Social media project. Business and Marketing Essay

SOCIAL MEDIA PROJECT
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Blog Posts
Managing the key elements of media strategy
Whether we have to manage the elements of social media or mass media, it is important to pay attention to the target audience and to come up with some fantastic ideas (Bullock, 2019). In order to set up an online business, we all need to have a personal blog or website as well as social media profiles where products, services or items can be offered.
With that being said, a great number of marketers and businesses do not have a documented plan. Instead, they create content, publish it on their websites or blogs and share on social media to get more and more people engaged. No doubt, it is one of the best media strategies because the more articles are published on a blog or website, the higher are its chances of getting exposure and giving some money to the owner.
Let us take a look at different ways of managing the key elements of a media strategy.
Objective
What is the purpose of creating a blog post? What do you want to achieve and why? How can awareness be raised? It is integral to answer all these questions while planning things. We can promote fundraising campaigns if a lot of money is needed for an online project. Or else, we can invest whatever we have and begin taking the business to the next level. Whatsoever the source may be, we must have clear objectives in our minds. The success of a media campaign or a business website depends on how clear we are about our objectives and what types of routes are taken to meet the targets.
Target audience
While selling or promoting something online, it is important to know the target audience. For instance, if we are selling some baby products, then the target audience will be their mothers and fathers who might be interested in such products.
Tone of voice
The tone of voice has to be friendly as it will depict our personality and may convey a positive or negative message to the target audience.
Content
Content is an obvious element and its quality has to be great. Stories must be written in a friendly tone and there is no need to used biased words.
Takeaway
What do we need to consider while developing modern media strategies? We have to consider all these things like content, objectives, target audience and tone of voice while developing their media strategies. We must be willing to assist their customers or the target audience in the best possible ways and should be ready to work under pressure or to face challenges.
References
Bullock, L., 2019. 4 Key Elements of an Effective Social Media Strategy (and Tools to Help). Social Media Today. Available at: /news/4-key-elements-of-an-effective-social-media-strategy-and-tools-to-help/562930/ [Accessed February 7, 2020].
Slack, B., Becky & Slack Communications, 2019. The key elements of a media strategy. CharityComms. Available at: /the-key-elements-of-a-media-strategy [Accessed February 7, 2020].
Media Theories, Concepts and Ideas
The World Health Organization (WHO) has decided to accelerate research and innovation for coronaviruses. As of February 6, 2020, WHO and CDC (Centers for Disease Control) are working to deal with the global outbreak (Anon, 2020).
Different research projects have already been started in China, the United States, Australia, Europe and other parts of the world, and the aim is to find or discover the vaccine for the coronavirus as soon as possible.
This news story has been published by various reputed news outlets, including Philstar.com, WHO.int, and Shine.cn. The most appropriate theory that can be applied to this story (which is shared by different media outlets) is Story Theory. This is the study of the possibilities and practices of a story. It basically involves hypothetical speculations about how writers make stories. In simple words, we can say that the story theory is all about analyzing the existing content or body of literature to present own viewpoints.
First of all, Philstar.com begins the story by saying that the WHO is all set to convene an international research and development forum in response to the outbreak. This very first line of the story clarifies the theme and purpose of the post.
Secondly, WHO.int says the same thing in the very first line of the story. However, plagiarism has been avoided by giving the same idea in different words.
Thirdly, Shine.cn presents the same concept in the first few lines. This means all these outlets have given a short summary of the story in the first paragraph. They have used simple words and kept the lines short in order to describe what the entire article or piece of content is going to cover.
In my opinion, the outbreak of coronavirus has become an international problem and almost all blogs and websites are covering its stories and sharing updates on a daily basis. So, it is not possible for anyone to confirm which blog or website is presenting the facts except the official websites of WHO and CDC and reputed sites like CNN, BBC and others.
This particular story has been found on over ten different websites or blogs, and when we compare them all, we get to know that Philstar.com, WHO.int, and Shine.cn have presented it in a comprehensive and better way than other similar blogs or websites. What I like the most about these three platforms is that they all have given a summary or outline of the story in the beginning. This helps the reader save their time since they get to know what the theme of the entire piece of content is.
References
Juan, R.S., 2020. WHO to hold forum to boost international efforts vs nCoV. philstar.com. Available at: /headlines/2020/02/07/1991174/who-hold-forum-boost-international-efforts-vs-ncov [Accessed February 7, 2020].
Anon, WHO to accelerate research and innovation for new coronavirus. World Health Organization. Available at: /news-room/detail/06-02-2020-who-to-accelerate-research-and-innovation-for-new-coronavirus [Accessed February 7, 2020].
Anon, WHO to accelerate research, innovation against novel coronavirus outbreak. SHINE. Available at: /news/world/2002071460/ [Accessed February 7, 2020].
Working with Journalists, Bloggers and Influencers
How can we use social media to enhance offline relationships between public relations practitioners and the media or influencers/bloggers? Well, social media is a great way to connect with people from different backgrounds. It does not matter where they live; professional, qualified, skilled and experienced individuals are always ready to connect with one another on social media and to exchange ideas, opinions, and thoughts (Boitnott, 2017).
Here are a couple of ways to use social media to connect with people and to maintain good relationships with them while offline.
Find influencers or bloggers online and connect with them offline
First of all, public relations practitioners can find different influencers on social media especially Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Such individuals use these platforms on a regular basis because they always have something to say to the world. Whenever an influencer wants to influence the lives of others, he or she will turn to social media to get their voices heard in no time. So, this can be a good chance for public relations practitioners to find a great number of influencers. Once they have been found, they can request them to connect with them through mobile chats. This means there is no need to stick to social media to develop and maintain relationships.
Praise a couple of articles written by top writers or bloggers
An excellent way to develop and maintain a good relationship with bloggers or writers is that public relations practitioners should praise their writing, especially the work other people have also appreciated. For example, if a blogger has written a great post that has gone viral on social media, then the public relations practitioner must send a private message on mobile to the blogger praising their work and giving them feedback. If possible, they can leave a comment on their social media account so that their reputation is also maintained.
Do not hesitate to ask for help
It is obvious that we all need help; whether it is a public relations practitioner, an influencer or a blogger, everyone would need help in different parts of their life. So asking for help should never be a problem. If you are in trouble and want to get the problem solved, then go ahead and seek help. Do not worry about asking for assistance or guidance from someone offline; they will surely try to help if this could be possible for them.
In conclusion, it can be said that the relationships of public relations practitioners and influencers or bloggers can be strengthened if they are ready to speak to one another outside the social media platforms.
References
Boitnott, J., 2017. 5 Ways You Should Be Using Social Media as Your Top PR Platform. Inc.com. Available at: /john-boitnott/bhow-social-media-is-now-your-primary-public-rel.html [Accessed February 7, 2020].
Social Media
The organization that I have chosen is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It is a reputed public health institute of the United States. As a federal agency, it works under the Department of Health and Human Services and has its headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia.
The goal of this organization or the institute is to save the lives of sick people and to ensure public health and safety. For this purpose, the organization initiates different social media campaigns and makes the regular, right and appropriate use of Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
The use of Facebook
On Facebook, they have set up their particular pages and groups where people are encouraged to leave their comments. In addition, if someone has to be introduced to certain measures or treatments, then a campaign is initiated or the message is directly delivered to them through Facebook.
The use of Twitter
Twitter is one of those social media platforms where people use hashtags along with their posts. In the case of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, its representatives or mentors do the same. Whenever they have to convey a particular message to the target audience, they use relevant hashtags and often drag people to their posts in order to engage more and more individuals. The main goal is to introduce different measures and prevention programs. They can also be found creating awareness among the people who are unaware of certain medical problems or diseases. For example, the new outbreak of coronaviruses is being widely discussed online and offline. Just like other organizations or institutions, this organization has made the wise use of Twitter to make people understand that there is no need to get panic and that prevention is better than running here and there while trying to find treatment.
The use of Instagram
Instagram is where most people share their photos and try to get more and more followers. Not only individuals but also organizations use this platform to get some messages read and to get their voices heard. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention often shares attractive, informative and beneficial photos on Instagram and try to convey their message to the world’s people in the form of graphics. Their basic mission is to develop and apply disease control and prevention and to make people understand that they must take care of themselves and people around them while trying to avoid direct contact with the ill. Loads of health-related photos are uploaded on Instagram to keep people intact.
References
Anon, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - USA. Available at: /federal-agencies/centers-for-disease-control-and-prevention [Accessed February 7, 2020].
Measuring and Evaluating Media
Public relations practitioners can use various tools to research and evaluate media and social media. Social media sites, being the dominant force in the world of the internet, are now widely used to promote and market different products, services, and goods. These are also used to develop and maintain relations with the public.
For PR professionals and communicators, a well planned and strong social media strategy is needed that could ensure great results and complete customer satisfaction. I have tried many such tools, but the best one is Buzzstream.
It is one of the best and most powerful tools; it is used to build a strong relationship with the public. We know that building and maintain good relationships with the public are the key to success for a PR practitioner (NewsWhip, 2015). 
What is this tool all about?
Buzzstream has been designed to make it easy for public relations officers or practitioners to connect with more and more people online. It also makes email outreach efficient and better than ever. For this purpose, this tool automates different legworks that are related to outreach. Some of the best examples are as follows:
* Looking for prospects
* Sending follow up emails or messages on social media
* Finding the addresses of target audiences
* Tracking and saving replies
A PR practitioner can do a lot using this marvelous tool. So rather than an excel spreadsheet and Gmail tabs, he or she can rely on Buzzstream to reach a large number of people on media and social media and to conduct quality research without any major issue.
Finding bloggers and influencers
One of the best parts is that various public relations practitioners are already using Buzzstream to find new and new influencers and bloggers online. Whether they are for link building, content promotion or digital PR, everything is possible using this tool and any type of campaign can be launched within minutes.
The job of a PR practitioner is to meet new and new people, whether they are bloggers or influencers, and the best way to make this happen is to make the wise use of media and social media. With Buzzstream it won’t take a PR practitioner more than ten minutes to reach the right kind of people in a large number. If links are to be built to a private blog or website, then different keywords can also be searched using this great, multipurpose tool.
After testing it fully, I am happy with its functionalities, features, and options. I would like to recommend Buzzstream to every public relations practitioner who is looking to conduct online r...