The Social Media Buzz
Last week, the class's midterm project was due. The assignment involved us researching and creating a presentation on somebody who lost their job due to social media. Students were to watch the videos and upload questions on three separate posts during the span of the scheduled class time. There was no Zoom that night! Personally, I enjoyed watching the videos but felt sad when I only received one question. My paper and presentation was on Alec Holowka.
Alec Holowka found the game developer called Infinite Ammo. He is best-known for his roles in the devolvement of the game Night in the Woods. The game originated as a kickstarter and was available on Steam. Themes in Night in the Woods include mental illness, mobile immobility, and economic despair. Night in the Woods was very successful during 2018. In 2018, the game won IGF's Seumus McNally prize for best independent game of the year. Currently, the game is available on steam, playstation 4, xbox one, and Nintendo Switch. Alec Holowka and the Night in the Woods development team were flowing in success. However, on August 27 , 2019, another game developer named Zoë Quinn (uses they/them pronouns) posted on Twitter about how Holowka was emotionally and sexually abusive during their relationship when they dated. As a result, the internet turned against Holowka. When the tweet circulated to the Night in the Woods development team, they decided to sever all ties. A few days later, Alec Holowka's sister, Eileen Mary Holowka, would reveal that her brother committed suicide.
In Chapter 4 of Light, Bright & Polite, Josh Ochs discusses the topic of time. Mainly, time in regards to when posting will most likely reach your audience. The best time to post differs between company to company because of different audiences. It is best to post based on your customer's schedule. For example, a business targeted to teenagers would not want to make important social media announcements during school. It in this situation, it would be ideal to post in the evening after school has let out. How can businesses know when to post? The first step is testing out times. Ochs suggests to call loyal customers and ask for their social media. From a quick glance at their profile, one can determine when their activity online takes place. Another tactic is to repeat posts in the morning when the afternoon arrives. This way, the followers who check online during the afternoon will see the same information. Hootsuite is a tool that can help schedule posts. The amount of interaction on a post will help with determine which are the best times to post. Once ideal posting times are figured out, engaging with customers will be a breeze!
In the next chapter, chapter 5, of Light, Bright & Polite, Ochs educates his audience on word usage. One suggestion is to avoid and quit using bubble talk. Bubble talk is when a company uses words that the customer will not easily comprehend, thus the barrier. The phrase, "Visionary solutions for insurance needs," is an example of bubble talk. A way to avoid bubble talk is using your customer's words to describe your product. Another suggestion involves finding's your goal. Ask the question,"What is our goal?" and follow up the answer with "Why?" After asking why about three times, you will see the importance of social media for your company. A company should focus on a response rather than obsessing over engagement. Offer something valuable to the customer and stop trying to forcefully build a community. Buzz is created with the following formula: [One time event]+[3 Touch points]+[Call to action]. Touch points make the post more memorable. They can be online or offline. People curating buzz from the touch points is the main goal!
The past week was very rewarding. The amount of time, energy, and work put into my midterm project paid off! I saw the hard work of my peers through their presentations. I enjoyed the concept of the project since people are quick to think these situations have a low probability. Through the class's midterm projects, it is As long as somebody is careless online, real life always catches up.
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