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I was asked by a small business owner if they should attend a social media (SM) event run by a small organization with multiple presenters (which came with a fee). This small business owner is new to social media and really wants to help her business grow. My comment to her was simple and “adult” while we never want to point fingers and say something hurtful, we DO want to educate those who want to learn. My advice was something like this- Social media isn’t a quick fix or an easy answer to your prayers for free advertising, it will take some work on your part (the small business).
When you are interested or approached by an individual, organization or firm who wants you to attend their seminar or training, I encourage you to do a little research. Something as simple as doing a “Google” search. Example: If @tommytrc is speaking about #twitter at an organization and you are interested in attending but had not heard his name (or twitter handle) before- you’d Google search @tommytrc or tommytrc (or if the name of the organization is given or the speakers names). In this case, Tommy is at least the first 50 PAGES… lets say he was only the first 3 entries (meaning only the first 3 postings on a single page) to me, that would raise a red flag that this person isn’t active on line (tweeting, posting, blogging, etc..) in Tommy’s case, it’s obvious to the reader, he is very active on multiple platforms. You’re not finished yet… next step would be to start clicking and reading- what is he posting, what is he saying, who does he support, etc…
Once you’ve done YOUR research, you should then feel comfortable to make the decision to attend the presentation or pay the fee asked.
With regards to cost, I don’t discredit those who want to charge, there are some great presenters, organizations and PR firms helping businesses with their social media. I do believe as a business owner, you should have some understanding of SM and what it entails. There are so many small groups that are local and free that get together and talk about SM.. which is a great place to start. check out www.foxcitiessocial.com
Jamie Voster
Passionate ► Resourceful ► Visionary ► Customer-Centric ► Connector ► Leader
Jamie jumped on the social media band wagon back in 2009 as a job seeker and hit the ground running! In her current position as a Network Coordinator with ThedaCare Center for Healthcare Value, she runs the organization’s social media. As a social media enthusiast, she believes it's the quality of social media and not the quantity. Jamie shares her expertise by speaking at volunteer organizations as well as on college campuses about social media and the importance of the user’s online presence.
Jamie is energetic, passionate and driven to succeed. She has a proven record of building and maintaining customer relations, in addition to having the unique ability to transform chaos into order. Jamie's diverse background and extensive education helps her as an “outside-the-box” thinker.
Jamie is a supporter of animal rescue organizations throughout Neenah and the Fox Cities and for fun, she is a Jeep enthusiast.
Connect with Jamie.
I find that so many people out there using the “expert” moniker that is extremely hard to judge people. You need to find the focused Social Media groups in the area and listen to them. After some time of listening the experts should become more apparent. They may not always be the ones offering classes but are willing to offer help and education.
The problem is people get caught up in the seminars and classes in the area not really asking themselves what these teacher actually have as experience. Time and time again I’ve sat through seminars only to hear people talk about being let down by the lack of real information. On that same line I’d question some institutions of learning that hire “experts” it feels like they settle with whoever is available instead of doing diligence on the knowledge. This actually goes for more than social media education and maybe it is more of lack of understanding how to judge talent that is the issue. The problem with social media is that there is no resume line that you can look for nor can you take it on word when they say “i do it all”. To me that says RUN!