Recently, I have taken a look into how I present myself on social media. I decided to find out what my reputation score is through a website called “Brand Yourself” and I was encouraged to find that I fell in the yellow portion of the score. I soon went to work and by following the steps they recommended I take, I was able to bump up my score to 675, putting me in the green area! Now, after a month of working on improving my social media reputation I am only able to say I have a score of 666. I didn’t end up increasing my score but overall I know I learned a lot about the reputation I am creating for myself online.
My First Score…
When I first looked at my reputation score I was in the yellow area, after a week or so of working at it, I soon got myself to a score of 666.
First Reputation Score
My second Score…
Well, after a month of updating my social media account and revising my accounts, I was only able to achieve a score of 666. Putting down by 9 points from my previous score.
Second Reputation Score
Steps I Took To Increase Reputation Score
I looked at the top websites that appear after googling my name and I corrected the links that showed up under my name but were not related to me. By fixing this issue I have the correct information and links showing up after searching my name. Miscommunication and false information could have been negatively impacting my social media reputation with links unrelated to me. Now, I have positive links that represent who I am and are related to my life show up when searching my name. This had a great impact on my score and this definitely increased it the most.
Furthermore, I looked into my social media names and made sure I had both my first and last name with correct spelling and without nicknames. This made sure to tell people who I am and give myself a better opportunity to look professional online. Putting my full name on my social media accounts also reduces confusions when someone is trying to find me via social media. This pushed my score up significantly and made my reputation look a little more professional than before.
I also tried to go through my social media posts, including tweets, pictures, videos, and stories. I looked at the content I was posting and whether it could be viewed in a negative or demeaning way. If so, I either deleted the post or edited it to better represent the reputation I want for myself. Doing this did help me personally but I was unable to get any points through the website because this is a paid feature.
Take Initiative of Your Reputation
You too can find out what your reputation score is and learn how to earn a better brand for yourself! If you want to learn more about the website and learning what score you have, click this link: BrandYourself.com
As defined by the google dictionary, a podcast is a digital audio file made available on the Internet for downloading to a computer or mobile device, typically available as a series, new installments of which can be received by subscribers automatically. The podcast I discuss below refers to a public relations podcast called PR Bants. I also go into deeper detail with the specific episode I listened to, PR Bants #18.
Podcast
Podcast Review
Personally, I thought this podcast was interesting due to the relevant and honest topics they discuss. I found it a little boring as the talking was soft but they kept the information on topic and to the point with a little bit of comical banter which I enjoyed.
This podcast episode (PR Bants #18) covers social media topics, specifically they discussed the following topics:
Twitter’s renewed efforts to tackle online abuse
#MeToo: The hashtag that triggered a global conversation about sexual harassment
Is Facebook’s “digital safety ambassador” scheme a gimmick?
Is the furore surrounding Dove’s “racist” body wash advert justified?
Fashion brand Jigsaw tackles Brexit and immigration
Theresa May’s party conference speech
I very much enjoyed this episode as I found all the information interesting and I enjoyed hearing the opinions of the speakers from a public relations view. There were no advertisement stops within the podcast listening but they played music from Jukedeck and they reference and advertise it. They advertised a little about the #MeToo campaign and I think this podcast could advertise more social media campaigns as it directly relates to most of their topics.
Overall, I enjoyed listening to this podcast and I was interested in the topics they discussed. I liked learning about different things happen on social media and hearing the public relations side of the stories. It was interesting to hear stories from a public relations point of view and I thought the insight from this podcast was useful. I recommend listening to this podcast to anyone who enjoys social media and being up to date on hot topics, especially if you’re looking for a public relations point of view!
More from PR Bants
Other episode from PR Bants include topics about the following:
Windrush and the government’s handling of a ‘national disgrace’
Starbucks’ nationwide effort to educate its workforce about racial bias
JD Wetherspoon go back to basics and shuts its social media accounts
Maya Jama and why celebrities should care about their social media footprint
predictions about what is in store for the communications industry in 2018
How Lyft capitalised on the public backlash against Uber
United Airlines’ reputation management
Uber and Starbucks’ campaign to encourage young people to vote
How Love Island fever swept the nation
Why #AskEddie was such a hit for Southern Rail
The thorny issue of the BBC Gender Pay Gap
Listen to PR Bants
If you would like to listen to PR Bants you can visit this website: PR Bants Link
If you would like to listen to the PR Bants #18 episode that I reviewed you can visit this link: PR Bants Episode #18 Link
Advanced skills with Microsoft Office programs (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
Knowledge and familiarity with video editing programs.
Advanced understanding of all social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. Possesses a bachelor’s degree in related field.
Professional experience in marketing/development, sales, and/or public relations.
Action:
I will first earn a bachelor’s degree in Advertising and Public Relations with an emphasis in Advertising at Grand Valley State University. Through the following courses I will understand social media platforms, gain advanced skills in Microsoft Office programs, and learn video editing programs: CAP 105 – Technology in Public Relations and Advertising (currently taking) at GVSU, certificates in Microsoft Office programs that can be found here: Microsoft Office Certificate Website, and FVP 123 – Survey of Media Production Modes (sophomore year) at GVSU. Then I will gain experience through internships or other entry level jobs.
Conduct strategic analysis monthly, define conclusions and make recommendations.
Analyze by product, competitor, TV advertising, trade merchandising to learn what is driving or negatively affecting the business.
Develop go-to-market materials (packaging, user guides, point of purchase material, online content/videos, etc), partnering with outside and inside team members/agencies
Degree minimum: Bachelor’s degree
3-6 years experience
Action:
First, in order to gain the experience and skills required I will receive a bachelor’s degree in Advertising and Public Relations with an emphasis in Advertising at Grand Valley State University. Through this I will take courses such as CAP 310 – Advertising Management and Cases (around my junior year) which will teach me about analyzing and interpreting social media data. Then after receiving my bachelor’s degree I will look for internships and entry level jobs to build experience, such as non-profit organization volunteering.
Experience with Paid Facebook, Search, Pinterest, TV, YouTube, Audio (radio or podcast), or Direct Mail
Experience with web analytics platforms (mixpanel, google analytics, etc.)
Expertise with Excel
Bonus: Experience with web testing tools (optimizely, google experiments, etc.), Data Visualization tools, and Lookr
Bonus: bilingual: spanish or german
Action:
To begin, to earn the experience and skills required I will receive a bachelor’s degree in Advertising and Public Relations with an emphasis in Advertising at Grand Valley State University. This will give me experience with social media platforms and web analytics through courses like CAP 105 – Technology in Public Relations and Advertising (currently taking) and CAP 413 – Media Planning (take my senior year). I am also required to take a foreign language when completing a bachelor of arts degree, which gives me a bonus. Then, after graduating I can apply!
Manage digital communications, including website, blog, and social media
Update and maintain website
Solicit, edit, and write blog posts; administer organizational blog
Maintain Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other social mediums
Leverage trends and topics in social media, sparking conversation with relevant social media users
B.A. or B.S. required, in Marketing, Public Relations, or Communications
Experience using Adobe InDesign and Adobe Photoshop
Two‐to‐three years’ professional experience managing marketing and communications for non-profit organizations
Preferred: Graduate degree
Action:
First, I will receive a bachelor’s degree in Advertising and Public Relations with an emphasis in Advertising at Grand Valley State University this will give me the skill set required for this job. Taking the courses COM 295 – Communication Theory (sophomore year) and CAP 413 – Media Planning (senior year) as well as, CAP 310 – Advertising Management and Cases (junior year) will educate me on managing digital communications as well as experience with social media platforms and Adobe workshop. I could continue to earn a Master of Science in Communication studies at GVSU, however that is not required. Through volunteering at local charities I could soon earn a job and gain two-three years of experience.
University or College Degree or equivalent job experience
Minimum 3-5 years of related field work
Proven Microsoft suite experience
Salesforce and Office 365 software experience an asset
Social media experience
Action:
In order to gain the experience and skills required I will first receive a bachelor’s degree in Advertising and Public Relations with an emphasis in Public Relations at Grand Valley State University. Through the course CAP 413 – Media Planning (senior year) I will gain social media experience. After graduating I would look for jobs at restaurants, schools, or other places in need of event planning. I will gain three to five years of experience through event planning for different places as well as receive experience using Microsoft and other software.
Coordinating and executing the company’s social media strategy
Working across key social media channels including Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Increasing our social media presence and gaining visibility for our brand among clients and new hire candidates.
Action:
I will earn a bachelor’s degree in Advertising and Public Relations with an emphasis in Advertising at Grand Valley State University. Through this I will take the courses, CAP 105 – Technology in Public Relations and Advertising (currently taking) and CAP 413 – Media Planning (senior year) which will adequately prepare in social media strategies as well as social media platforms and brand advertising. This internship will prepare me for other jobs which may require previous years of experience.
Prior experience and/or familiarization with Google AdWords, Bing, Yahoo, Facebook and/or YouTube ad platforms
Prior experience and/or familiarization using Google Analytics and generating custom reports
Experience in B2B digital marketing
Action:
To gather the necessary skill set I will first earn a bachelor’s degree in Advertising and Public Relations with an emphasis in either Public Relations of Advertising at Grand Valley State University. Through this I will gain certificates in Google Analytics, Hootsuite, and Hubspot in the course CAP 105 – Technology in Public Relations and Advertising (currently taking). I will then look for an internship with a company that uses B2B digital marketing like Element5, to gain experience.
Proven track record of sales success, preferably in media setting
Proficiency with computer applications such as Word, Excel and Powerpoint
Analyze clients’ marketing goals, develop need based solutions and present solution sets to key decision makers
Oversee advertising campaign execution and analysis
Action:
I will first earn a bachelor’s degree in Advertising and Public Relations with an emphasis in Advertising at Grand Valley State University. Through this I will take courses such as CAP 310 – Advertising Management and Cases (around my junior year) and CAP 490 – Internship in Advertising/Public Relations (around my senior year) which will teach me about analyzing and interpreting social media data and adding experience through the internship. After graduating I will have the skill set required for this job.
1+ year working experience in digital marketing field
Solid knowledge of website analytics tools (e.g., Google Analytics & Tag Manager)
Working knowledge of WordPress
Google AdWords and Google Analytics Certifications
Action:
I will first earn a bachelor’s degree in Marketing at Grand Valley State University. Then after taking CAP 105 – Technology in Public Relations and Advertising (currently taking) I will be knowledgeable with website analytics, WordPress, and Google Analytics certifications. I will then complete the Google AdWords certificate on my own time around my junior or senior year. I do this in three steps: 1. register for a Google Partners account, 2. pass the Google AdWords Fundamentals exam with a score of 80% or higher, 3. pass one of the five other Google AdWords exams with a score of 80% or higher. I will then have the requirements necessary for this job.
Strong knowledge and understanding of current trends in social media and digital media
Experienced with MS Office
Must have a bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Communications, Public Relations, or Human Resources
Three years related work experience required
Proficient in Adobe Creative Cloud (Photoshop, InDesign, and Illustrator)
Strong graphic design skills
Strong knowledge and understanding of current trends in social media, digital media, and marketing
Action:
In order to gain the experience and skills required I will first receive a bachelor’s degree in Advertising and Public Relations with an emphasis in Public Relations at Grand Valley State University. Through the classes CAP 321 – Media Relations Writing (junior year) and CAP 105 – Technology in Public Relations and Advertising (currently taking) I will gain strong knowledge of social media marketing as well as understanding social media trends. I will gain experience and skills related to graphic design and Adobe platforms through the course CAP 490 – Internship in Advertising/Public Relations (senior year). Then I will search for internships and entry level jobs related to this field until I gather three years of experience.
Empowering people is not an easy task. People need to feel wanted in the work environment as well as important for them to truly collaborate and work together. In order for businesses to accomplish the goal of empowering their workers to collaborate together they need to understand the wants and needs of the workers. Workers need trust between one another, they want a clear vision, and they need control over their input and what they are communicating. All of these contribute to stronger collaboration and better use of the available technology to collaborate.
First, trust between coworkers does not come easily and it can be difficult to incorporate this into the work place. One way to include trust building is to encourage small talk! Small talk is no small thing and the outcomes can be beneficial to the work environment. Small talk happens between two people who don’t know each other very well. They begin to have an informal conversation about an unimportant topic. When given the chance to bond over similar interests even for a couple of minutes people start to build a relationship. Building mutual and friendly bonds stems from the first couple of “small talk” conversations and from this people build trust. This is beneficial due to an increase in collaborative work among workers and empowerment to become a leader in their field.
Continually, workers want to know exactly what a business expects out of them. They want a clear and well communicated vision and goal. Some ways to do this is by sharing calendars, work plans, power-points, and other forms of collaborative schedules and goals, Google apps are a great way to share information. The use of the aforementioned software is the most beneficial for co-worker collaboration because it is easily accessible and allows everyone to participate in their own timing and way. Through this, workers feel empowered. They feel important in decision making processes as well as feeling like their input is acknowledged and appreciated. This will increase workers involvement in collaborative projects and overall participation.
Furthermore, businesses should incorporate Google Docs and other shareable and easily collaborative resources in order for their workers to be able to have control over their part in a project. To have control over the information they provide to a project will increase the amount of information they give and the value of information received. Giving workers more responsibility and allowing flexible time for completion can positively influence co-worker collaboration. Giving them control over their job and allowing them to make the decisions will create trust between employer and employee and great collaboration between the two. These actions will empower workers greatly and lead to an overall better work environment.
To conclude, these steps will increase empowerment among workers and therefore contribute to higher collaboration systems. I predict that collaboration between co-workers will increase in the future due to technology advancement and the increasing amount of information that people share via social media and other software programs. I think that flexibility for in office hours and out of office hours will increase due to the advancing uses of collaborative software programs. Learning how to empower workers will increase collaboration between co-workers and therefore lead to a better business.
While making this infograph I found the information on social media and how it is used for shopping purposes very intriguing. As an 18 year old female I thought that Instagram was the most popular social media platform used however I learned that Facebook is STILL the most popular today for shopping purposes. I was shocked to see that Snapchat ranked higher in the percent of use among 18-24 year old’s than Instagram did and I was in wonder on how many people were found to not have a social media account. Overall, there were some useful and fun facts found about the uses of social media and I encourage you to look at the links I provided for more information about social media uses!
Social media is drastically sweeping into our lives. Social media is replacing personal interactions and encouraging miscommunication. However, it also increases long distance connections and allows information at a click of a button. The different uses of social media are spreading into our everyday routines and the affects it takes on our lives need to be known. Social media has both beneficial and detrimental aspects when interfering with personal interactions and is shown both personally and professionally.
Personally, I grew up in a very family oriented home. My parents were strong advocates for family game nights and dinners. However, while the use of social media increased in my family there was a noticeable decrease in the amount of family interactions. The personal interactions between my family is negatively affected by social media. Society’s ability to communicate on an emotional level is now hidden behind screens. The ability to relate, understand, and read body signals is being forgotten and replaced by the emotionless text or post. Social media is slowly taking over natural human communication and is hindering it away from personal interaction.
However, the ability to stay connected from a distance through social media does highlight benefits. Many people use social media as a tool to stay connected to distant friends and family. Social media used personally keeps people updated on their lives and help the connection of long distance relationships. Not only does the ability to communicate from a distance benefit the personal uses but also the professional uses. Social media platforms has allowed business’s the opportunity to reach their audiences sufficiently and easily. The professional use of social media includes everyone and has become an important part of advertising and public relations. The ability to reach an audience anywhere in the world and create connections is a vital part of marketing plans. Therefore, his aspect of social media is beneficial both personally and professionally.
Lastly, while social media supplies easy access to information about anything and anyone with a click of a button, the information found is commonly taken out of context and misinterpreted. Information about anyone is at your fingertips and involves no confrontation. Retrieval about peoples interests, life choices, careers, and hobbies are accessed through personal and professional use. What is put online for everyone to see can either benefit or hurt the reputation of that person. Miscommunication is a common factor of retrieving information about someone without their presence. Events are placed out of context, decisions are judged without explanation, and interests are scrutinized based on the opinion of the searcher. This is a powerful tool and can be used in both beneficial and detrimental ways.
Conclusively, social media is interfering with everyday communication. Through replacing personal and emotional interactions, increasing long distance relationships, and encouraging miscommunication. Both personally and professionally social media is affecting human interaction. Social media will continue to grow and knowing what the possible outcomes are can greatly influence personable interactions. This communication tool shows both positive and negative aspects and is not slowing down on it’s way into our everyday routines.
When I think of the future of technology I can never picture a specific design or piece of life changing technology. I think of all the possibilities, no matter the shape/form/look, of how technology can help, or not help, society today. In a field like Advertising and Public Relations, technology is a vital part of the everyday job. Staying in the know of upcoming and current technology is what keeps professionals in this field relevant and able to do their job to the best of their ability. Technology is going to grow and continue to grow everyday, every hour, every second! The possibilities are never ending and all it takes is our imagination and some pretty handy engineering to create.
Continuing on from my point about how technology can or cannot help today’s society is a, somewhat nerdy, point of view from my Anthropology class. In class we discussed the question, what is progress? Progress is not always as promising as it sounds. In many old-fashioned cultures (like the ones where gathering and hunting is their only source of survival), when a more developed government tries to implement their way of life, many things go wrong in the culture that was once thriving. The progress that the developed government hoped to achieve with the indigenous culture, in fact, back fired. The word progress can now be seen in a new perspective and the same perspective can be used to look at technology. Is the progress of technology truly beneficial? Plenty of movies and shows have demonstrated the negative effects that technology and the progress of technology have taken on society: Nerve, CyberBullying, Unfriended, Black Mirror, and of course, The Matrix. Technology can definitely make a powerful and positive impact on society but with the wrong people taking advantage of that power (or in the case of The Matrix, technology outsmarting humans) negativity can spread. While both takes on technology are valid, I believe that technology creates a positive environment for people to connect with each other and inspire one another. Especially in the field of advertising and public relations where the everyday use of technology is used to spread ideas, opinions, products, and persuasive slogans. As technology develops so will the uses, can you imagine a time where twitter, an extremely popular tactic in this industry, disappears and a new social network takes its place? Imagine the hologram version of twitter where a 3D image of someone pops out of the newest iPhone and repeats the tweet to you as a hologram. Commercials could interact and connect to the viewers on a whole new level! This is technology progressing in a positive and helpful manner, that is, when used in a positive way.
Finally, when it comes down to it, technology is a tool. The future of technology is put in the hands of the people and it is up to us to use this powerful tool in a positive or negative way. Technology will always be evolving but the choice of how it progresses is truly in the way we decide to use it. In the world of advertising and public relations there is no doubt that new and enhanced versions of broadcasting information is a top priority. The tools of advancing technology can help reach a broader audience, it can connect ideas to people in a stronger matter, and it can visualize and detail the goals and dreams of people on a larger platform. How will you choose to progress your technology? I encourage you to use the tools you have at your fingertips; voice your opinions, random thoughts, ideas, and concerns! Listen to others expressing themselves and create connections! The world of technology is in your hands, be smart with how you progress.
Hologram
Citations:
Pika San TV, TOP 10 Video – 3D Hologram Video, Youtube, November 2016
Jhay-lah's Story 