Why you should want to work in social media!

(Live draft)

I work at a terrific advertising agency. My job is to develop and integrate social media marketing into the ad agency model. Introducing all these new social media marketing “tools” internally and externally can be a challenge. It is like drinking from the fire hose; so much new information to understand and digest. How can I introduce these new tools to my company while still making it exciting (and relevant) to learn?

We are trying to integrate social media marketing into the culture of our agency. How is this best accomplished? Obviously, forcing information down someone’s throat usually does not yield positive results. Plus, how do you overcome presentation/information fatigue? These are lessons learned from my experience building and integrating interactive marketing services into an ad agency model. So, why not make it fun? Because it actually is!

So, this weird notion came to me in a dream. Why would anyone not want to work in social media? Therefore I decided to post my thoughts to my blog. I may post my full strategy/plan on this blog down the road. I would love feedback, etc.

Spend all day playing on Twitter

I am sure a lot of people that read this blog are familiar with Twitter. If not, Twitter is a microblog/community where you post “tweets” about what you are currently doing, links to cool web sites/ videos, etc. It is an interesting mix of personal and professional communications. I have become a Twitterholic.

Am I on Twitter a lot? Yes. Am I really screwing around? No. I use Twitter to talk to my peers in social/interactive marketing. It keeps me current on how our industry is changing, current best practices, thoughts from respected gurus, case studies (good and bad) and much more. I am actually going to finish a post about why I love Twitter so much. I have also met a ton of great people in Kansas City and throughout the nation that I would not otherwise have connected with.

Social media peeps are social

Social media professionals tend to be offline social creatures as well. Via social media channels, I have been introduced to a number of super-cool people that I have met in person. There is some kind of strange and intimate bond that I have experienced when talking to people in my social network. In my experience, early adopters of social media are very forward thinking, progressive, friendly, willing to help you in any way possible, and actually care about people in their community, etc. Finally, there is little to no negativity. It is a near utopia (at least for now – hope it stays that way).

Be a trend setter

Social media marketing is truly relationship marketing (one to one) and will not only impact marketing, but the way human communications continue to evolve. How cool is that? There can be only so many ad formats (ads on buses, buildings, etc) so their will be a revolution from the status quo (frequency, frequency, frequency) to less frequency and more relevant engagements. As many have said before me, “as marketers we need to quite talking ‘at’ our target audiences and start talking ‘with’ them.” For me, I find nearly all mass media message intrusive and non-relevant.

Do not need formal training, just passion

IMHO, immersion is one of the most important aspects of being a social media professional. You have to live and breathe this stuff; it is the only way to really learn. The skies the limit! People like @garyvee and others have parlayed their social media presence literally into fame and wealth. You could be next! It is much like programming, if you do not love it, than you should find another calling.

Forward looking

The way humans communicate is rapidly changing and evolving. How cool (and scary)! Soon, the Web and TV (and mobile for that matter) will all be mashed up. This means web widgets (like Twitter) will be on your TV and vice versa. I can only image the changes coming in the next decade, let alone in the next few years. It is our job to stay at the forefront of trends and even help create them! How will this impact the world of social media and marketing in general.

Several opportunities

There are a number of different jobs within social media and a variety of companies that will utilize your skills. You can work in technology, on the client side or work with an advertising/marketing agency. Specific job functions include: strategic planning, project managing, copywriting, web development, e-marketing, graphic design, application development, market research and much more. Does that sound palatable to you? I will expand on social media opportunities in a future blog post.

You could be a billionaire

Well it is a possibility, but not likely. However, this frontier is wide open. You can chart your own path and create opportunity. The cost of entry is low along with the risk; but, the reward can be potentially huge. There are a number of social media start-ups which seem similar to all the new Web ideas in the late 1990’s through the early 2000’s. Where will your path in social media lead you?

Your thoughts?

I encourage and appreciate your thoughts on this subject.  DM me on Twitter if you want (@chriskovac)