“Starting Your Career As A Social Media Manager”

1. “Starting Your Career As A Social Media Manager” SCOM318 – Book Review Megan Shekletski

2. About the Book • “Starting Your Career As A Social Media Manager”By: Mark Story • Published in 2012, by Allworth Press- An imprint of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc. (New York, New York) • Possible cost: $19.95 (Paperback) • Can be found for lower prices ($9.95) on Amazon • Organized into 12 chapters

3. About the Author • Mark Story • Occupations: blogger, guest columnist, and podcaster on the practical use of social media • Serves as the director of new media at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) • Has served as an assistant professor at the University of Maryland University College • Taught at Georgetown University 2007-2009 • Designed and developed courses on using social media for PR and public affairs

4. Summary • The book serves as a career handbook for the profession of social media manager • Describes the fundamentals of the occupation and how to use social media strategically • Chapter 1: Expresses the importance of social media. Forums like Facebook (900 million users), Twitter and Linkedin are becoming more prevalent. This is creating job opportunities • Breaks down what it takes to work in the social media field- working with internal and external clients, willingness to learn new things on a daily basis • Unbiased and honest: If you prefer to work alone, hate change dislike writing, cant stand being frustrated or consuming media, this is not a job for you

5. Summary • Chapter 2: Preparing yourself for a job in social media- emphasizes internships and experience and building good writing skills • Chapter 3 & 4 : Applying your experience and making yourself visible to employer. Discusses how to professionally tailor your Facebook, twitter and Linkedin to serve as online resumes • Chapter 5: How to be proactive in the job search; landing an interview/job at the right place • Chapter 6: Job Roles and Responsibilities. Social media jobs are still developing which leads to confusion caused by job titles (director of social media, social media coordinator, new media developer

6. Summary • Chapter 7: Using social media to find jobs and preparing for an interview. Research the company to prepare for “prescreens” and interviews • Chapter 8: Interviewing- How to highlight skills pertaining to social media. Ask questions about communication objectives and target audiences • Chapter 9: Getting your career started: figuring it out. Adjusting to organizational culture • Chapter 10: Advancing your career in the social media field • Chapter 11: Building a social media program. Openly communicate with your colleagues • Chapter 12: What’s next in social media.

7. Assessment of Value • Most useful for recent graduates or undergraduates studying social media. • Strength: Easy read, not too many complex concepts • Strength: Very detailed in the job responsibilities of a social media professional. Gives reader clear understanding • Weakness: At times the book seemed to be redundant in concepts like interviewing (Chapters 7 & 8) • Overall I would recommend the book to anyone interested in social media

8. Writing Style • Organized in a somewhat chronological fashion • Begins with what the job entails and explains how an individual can obtain the job and continue to develop successfully • Quick read: Interesting content, simples sentences • Chapters were broken down according to subject matter- makes it easy for someone interested in specific subject • A few small graphics and images

9. Book Ratings • Goodreads.com : 4.6 /5 stars Amazon.com: 5/5 stars