Social Pros Podcast

Shasta Nelson, Friendship Expert, Speaker & Author, joins this episode of the Social Pros Podcast to talk about the importance of cultivating meaningful friendships with our co-workers and how our relationships impact our health, happiness, longevity, and personal growth. Huge thanks to our amazing sponsors for helping us make this happen. Please support them; we couldn't do it without their help! This week: Salesforce Marketing Cloud SocialMedia.org Cultivate Workplace Friendships Did you know that 70% of our happiness comes down to our relationships? Yet, we often focus more on the remaining 30% and neglect to give the other 70% the attention and effort it really deserves. If you want to be an overall happier and healthier person, Friendship Expert, Speaker & Author, Shasta Nelson, believes it starts and ends with your friendships. As adults, we spend a lot of our time at work. We meet the same people every day and we strike up the same small chat around the water cooler. However, in a world where loneliness is on the rise even before the pandemic, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to foster meaningful relationships in the workplace. Shasta states that it’s “almost impossible to be happy if you don’t have meaningful relationships,” and provides compelling evidence to support her claims that having friends at work makes you a better and happier person. In This Episode: 05:52 - Why Shasta is so passionate about helping others cultivate friendships at work 08:24 - Why some companies fail to facilitate friendships within the workplace 13:27 - The correlation between sales success and relationship building with clients 15:52 - The three requirements that every healthy relationship needs 20:24 - How these three relationship requirements correlate with how you should express your brand on social media 25:19 - Whether working from home makes it more difficult to make friends 28:13 - Shasta shares tips for managers for building positivity in the team 31:30 - How we should adjust what we’re doing within our relationships in light of the pandemic 35:20 - How Shasta creates and shares engaging content for social media Resources: Get the new State of Marketing report for free from Salesforce Find out more about the community at SocialMedia.org with a special form for Social Pros listeners Find out how you can launch your first LinkedIn campaign with $100! Learn more about Shasta on her website Read Shasta’s book, ‘The Business of Friendship’ Visit SocialPros.com for more insights from your favorite social media marketers.

Uzair Hasan, the Sr. Paid Media Manager at Edible Arrangements, joins the Social Pros Podcast to talk about how his scrappy social media team leads the way with innovative and creative ideas. Huge thanks to our amazing sponsors for helping us make this happen. Please support them; we couldn't do it without their help! This week: Salesforce Marketing Cloud SocialMedia.org Full Episode Details Believe it or not, there was a time when businesses doubted whether they actually needed a social media team at all. Nowadays, brands and organizations have realized that they don’t just need a presence on social, but that social media needs to be a key part of their marketing strategy. The good news is that your company does not need a huge social team to make your brand known. Small social teams can have massive impact and Uzair Hasan, the Sr. Paid Media Manager at Edible Arrangements, has got evidence to prove it. He and his small social team have made history within the company, breaking sales records and expanding the company’s online presence. Thanks to the team’s scrappy attitude, they have managed to leverage the true power of social and fuel brilliant results. Since it’s a relatively small team, being scrappy and wearing a lot of different hats has attributed to the team’s undeniable success. In This Episode: 03:03 – What Edible Arrangements is and how the company works 04:34 – How the social media team works with marketing and communication colleagues to build a genuine relationship with the company’s audience 06:06 – How to advertise and market to Twitch consumers 13:20 – How being ‘scrappy’ has helped the social team come up with new and innovative ways to engage people 17:24 – How franchisees create their own social channels and how everything remains aligned 21:35 – How the social team educated and empowers the franchisees 23:45 – How Edible Arrangements and franchisees handle customer data 27:32 – How to measure conversations and engagement on social 30:40 – How Uzair’s team diversifies their marketing budget and strategy 33:12 – Uzair predicts how social media at Edible Arrangements will evolve Resources: Get the new State of Marketing report for free from Salesforce Find out more about the community at SocialMedia.org with a special form for Social Pros listeners Find out more about Edible Arrangements Read ‘Creativity, Inc’ by Ed Catmull Visit SocialPros.com for more insights from your favorite social media marketers.

Nick Dimichino, the Social Media Lead at Square, is our guest on this episode of the Social Pros Podcast, where we talk about how brands can use simple technology to capture and share customer stories on social media. Huge thanks to our amazing sponsors for helping us make this happen. Please support them; we couldn't do it without their help! This week: Salesforce Marketing Cloud Full Episode Details Everyone has a story to tell and sharing customer stories with the world is one of the most effective and cost-efficient ways to market your brand on social media. But how can you share customer stories in a world where it’s becoming increasingly difficult to interview customers? Nick Dimichino, the Social Media Lead at Square, has found new and innovative ways to share customer stories. He has created a unique voicemail line that sellers can call and leave their stories, many of which are incredibly powerful and moving to listen to. Square has helped revolutionize businesses and because of this, they have no issue finding new storytelling opportunities. Nick shares how he and his team find new stories to share on social, which has helped the company build an unbreakable reputation, gain recognition and win national awards. In This Episode: 03:26 – How the Square social media team is structured 05:54 – Nick shares his thoughts on how Square implemented social in the earlier days 13:25 – How Square conveys customer stories on social media 17:41 – How to find new customer stories during the pandemic 25:54 – How the way that Square communicates with their audience has pivoted since COVID-19 31:24 – Nick discusses the campaign around businesses in Flint 37:55 – How Nick got his senior leaders on board for the campaign Resources Get the new State of Marketing report for free from Salesforce Find out more about the community at SocialMedia.org with a special form for Social Pros listeners Learn more about Square Visit SocialPros.com for more insights from your favorite social media marketers.

Ryan Boyles, the Senior Social Media Strategist at IBM / AI Applications, joins the Social Pros Podcast to discuss how IBM uses social to connect with their audience. Huge thanks to our amazing sponsors for helping us make this happen. Please support them; we couldn't do it without their help! This week: Salesforce Marketing Cloud SocialMedia.org Full Episode Details Use Social Media to Create Connections Creating meaningful connections with customers and prospects is something that every brand should actively try to achieve. The good news is that you already have the perfect tool to foster relationships and connect with customers - social media. Ryan Boyles, the Senior Social Media Strategist at IBM/AI Applications, understands the power of social media and how to leverage social platforms to find and connect with ideal customers. However, it’s not just the social media team that needs to become ‘social pros’ – everyone in the organization from the top down must be ‘plugged into social.’ The way that brands use social media has evolved and more leaders and executives are embracing and engaging with customers and prospects on social media platforms. This is great news for any social practitioner who once struggled to convince their leaders about the true value of social media. In This Episode: 05:47 – How IBM uses weather data 07:34 – How Ryan interacts with other social media managers from different operating divisions within the business 11:20 – How IBM manages various social media accounts 14:33 – How IBM’s employee advocacy program has evolved over time 16:48 – Insights into IBM’s account-based marketing content and tactics 20:44 – Why IBM decided to abandon Facebook 22:46 – How to leverage LinkedIn Live and measure performance 28:32 – Ryan talks about the 50th anniversary of the Apollo program 31:31 – What it was like being on the frontlines of social media evolution  Resources: Get the new State of Marketing report for free from Salesforce Find out more about the community at SocialMedia.org with a special form for Social Pros listeners Get your copy of “50 Best Practices for Email Marketers” Find out how you can launch your first LinkedIn campaign with $100! Learn more about IBM Visit SocialPros.com for more insights from your favorite social media marketers.

Jenny Fowler, Director of Social Media Strategy at MIT, joins us on Social Pros to discuss how she makes social content for this academic stalwart accessible, engaging, and consistent. Huge thanks to our amazing sponsors for helping us make this happen. Please support them; we couldn't do it without their help! This week: Salesforce Marketing Cloud SocialMedia.org   Full Episode Details Accessibility and organization Managing social for an historic institution like MIT requires agility, clear-thinking, and great strategic planning. In Jenny Fowler, Director of Social Media Strategy, they have all of those essential skills and a whole lot more. Jenny is the only dedicated social media resource at MIT, with no direct reports, but coordinates over 200 department communications professionals to keep MIT’s voice, content, and purpose consistent across every channel. As she says in this episode, “my philosophy has always been to empower my community to succeed.” Social media in higher education is a different beast to many other sectors, but Jenny has tamed it with grace and intelligence. Walk a mile in her shoes with this episode of Social Pros and you’ll be sure to pick up some fascinating tips and tricks along the way.   In This Episode: 05:40 – How social is structured at MIT, with Jenny as the only full-time dedicated resource 08:13 – How Jenny shares her expertise with the 200 departmental communications teams that produce social content 11:18 – MIT’s most strategically-important platforms 19:05 – Which metrics matter for Jenny – and why strategy is always the deciding factor 26:08 – How MIT are using social to communicate essential information in the pandemic 29:22 – Why being asked to “work your social media magic” isn’t innocent, but indicative of a deeper ignorance of social media professionals’ role and skills 37:36 – How Jenny uses social to make complex academic topics more accessible 39:45 – How Jenny started exploring MIT’s TikTok strategy  Resources: Get the new State of Marketing report for free from Salesforce Find out more about the community at SocialMedia.org with a special form for Social Pros listeners MIT's Social Media Hub Visit SocialPros.com for more insights from your favorite social media marketers.

Sonja Likness, the Director of Social Media & Content Strategy at Duke University (Communications Office), joins the Social Pros Podcast to discuss how she runs social media at a major university with numerous departments, collaborators, and over 15,600 students.  Huge thanks to our amazing sponsors for helping us make this happen. Please support them; we couldn't do it without their help! This week:  Salesforce Marketing Cloud  Full Episode Details Coordinating social media content across campus with a large number of departments is no easy feat. However, Sonja Likness, the Director of Social Media & Content Strategy at Duke University, has created a seamless structure that upholds the university’s reputation while still giving departments their own voice on social. As Sonja stated in this episode of the podcast, “a part of my job is to educate, give best practices, consult when they run into trouble, and to facilitate everybody talking to each other.” Social media practitioners can learn a lot from Sonja, who effectively structures countless collaborators on campus covering a range of different topics and navigates social for a popular university with approx. 15,634 students – not to mention, juggling all of this and keeping everything aligned during a global pandemic. Hear how she does it without breaking a sweat on this fascinating episode of Social Pros. In This Episode: 04:14 – How Sonja coordinates social content across campus 06:16 – How Duke University’s ‘social media working group’ works together 07:26 – How audience prioritization differs across different social media platforms 12:57 – Why additional governance is necessary when approaching profound topics such as COVID-19 15:07 – How Duke University leverages influencers and user-generated content 18:13 – How Sonja’s team are creating new video content during the pandemic 20:40 – How Duke University uses highly-polished video content vs. authentic video content 23:38 – The importance of social listening 27:40 – Why (and how) Sonja builds relationships with key social media leads across campus 32:40 – How Duke University targets graduate students with social media marketing Resources Get the new State of Marketing report for free from Salesforce Find out more about the community at SocialMedia.org with a special form for Social Pros listeners Take Salesforce’s quiz – Einstein’s Guide To AI Use Cases Learn more about Duke University Visit SocialPros.com for more insights from your favorite social media marketers.

Tatiana Holifield, the VP/Head of Digital Strategy at Pacers Sports & Entertainment, is our guest on this episode of the Social Pros Podcast, where we talk about how the Indiana Pacers leverage social, coordinate teams, and how they have diversified their organization.  Huge thanks to our amazing sponsors for helping us make this happen. Please support them; we couldn't do it without their help! This week: Salesforce Marketing Cloud SocialMedia.org Full Episode Details Life as a social media practitioner is not as glamorous as the Instagram superstar influencers would have you believe. The reality of being a social pro in modern society is that you’re going to be glued to your phone (or laptop, tablet, etc.) 24/7. So, if you want to become a successful social media professional, you must live and breathe social. Tatiana Holifield, the VP/Head of Digital Strategy at Pacers Sports & Entertainment, is a force to be reckoned with and is making a huge impact on the way the Pacers use social media. She has helped to structure new roles, coordinate teams, build compelling content and brand strategies, and so much more. Although she loves her job and has a genuine passion for social media, Tatiana admits that life as a social pro can be quite taxing. As Tatiana states in this episode, if you want to become a social pro, you must be prepared for the busy lifestyle that comes with it. As a social pro, you’ll wear multiple hats and you’ll have to learn how to balance every facet of the job with your personal life. In This Episode: 05:47 – How Tatiana approaches managing multiple brand’s social media accounts 07:22 – How Pacers structure their teams and roles within the organization 10:45 – How Tatiana and her team measure the performance of their content 14:04 – How content creation has changed for the Pacers in light of COVID-19 22:55 – A look at the level of coordination being done between different business entities of the league 26:25 – How important paid social is to the Pacers 30:13 – How the Pacers engage with fans on Reddit 38:10 – Tatiana explains their KPI ‘total footprint growth’ and what it measures 40:05 – How the Pacers have diversified their workforce Resources Get the new State of Marketing report for free from Salesforce Find out more about the community at SocialMedia.org with a special form for Social Pros listeners Find out how you can launch your first LinkedIn campaign with $100! Connect with Tatiana on LinkedIn Find out more about the Pacers and upcoming games  Visit SocialPros.com for more insights from your favorite social media marketers.

Luka Dukich, the Director of Content for the Chicago Bulls, is our guest on this episode of Social Pros, where we talk about why being adaptable is key for social media success no matter what’s going on in the world. Huge thanks to our amazing sponsors for helping us make this happen. Please support them; we couldn't do it without their help! This week: Salesforce Marketing Cloud SocialMedia.org Are you adaptable on social media?   Adapting to change quickly is something that we’ve all had to master since COVID-19 replaced ‘normal life’ with a great level of uncertainty. But we didn’t just adapt our personal lives to reflect recent changes in the world, we’ve also had to adapt our social media presence.   Luka Dukich, the Director of Content for the Chicago Bulls, has managed to adapt the sports team’s entire social media strategy in response to recent changes with poise, professionalism, and a level of success we can all aspire to.   Luka understands that you “can’t control what you can’t control,” and has found other ways to get creative on social even when no games are going on. He has done an incredible job maintaining and, in many cases, increasing fan engagement across the team’s social media channels.   In This Episode:   05:40 – A look at the unusual content schedule for social pros at the Chicago Bulls 07:49 - How Chicago Bull’s social media team is structured 13:11 – Why Chicago Bulls have other social media accounts separate from the main accounts 20:18 – How they track the demographics of their different social media accounts 22:05 – How Chicago Bull’s content strategy has pivoted in response to COVID-19 29:55 – How Luka and his team engage with their fans on social 33:44 – How Luka handles video and photo rights in publishing 36:05 – How Luka’s agency experience prepared him for his current role 41:03 – How ‘The Last Dance’ impacted the Chicago Bulls Resources: Get the new State of Marketing report for free from Salesforce Find out more about the community at SocialMedia.org with a special form for Social Pros listeners Download Salesforce’s e-book “Boost Sales Productivity: Get More from Your Sales Team" Find out how you can launch your first LinkedIn campaign with $100! Visit SocialPros.com for more insights from your favorite social media marketers.

Neal Schaffer, the President of PDCA Social, joins the Social Pros Podcast to talk about how brands and businesses can leverage influencers in their marketing efforts and effectively navigate through ‘the age of influence’ we currently find ourselves living in. Huge thanks to our amazing sponsors for helping us make this happen. Please support them; we couldn't do it without their help! This week: Salesforce Marketing Cloud SocialMedia.org Full Episode Details The Age of Influence If you want people to hear about your brand and talk about your brand, you need to leverage influencers as part of your marketing. Neal Schaffer, the President of PDCA Social and a leading authority on digital transformation, believes that brands should view influencer marketing as a commitment, not just a campaign. Social media has given a voice to all types of followers with different audiences. Chances are, there is an ideal influencer out there who has the influence and authority to help put your brand in front of the right people. Neal Schaffer knows exactly how you can identify and engage with the right influencers for your brand and openly shares his best tips to help you create and implement a highly effective influencer marketing plan – including some major influencer marketing mistakes you might want to avoid! In This Episode: 06:05 - What ‘the age of influence’ means for brands, business owners, and marketers 08:03 – How Neal defines influence 12:08 – How B2B brands can leverage influencer marketing 16:27 – Tips to help you identify the right influencer for your brand 19:53 – How to work effectively with influencers 22:45 – What departments of an organization should have a role in managing a successful influencer marketing strategy 25:32 – Advice for leveraging influencers during COVID-19 27:45 - Why you should focus on turning influencers into brand advocates 31:02 – How to structure your ‘influencer marketing budget’ Resources: Get the new State of Marketing report for free from Salesforce Find out more about the community at SocialMedia.org with a special form for Social Pros listeners Find out how you can launch your first LinkedIn campaign with $100! Visit Neal’s website to learn more about him and his work Read Neal’s new book, The Age of Influence Visit SocialPros.com for more insights from your favorite social media marketers.

Laurie Meacham, the Manager of Customer Support at JetBlue, joins the Social Pros Podcast to talk about the importance of empathetic marketing and showing humanity towards customers on social media. Huge thanks to our amazing sponsors for helping us make this happen. Please support them; we couldn't do it without their help! This week:  Salesforce Marketing Cloud SocialMedia.org Remember to have humanity When COVID-19 hit, many brands were not prepared for handling a crisis of this scale. It was uncharted territory for many of us and it still is. COVID-19 has not ‘gone away’ and as social practitioners, we have had to scramble to adjust and fine-tune our content in response to the COVID-19 crisis. From postponing brand announcements to canceling live events and adjusting content calendars, it has not been an easy transition, to say the least. However, one thing that I think we can all agree on is the undeniable importance of aligning your social customer services in response to the crisis. Customers are firing more questions at brands than ever, and they’re using social to do it. Laurie Meacham, the Manager of Customer Support at JetBlue, has handled social customer service during COVID-19 perfectly. Think about it, this is a company that, like many others, has been hugely impacted by the global pandemic. Flights were (and still are in some cases) presumed canceled, and people are hesitant to even step foot on a plane. But, above all else, customers want answers, and Laurie and her team are right there, in the trenches of social media, to answer customers questions and show humanity during a highly stressful and uncertain time. In This Episode: 04:27 - How JetBlue’s virtual customer support team is structured 09:08 – A look at how JetBlue’s remote workforce has operated for over 20 years 11:23 – Tips for working remotely and managing a remote team 13:33 – How the ‘rules of engagement’ have changed 16:58 – How JetBlue have handled customer service on social during COVID-19 22:08 – How the ratio of ‘social media chatter’ has changed lately 24:36 – What channels consumers are using to get in touch with JetBlue’s customer service team 27:36 – How people have shown support (or a lack thereof in some cases) during COVID-19 31:34 – How JetBlue’s ‘Healthcare Heroes Programme’ works Resources: Get the new State of Marketing report for free from Salesforce Find out more about the community at SocialMedia.org with a special form for Social Pros listeners Download Salesforce’s free eBook – “50 Best Practices for Email Marketers” Learn more about JetBlue Visit SocialPros.com for more insights from your favorite social media marketers.