Thursday, 23 April 2015
Does Your Blog Need a Sidebar?
Have you ever wondered if your blog really needs a sidebar? And if you need a sidebar, should it be on the left or right side?
Sadly, the answer isn’t a simple yes or no. But with some testing, I’ve figured out the optimal layout for a sidebar on a blog.
So, should you be using a sidebar? Well, it all depends…
Does your blog need a sidebar?
People come to a blog to read content. Their main purpose is to devour your information and ask you questions through commenting.
If they really like your content, they may share it on the social web, but you don’t need a sidebar for that. You can add social sharing buttons throughout your post or use plugins like Flare.
So, what’s the purpose of a sidebar? Well, it’s an area you can use to promote products or services as well as to get users to do anything else you want.
I’ve found that including your bio on every page of your blog, within the sidebar, is a great way to connect with your readers. This helps build a loyal community, which is the main reason I have a sidebar.
Sure, you can add a bio at the bottom of each of your blog posts, but you have to keep in mind that most people don’t read your blog posts in their entirety. And adding it to the top of each blog post is distracting as people are mainly coming to your blog to read the content—they don’t want to continually have to read about you before they are able to get to the content.
In addition to that, if you are trying to get repeat visitors, a sidebar is almost a necessity. Why? you may ask. Because within it, you can put links to all your social profiles and add an email opt-in box.
If you don’t think it is effective, just consider the fact that Quick Sprout received 145,971 visitors from email over the last 30 days.
That’s not too shabby. Plus, you have to keep in mind that a lot of the emails have been collected within the sidebar. For that reason alone, I have a sidebar.
And the best part about having a sidebar isn’t even the email traffic. It’s the ranking lifts it provides in search engines.
Look at the Quick Sprout sidebar…what do you see?
I link to all the popular guides and posts on Quick Sprout. Why do you think that is? It helps pass search engine juice to all those pages, and it causes them to rank highly in Google. For example, if you search for “online marketing,” you’ll notice that this guide ranks on page one.
Should you always use a sidebar?
Although I recommend using a sidebar, you don’t need one on each of your pages. For example, the homepage of Quick Sprout doesn’t have a sidebar, nor does this page.
Consider not having a sidebar on the pages you are trying to improve conversions on or make money from. Why? Because it makes people focus their attention on the area you want—the area where you make money.
So, for my “money” pages, I tend to have no sidebars.
Also, for any page that has a defined goal, you should consider removing unnecessary distractions such as a sidebar. For example, with my guides, my whole goal is to get you to read each of them from cover to cover. That’s why you won’t find a sidebar on my guides.
The majority of your blog pages should contain a sidebar. For the pages that are focused on a specific goal, consider removing it as it will help boost your conversion rate.
Should you place your sidebar on the left or right side?
I’ve actually tested this one a lot. I prefer the look of a blog where a sidebar is on the right side, but it tends to convert better when it is on the left.
Here’s what I learned…
When you place your sidebar on the left-hand side, you will get more email opt-ins, and more people will read your bio and do whatever else you promote through your sidebar. But you will also get fewer people to read your content.
I’ve found that having a sidebar on the left side of Quick Sprout causes a 9% drop in people reading the blog posts. On the other hand, it increases the number of sidebar opt-ins by 13%.
Overall, I decided to place my sidebar on the right-hand side even though it generates 13% fewer opt-ins.
Why did I do it anyway? Because it increased the number of blog post reads by 9%. In the end, the purpose of a blog is to educate you through content… so why would I take that away?
In general, you should consider keeping your sidebar on the right-hand side even though it will cause fewer conversions. People are coming to your blog to read, so your primary goal should be to make your content as easy to read as possible.
Conclusion
If you don’t have a sidebar on your blog, you should consider adding one right away. And if you already have one, make sure it is on the right side and contains important elements such as email opt-ins and your bio.
If you are running a corporate blog, instead of your bio, you can always put a quick blurb about your company in the sidebar.
Lastly, you don’t want to have a sidebar on every page of your blog. Consider removing the sidebar from the pages you want to boost your conversion rate on.
What do you think about sidebars? Are you going to have one on your blog?
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Wednesday, 22 April 2015
23 Ivy League Networking Secrets, That Actually Work! Part 1
Networking.
If you’re an introvert like me, the very word sends a cold shiver down your spine, and the thought of going to an event after work, puts a pit in your stomach.
You might have even tried your hand at networking: picked out your extra special networking outfit, fought traffic on the way to one of those networking events that happened either super early in the morning or right after work.
You’ve probably also seen those natural networkers who seem to be meeting every important person in the room and having a blast doing it.
I must admit, I used to get pretty jealous of people like that.
You might feel that way too.
I got good at networking because I had to.
At 30 years old I found myself unemployed, with no college degree, and a work history of my own businesses in “shady” industries like dating advice and real estate wholesaling.
However, luckily I was able to reach out within my own personal network to a friend we’ll call “Ryan,” who got this MBA from Harvard.
(I can’t call him by his real name because he currently holds an important political office in a major city.)
When I asked him what the most important thing he learned at Harvard Business School he said without hesitation:
“How networking REALLY works.”
It was using his ideas that I’m about to share with you that I was able to secure a 6 figure consulting position.
All without a college degree or any useful work experience in the area.
23 Ivy League Networking Secrets That Actually Work
1. 90% of people miss the point of Networking:
The point of networking is to meet people and make deals. It’s important that you remember both of these separate but equal points.
You have to show up to a networking event with this mindset. A lot of times we get too caught up in our own thoughts, worries and insecurities.
Remember everyone there is just like you, they are there to meet people and make deals.
2. Understand the type of person you need to meet.
Before you go to a networking event you need to sit down and spend some time figuring out what type of people you want to meet there.
This could be recruiters, suppliers, joint venture partners, investors or something else depending on your situation.
3. Have an EASY to explain story.
Kent Linebeck in The Harvard Business review said: “Bullet points of achievement are lovely yes, but the key part of a resume that has impact is the story you tell.” The same is doubly true when it comes to networking.
People do not want to hear you bragging about your accomplishments. They DO want to hear interesting or unusual stories. So we need to craft an interesting story about how we do what we do. I call this your Core Competency Story.
4. Don’t worry about being rude.
One of the big things people worry about at networking events is getting stuck in a conversation they don’t want to be in and not wanting to appear rude by leaving abruptly.
Stop worrying about this. People KNOW you’re there to network and meet lots of people.
5. Start with how you can help them for free.
One of the biggest mistakes that networkers make is starting with what they need as opposed to what they can do for the other person.
Come up with a few low or no cost things you could do for the people you want to meet at networking events.
6. Know the 3 unwritten rules of networking:
A. You CAN interrupt a group of people talking. If there’s someone you want to talk to and they’re in a conversation it’s perfectly fine to interrupt and introduce yourself to everyone in the group. The best networkers do this all the time.
B. Only exchange business cards at the end of an interaction and ONLY if you really want to follow up. If someone tells you they don’t have a business card, they’re blowing you off, unless they offer another source of contact info.
C. Don’t be a group jumper. We’ve all seen those people who jump from group to group handing out cards and reciting the same “elevator pitch.” Don’t be that person! Be discreet.
7. Explain your core competency.
The biggest mistake people make networking is failing to explain their core competency. Your core competency is how you create value for people.
8. Understand the social contracts of networking.
In Hebrew the word Haver means friend. In addition Hav means obligation.
So a friend is someone you have an obligation to.
That’s a good definition of what networking is about. A friend we network with is someone we have a social obligation to help out if we can.
9. Use cold reading to make the other person feel understood.
Cold reading is what palm readers and other “psychics” do when they seemingly know things they shouldn’t about other people.
Cold reading is a great way to build rapport with someone by making trying to explain how the world looks through their eyes.
For example if I’m talking to someone who looks really nervous, I’ll say something like:
“I can tell you’re a little nervous and you probably don’t love having to come to these things, but I bet once you get comfortable you’re the life of the party.”
Whether the person is an introvert or an extrovert, everyone can relate to this universal feeling and feel understood.
10. Use the right conversational ratio
In a 2013 study at UCLA they found that when approaching a group of strangers (like a networking event). Students that talked 60-75% of the time for the 1st 3-5 minutes of joining the group did twice as well at gaining acceptance as those who spoke 50% or less.
So we want to do the majority of the talking when we first join a group.
That’s the first 10 secrets, be sure to check back tomorrow for the next 7, where I reveal how to use “the blemishing effect” and create your own in group.
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Learn What Your Online Business Website Should Have
Your website helps you to get noticed when you are trying to run an online business. Since your website represents you, you want to make sure that you hire a professional company to create a site that you can be proud of. A company like BlueHatMarketing designs websites. You want to find a company that can give you everything you are looking for in an online website.
Image by http://pixabay.com/
Administrative Panels
You should be able to log into your business to add new items and change the inventory layout. If you want to put an item on sale, you should be able to do that with ease. A good website will look professional, but be easy for you to navigate.
Payment Gateway Integration
You should be able to accept credit cards and more through a reliable payment gateway integration. If you are running an online business, your customers should be able to purchase items from you quickly and without any trouble.
SSL Integration
If you are running an online store, SSL integration is very important. This type of technology allows your customers to send private information over the internet safely. You want to protect their names and financial records from hackers, so be sure to have the latest safety technology integrated into your website.
Unlimited Number of Products and Categories
You should be able to add as many products and categories to your site as you need to. You should never be limited to the amount of inventory you can upload to your site.
You should choose a website design company that will listen to your ideas and incorporate them into your online store. You want your business website to be a reflection of your dreams. You should find a design team that will make sure that your website is easy to use and attractive to customers. A good company will offer custom design templates, a content managemen system, and secure payment processing. You should be able to start up your website and begin making money right away. If you want to have a trusted online store, be sure to have your customer’s best interest at heart.
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Go Social to Improve Customer Incentives
When running a business, one of your marketing strategies should be focusing on rewarding your customers through customer incentives. Customer incentives are rewards you give your customers for continuing to do business with you.
A common example is a coffee shop.
Most coffee shops offer punch cards where you receive one punch for every cup of coffee you purchase. After purchasing 10, your next one is free.
Offering some sort of incentive to your customers is a great way to keep them coming back for more.
Put social media to work
Speaking of coffee, one company as the following article shows that has customer incentive programs down to a T is Dutch Brothers.
If you follow them on Twitter, you’ll notice they are constantly offering deals and freebies to their loyal customer base.
They have “double stamp days,” “free medium iced coffee days” and, of course, their signature punch card where you receive a free coffee of your choice after you buy 10.
Three ways to use social media to promote
Some ways for you to put social media to use include:
- Grow your following – First, you should focus on growing your following on social media. If you don’t already, get a business Facebook page, a Twitter account, a LinkedIn page and a Google Plus page at the very least. The more heavily involved you are in social media, the more followers you will have.
- Offer incentives to people who promote your brand – This is a unique way to gain more followers on social media and get your brand in front of more people. Instead of just offering incentives to your regular customers, try offering incentives to those that share your posts, Tweets and status updates with their followers. On Twitter, for example, you can have people re-Tweet one of your advertisements and by doing so, they will receive half-off their next purchase. By offering incentives this way, everybody wins.
- Be specific – Nowadays, you can use customer management systems to track what your customers are buying and what types of customers are buying what types of products. You can then promote your brand in a unique, targeted way that allows you to make your customers feel exclusive. You can create an email newsletter and promote different newsletters to different target audiences. Sometimes, being specific with your social media and online marketing allows you to expand your brand even more.
Types of customer incentive programs
There are many types of customer incentive programs that people like, but it’s up to you to determine which one will be the most effective with your audience.
Do your customers just want something for free, like with a cup of coffee? Do they want to consistently rack up rewards, such as with a store credit card? Or do they want to receive greater discounts for spending more money, like Home Depot’s contractor program?
If you’re not sure where to start with customer incentives, try one type of offer and measure the response you receive. If it doesn’t perform as well as you’d hoped, try offering a different incentive.
With marketing, there is no one size fits all program.
Instead, you must figure out what works for you and your brand through extensive trial and error.
Photo credit: Image courtesy of Shutterstock
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15 Inspiring Entrepreneurs Who Built Careers Around Their Passions Through Social Media
Have you heard this advice before: “Follow your passions!” “Do what you love!”?
And have you thought, what if my passions are my hobbies? Things that I could never be paid for?
For some, the advice to “do what you love” seems possible only if you have a passion for things like finance or accounting or coding. Well, I’ve been happy to find that it’s possible to follow your passions into a career, no matter what those passions may be. With social media, you now have a platform to do what you love—and to make a career out of it.
I found 15 amazing entrepreneurs who built their entire businesses and careers around social media, many earning $100,000 or more.
I’d love to share their stories with you—and how you can follow their lead to turn your passions into a career, through social media.
How to Earn an Income Doing What You Love on Social Media
It sounds far-fetched, doesn’t it?
Posting photographs or tweets a few times each day to launch a lucrative career doing what you love.
And you might be wondering how these social media entrepreneurs make money. Because after all, a career requires an income.
I’ll get into the specific stories of 15 entrepreneurs below. First, I thought I’d share the many number of ways—the specific avenues and channels—that they use to make money on social media.
1. Sponsorships
Sponsorships are responsible for a lot of the money earned through social media, especially for those just starting off. Brittany Furlan, Caitlin Turner and Shaun McBride all started with sponsorships.
Sponsorships occur when brands pay to be associated with you. When a tourism board pays Instagrammer Lauren Bath to work with them and feature their location, they are sponsoring Lauren.
Podcasts are usually funded through sponsorships as well. The sponsor will pay to be featured on the podcast at some point during the episode.
2. Advertisements
Advertisements are another popular method of monetizing social media. YouTubers like Liz Meghan use ads to make a living through their social media accounts.
Advertisements differ from sponsorships in that there’s usually not a long term relationship with the entrepreneur.
3. Selling products
If you have a product based business like an eCommerce store, this is perfect for you.
Social media can be a great place to sell your products – or, at the least, build up a following and redirect those followers to your website to buy your products.
4. Affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketing allows you to work with brands to help them sell their products, earning you a commission each time somebody buys through your affiliate link.
Many social media channels allow affiliate links to be placed within a post, and when the follower clicks on the link and makes a purchase through it, the poster gets a portion of that sale.
5. Promoting services
If a service-based business is more up your alley, you don’t want to look past social media as a marketing channel.
From hair stylists who post their work on Instagram to coaches who use Facebook as a platform to engage with potential clients, there is a lot of opportunity on social media to promote your services.
6. Boosting your visibility as an artist
If you’re an artist, writer, or creative entrepreneur, social media can be an amazing tool to boost your visibility.
Artists like Us the Duo, Grace Ciao, and writer Jeff Goins all have used their social media channels as methods of boosting their visibility to book gigs and sell their art.
Why Social Media Works
Creating social media content every day. Scheduling it at the right times. Analyzing what followers respond to and what they ignore. The time it takes to manage a social media marketing strategy can be significant.
Here are two reasons why the time is well worth it, especially for those looking to build a new career.
1. Social Media Expands Your Reach by 1,000x
How many people visit your website each day?
200? 1,000?
Those aren’t bad numbers. And it may make sense for you to spend time on your own website rather than social media because your website is like your online home.
But think about it:
- Instagram has 100 million active users
- Twitter has over 135 million active users
- Youtube sees over 1 billion active users each month
Even if only 0.1% of the people on those channels are interested in what you’re doing, you’ve still amplified your reach by over 1,000 times by using social media to spread your message and share your passion.
2. Social Media Establishes Your Expertise
The lifeblood of social media is content.
Even if you’re posting a 6-second video on Vine or a photo on Instagram, you’re posting content.
When you’re consistently posting content about a specific topic, you establish yourself as an expert.
Take, for example, two mathematicians who love numbers. Who establishes herself as an expert?
- Mathematician A, who loves her work but avoids social media, or
- Mathematician B, who teaches others how to do math on Youtube and has 200,000 followers?
They’re both experts, but Mathematician B has established herself as an expert. She has built an audience, and provides value to others by demonstrating her knowledge on social media.
15 Entrepreneurs Who Built New Careers Through Social Media
1. Brandon Stanton
The creator of Humans of New York
In 2010, after losing his job, Brandon Stanton began to take candid photographs of people on the streets of New York and post them to Facebook.
Self-taught, Brandon took photos that reflected his passion, and these photos quickly began to gain traction on Facebook.
Humans of New York now has over 12 million Facebook likes, and it has launched a speaking, photography, philanthropic and media career for Brandon.The revenue generated by HONY prints sold goes directly to charity, and Brandon makes a living from the royalties of books sales and new freelancing opportunities. He went into a bit more detail about the specifics in a Reddit AMA:
How are you able to pay for your daily needs? Does HONY support you financially?
I’ve said publicly that I don’t want to “cash out” or “monetize” HONY. I like to say it publicly because I want my audience to keep me on mission. HONY print sales have raised nearly $500,000 for charity in the past six months. I want to further monetize the site for non-profit ventures. I honestly want to “give” HONY to New York in some way.
Freelancing and book royalties are keeping me afloat now. I get money for collaborations, occasional magazine pieces, occasional speeches, etc. And I signed two book deals which pay the rent. Also, I live cheaply.
2. Jeff Goins
Author and Blogger behind Goins, Writer
Two years ago, Jeff Goins quit his day job to pursue his passion for writing full-time.
He now has built a tribe of over 100,000 people, and has just launched his fourth book, The Art of Work.
This is all made possible by social media.
Jeff began writing on his blog, Goinswriter.com, and continued to work in his day job. He then began to earn more on his blog doing what he loved part-time than he was in his full-time job.
My blog (which accounted for less than 10 hours per week) was now contributing more income than my full-time job (which took up at least 40 hours per week).
His first product—a $2.99 ebook—earned $1,500 in its first week, convincing Jeff that his hobby could be a business.
His blog gave him a platform to follow his passion and do what he loves.
3. Grace Ciao
Fashion Designer and Artist
Grace Ciao is the ultimate accidental social media entrepreneur.
Since she was a little girl, Grace has had a passion for fashion design, and one day, she noticed a flower a boy had given her was dying. So Grace created a fashion illustration out of the petals of the flower.
She took a photo of her illustration and posted it on Instagram, which quickly became popular.
Grace earns a living as a full-time illustrator, and has used her platform to book engagements for events.
4. Michael and Carissa Alvarado
Husband and Wife Singers, Us The Duo
Michael and Carissa Alvarado were making music before they began posting 6-second videos on Vine, but nothing has skyrocketed their careers more than Vine has.
The couple was already trying to gain more traction on Youtube when they decided to put snippets of their covers on Vine, which served them well.
They now have 4.6 million Vine followers, and signed a record deal with Republic Records in 2014, allowing them to follow their passion by getting their start on social media.
5. Rosanna Pansino
Nerd and Baker at Nerdy Nummies
If you’ve ever thought the only way to pursue your passion for baking is by opening a bakery or through feeding your family, think again.
Rosanna Pansino built a career on social media centered around her love of baking when she was egged on by friends (pun intended) to start a Youtube channel.
Rosanna’s Youtube Channel, Nerdy Nummies has over 3.6 million subscribers.
6. Justin Halpern
Comedian from Sh!t My Dad Says
“Don’t focus on the one guy who hates you. You don’t go to the park and set your picnic down next to the only pile of dog sh–.”
— Justin (@shitmydadsays) June 28, 2010
Let me guess.
It seems as if every time you open Twitter, you’re instantly barraged with links to mediocre blog posts, pictures of people’s lattes and announcements of what the newest member of oversharers-anonymous is having for lunch that day.
You could never imagine Twitter as a platform to build a career, right?
Well, Justin Halpern did just that.
He took his comedy writing career to the next level by starting the popular Twitter account Sh!t My Dad Says, where he began to Tweet snippets of conversations with his father.
The Twitter account quickly gained traction and morphed into a television series and book.
7. Lain Ehmann
Scrapbooker and Blogger from Layout a Day
If you’ve ever felt as if your interests or hobbies were impossible to build a career from, you may be inspired by Lain Ehmann, who built her career from a blog about scrapbooking.
Yes, you read that right.
She’s built a six figure business around a niche that is traditionally a hobby niche, teaching others how to scrapbook and holding live online events through her blog.
The power of the internet allows us to connect with people who are interested in the things that we’re interested in, and if we can provide enough value to those people, Lain proves that lucrative careers can be built.
8. Shaun McBride
Artist and Snapchatter
Shaun McBride learned how to draw by looking at other artists’ drawings and trying his hand out at the craft.
After Snapchatting his drawing/photo mashups, he was featured on some popular websites, which boosted his career.
He now can make tens of thousands of dollars from one advertising deal with a brand through his Snapchat account, according to Forbes, and “several thousand dollars per image”.
9. Shawn Stevenson
Health Enthusiast of The Model Health Show
If text or images doesn’t interest you when it comes to building a career on social media, maybe audio does.
Shawn Stevenson runs the #1 health podcast on iTunes, the Model Health Show, allowing him to follow his passion for fitness and health through a different medium.
Instead of taking the traditional route of personal training, Shawn interviews guests on his podcast, creating content and giving listeners the tools to live healthy lives.
10. Lauren Bath
Traveller and Professional Instagrammer
Lauren Bath has arguably the best job in the world. Not only is she paid to Instagram, but she also gets paid to travel.
Lauren was the “first professional Instagrammer” of Australia, and quit her job as a chef to pursue her passions for photography and travel.
Lauren works with tourism boards and brands to provide exposure through her huge Instagram account to make a living.
While she doesn’t reveal her rates in interviews, she tells Successful Blogging that she works with brands such as Nikon and Tourism Boards to offer them sponsorships:
Well I can’t talk for others but for me I charge a base rate to travel away from home and that rate includes posting whatever images I like with all content available to the client.
11. Joey Korneman
Animator and Teacher from School of Motion
Joey Korneman is the founder of School of Motion, where he teaches his students through online courses to animate using the principles of motion design.
Most of Joey’s traffic comes from Vimeo, as he tells Pat Flynn’s mastermind group in a recent episode of the Smart Passive Income Podcast.
He has 5,000 followers on Vimeo, which is high for that social media channel, and, as he tells Pat’s mastermind group, “Vimeo is very high-quality traffic for motion design”.
Joey makes a living teaching motion design by directing his Vimeo followers to his website, where he sells courses.
12. Mignon Fogarty
Grammarian and Podcaster at Grammar Girl
Passions come in all shapes and sizes, and Mignon Fogarty’s passion is unique.
Mignon has a passion for grammar, and works full time in the field by teaching grammar principles to her rabid fans of her Grammar Girl podcast.
Through social media, she has been able to build an amazing career around grammar, as she blogs as well.
13. Caitlin Turner
Yogi and Instagrammer GypsetGoddess
Caitlin’s passion for yoga has provided her with the unique opportunity to build an entire career from it – on Instagram.
Catlin’s Instagram account is still relatively new – about three years old – but she still has earned over 220,000 followers.
Caitlin told Yoganonymous that “Instagram has definitely been a huge career chance for me. It’s connected me professionally to different brands and people I wouldn’t have found before because I had no reason to. This is my career now.”
14. Brittany Furlan
Actress and Vine Comedian
Social media has helped people like Brittany Furlan launch comedic and acting careers in a way that was never possible before.
Brittany used Vine to launch her career in comedy and acting and now has 8.9 million followers on Vine.
Brittany told The Wrap that she makes a comfortable living through her Vines.
Those videos — which include a repertoire of outlandish characters (“Ghetto Dora De Explora“), quick-to-the-punchline sketches or pranks on the unsuspecting public — are worth between $7,000 and $20,000 to brands targeting Furlan’s massive audience.
She’s now gone on to partner with Seth Green to create a sketch show.
15. Liz Meghan
Youtuber and Makeup Artist
Liz Meghan had a passion for makeup, and she channeled that passion into Youtube.
With over 672,000 subscribers on her Youtube channel, Liz makes a living doing what she loves through makeup tutorials and sharing what she’s learned about makeup over the years.
Liz tells the Huffington Post that she makes a living off of her Youtube channel because Youtube pays her to put ads on her videos.
There’s no better time than now to do what you love
As these inspiring entrepreneurs demonstrate, by building a following online using social media, you can:
- Get paid to do what you love
- Establish yourself as an expert and
- Grow a following around your passions.
There’s no excuse to not get out there, pick a social media channel, and start posting.
Have you found success in building a career or a following on social media? Are you inspired by others who have taken this route to follow their dreams? I’d love to hear more about what you’ve experienced and learned in the comments.
Image sources: Pablo, Unsplash, IconFinder, Humansofnewyork.com, Art of Work Book, Ryanseacrest.com, Newmediarockstars.com, Shonduras.com, iTunes, Laurenbath.com,
Vimeo, Gypsetgoddess.com, Thewrap.com, Youtube.com
The post 15 Inspiring Entrepreneurs Who Built Careers Around Their Passions Through Social Media appeared first on Social.
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Tuesday, 21 April 2015
Book Review: What Happens on Campus Stays on YouTube
Erik Qualman’s new book, What Happens on Campus Stays on YouTube, provides great tips and stories for high school and college students everywhere. As a college student in today’s digital age, The New Rules of Reputation are more important than ever. It’s easy for us students to think that we already know the importance of online presence when we are being reminded about it daily but this book goes beyond the typical “don’t post stupid things on Facebook” we are usually told. This book tells students how to change their digital presence to help their future, how to protect their identity online and offline, how to use social media to help their career and provides real life examples of lessons learned by individuals and companies.
Out of the 36 New Rules of Reputation, two that stood out to me were Rule #12 and Rule #21. Rule #12 is Post It Forward. Social media sites such as LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook are great for connecting with people. By endorsing someone on LinkedIn or sharing something someone posted on Facebook, you make them feel good which makes you feel happy and they just might return the favor for you.
Rule #21 is Make Ginormous Public Goals. Students are always told to make goals and have goals set for themselves. Using digital tools to accomplish goals sets you more accountable for what you want and sharing with your friends and followers lets them know what you want and they may be able to help you.
All of the rules provide important lessons for students. I was able to take something from each one and apply it to my own digital reputation and digital presence.
When thinking about preparing for the real world, college seniors think about updating their social media sites by making everything super private in hopes that employers won’t be able to find them. But this isn’t how they should be approaching social media and their career. This book tells students the importance of using social media to build your network and provides excellent tips on how to update social media to showcase your work or leverage your online presence to help land your dream job.
What Happens on Campus Stays on YouTube provides real life student success stories which can inspire any student to use digital to help them achieve their dreams. It shows how students used the power of online and their digital presence to make something happen. The real world is often a scary thought for students, but these stories can provide students with the reassurance of how the online world can help them.
This book is so important for students because it tells students how to use their digital presence to help themselves. As high school and college seniors are approaching graduation, this book has lessons they can take with them to college or to the real world.
What Happens on Campus Stays on YouTube is available now on Amazon.
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