Acquiring social media expertise
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This paper explores university approaches to teaching social media and the expertise of social media professionals. Colleges and universities teach social media in business or communication-focused departments if it all. Social media professionals were surveyed to assess their skill set and how they obtained it. Respondent’s self-reported skills predominantly comprise marketing and brand management vs. analysis. Identification of this skill gap provides business schools opportunities to adjust their curriculum by teaching social media strategy coupled with analytics to better prepare graduates.
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Acquiring social media expertise
- 1. Acquiring Social Media Expertise Sara G. N. Kerr Marketing Management Fall Educators Conference September 17-19, 2014
- 2. Mackay, F. (2010, March 30). Business schools respond to demand for use of social media. New York Times. “To meet this demand for education in social media strategy, several top business schools are incorporating courses on social networks into their M.B.A. curriculums.”
- 3. Holmes, R. (2012, September 26). Universities are failing at teaching social media. Fortune. “Higher ed, however, has been painfully slow to step up and fill the knowledge gap. … When courses on social media are offered, they tend to be stand-alones or electives rather than integrated into a larger curriculum.”
- 4. If these quotations were the frame in 2010 and 2012, where are we
- 5. Research Questions • Which university departments teach social media? • How did professionals learn social media? • What did professionals in social media study in college? • What is the relationship between business, social media, and higher education?
- 6. Secondary Research • Random sample of 92 institutions from 1,989 non-specialized baccalaureate and/or masters granting institutions from the US Department of Education’s Database of Accredited Postsecondary Institutions and Programs • Catalog search seeking course descriptions with these key words: – digital marketing; – interactive marketing; – social media; or – social networking
- 7. Findings Institution and Department Frequency Institutions that do not teach social media 42 45.7 % 20.7% Institutions that offer one social media class 19 Business 10 Communication/Journalism 7 Information Systems 1 Other 1 Institutions that offer multiple social media classes 34 % 31 Business 16 Communication/Journalism 32 Information Systems 6 Other 19
- 8. Primary Research • Convenience sample of social media professionals via requests on LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+, and at social media conferences – 69 respondents
- 9. Respondent gender 75.36% 24.64% Gender Ratio Female Male
- 10. Respondents age 18-24 6% 25-34 39% 45-54 22% 35-44 28% 55-64 4% 65-74 Respondent 1% Age Range
- 11. Why does age matter? Many social platforms didn’t exist when the respondents were in college.
- 12. How old are these platforms? Year Social Platforms 2013 Vine 2012 2011 Google+, Instagram, Snapchat 2010 Pinterest 2009 Foursquare, Prosperous 2008 2007 Tumblr 2006 Facebook (everyone), Slideshare, Twitter 2005 Facebook (high school students added), YouTube 2004 the Facebook (university students only), Flickr, Podcasting, Yelp 2003 LinkedIn, MySpace, TypePad, WordPress
- 13. What did I learn? Survey results
- 14. Expertise is developed from many sources, not many of them in formal learning settings.
- 15. Response Choices Frequency % of Survey Respondents (69) Following social media experts 64 92.8% Conferences/Association Events (e.g. Social Media Breakfast, PRSA etc.) 43 62.3% Self-Taught (Open Response) 24 34.8% Books 23 33.3% Online tutorials (e.g. Lynda.com) 22 31.9% College classes 11 15.9% Classes at an agency or private company (e.g. BrainCo, Community Education, etc.) 10 14.5% Total Responses 197
- 16. What kind of social media work do these social media workers do?
- 17. Answer Options Response Percent Response Count Community Management 71.0% 49 Comprehensive Social Strategy 58.0% 40 Content Development 82.6% 57 Evaluation and Measurement (analytics) 44.9% 31 Influencer engagement 53.6% 37 Research/competitive analysis/gap analysis 26.1% 18 Other (please specify) 11.6% 8 69
- 18. Learnings Secondary + Primary Results
- 19. What’s happening on campus now • University social media curriculum research indicates that social media is taught at 54.3% of sampled institutions. • Of these institutions, only 26 (28.3%) offer social media within the business curriculum.
- 20. What can universities do? • Synthesizing this data suggests that business schools have opportunities to incorporate social media into their curriculum. • Promoting a strategic approach to curriculum development that will both address business graduate needs and conserve university resources.
- 21. Ideas ONE: Integrate classes from other university departments that teach social media into the marketing/business curriculum.
- 22. Ideas TWO: Develop comprehensive social media classes that include practical application and strategic development
- 23. Ideas THREE: Incorporate social media across the breadth of marketing curriculum, such as marketing communications, research, and strategy.
- 24. Ideas FOUR: Develop social media analytics courses to augment communication-focused classes offered in business and/or other departments.
- 25. Ideas FIVE: Outsource social media classes by partnering with other institutions.
- 26. Ideas SIX: Include a service-learning component that pairs students with local businesses to give students hands-on experience with social media strategy and implementation.
- 27. Thank you Let’s connect on future research projects, please find me online: • Twitter: @saralitta • LinkedIn: Sara G. N. Kerr • Email: sgkerr@stkate.edu • Blog: sara-kerr.com • Instagram: saralita • Pinterest: saralita • Vine: saralitta
- 28. Photo Credits • catalogue / elise.y / CC BY • Clipboard and pens Rob Nguyen • Lighting Department stenographers, 1935 Seattle Municipal Archives • Before class Bard College at Simon's Rock • Strategy - It's game of life Anil Jadhav • University of Cincinnati on a September Evening {Explore} Rob Amend • Google Analytics on Computer Screen Blue Fountain Media • Pacific Partnership 2011 soccer team forms up during an exhibition soccer match Official U.S. Navy Page • Service Dog – Canid swong95765
Editor's Notes
- Unfortunately, only 26 (28.3%) of institutions offer a social media class as part of the business curriculum. In the sample of 92 schools, 45.7% do not offer any social media courses, 20.7% offer one course (53% in business and 37% in communication/journalism related departments), and 34% offer multiple courses. In Table 1, below, the first column divides the 92 sample institutions by how many courses each offers in social media (none, one or multiple). The institutions that offer 1 or more courses are further partitioned by the department (business, etc.) that offer the course(s). For example, 19 sampled institutions offer 1 social media course. Of those 19 courses, 10 (52.6%) are taught in the business department. Of the 31 institutions that offer multiple courses, 16 of them (51.6%) offer a course in the business department, 32 in Communication/Journalism, and 6 in Information Systems.
- While it’s true that more women use social media than men (Duggan and Smith, 2013), I was unable to find demographic employment data specifically for social media professions.
- While it’s true that more women use social media than men (Duggan and Smith, 2013), I was unable to find demographic employment data specifically for social media professions.
- While it’s true that more women use social media than men (Duggan and Smith, 2013), I was unable to find demographic employment data specifically for social media professions.
- The table highlights how few social platforms existed when respondents were in college.
- The definition of social media expertise used in this survey is based on consultation with hiring managers from marketing agencies and the National Institute for Social Media (NISM)’s Social Media Strategist Exam Candidate Handbook (2013). The NISM measures social media skill in six content domains based on their Industry Advisory Committee (IAC) Professional Job Study which include: strategic planning, compliance and governance, project management, social media marketing, community management, and research and analysis (NISM, 2013).
- The responses show that most consider themselves able to provide elementary social media services: 82% develop content and 71% manage communities. Conversely, only 26% are able to conduct research or competitive or gap analysis. Close to half of respondents provide comprehensive social strategy (58%), measure influencer engagement (53.6%), and evaluate and measure analytics (44.9%).