Social media is your new bicycle

An introduction to what social media is for, and how it fits into your workflow

“A rolodex that expands itself”

“Word of mouth on crack”

“A replacement for a clipping service”

“A layer that sits over the rest of the internet, surfacing the

best stuff”

“An ecosystem built on information-sharing

networks”

Social media is …(to paraphrase your colleagues)

A tool for creating great content, loyal audience, and a solid reputation

1. Research/Reporting2. Engagement

3. Publishing

Three tasks…

1. Research/Reporting

Keep your finger on the pulse of the news:

1) Seek – Pursue information, sources and angles on stories you are following

2) Discover – Find things you didn’t know you should be looking for by tracking topics and people over time

What might you find?-Events you didn’t know were happening

-New angles on big stories

-New sources and new opinions

-Interesting stories to tell

-What people in your region/niche are talking about

-What people in your region/niche want to know

Daughter of Prominent Bahraini Activist Challenges Obamahttp://www.voanews.com/english/news/middle-east/Daughter-of-Prominent-Bahraini-Activist-Challenges-Obama-119709944.html Interview for radio and web with the daughter of an arrested Bahraini activist, found and contacted on Twitter

Ex) Monitoring social media leads us to a good story, and the source who can tell it

Live coverage of the earthquake in Japanhttp://www.voanews.com/english/news/Major-Earthquake-Tsunami-Hit-Japan-117785138.html Audio interview with a Japanese woman in Tokyo, contacted through Facebook

First-hand accounts, found on social news site “Reddit”

Informative video from NOAA, found on Twitter

Ex) Tracking social media unearths important components for a breaking story

2. Engagement

Become part of the conversation:

1) Influencers and experts – Expand your contacts by networking with thought leaders

2) Current and potential audience – Respond to questions, solicit feedback

What benefits can you get?-Widen your network of sources, experts and influencers

-Get passed information and ideas

-Ask for and receive feedback, insights

-Build a loyal audience who trust and follow you

-Expand your audience by becoming a thought leader in your niche

Ex) Answering questions builds connections, and helps correct misinformation

Cecily Hilleary on Twitterhttp://twitter.com/voahilleary

Your Questions: Kenya’s Campaign Against Al-Shababhttp://www.voanews.com/english/news/africa/Your-Questions-Kenyas-Campaign-Against-al-Shabab-133487408.html

Ex) A live Q&A helps us report on what our audience wants to know

Live web Q&A about Kenya’s pursuit of al-Shabab in Somalia, plus pre-recorded video segment for TV

3. Publishing

Get information out to the world:

1) Social media-native content

2) Links to other web-based content

What sorts of things might you “publish”?-Bits of breaking news that will later become a full report

-Information you find as you research

-Links to things you’re reading

-Insights that might not make it into your final report

-Photos and short videos if you’re in the field

-Links to your own articles/reports

Steve Herman on Twitterhttp://twitter.com/W7VOA

Ex) Tweeting information means news gets out as soon as it is confirmed

1. Research/Reporting

2. Engagement

3. Publishing

Each activity supports and reinforces the others. They work better together than in isolation.

Why is promotion not included?

Yes, we want to drive traffic to our content, but promotion without the other elements doesn’t work. People don’t respond when they don’t feel a genuine connection.

If the other two elements are done right, promotion will often take care of itself. Your network will start promoting your work for you.

4. Promotion

But there is a secret 4th benefit…

4. ?

4. InspirationDiscover new ways to tell stories, find models to emulate

http://www.voanews.com/english/news/usa/Photo-Essay-Volunteers-Share-50-Years-of-Peace-Corps-Memories-117524744.html

http://www.storiography.com/english-dreams/

http://howbigreally.com

http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/video/2011/nov/16/99-v-1-occupy-data-animation

www.rferl.org/archive/Project_Hijab/latest/3248/3248.html

Why haven’t I mentioned any specific sites yet?

Social media is a HUGE ecosystem

Twitter

YouTube

Facebook

Flickr

Google +

Tumblr

Blogger

Wordpress

RedditWikia

Quora

Forums

We train on Twitter because, RIGHT NOW, it is the great aggregator. It’s where news happens, and it will lead you to the other places where things are happening.

“It’s like a gateway.”

But here are some examples of why you might turn to another site:

FacebookPoll VOA’s audience for

feedback, answer audience comments, do

a live Q&A

Google +Try out social ideas with an engaged audience of

early adopters

PinterestSave clippings online so

you can access them and share with others

Blogger, Wordpress

Search 1,000s of personal blogs all at once

InstagramShare pictures in an

interesting way

RedditCheck out memes and see what’s going viral

MeetupFind real-life communities around skills you need or

things you like

QuoraAsk and answer questions

about topics you’re knowledgeable on

ForumsFind conversations on specialist topics, find

sources

FlickrFind Creative Commons photos to illustrate an

article or make a photo essay

So how could you fit social media into your workflow right now?

Morning Media Diet

Add niche blogs, Twitter to your current morning routine. You might even find you can drop some newspapers or websites as a result.

Story Planning

Think about the online conversation happening around a topic. What do people want to know? What are they talking about? What could you add that’s unique or

innovative. What will people respond to?

Example: http://174.37.47.227/~converge/wordpress/?p=813

Following Breaking News

Follow a few breaking news Twitter accounts, and the next time news is breaking, keep tabs on it from there. See if you can find information, resources and angles you

wouldn’t get from the wires.