Recently we were asked to contribute towards a national discussion point on what we think it takes to be a Social Media expert in this day and age…
It seemed that many industry specialists would agree that it’s hard to claim to be an expert when the digital landscape is constantly changing, however like many others in the industry, we at Brighter Directions would certainly describe ourselves as true specialists at what we do.
There is a big difference between claiming to be an ‘expert’ and demonstrating ‘expertise’ within a specific field and role inside the digital industry, and personally we think to exclaim to know everything within social media is not just over modest but highly unrealistic for the following reasons:
1. The digital world is forever changing, daily, hourly and even every minute and second new sites appear online, even Einstein couldn’t keep up with the evolution that is social media within time!
2. Activity through Social Media platforms change depending on the organisation, industry and target market, to be proficient in one doesn’t mean demonstrated success in the hundreds of other medias available
3. Just five years ago the job title of social media consultant and such didn’t really exist, so where did all these social media experts come from?
Personally I wouldn’t ever introduce myself as an expert, and find it strange that so many people out there use words like guru, ninja and such to promote themselves, as social media seems to be the hot topic of the moment, as business advisor was a few years ago.
The challenge of utilising Social Media effectively in business is to not only be technically proficient and up on the newest advances, but also produce relevant content that keeps the target market engaged and valued through the right channels.
While I think it’s vital for any organisation in the digital sector to stay on trend and constantly evaluate and self-educate to stay commercially informed, it’s also a case of a person’s knowledge background, commercial development and ‘where they have come from’ within the industry… not just a case of reading some books and doing abit of Google’ing to become an ‘expert in the field.’
Do you agree?
