Today I read a great post by Sean Bohan on one of my favorite topics the “Social Media Expert”. Sean asked the question, “Do Experts Matter”? (As we get to know each better, one thing you will learn about me is I don’t like the term “Social Media Expert”). This field of Social & New Media is changing everyday and every moment. There are people right now creating web sites, tools and widgets that will change the field. These things will make you go “Wow, why did I not think about that?” What is hot at 10:00 am may have crashed at 12:00 and been replaced by something else. All one can do is try to keep up by being part of the community.
How does one keep up with all this information? Do you really need a “Social Media Expert” to help you understand this new space? People hire social media consultants to teach them how to use soical networking tools and establish their brands online. Do you need to this? Maybe, not everyone is cut out to be a consultant. But you can learn a lot on your own. You can do this really easy, simple and fast.
Here are the simple steps, I will put it in list form, people like lists.
-Setup a Facebook and Linkedin account
- Join Twitter
-Join the conversation by commenting, asking questions and giving back.
Bonus step:
-Dare to be on FriendFeed ( I know its scary but you can do it.)
Thats it. Heck you too can be a Social Media Consultant if you want to. (note: I did not use the term expert.)
Wonder if I just posted my way out of a job?<-->
This post was written by davepeck on September 26, 2008
Great post, Dave. I agree. I recently spoke with a friend of mine whose title is Interactive Media Editor. He wasn’t on FB, he wasn’t on Twitter. I had him over and set up accounts for him. Nowadays, it’s a must for media people.
Keep up the good job!!
Great advice! Nice, simple and to the point. I think some people think social media is a big and overwhelming universe – it really isn’t. You only NEED to be on a few sites and the rest just takes care of itself. Nice job.
Jodi & Eve thank you both for the great feedback. Glad you like it. Was not sure if people would be on board with it.
Thanks for keeping the blog simple and entertaining. You’re right, social media is always changing…it’s a ever-going race to keep up, but at least it’s usually exciting and fun subjected to be invested in.
Thanks!
an* sorry for the typo.
Hi Dave,
Love the graphic.
And the sentiment.
I’ve got a class on Social Media coming up this semester and I just added a link to my notes to start with this.
Great advice.
Let’s not complicate things too much.
–Steve
Jennifer and Steve thanks for the great comments and feedback. Steve thanks for including me in your class!
Here’s a link to the slide deck where I highlighted this post:
http://offonatangent.blogspot.com/2008/10/new-media-tools-for-journalism.html