10 Digital Tools to Make Your Life Easier as a Social Media Manager

Here's a list of great digital and social tools to make your life easier as a social media manager!

• Hootsuite - analytics/monitoring platform 
• Enhance - App from Hootsuite for editing photos with watermark
• Canva - graphic design templates 
• Google Docs - Great for social calendars 
• Storify - Storytelling
• Boomerang - Video app 
• Layout - Photo Collage app 
• Repost - Great for reposting/sharing Instagram photos 
• Snapseed - Photo editing
• Facebook Pages - App for Facebook Page administrators/editors

Mobile Conference Recap!

I had the pleasure of attending the Mobile Me & You 2 Conference in Chicago, IL this weekend, learning about the latest innovations in mobile media. Several graduate students from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln were able to attend, as UNL was a sponsor of the conference. 

Andy Boyle, of NBC Digital, and Kurt Gessler, Deputy Editor of Digital News at Chicago Tribune, presented at the conference at the Medill School of Journalism, Media and Integrated Marketing Communications in Chicago, IL on October 29, 2016. 

Boyle and Gessler presented about how to evaluate your new mobile app or product. “You need to have a plan. What is success? What is failure? How do you define success? Is it traffic? Impact? Money? Ads served? Downloads? Subscriptions?” asked Boyle. He explained that you generally need to know your metric for evaluation first before proceeding. Boyle stated that the ultimate goal for most project-level work, though, has to be impact.  

“Don’t assume you know who the audience is or what type of mobile device they are using,” emphasized Boyle. He gave an example of this when the Chicago Tribune thought they knew their audience didn’t use tablets, only to find out 50% of the app’s use was on tablets.  

Boyle and Gessler also offered more advice to the audience about mobile apps, such as the importance of giving fewer decision options to your audience, and updating your applications and website because the digital space changes so quickly.

They also talked about how crucial it is to offer your craziest ideas first, they don’t need to be grounded in reality. Pitch the ideas and other team members will think how they can build on it. Don’t be afraid to fail due to the risk that management could say “no” to an idea. To avoid rejection, getting buy-in from executives early on can help garner that support in advance.

Boyle closed the presentation with a quote from Bob Woodward on the timely topic of working with management to move ideas forward: “All good work is done in deviance of management.”

Fruit vs. Med Students: A Comparison Story on Different Types of Social Media Managers

I formally began my career in social media by interning at an advertising agency. I worked over 40 hours a week managing the social content for my client, Cuties Clementines. At least eight people were working on the client team at any given point, and most of those individuals worked on social content. My position was a catch-all "Swiss Army Knife" role, serving as a project manager for Cuties' social media content, monitoring Cuties' social platforms, listening to the social conversation, engaging with consumers, shooting photos, writing copy, etc. I loved the variety that every week brought. We were expected to develop original content daily for Cuties' Facebook and Twitter platforms, which usually required a significant amount of time to concept the ideas and design them. Our main target audience was moms, buying healthy foods for their kids. Working in an advertising agency on a national client like Cuties was stressful at times, but it was so much fun. We were moving so quickly, constantly brainstorming new ways to engage moms with the brand, whether it was through recipes and crafts involving Cuties, or Twitter Chats or contests.

Working in higher education social media now at the University of Nebraska Medical Center has been just as enjoyable but significantly different. As the Web Content/Social Media Specialist, I am responsible for the social media strategy, content, and execution for all of UNMC's primary social platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat. Instead of working on a team of 6-8 people on social media content, I am now primarily working alone, with an intern. Being fully responsible for UNMC's social presence, as well as social listening, monitoring, engagement, paid content, etc. can be a lot to juggle, so it's important be organized, self-motivated, and capable of brainstorming without a team around you. Since I'm no longer producing content based on a product, like clementines, my role as a strategist is different as well. Social media is more of a public relations initiative at UNMC, continually engaging with our community and informing them about the great things happening at UNMC.

How have your experiences in higher education differed from outside academia? What has helped with your transition? Let me know in the comments below!

Tip of the Day: CANVA

Have you heard of Canva? It's this week's Tip of the Day because of how easy it makes your life as a Social Media Manager! Check out all these design templates available to you, and it's all for FREE! So many design templates and various scenarios ready to be tweaked to meet your needs. You can also customize the fonts and colors to match your brand standards. Using Canva is very user-friendly. Don't have the time or skills for Photoshop or InDesign? Have no fear, Canva is here! You can set up an account and use all of the capabilities for free, and purchase stock photography for only $1 per photo! This is truly a lifesaver for those working in social media, when our social media plans call for well-designed graphics so regularly. Check it out! canva.com