"Essentials of Social Media Marketing" Textbook Summary

As my social media class nears the end there are many things to reflect on. All semester we have worked through the "Essentials of Social Media Marketing textbook. Each class we would go through the slideshow that was given at the end of each chapter. I really liked how it gave these slides because it made it easier to comprehend the material rather than reading it in the textbook. I also went into the class slightly worried because I was not sure how the complicated and crazy world and concept of social media could exactly be taught. The book and Dr. Aggie did a great job of not only defining necessary topics but displaying how they can and should be applied. The book focuses on how to plan, execute and measure social media marketing and metrics. 

There are numerous different core subjects the book goes over that we have learned throughout the entire semester and a few that have stuck with me throughout the semester. First, the foundations of social media marketing. This explains how social media has evolved and taken over the advertising world. The drastic change in advertising strategies compared to the traditional methods such as newspapers and TV. It emphasizes the importance of the audience and value of what you are delivering. Second, was learning about personal branding. I remember doing an entire assignment on trying to discover and develop our personal brand. The book made sure to describe the importance of how you are presented on social media platforms. It could either benefit you and your business greatly or could harm you or your business if the representation is unorganized or negative. Throughout the entire book there are numerous mentions of strategy development. The main theme is about building a structured marketing plan. This includes things such as identifying the target audience, content strategy (when and what to post), setting goals and assigning roles and resources. This was typically brought up in almost every chapter which made it notable how important it was. 

Not only was it important to learn about all the different aspects in class but it was important to apply it as well. In our course we did numerous activities that made us apply what we learned and the Simternship that was included with our book. Outside of the class I got practice while running the Panhellenic Council Instagram account for ONU. Taking my social media class while applying it at the same time largely benefitted me and how I approached the task of posting for Panhel. Overall, this class and textbook has opened my eyes to how complex the social media world truly is.