Have you ever been asked in an interview, “Facebook or MySpace?” Well, I had to explain during my interview with Phil Gomes, senior vice president for Edelman Digital, my many reasons for favoring Facebook.
And that is how my journey at Edelman Digital began nearly nine months ago. For the first six months, I worked on Edelman’s Social Media Belt System. I contacted employees from our offices across the globe and helped create the content for the different belts. I would go home and ask myself, “Did I really talk to someone from Milan today?”
My parents still do not comprehend my tasks from day to day. My mom joined Facebook and Twitter to get a better understanding of social media, but I still receive daily phone calls asking how to post a photo or to explain what a “tweet” is for the hundredth time (love you, Mom). Ironically, most of my friends are in accounting and finance so they don’t even try to understand the point to all of this (there is a point, I swear).
Now, in addition to the Social Media Belt System, I work on several client accounts for the Chicago office. Not to sound cliché, but I really do learn something new every day. I have learned how to transition to the changing social media space and be able to adjust to client demands almost instantly. If you have a fan on a client’s Facebook page post erroneous information or profanity, you need to be quick on your feet (or a very fast typist). Twitter and Facebook change layouts often so you have to be prepared to adjust swiftly and smoothly.
Multi-tasking is vital to my work. If my browser doesn’t have at least 10 tabs open, I know I am missing something. I could be working on as many as five different Twitter accounts and Facebook pages at once. While I’m monitoring a Facebook page, I could also be posting updates on Twitter and writing reports to the client. Last week, I posted an update to one of our brands on Facebook and within less than an hour had over 1,000 comments. I actually enjoy having my brain go 100 mph these days!
Being a social media rookie can be both exciting and terrifying. Social media is a daunting space because of how quickly it can incite a response. The Web can take such a groundswell effect (if you haven’t already, you must read Groundswell). Posting an update may seem easy, but there are serious consequences from the slightest error. Within minutes, an audience of thousands could be exposed to incorrect information resulting in a digital PR disaster that could take months to clean up.
As I told Phil my reasons for preferring Facebook in our interview, I felt animated and eager. I know this is my passion and I hope one day my rookie status will be changed to pro!
