Social Media and Your Business

This two-day workshop will help you teach participants how to:

• Describe the value of social media to their marketing plan
• Create and launch a social media marketing plan
• Select the right resources for a social media marketing team
• Define how to use social media to build an internal community
• Use metrics to measure the impact of a social media plan
• Manage difficult social media situations
• Describe features of some of the key social media sites, including Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter
• Decide whether a blog adds value to a social media plan
• Speak about specialty sites and social medial management tools
• Stay on top of social media trends and adjust their plan as the online world evolves

Course Overview

• You will spend the first part of the day getting to know participants and discussing what will take place during the workshop. Students will also have an opportunity to identify their personal learning objectives.

Getting Started

• To begin the course, participants will explore what social media is. They will also review their pre-assignment and look at where their social media strategy currently is.

Understanding the Marketing Mix

• Next, participants will review the five P’s of the marketing mix and how social media fits in with them.

Developing a Social Media Plan

• In this session, participants will learn seven tips for developing a social media plan. Utilization guidelines will also be covered. Participants will then complete an in-depth social media plan worksheet. The session will wrap up with a look at evaluating the costs and benefits of social media marketing.

Building Your Social Media Team

• Getting the right people on a social media marketing team is essential. This session will offer participants some ways to build the team. Participants will also explore the idea of community in social media.

Using Social Media to Build Internal Communities

• In this session, participants will look at using social media to build employee engagement.

Analyzing Your Impact with Metrics

• This session will discuss useful metrics to analyze and trends to look for. Participants will also look at the importance of timing when launching a campaign.

Keeping on Top of the Trends

• The biggest challenge in social media is that things are always changing. This session will give participants some ways to stay on top of current trends. We will also look at social media sites that have come and gone.

Damage Control

• One disadvantage of social media is that negative news and rumors can spread like wildfire. In this session, participants will learn some damage control tactics. They will also complete a case study on the United Breaks Guitars story.

Using Facebook

• Now that participants have a solid understanding of the principles of social media marketing, they will move on to specific platforms. To start, participants will learn how to leverage Facebook. They will learn how to get started, how to build a community, and ways to take Facebook involvement further.

Using LinkedIn

• Next, participants will learn all about LinkedIn. To begin, they will learn the essentials of getting started. Then, they will learn how to set up an account, build connections, and use groups.

Using Twitter

• In this session, participants will learn about Twitter, including tweeting, re-tweeting, using hashtags, and using lists. Participants will also have an opportunity to brainstorm memorable, appropriate Twitter names.

Building a Blog

• The world of blogging has expanded greatly, with microblogs and video logs (also known as vlogs) joining the mix in recent years. This session will start by helping participants identify if they should be blogging. Then, basic blog rules, strategies for making an impact, and ways to choose content will be covered. Participants will also consider whether vlogs fit into their social media marketing plan.

Using Specialty Sites

• There are many specialty social media sites that focus on a particular niche. This session will cover three of the most popular platforms: Yammer, Pinterest, and SnapGuide.

Using Social Media Management Tools

• This session will introduce some tools that can help participants manage their social media presence. TweetDeck, HootSuite, Posterous, and Salesforce Radian6 will all be discussed, as well as things to consider when using a social media management tool.

Launching Your Plan

• The final session of the course will give participants an opportunity to review, revise, and polish their social media marketing plan. They will also consider the steps for implementing it in their workplace.

Workshop Wrap-Up

• At the end of the course, students will have an opportunity to ask questions and fill out an action plan.