Media Emerging

Teaching a social media crash course (social media bootcamp?) can be a rewarding experience. Here’s a tiny glimpse of how leading a social media workshops leads to good things:

• Introduce a small business owner to a powerful new tool for growing their business
• Teach a parent or grandparent how to stay in touch with loved ones via Facebook or Twitter
• Hone your public speaking skills
• Demonstrate your expertise and build credibility
• Expand your professional and personal networks
• Learn stuff

Rich Tucker (winner of a Shorty award for CruiseSource) and solo PR pro Lelia King, both of Charlotte, tweeted yesterday about their desire to conduct social media training (initiative FTW!). Lots of mom-and-pops (and big companies, too!) need seminars like this.

I’ve taught a few of these classes (with The Charlotte Observer, Your Community Connector, and Social Media Works, among others) and thought I’d share some of what I’ve learned:

Don’t Overestimate Your Audience

You Tweet in your sleep. You’ve got 132 third-party apps plugged into your Facebook account. You’re connected to 1,300 people on a dozen social networks.

Your audience may not know how to send a text message. Slow down. Waaaaaaaay down. As my friend Tom Martin said, it’s hard to nail down the knowledge level of your audience, let alone to create content that appeals to all of ‘em. Which leads me to…

Narrow Your Audience

The more narrowly you define your audience, the better you’ll be able to conduct relevant training. That means discussing relevant technology, showing relevant case studies, and anticipating questions.

Think of ways to segment your audience:

• Business size
• Vertical market
• Rank/position in company
• B2B vs. B2C
• Demographics (age, gender, etc.) of attendees
• Current knowledge level
• And more

It’s a lot like marketing. Which leads me to…

Prepare Yourself for a Marketing Shock

Here’s a reality check: Many business owners know very little about marketing. If they don’t understand “Marketing 101,” they won’t understand social media marketing. I promise. Which leads me to…

“Strategy vs. Tactics” is for Thought Leaders

I get it: Strategy should come before tactics. We’ve all memorized Forrester’s cute little P.O.S.T. acronym. And we all sneer at big brands that launch face-first into technology (though, have you ever heard a thought leader give an example of a strategy?)

Many of the people who come to a “Social Media Crash Course” or “Social Media Boot Camp” want you to show them how it works (How do I do a Tweet? How do I send a message on Facebook? Etc., etc.). Strategy sounds nice, but it’s like teaching your teenager to drive by preaching Newton’s Laws of Motion. Which leads me to…

An Object in Motion Will Stay in Motion…

…and an object at rest will stay at rest unless…well, you know. In other words, don’t be surprised to see them abandon new media within a week. Inertia’s a bitch. Until their absence from social media deals a major blow to their bottom line (a.k.a., “an outside force”), they’ll revert to their comfort zones.

On the flip side, if you’ve got ‘em fired up, keep ‘em in motion. Follow up with consulting, continued training, and other services. Encourage them. Give ‘em an “atta boy!”

Other Lessons?

Those are five lessons I’ve learned about teaching social media. Have any to add?

Social media training workshops are everywhere. In Charlotte, social media classes are more popular than Starbucks. Some of them are valuable, some are not.

Will a social media class will be worth your time and money? How do you evaluate a class you’re considering?

It’s hard to know which social media training seminars are worthwhile, but these questions might help guide you.

(P.S. I’m teaching an entry-level Facebook for Your Business class and Twitter for Your Business class in partnership with Your Community Connector. I’ll also have a one-day, intensive Social Media Bootcamp in May..details soon. Feel free to ask around about my credentials…I’m trouble, but I’m worth it.)

How to Tell if a Social Media Training Class is a Good Value

Content:

• Is it a “Social Media 101″ workshop? An advanced social media class?
• Does the class focus on social media theory or social media how-to?
• Does the class explore the social media tools/channels you’re interested in? (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, blogging, other tools)
• Will the presenter give specific and practical tips for using social media effectively?
• Will there be case studies? Are they relevant and explanatory? Do they showcase specific industries, tools, business size, etc?
• Will the sessions be business-focused? Personal-focused? A mix?

Presenters:

• What are the presenter(s)’ credentials?
• Do presenters “know their stuff” about social media?
• Do the affiliations and credentials offered have any relevance or value?
• Who vouches for the presenters? Do you trust/value those endorsements?
• Have presenters led successful social media programs or projects?
• Do presenters “eat their own dogfood” — that is, do they have their own blog, Twitter account, etc? How active are they in online communities?
• Do the presenters have expertise beyond social media? In marketing, PR, human relations, finance, or operations, for example?
• Are the presenters active members of Social Media Charlotte (or a similar organization in your town)?

Audience:

• Who will be attending the event? Is the content tailored to the audience, or is it pre-packaged fluff?
• Is the event industry-specific? Does it serve businesses of a certain size?
• Is this for C-Level executives? Entrepreneurs? Mid-level directors and managers? Junior employees?
• Do attendees’ social media experience levels span a broad range? Or is it more specific — newbies, for example, or advanced learners?
• Do attendees want to use social media for personal activities? For work? Both?

Setting

• Is the event venue conducive to learning?
• Does it have free wi-fi or another suitable Internet connection?
• Does the venue have adequate A/V capabilities?
• Will the event include space/time for networking?
• Is there a #hashtag for the event?

Price:

• How much does the class cost? Free? $20? $200? $1000? $4995?
• Does the value of the [content] + [speakers] + [networking opportunities] measure up against the cost?
• Would a more expensive class be a better value? What about a lower-priced class?
• Will you have to attend multiple low-priced events to learn what you would learn in one mid-priced event?

Post-Event:

• Will there be a workbook, educational materials or other takeaways to continue your learning?
• Is there an online community for event attendees?
• What type of support will the event host/presenter offer after the event?
• Is there a “next step” class?