Podcast Summary
Discovering Passion for Social Media at a Young Age: Starting with a sandwich-themed Facebook page, Hannah Anderson's passion for social media led her to build large followings and ignite her career in marketing through authentic and engaging content.
Hannah Anderson, a marketing expert and co-founder of Social Chain, discovered her passion for social media at a young age, starting with a sandwich-themed Facebook page in her teenage years. Her fascination with social media led her to build large followings on Twitter through meme pages, eventually reaching hundreds of thousands of followers. Her personal experiences on social media platforms ignited her career, demonstrating the power of authentic and engaging content in building a community. This passion for social media and community-building continues to drive her work in the creator economy and marketing industry.
Discovering unexpected joy and validation in social media: Social media's sense of connection and validation can lead individuals to unexpected careers, even if they had planned different paths.
Social media's novelty and the sense of connection it provides can be addictive, leading individuals to pursue careers in this field unexpectedly. The speaker, who grew up with the emergence of social media platforms like Myspace and Facebook, found joy in engaging with communities and seeing the numbers of followers and retweets grow. This feeling of validation was similar to that of a comedian on stage receiving applause from an audience. The speaker took a risk and co-founded Social Chain at 22, navigating the responsibility and growth of the company despite having a planned career path as a primary school teacher. The unexpected success in social media was an alluring alternative to the education system's challenges.
From hobby to career in marketing: Embrace your unconventional journey, set boundaries, focus on the present, and trust the process in marketing.
Passion and a natural evolution can lead to a successful career in marketing, even without a traditional educational background or a clear career path in mind. The speaker shares her personal experience of falling in love with social media as a hobby and then turning it into a career. However, she emphasizes the importance of setting boundaries and maintaining a healthy relationship with social media to avoid burnout. Many people, including the speaker herself, have unconventional roots in marketing, and she encourages everyone to embrace their journey and not worry too much about the future. Instead, focus on the present and learn as you go. The speaker's background as a teacher also helped her in managing a team and treating team members with respect. Overall, her message is to trust the process and enjoy the ride.
Balancing personal and professional use of social media for marketers and social media pros: Find a balance to avoid burnout, prioritize creators, and tailor approaches for individual creators to succeed in the creator economy.
Finding a healthy balance between personal and professional use of social media is crucial for marketers and social media professionals, especially when it comes to avoiding burnout. The social media landscape has shifted towards creators, with platforms prioritizing them and audiences paying more attention to them. Working with creators and helping them create content for their social media can be rewarding and exciting due to the opportunities and potential for growth in the creator economy. However, it's essential to find the right approach for each individual creator, taking into account their message, audience, and unique style. Balancing personal and professional use of social media, as well as finding the right approach for each creator, can lead to a more fulfilling and successful career in social media and marketing.
Helping Creators Thrive on Social Media: Tailored Strategies for Each Platform: Social media management company Kyme customizes content strategies for creators based on unique platform requirements, maximizing engagement and reach.
Kyme, a social media management company, helps creators build and optimize their presence on various platforms, catering to their unique content styles. For instance, they manage KSI's reaction-based content on Facebook and Snapchat, Soft Light Underbelly's socially impactful interviews on Facebook, and Saving Grace podcast's NSFW long-form podcast on YouTube. The strategies for each creator differ based on the platform's requirements, such as Facebook's short attention span audience and Snapchat's thumbnail-focused approach. Despite the differences, the underlying theory of capturing human attention remains consistent across all social media platforms. For example, on Facebook, they edit long podcasts into bite-sized, engaging clips with subtitles, meme bars, and curiosity gaps. By understanding the nuances of each platform and applying the core theory, Kyme effectively engages audiences and expands reach for its diverse roster of creators.
Diversify your platform presence: Creators and marketers should spread their content across multiple platforms and monetize in various ways to reach new audiences, increase revenue, and reduce risk of losing everything if one platform disappears or changes policies.
Creators should not rely solely on popular platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Facebook for their content and audience. While these platforms have large audiences and monetization opportunities, they are not under the creators' control. Platforms can change their policies or even disappear, taking the creators' content and followers with them. To mitigate this risk, creators should spread themselves across different platforms and monetize their content in various ways. This not only helps creators reach new audiences and increase revenue but also reduces the risk of losing everything if one platform disappears or changes its policies. Additionally, marketers should also encourage building owned channels like email lists, blogs, and websites to ensure that marketing efforts are not solely dependent on rented platforms.
Wearing many hats as a creator: Creating content for a living involves wearing multiple hats, from videographer to HR manager, and requires significant hard work and dedication. Brands should give creators creative control for successful collaborations.
Creating content for a living, whether it's on TikTok, Facebook, or other platforms, is a multi-faceted job that goes beyond just filming and editing videos. Creators wear many hats, including videographer, video editor, designer, finance manager, HR manager, salesperson, and more. It's a common misconception that being an influencer or creator is an easy job, but the reality is that it requires a significant amount of hard work and dedication. Brands looking to work with creators should give them creative control and involve them from the outset to get the best results. Creators know their audience better than anyone, and when they're involved in the partnership from the beginning, they can help brands create content that resonates with their audience and drives successful collaborations.
Authentic creator partnerships for brands: Brands should focus on genuine, organic partnerships with creators for authenticity, avoiding inauthentic collaborations, and building relationships based on honesty and open communication.
Authenticity is key in creator partnerships for brands. Pushing crappy ads or rigidly controlling creators' content will likely turn off consumers. Instead, brands should focus on genuine, organic partnerships where the creator's unique voice and brand fit seamlessly. This approach has become increasingly important as audiences have grown more savvy to inauthentic collaborations. Brands that prioritize authenticity in their creator partnerships are more likely to succeed and resonate with consumers. For brands starting out, looking for creators whose content they genuinely admire and can envision a partnership with is a good place to begin. The relationship between the brand and creator should be built on honesty and open communication. This authenticity not only benefits the partnership but also keeps the brand excited and engaged in the collaboration.
Separating social media management into specialized teams: Investing in dedicated social media teams with specialized roles leads to effective and efficient social media strategy, benefiting the brand and its audience.
Social media management is a complex job that requires a diverse skill set, including copywriting, design, video editing, marketing, and analysis. However, these skills should not be expected of a single social media manager. Instead, organizations should consider separating social media management into specialized teams to ensure each team member can focus on their specific area of expertise. This approach allows for more effective and efficient social media strategy, ultimately benefiting the brand and its audience. The social media industry is still relatively new, and many businesses are just beginning to understand the importance of investing in dedicated social media teams. As the industry continues to evolve, it's crucial for organizations to recognize the value of specialized roles and the impact they can have on a successful social media presence.
The Role of a Social Media Manager: Staying Agile and Adaptable: Investing in skilled social media managers is crucial for maximizing results. Stay informed about emerging trends and technologies, such as AI, to keep up with the constantly changing landscape.
The role of a social media manager continues to evolve rapidly, requiring ongoing training and adaptability to new technologies and platforms. Legacy brands may face challenges in keeping up, but investing in skilled social media managers is crucial for maximizing results. As for predictions about the future of social media and the creator economy, it's impossible to know for sure, but staying informed about emerging trends and technologies, such as AI, is essential. The landscape is constantly changing, and keeping up with these developments is a challenge for even the most experienced marketers. Overall, the importance of staying agile and adaptable in the ever-evolving world of social media cannot be overstated.
