Online Education (social-media Management Degree)

By Author: John Srob
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Social media has taken a prominent role in society, and many businesses have realized the extraordinary marketing power these tools provide. These companies require qualified specialists to harness this power and manage their social media outlets. You can gain the knowledge and skills necessary to enter this growing field by earning an online Associate degree in Marketing and Social Media Management.

Curriculum in our Marketing and Social Media Management program provides students with skills in economics, marketing, public relations, social media applications and entrepreneurship. You can also learn the fundamentals of using social media to create successful public relations and marketing campaigns. Finally, the Marketing and Social Media Management program examines the various ways in which social media has affected our culture, careers, business endeavors, ethics and personal lives.

Prepare for a career in Marketing and Social Media Management

In the Marketing and Social Media Management program, you can prepare for a wide range of positions, such as:

Social media associate, analyst, manager, ...
... specialist or director
Online marketing specialist
Interactive marketing specialist
Social network administrator
Brand relations specialist

Companies who hire full-time, in-house social media managers usually require the candidate to have a degree in marketing, journalism, public relations or new media. Depending on the job, your work experience managing other social media campaigns may be considered if you don't have a relevant degree.

Smaller companies tend to outsource social media work to keep overhead costs down. These companies usually advertise the position through online sites and hire freelancers who may or may not have a degree. Pay for freelancers is significantly lower than that of an in-house social media manager.

Every social media manager needs to have in-depth knowledge of social media and must always keep up with the latest social media trends. You also need excellent writing skills with an emphasis on catering to an online audience.

The rules of social networking go beyond being able to write something clever in 140 characters or less. You are the online representative of the company and your job is to engage your audience, interact with them and grow the numbers through social media.

As social media becomes an important fixture in our personal and professional lives, Online Marketing and Social Media Management degree program can prepare you with the knowledge and skills to help businesses benefit from the marketing power of social media.

Our online courses focus on economics, marketing, public relations, social media applications and entrepreneurship to help you train for this evolving career field.

Upon graduation, you can seek employment at a corporation or small business, or use your skills to market your own products and services.
Possible career outcomes include:

Social media associate, analyst, manager, specialist or director
Online marketing specialist
Interactive marketing specialist
Social network administrator
Brand relations specialist

At first glance, these social media goals may not appeal to traditional academics and educators, but a closer look reveals a connection with interests in developing an online presence, becoming an authority in your field, and collaborating with other educators. In addition, social media participation brings with it the potential for connection with students, colleagues across the globe, and new career opportunities.

With so many platforms and networks available, trying to be everywhere all the time is an unrealistic, and unnecessary, goal. Fortunately, there are tools and strategies available to help you manage your time and energy.

Management Tools
If you are involved in more than one social networking site, there may be times when you forget to check one or another, or find it difficult to keep up with all of the information being shared by others. These tools can help you consolidate your efforts, providing a big picture view of your accounts and related information:

Dashboards: Systems such as Hootsuite, Tweetdeck, and SocialBro allow you to connect your multiple profiles (e.g., Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Google+) through a single account, providing one sign-in to access them all. Additional features include hashtag filtering and tracking statistics about your use.
Aggregators: Flipboard, IFTTT, and RebelMouse also pull together items from your social profiles, as well as the information being shared by others, to create a sort of newsfeed. Social functions allow you to comment on and share articles, posts, etc. though connections you make with your own accounts.
Mobile Apps: Many of the dashboard systems and aggregators listed above, and the individual platforms, offer options for easier viewing and interaction via your smartphone or tablet. Download these applications, which are usually free, to sync your social media activities across devices.

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