The Understated Importance of the Social Media Sensei

 

The Understated Importance of the Social Media Sensei

I am a self-taught social media user. I would rate myself as an intermediate skill level on Facebook and a beginner level in pretty much everything else. I am also a 44-year-old Army Recruiter in the twilight of his military career. I am obligated to use social media for prospecting efforts in recruiting and I do not have a highly successful rate of return from that form of prospecting. Recruiters receive blocks of instruction to show uses and best practices but many of us are stubborn and stuck in our ways. I am among the stubborn, but I am also aware enough to realize that this is the future of business. If I go into marketing, public relations, emergency management or any of many other career paths, they would all involve some form of social media management at the professional level. This is something that is only going to grow and become more of the norm as organizations come to realize the importance of social media managers and their intrinsic value will increase. “Companies need to develop new types of leaders that are social media literate, that can use these tools, and can make others better at using them. Otherwise they miss out on an increasingly important way to communicate and gather information.” (Nisen, 2013) An associate of mine has, for lack of a better term, mastered social media. He is on all the platforms that our target market visits regularly, and he creates memes, hilarious memes, informational content, personal life stories, and successful enlistments that he has personally put in the Army. His model is so effective that he travels around to different levels of our organization to train others to become successful using his method. The only thing is, his method is just that, his method. Not everyone is comfortable in front of the camera or sharing their experiences publicly. I can only imagine how good I would be at managing social media if I had learned it growing up but that wasn’t my timeline. The implementation of social media training in school curriculums would help a whole generation better understand the functions and capabilities of the platforms and better prepare them for what will be their future.

What would social media training look like?

The realm of social media has many positives, such as shared experiences, communication with long-lost friends, employment opportunities, romantic interactions, and many more. However, there are also many negatives. Something students would be able to identify with in this regard would be cyber bullying. Social media etiquette could be taught so students have a better understanding of the proper way to respond to comments or posts. There are also negative outcomes from other people gaining access to your page spreading information that is not in line with your own ideas. Password safety and security could be stressed and taught along with the importance of protecting yours and others’ personally identifiable information. These are minor things that could be taught at the lowest level (high school) to prepare students for the side of social media that they could potentially be utilizing in their professional fields. Getting students to already think in terms of social media management is preparing them for the workforce. Some fields specialize in social media risk-management and reduction. The article titled ‘Developing a Social Media Crisis Communication Plan’ discusses creating a “risk matrix chart” that identifies potential problematic situations, the likelihood of the situation occurring and the severity of the impact. (Livingston, 2021) This could be taught at a lower level and put in practice in personal situations to keep students actively engaged. Many millennials and young people of Generation Z want to be business owners. They are alive in a time and culture of YouTube and Tik Tok stars, but many don’t even realize what these roles are. Students could be introduced to the definition and makings of influencers and brand ambassadors. Subsign defines influencers as, “an individual who has a following in a particular niche, which they actively engage with and has the power to affect purchase decisions. The size of the following depends on the size of the niche.” (Subsign, 2018) Influencers have the opportunity to become Brand Ambassadors. This is what many young people want to be but don’t fully understand what’s involved. A sensei would shed light on these areas and let their students know that there is a whole virtual world out there and they’re going to be ready for it. Social media training would look different at different education levels, but it would all be prepositional to the next level.

Their Success is Our Success

We owe it to our youth to best prepare them for the future. Society will only go where they take it, and social media is a major conduit for communication heading into the future. The better they are prepared to navigate the nuances of social spaces the more likely organizations will see how much their value goes beyond their specific job description. It will become the norm and students that are not prepared will be relegated to the back while those that grasp it and put it into practice will be celebrated and rewarded with positions of trust. Those same individuals will train other members of the organization to think and do as they do in the best interest of the organization, inspiring growth. In that same vein, I will do better to seek out a mentor in the social media space and follow the guidance given to me. Employees that find themselves transitioning careers in this time need to understand this concept as much as anyone else. Employers are looking for different skills and social media is an area that can cover multiple facets of an organization, advertising, employee relations, customer service, as well as damage control. Ensure to make yourself an asset and get the necessary training to compete in this brave new digital world. Find a teacher and level up.

 

References

Livingston, Becky. 2021, Developing a Social Media Crisis Communication Plan. CPA Practice Advisor. https://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/firm-management/article/21209169/developing-a-social-media-crisis-communication-plan. Accessed on September 11, 2022.

Nisen, Max. 2013. Social Media Has Changed What It Means To Be A Leader. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/how-leaders-can-understand-social-media-2013-2. Accessed on September 11, 2022.

Subsign. 2018. Influencers vs Brand Ambassadors. Subsign.medium.com. https://medium.com/@subsign/influencers-vs-brand-ambassadors-4e2ae6eaadd2. Accessed on September 11, 2022.