universe including Facebook, YouTube, Foursquare, Pinterest, Bookmarking sites (i.e., StumbleUpon, Delicious, Digg, Reddit), Flickr, Forums, Twitter, Wikis, blogs, etc. Demonstrates the ability to understand a communication strategy, map out a complimentary social media strategy and produce results. Understands what it means to shoulder the communication of a brand. Knowledge of search engine optimization basics including basic keyword research. Must be an experienced blogger as well as familiar with social media moderation/conversation. Demonstrated creativity and documented immersion in social media including extensive experience and proven success with audience engagement on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Able to demonstrate strong communication, writing and editing skills. Able to take charge of all facets of execution; communicate effectively between various internal teams; work as a team player with a desire to interact with others; work individually on a project or in a team environment; demonstrate a positive attitude and openness to developing new expertise and taking on new challenges. Able to prioritize and manage multiple projects simultaneously; be highly organized; use discretion to identify threats and opportunities in user-generated content; thrive in a fast-paced, deadline-based, ever-changing environment; demonstrate excellent organizational and time management skills. Able to distinguish colors as necessary; write, hear, read and speak sufficiently for general conversation in person and on the telephone; identify and distinguish various sounds associated with workplace; see adequately to read computer screens and written documents necessary to the position.

For more information: https://www.healthcaresource.com/lomalinda/index.cfm?fuseaction=search.jobDetails&template=dsp_job_details.cfm&cJobId=934987&utm_source=SimplyHired&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=SimplyHired&source=simplyhired

Music Artists is seeking a Social Media Coordinator in Los Angeles

There isn't much information available for this job unless you sign up with your resume.  The vague description of the job is as follows:

Looking for someone who is young and passionate about social media. This job would require working directly with (music) artists about executing big vision plans by posting content, curating content, and following trends and metrics for the results. Ideally, looking to work with someone who brings creative "BIG" ideas to the table with the work ethic to get things done in a supportive environment. This is a great foot in the door to the music business and if the fit is right, it could turn into a paid position.

For more information: http://www.4entertainmentjobs.com/jobs/112552?utm_medium=cpcLA&rx_medium=cpc&rx_source=simplyhired&rx_campaign=simplyhired15

Brigade Marketing is hiring a Social Media Manager in New York City

Responsibilities:

• Oversee and execute the day-to-day management and execution of social media and branding campaigns (including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, as well as other newly emerging platforms).
• Collaborate with the Director of Social Media to craft overarching strategies and goals.
• Managing a team to provide work in line with the client’s vision; directing pertinent research and insight into trends pertinent to the campaign and beyond. 
• Liaising with Creative team to bring the client’s vision to life.
• Deep understanding of the entertainment space from a social media perspective.
• Ongoing communication with client involving campaign status, strategies, and tactics.
• Drafting campaign strategies, proposals and concepts.
• Responsible for overseeing weekly campaign and status reports.
• Track and engage online discussions and buzz surrounding brand – including social media environments and message boards.

Qualifications:

• 3-4 years’ experience managing social media campaigns for brands.
• Experience working on a brand is a plus. Familiarity with the entertainment space is also a plus. 
• Growing brands and expanding their presence/footprint.
• Able to identify new areas of growth, new potential audiences, and new platforms with which to expand the brand.
• Able to make larger recommendations to client on content, strategy and tactics.
• A self-starter mentality with a solid sense of judgment.
• Proactive, detail-oriented, and extremely organized.
• Adherent to deadlines and follow-through.
• A skilled team player who can handle multiple tasks at once.
• Excellent client & project management skills.
• Creative thinker who can develop innovative ideas/strategies.
• Comfortable working in PowerPoint, Excel, as well as establishing campaign profiles in the various social media platforms.

For more information: http://www.mediabistro.com/alltwitter-jobs/jobview.asp?joid=174928&page=1

Other listings:

• Media Bistro Job Listings (note not all the jobs listed here are social media positions):http://www.mediabistro.com/alltwitter-jobs/?c=stnav
• LinkedIn Social Media Job Listings: http://www.linkedin.com/job/q-social-media-manager-jobs and http://www.linkedin.com/vsearch/j?keywords=socialmedia+manager or http://www.linkedin.com/job/q-social-media-marketing-jobs or http://www.linkedin.com/job/q-social-media-strategist-jobs
• CareerBuilder: http://www.careerbuilder.com/Jobs/Keyword/Social-Media-Manager/
• Indeed.com: http://www.indeed.com/jobs?q=Social-media
• Simply Hired: http://www.simplyhired.com/k-social-media-jobs.html 

The Monday Search is a brief listing of jobs available for those in the social media marketing field. All jobs are found through internet searches and are just featured because they are of interest to me. Monday Searches will contain links to sites with other job listings in addition to the ones listed here.  If you are interested in having a Social Media job opening featured for your company, please send me a message via Facebook on my page or my profile.

Merry Christmas to All

As mentioned in yesterday's Wednesday Words, with today being Christmas Day and spending time with family (and video games), we will not have a Thursday Tutorial due to the holiday.  The same will be true for next week with New Years Day.  We hope everyone is enjoying time off, if they are fortunate enough to not be working, and having a fun and enjoyable holiday season.

Merry Christmas!

Wednesday Words: Handle

Today's word is for Twitter and I'm actually surprised I haven't defined this word already (I looked to be certain I didn't).  Today's word is handle.  A handle, on Twitter and other websites even, is the name you choose to represent yourself.  It is, effectively, what appears after the @ in your twitter account.  Mine, for example, is @kayhynn.

Every handle needs to be unique and should be something representing you or your brand.  Kayhynn, for example, is the moniker I used in gaming and other websites for years.  It was available and a unique nickname I made for myself.  I use it to promote all of my work, now both gaming related and non-gaming related, like tweets for this blog and other blogs, as well as my author blog and such.  Other sites that I've created Twitter accounts for, are reflective of their website. For example, SciTechNerds.com is @SciTechNerds.

So if anyone ever asks for your Twitter handle, you now know what to give them or what you need to create if you don't have one.

Being as it's Christmas Eve, there will be no Thursday Tutorial post for tomorrow, which is Christmas Day.  We will have a scheduled Christmas post, but we hope everyone is spending time offline with their friends, family and loved ones.

Merry Christmas.

Wednesday Words are a series of definitions released on Wednesday each week regarding a word found specific to Facebook's social media platform, or may be a generic word dealing with social media. These definitions are to help provide you with a better understanding of common and uncommon terms associated with Facebook and social media. You can find all the Wednesday Words by clicking on the Wednesday Words tag below.

Tuesday Tips Revisited: Post Seasonal Related Topics

This is an updated reprint from last year.  Since it is this time of year and the information is still viable and useful - especially if you are new to social media, I see no harm in revisiting it.

Christmas, and the holiday season in general, is upon us.  Christmas eve is tomorrow and Christmas day follows and that is quickly followed by New Years Eve and Day.

It doesn't matter the holiday you are celebrating, be sure to engage your customers/fans with a seasonal related post.  It can be something as simple as - we'll use today as an example - "Wishing you and your family a Merry Christmas"  or "Happy Holidays" or "Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas".  The message doesn't have to be this generic, but it can be.

Or you could go a step further and create a custom graphic with the message to present to your customers.  Images are often liked and shared and creating a quick single or double image Christmas card isn't hard to do.

It's also good to engage folks with questions leading up to holidays and after holidays.  For example, on  one of the gaming pages I maintain, I have scheduled to ask "What games did you get for Christmas?" After Black Friday, we asked gamers what games they snagged.  On another of my blogs and facebook pages, I asked about what books or programs were on their Christmas wish lists.

This type of interaction shows that you aren't just about business and engages users in a different way.  If you are a creative type, you can even share custom holiday images, company holiday photos or a digital card with your followers.

That being said, we hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas and you get what you were hoping for.

Tuesday Tips are a series of tips released on Tuesday each week regarding a hint or tip to help you manage and market your Facebook presence better.  You can find all the Tuesday Tips by clicking on the Tuesday Tips tag below.