Why Ricky Gervais is good for social media

Ok, ok. I know I've written a post before approving of Ricky Gervais’ use of Twitter but bear with me.

One of the great things about social media is that it expands the reach of important messages that couldn't be spread around as much before. A single tweet can reach millions of people – this is something new and it can be very powerful.

Couple this with the celebrity culture we live in. The masses who follow celebs online. Who drink in every word they say. Who shape their lives around those public figure they adore.

This, ladies and gents, is power in all its 21^st century glory. Unfortunately, most who would exert the most influence decide instead to flaunt themselves and use social as another platform to flog their product. Sigh.

But there is hope – in the unlikely form of the man who is infamous for his borderline offensive (to some more sensitive types, anyway) stand-up comedy – Ricky Gervais. As I mentioned in the previous post, he talks a lot about animal welfare issues, including this colourfully worded (a warning for the aforementioned sensitive types) post on Facebook: 

“So what?” I hear you ask. Well, here’s what. That post has been liked over 200 thousand times. That has appeared in the news feed of more than 200,000 people, plus his 2.9 million Facebook fans.

And it’s not just the reach of what he does. It’s the conviction with which he does it and the passion he shows. Sure, some may not like the language he uses but if that’s what it takes to get the point across, what’s the big deal?

How many celebrities show publicly their loathing for the barbarism our species shows? Gervais is exerting his influence to make a positive difference in the world (which is more than can be said for most politicians…) and that should never be seen as anything but a good thing, regardless of how he does it.

And in fact, he still uses comedy to try and get his point across:

I want celebrities on Twitter and Facebook to follow suit. Gervais is good for social media and in fact, (I can’t believe I’m saying this), he is good for humanity. Not just for highlighting issues, but for doing it in a way that makes us share his passion and do something about it. He may be brash, a little offensive at times but I still say that this world needs more Ricky Gervais’.

Should you be on Google+?

There’s been a lot of talk this year about the rise of Google+ as a social network. It is now the second largest, behind only Facebook. Experts predict that by May 2016, it will overtake Facebook in the social sharing kingdom – a staggering consideration when you think it currently accounts for a measly 2% of the global sharing (onlinemediadirect.co.uk).

What’s so great about Google+ then? It seems that almost nobody I know personally uses it as a social network.

Well, having done lots of research on the platform for work, it appears to me to be one of the most underrated options out there for marketers and brands.

It pins together a lot of the features of its competitors (and tweaking them, it is worth adding) and adds its own unique features to create a user experience that is actually pretty fantastic.

Of course, there’s also the additional feature of Hangouts, a video platform in which, from a marketing perspective, a company can hold live Q&As or open forums to gather opinions.

The simple fact, ladies and gentlemen, is that Google+ simply just isn’t big in this country. Across the pond, its fantastic potential is being realised and we need to follow suit and get on there before it becomes the “thing” that every business automatically does.

Remember, also, that with Google+, you can link all Google products under one account, a rather neat move by the online giant. There just seems to be something really smooth about the way you don’t have to log in to each account and can share your thoughts from Youtube automatically on G+.

“Circles” is also a slick way of grouping your contacts and allows you to ensure that your content is seen by a specific group, rather than a generic audience. This allows you to filter which content goes where, maximising the relevance of your content to its audience.

Facebook, of course, is still the biggest platform. The focus of my research for work has been kind of “Facebook vs Google+.” My perspective? Why not Facebook AND Google+?

There’s certainly the attitude that “Facebook is dying” or that it is past its peak. Be that as it may, it is still by far the largest platform and has a rather frightening dominance in the social media realm. This simply can’t be ignored, whether the company be big or small, private or public sector.

So, which should you be on, if you HAD to choose just one? Both platforms have their benefits and their drawbacks and it all really does depend on what you want out of social media. Perhaps this a rather sketchy analogy, but allow me to refer you to my main man José Mourinho, following criticism from his Man City counterpart that Chelsea were overspending. He said that Man City were building a team for now, to succeed whereas Chelsea were building a team for long term success in the future, even if it meant failure in the immediate term.

My opinion? Man City is Facebook, where the audience are now. But if you want to get ahead of the game and build a social media platform that is yet to establish itself, you need to get on Google+ (and also start supporting Chelsea. Just saying).

The Social Media Explosion

Social media has seen a meteoric rise in the last few years. It seems a long, long time ago that Facebook, MySpace and Bebo uttered mere whispers in the murky corners of the internet.

Today, social media is everywhere. Literally, you can’t go anywhere without seeing evidence of it. Even if you stop scowling at the people glued to their phones and their Twitter timeline as they walk blindly down the street, when you move your eyes elsewhere you will see hashtags, pleas for “Follows” and “Likes.”  Social media has taken over the world.

Of course, the problem for businesses is that it has evolved so quickly and become such an important tool for marketing and building relationships with customers/clients, that they haven’t had a chance to react to it. This is why there is a huge skill gap in the digital industry.

This is where people like myself come in. I have grown up around social media, and therefore without studying for a single second, I know more about it than some of the older generation.

You can still see it evolving, every month. It used to be a mainly text based sharing model. Now, you can share photos, videos, music, webpages, anything you like. With sites such as Snapchat, you even have the option of creating what is called “disappearing media.”

The simple fact is that we have become a society built around it. For better or worse, whenever something happens, we instantly think about social media. Can we post this on Facebook or Twitter? How can we make it so we can get more “likes” or “retweets?”  In essence, we have all become marketing agencies for ourselves. We all want the world to love what we share, and more as many people to see it as possible.  Does it not seem crazy then, that 30% businesses don’t have social media in their marketing strategy?

I wish I knew the logic behind not having it in your strategy. It is more cost effective, can reach a global audience and allows you to build relationships with both your customer and your competitior. (For an example of competitor relationships, check out the @ThreeUK and @tescomobile Twitter interaction).

What, then, is the reason for neglecting it? My opinion is that it is a lack of understanding of the huge benefits and, in fact, the sheer importance of the new marketing trends. It is such a new concept that there just isn't a widespread ability to be able to comprehend the potential.

I'll give you an example. On the train home from a session at The Juice Academy yesterday (19th February), I was speaking to a guy who was looking to set up a new business. We had exchanged pleasantries etc about what we do for a job, the usual for us polite Brits, and he wanted to know how he could incorporate social media into his advertising and marketing.

He saw sites such as Facebook and Twitter purely as sites to communicate with family and friends.

This, I think, is the ingrained view among entrepreneurs, or at least the 30% who don't intend to use it. This is something, that as a Social Media Apprentice, I will in the future need to try and change. I offered him some advice as to the channels he should probably look into using, but impressed upon him the importance of having a purpose. 

There can be no comparison of social media now, to even just five years ago. Where will it be in another five years? What will be the latest craze then? Wherever it is headed on the congested motorway that is the internet, it is clear that social media will be around for a long, long time.

What are your views on the future of social media? I would love to hear what others think is going to happen in the near and distant future. Leave your comments below.

Apprenticeships Over Uni: Why I Chose This Path.

Growing up, I was obsessed with the idea of going to university and getting a degree. I wanted to be the first in my family to go, I wanted the pride of saying I have a degree, but more than anything, I wanted success.

I have always been hungry for it – I have always desired to be the best at whatever I do. This fierce determination has always been what drives me and it is something that I use to my advantage every day.

In August 2011, I received the news: I had been accepted into my first choice of university! Naturally, I was over the moon. It felt like all my hard work had paid dividends. At this point, I must confess that I was guilty of naivety and complacency. In my mind, I had made it – university was my goal and I was going.

However, by the turn of the year, I knew that I would not complete my degree. It didn’t feel right. Something just didn't connect and I knew, although I was reluctant to accept it, that I had to leave.

This was a tough period for me. University was what I had dreamed about for years and for it not to be the path I was supposed to follow demoralised me. I didn't even consider an apprenticeship at this point – I had a very narrow minded and ignorant view of them and believed them to be for school drop-outs and people who left with school with few qualifications.

I could not be happier to be wrong. Their exponential growth in the last 5 years or so, particularly since the rise in tuition fees, speaks for itself. One cannot help but sit up and take notice of what is going on. Increasingly often, young people with university-standard A Level grades are choosing to instead undertake an apprenticeship.

Why is this? Because it is on the job training, and you’re earning money while getting a qualification? Of course, but these savvy young minds are realising that academic qualifications just aren’t as valuable as they used to be. The key to success in today’s climate is to find an edge over the other candidates. Life and work experience is that edge, meaning the apprenticeship is an ideal way to find a route into a career.

3pm on Wednesday 15^th January 2014 – three hours before the deadline for university applications. My finger is on the mouse, the cursor hovered over the “submit” button on my application. I've chosen to apply for a Creative and Professional Writing with English Language degree, with a view to starting a career in social media and marketing. The longing for progression in my career had once again overcome me.

Before I clicked the button, I remembered that social media apprenticeships had been mentioned to me, so I checked online for vacancies and more information about apprenticeships in general to see if it could be the right choice for me.

I came across a vacancy with The Juice Academy at West Midlands Fire Service. Immediately a smile came across my face. I was excited from the first line of reading the advertisement. I applied, and happily I was accepted after being selected from a group of candidates at a “boot camp.”

I have just started my training at The Juice Academy, based in Manchester, and I could not be happier that I made the last minute decision not to apply to university. It is a fantastically well run organisation with genuine intentions to get young people like myself into an industry where there is a frighteningly large skill gap.

As someone who hopes to be an employer myself in the future, I would encourage young people to consider an apprenticeship. The simple fact is, times are changing, and employers are looking for something more from potential employees. They want to build for the future now, which is why they are employing younger people and training them from the very basics. This is why I personally champion the apprenticeship as possibly the best way for young people to get into their chosen career.