When I began my last semester of college I had no idea the challenges that were ahead of me and the entire world. I had signed on to be a part of the Communication Studies Social Media Team at CSULB and I was immensely excited about the opportunity. It was the first time I would be managing a social media account other than my own accounts and I was excited about the challenge. I was ecstatic for the opportunity to learn and gain experience in managing a social media account for an organization. Little did I know that my experience would be far different than what I had expected.
Managing social media during COVID-19 was a challenge but I learned a considerable amount during my time as a social media manager. The pandemic was in a sense a crisis that was unprecedented and it required adaptation and innovation. Many of the skills I learned during my internship I am continuing to use for my personal accounts and I will also use these skills when managing any future social media accounts.
Here are a few lessons I learned about managing social media as well as a few lessons I learned about myself.
1. Keep People Informed
Since I was managing a social media account for an organization it was very important to make sure that everyone who was a part of the organization stayed informed about how the pandemic was impacting the department. There were campus closures, class cancellations, new policies, rules, support, and updates that were posted on the social media accounts that helped keep all of our publics informed. Without everyone on campus, it became more important for the social media team to make sure the information was reaching as many people in the department as possible.
2. Do Not Overload Followers with Information
This may seem like a slight contradiction but there is a reason behind it. While it is extremely important to keep people informed. If all of your social media posts are informative it can begin to feel like you are constantly bombarding your followers with information. You don’t want to overload your followers with information constantly. After the immediate information wave during the early stages of the pandemic, I began to incorporate some relevant but less informative posts to create a nice balance. Followers needed the information but also needed content that wasn’t constantly about COVID and campus closures. By posting information that was still relevant to the department but that focused less on the pandemic it gave followers something else to focus on.
3. Be Prepared For Anything
I did not expect that halfway through my internship I would be figuring out how to manage social media during a pandemic. Yet I knew going into managing social media that I needed to be prepared to handle anything. In a sense, I needed to be prepared to expect the unexpected. There could have been a disaster, scandal, or crisis and I needed to be ready to handle it. Of course, there is no way I could have predicted a global pandemic but once it happened I stepped up and handled it the best that I could. When managing social media for anyone even yourself you need to be ready to address any event that might occur.
4. Plan For The Future
As the weeks progressed it became clear that the pandemic wasn’t temporary and that the adjustments that had been made were going to be around for the rest of my internship. So that meant not looking forward to necessarily returning to normal but looking forward to this new normal and adjusting and preparing for it. All on-campus events were canceled and so the college began planning for virtual events and I made sure to post about any future virtual events that would be relevant. I knew that the school and the world would not be going back to normal anytime soon but I knew that we all needed to look forward to the new normal that we had ahead of us.
5. Communicate With Your Followers
One of the most important factors when managing social media is to make sure you are acknowledging your followers. Paying attention to your followers is even more critical during a crisis of any kind. Analyze your analytics: see what posts are doing well, and see which posts aren’t receiving high engagement and likes. Communicate with your followers as well. Make sure you are involved in two-way communication and respond to followers' questions and even ask questions to get a better understanding of what’s on their mind and what they need and expect from your channels. You need to make sure you aren’t just creating content that you think will keep your followers engaged. You also need to see what they want and need. Sometimes your followers may be thinking of something that hadn’t crossed your mind.
Here are a few bonus lessons I learned about myself:
6. I Was Proud Of The Work I Completed
When the pandemic first began I honestly was concerned. I was concerned for the future but I was also concerned because I wanted to make sure that through the entire pandemic I did my best and gave my all while managing social media. I also wanted to make sure that I kept everyone informed and also hopeful. I probably put too much of a burden on myself but I wanted to make sure that I did the very best job that I could. For a few seconds, I hesitated but after that, I powered through. I continued posting, kept everyone informed, and created new content. It was my very first time managing a social media account other than my own and I managed to do it during a pandemic. It certainly was a challenge but at the end of my internship I was proud of all that I had accomplished.
7. I Will Continue To Use The Skills I Learned
I was already hopeful that I would gain experience by being a social media manager. Before starting I had no idea that I would gain experience in not only managing social media but also managing social media during a pandemic. I had no idea how much experience I would gain and how much of it I would be able to put to use in the future. Already I have used some of the lessons I learned in managing my personal accounts and I know that I will use more of the skills I learned in the future. I cannot wait to use my skills in my next adventure whatever that may be.
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