The best advice I’ve read about social media is that you don’t have to be using the current “Web 2.0” social media service to do social media marketing. The important thing is having content to share and finding a place to start a dialogue related to that content. Dialogue is key though. Social media is about developing a community through active discussion. So how is Go! doing with our social media marketing efforts?
Since July when I began Go!’s facebook fan page, I’ve began experimenting with various Web 2.0 media, including:
- Flickr
- YouTube
- Delicious
- Digg
Some of these services are socially-oriented, but really, most people use them as Web applications—tools for managing online content. For example, I upload to flickr Go!’s photos from Hands on stories and from other trips and projects related to  transportation because I think some people might find that content useful. But our flickr account is mostly a useful tool for keeping track of our photos.
YouTube is the same way, just for videos. However, YouTube is tremendously popular and as a result our videos have been viewed more than 2,200 times. Video of the Van-Ness rail station from my trip to TRB last year has proven most popular. So, it’s not the best marketing tool, but it does give our magazine some visibility as users can view our public profile and navigate to Go!’s website.
Twitter also falls into the tools category; I use it to aggregate transportation-related news posts and to find story leads. However, it’s also good for networking with professional organizations and spreading awareness about Go! and our mission. We are currently connected with 139 organizations (DOTs, advocacy groups, research institutes), people (hobbyists, professionals) and news distributors (newspapers, blogs, magazines). I’ve also been able to learn more about magazines catering to teenage audiences. And I can share info about new issues being published, stories of interest, as well as news from other sources that I find interesting. In addition, I can connect other services such as bit.ly, flickr, YouTube and this tumblr and notify Go!’s twitter followers about updates on these other services.
Has using these services lead to increased traffic for Go!? It’s hard to say. We currently are not using any analytics applications, so it’s difficult to know what traffic is coming and going from Go!’s website, or where that traffic is coming from.
Are we reaching our target audience with these services? Are we reaching teens and engaging them in discussion? Not currently. It’s as simple as that. Our social media marketing efforts need to start focusing on how to directly connect with teens. We need to answer these questions:
- Where are teens spending their time online?
- What online teen hubs are appropriate forums for Go! to engage teens in dialogue about careers in transportation?
- Should we learn what motivates teens first and then see how transportation fits into their plans?
Marketing is a full-time job. It’s about considering unique human behaviors and needs and aligning professional objectives with those behaviors and needs. I hope we can make it through this year, creating valuable content and spreading the word, so we can secure funding for next year and perhaps create a much-needed third student position that would focus solely on marketing Go!
For the time being, we’ll keep doing our best to write engaging stories and creating unique Hands on activities for our readers.
