How does social media help engage in community-based communications?

Social media platforms can help engage in community communications in various ways, including local organization accounts, online support and sharing of various businesses and causes, and personal communication with the purpose of collaboration within the community. Additionally, if any feedback is desired for any reason, it is instant and filterable.

 

How does social media challenge community-based communications?

Something overlooked all too often when thinking about social media corporations such as Facebook (owner of Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp) is that the primary goal is still to profit; at the end of the day, these platforms are businesses and Facebook’s annual profit in 2019 was $18.7 billion. This is primarily driven by ads within a platform, usually targeted to the consumer in question.

 

Within community engagement, are there extended rules from the employer that you should consider? Are there cultural sensitivities that should be considered?

When engaging within the community, employers should certainly be mindful of cultural sensitivities, as these sensitivities are imperative to successfully engaging in a community. Another thing to consider when representing a company in a local setting is the community’s (often changing) perception by locals. Online perceptions are also often much more difficult to gauge and read when compared to in-person perceptions, as there is no ability to read expressions and body language. Diversity within both a community and a business is imperative, as without diversity, opinions are often the same, overlooking many important aspects of plans and businesses.

 

What should your PLN say about you as you communicate to the public via social media or communication tools?

My PLN carries my personal mindset of inclusion, positivity, and community benefit. From a wider view, one’s PLN should mirror what one’s personal beliefs are, as all too many people in the modern world view social media as a pseudo-mask. That is to say that in modern times, so many people simply believe that their online footprint is not traceable back to themselves, when in reality there are often so many personal hints revealing the owner of a supposedly “anonymous” account.

 

What does it mean to balance your professional expectations and your personal beliefs- in curating a PLN for the purpose of career development?

When curating a PLN to further career development, I would say that both Angie (Kermer) and Mike (Russell) hit the nail on the head when reflecting on the balance needed between personal beliefs and professional expectations. A recurring theme in both presenters’ messages was to trust your personal beliefs with regard to professional expectations, although they focused on the message from different perspectives: Angie focused more on how creating quality relationships based on personal beliefs can help your professional life advance ahead multitudes more than if meaningless relationships were created for the purpose of advancing yourself. In contrast, Mike shared his story of how personal beliefs would have never allowed him to change his career, although when the opportunity presented itself, he risked it all to jump at the opportunity. Mike suggested that personal beliefs can openly conflict with professional beliefs, but the separation between the two is imperative to success.

 

What do you think you need to reflect on (in regard to your PLN or development of a PLN) to adapt evolving social media communication expectations as a community learns more about who you are?

Reflection on everything should be a routine social media habit, especially when regarding evolving communication expectations. Looking into the past, what was acceptable 50, 20, even 10 years ago is no longer acceptable, and the definition of ‘acceptable’ is ever-changing. Once a community learns about who I am, I think that I will mostly need to reflect on previous experiences and how the community reactions can help shape future experiences to further benefit the changing needs of the community.