Week 8: SEO internship opportunity - MKTG 348

While studying SEO as well as reading Introduction to Search Engine Optimization I thought it would be a good idea to look up jobs/internships that deal with my studies. The results I found were amazing. One of the positions I came across was this one:

Yes, I am aware that this job description has nothing to do with SEO. But I continued to read through and found something awesome.

Under Preferred Qualifications the last bullet point states, "Experience with Google Analytics, SEO social media marketing and web development". All of which are now qualifications I have. Last semester I studied social media marketing and became certified in Hootsuite. For the past two semester I have looked into and got my feet wet with Google Analytics. It's really awesome to see that the things I am studying will benefit my future. This job that I found is something that I would 110% apply for. I love helping students and I am a big fan of social media marketing. In this case this job goes hand and hand with the things I am interested in. I'm excited to continue to dive head first into SEO as well ask social media marketing.

Week 7: New SEO tool - MKTG 348

This week I decided to branch out and try some SEO tools on my own. One cool tool, hey that rhymes, I came across was Moz. Mom is a SEO and social media marketing company. They offer many tools that benefit SEO and marketing on their website.

When I got to their home page this is the first thing I came across. Seemed interesting so I did some digging. This site has many features. Some you have to pay for but some are free. I'm a college student so of course I opted for the free tool.

The first free tool that is offered is a KeyWord tool. It is very similar to the one I talked about in one of my last posts. Type in a Keyword and see suggestions and how many times its been searched.

Some of the other tools include:

The MozBar is pretty cool. Its a tool bar that gives you instant metrics. This tool is free, but only for 30 days. Here's what it looks like:

There is no data in it because it is just a sample. However, I do plan on continuing to explore Moz. It seems reliable. Perhaps I'll do the 30 day trial and create another post giving it a review. 

Week #14 Social media and my other classes

Being a Comms major I am always using social media. There is not one project that I have done this semester that does not involve using social media. I am in a class called Media and Society. This class looks at social media and how people are easily deceived by things they see on social media. Many people look to social media to find current events. Lets use the recent hurricanes for example.

During the time of the hurricane Harvey people were tweeting out pictures of the damage, flooding and others being helped to safety. An example of this can be seen in the picture below.

There were also fake pictures people were tweeting as well. The pictures, in my opinion, looked real. It made me realize people are really good at photoshop. These pictures were more or less used as a joke but some of them looked totally believable. The picture below is an example I found.

I saw this picture and had to look at it for a few minutes because it looks so real. Obviously, the picture is not real but it looks so real. This picture was retweeted thousands of times on Twitter. Heck I even retweeted it too because I thought it was funny. But after reading the Twitter thread that followed this picture many people though it was real. 

The problem with social media is that people are so easily deceived. Many people look to social media because it is the fastest way information is spread. It's a blessing and a curse. It's a blessing because we can get important information very fast, but its also a curse because false information can also be spread just as fast. This is one of the many things I have learned in my Media and Society class. My tip to you is to always fact check. If you see something that looks strange or doesn't sound right Google it. If you cannot find the information from a reliable source on Google then you will know it's fake. 

Week #11 Facebook ads pt 2

Facebook ads, love em or hate em they are here to stay. A few weeks ago I wrote a blog about Facebook ads discussing the pros and cons. This past week I had the chance to make a "mock" Facebook ad for my own Facebook page. Creating the ad was very simple. The first thing you need to do is brain storm what kind of ad you would like to create. Then once you have an idea of what type of ad you would like to make you click on this link: https://www.facebook.com/business/
This link will lead you to a page that will help you create your very own ad! The image blow is a "mock" ad I created.

I crated this ad to promote my Facebook page. The image above would typically appear on the right hand side of your newsfeed. One thing to note is that making a Facebook ad is not free. You can spend as much or as little money as you want of your ad. You do not need to pay for the ad until after you see what the ad you created looks like. 

There are also many different types of ads you can create. The one I chose was "engagement". Engagement helps promote your Facebook page to gain more likes. In the picture above you can see there are 11 types of ads you can create. Once you choose a type of ad Facebook guides you through the steps to creating your very on ad. I my opinion it was very simple to create an ad. As much as I think Facebook ads are a pain in the butt, they are very helpful. After doing this mini project I do not hate them as much as I used to. If you guys have a business or a Facebook page that you want to promote I suggest testing the waters and creating your own Facebook ad! Here's the link if any of you guys want to give it a try! https://www.facebook.com/business/

Week 10: More Hootsuite

Last week I talked about how Hootsuite and how it can be used as a tool to make posts and send them  to all forms of social media. This week I did a test post to get my feet wet. The first thing I did was make sure all my social media platforms were linked. As seen in the picture below.

After selecting which social media platforms you would like your content to be posted on click "send now" and your content will be posted! Below are some sample pictures of my test posts on Twitter, Facebook and Linkedin.

As you can see "testing Hootsuite" was posted to all three of my social media platforms at once! Say you did not want to post your content at this time. You can set a timer and have you content post whenever you want. That tool can be useful for time sensitive material. Last semester I took a public relations writing course. I wish I knew about Hootsuite while I was in that class. During that time was constantly posting to multiple social media platforms at once but I had to do each individually and all at different times. PR is a possibility for me in the future so I'm very fortunate to be learning how to use Hootsuite now. Can't wait to keep learning more!

Week 9: Hootsuite

This week in class we dove deeper into Hootsuite. Before I dive into my new discoveries I wanted to recap do a quick recap of what Hootsuite is. Hootsuite is a way to manage all your social media from one place. You are able to link you personal or business profiles to this site. For example, in the picture below you can see I linked my Facebook page, Twitter and LinkedIn. 

Linking all your social media networks to Hootsuite will make it easier to manage. Once you have linked all your social media you will be able to send posts to those networks from Hootsuite. In the picture below you can see that I am getting ready to send  a test post. This post will be sent to all three of my social media platforms. Not only can I send my post to multiple platforms at one time, I can also schedule when I want my post to be posted. Which I think is pretty cool.

I plan on using this wonderful tool for the rest of my career. I am a communications major and I know that this tool will make my life a lot easier. I plan on managing social media for a sports team in the future. When I land a social media job on a sports team you better believe I will be using Hootsuite. I can't wait to share the new skills I learn as I keep navigating through Hootsuite.

Week 7: Social analytics

This week in class we talked about how to better understand basic social analytics. In simpler terms this means I got a backstage pass to look closer at my Facebook page activity. As of right now I do not have many followers, you totally should go to Facebook right now and hit that "like" button, but that is okay. I have realized that the more content I post the more people will flock to my page.

After reading up on social analytics I decided to look into my own Facebook page to see what's happening behind the scenes. One cool thing I came across is the chart below. This chart tells me where in the world people are viewing my blog from, which age groups are looking at my posts, as well as the percent of men and women looking at my posts. This to me was super cool. Literally people from all over the world have viewed my page. It's also crazy that Facebook knows the location of these people LOL.

Knowing Facebook analytics can be very important, especially to those using Facebook for business purposes. As for me I think its cool to see to get a deeper look into what happening backstage. I plan on looking behind the scenes at the end of the semester to see how much has changed. Check back in a few weeks to see my update on who's been checking out my Facebook page! 

Week 6: What Color is Your Parachute?

Yet another great chapter from What Color is Your Parachute? This week I read about tips for interviews. I have never really been to an "official" interview before. All the jobs I have had thus far have not had a big interview process. The interviews I have experienced have not been longer than ten minutes and usually the person interviewing me made it seem like the job I was trying to get was not a big deal. With that being said I was happy to see a chapter dedicated to interviewing tips.

One thing that stood out to me was that you are also supposed to ask the interviewer questions. Before reading this chapter I knew I was going to have to ask the interviewer questions I was just not sure of what I was supposed to ask. This section gives example questions; "What does this job involve?" and "What are the skills a top employee in this job would have to have?". I think asking the person who is interviewing you questions is important because it makes it seem like you are more interested in the job, which you should be. After reading this section I plan on making a list of questions to ask during my next interview. I know it will play a big role in getting the job.

Week 6: Twitter

This week my social media marketing talked about Twitter. The chapter discusses things such as pros and cons, what to do and what not to do, and how to create a Twitter. Personally, I love Twitter I use it more than any other social media that I have. It's quick and easy. You can turn notifications on for someone you follow so you see everything they tweet as soon as they tweet it. Twitter is huge with us menials and will continue to grow. Here is a snap shot of my Twitter. Feel free to give me a follow I am always tweeting out the links to my blogs! 

Like I mentioned earlier I believe twitter will continue to grow. For example people can post a picture to Twitter and it can get hundreds of thousands of "likes" and "retweets" in a matter of minutes. For example, you can find out anything that's happening in the world instantaneously because of Twitter. A good way to see what's happening is to look at "trends for". Here you can find anything from news to the latest pregnant celebrity. I am a big Twitter advocate and I will choose Twitter over Facebook everyday.

Here is a screen shot of the "Trends for you" where you can find whats trending right now!

 

Week #5 - Facebook ads

Facebook ads are alllllll over the place. I am sure most of you guys have seen them, heck i'm sure some of you are seeing some as your scrolling through Facebook right now. Reading chapter 4 of my social media marketing book I came up with a list of pros and cons of Facebook ads. Pros: they get people to lure them in to look at a certain product or business, anyone can create a Facebook ad, they can be very beneficial to you if you are running a campaign, and they are not that hard ti create.
Cons: You need to pay for your ad to be on Facebook ( the price varies ) and the only other con I can come up with is that some people might think of these ads as annoying.

Personally, if I had a business I would totally create Facebook ads. A lot of people use Facebook it's a great way to expand marketing. For example, look at the screen shot I took from my personal Facebook. A clothing company, on the right side, is trying to lure us in by telling us they have free shipping and that their clothes start at $8.99. Free shipping drew me right in. Also pictured is a link to the Dollar Shave Club. That could also be seen as an ad. They are offering what seems to be a package deal for only a dollar?? Of course we have to "see more" to find out what the real deal it. All in all Facebook ads could be very useful. Sure, an over abundance of them may seem a little annoying but in reality they are very beneficial.   

Week #5- What Color is Your Parachute?

In this weeks reading of What Color is Your Parachute I learned about job hunting. Job hunting never changes, well the essence of it doesn't change. Everyone has to go on a job hunt at least once in their life. It's something we cannot avoid. According to the book there is no right or wrong way to go on a job hunt. To be honest your going to fail countless amounts of times before you find the right job, but that is okay. It's a part of life. This book is here to guide us through this big scary world of "big boy or big girl" jobs. It's a trial and error process.

One thing we do need to realize is that job hunting is a job in itself. Looking for a job is a full time job LOL. People these days think that finding a job will happen fast. Hate to burst your bubble but that is not true what so ever. The job hunting process is not meant to be speedy. How good of a job can it be if everything happens so fast. Not only do you want to hunt for a job you like but you also want to do some research on it to make sure it is the right fit for you. Look into the places you are hiring. Ask your self if you could see yourself working in this kind of environment or if you could see yourself doing that job. If one of those things seems iffy keep searching. One thing I have learned so far is that job hunting is mysterious, it works in weird ways. So don't be upset if one of the jobs did not work out because the best job you've ever had could be right around he corner.

Week 4: Chapter 3, Introduction to Social Media Marketing.

Last week in class we learned how to make our own Facebook page. Making my own Facebook page is something I never thought I would do. I honestly had no Idea how to create a Facebook page until learning in class as well as reading this chapter. I think the biggest challenge to me was figuring out how to create the page in general. I had no idea where to start, but thankfully with the aid of my professor as well as his book I was able to create my own page!

Creating your own Facebook page could be very useful. Especially if you have your own business and are looking for a way to promote it. Since creating my own page I was able to post these blogs and get feedback from friends and family. I think having this page will help my blog grow. If anyone would like to know how to create their own Facebook page feel free to shoot me a message. I would be more than happy to help!

Week 4: What Color is Your Parachute? Ch 2 review

Last night I finished reading chapter 2 of What Color is Your Parachute?. I really enjoyed chapter 2. It was very informative. This chapter was titled, "Google Is Your New Resume". What that means is during this day and age companies are using Google more than an actual resume. It is becoming more and more popular for a company to search your name before they select you for an interview. With that being said, the chapter gives us 4 ways to improve your Google resume. Those 4 ways are; edit, fill in, expand, and add. Each of those 4 ways will make your google resume look a lot better. For example, when editing you want to make sure you delete anything you've posted that seems unprofessional. I think that editing is one of the most important things when fixing up your Google resume because if a company is looking at you and sees that you post things about getting drunk, racist comments and etc, you have less of a chance of getting hired.

Since this chapter talks about Google so much I decided to Google myself to see what would come up.

 

When I search my name nothing bad comes up. All the links to all forms of my social media show up, which I don't think is a bad thing. If a company decides to look at my social media I honestly would not care. My Instagram is open to the public because I do not post things I shouldn't. Same goes for my Twitter. The only issue I stumbled upon was when I image searched my name. Things my friends tagged me in came up. They are not bad pictures or anything, but their captions for things is what makes it iffy. Because of that I will be un-tagging myself from those pictures. 

I cannot wait to continue making posts about this book. So far it's been a blast.