Social Media MarketingCode: 22-SOCMEDIA

In technical terms, social media refers to a variety of Web-based applications (such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, et al) that facilitate (1) communication and collaboration amongst users of the Internet and (2) the creation of "user-generated content" in the form of words, pictures, audios and videos. However social media represents much more than this simple definition; social media signifies nothing less than a revolution in the ways that people communicate, consume media and conduct business. Many businesses are rethinking entire marketing strategies in order to focus on this new world known as "Web 2.0". Social media tools such as social networks, blogs and podcasts are now commonly used to market products and services to consumers. 

This course provides an overview of social media and its impact on the marketing process. This overview includes descriptions of the various forms of social media and profiles of the most popular social media websites. This course also introduces the concept of social media marketing and discusses how you can use social media to market your business, promote your brand and influence your potential customers. Finally, this course provides a step-by-step guide for CPA’s and other professionals to utilize when launching a social media marketing campaign. 

Learning Objectives 

After completing this course, participants should be able to:

• Define "social media" and describe its impact on the World Wide Web.

• Recognize the most popular social media tools (including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Wikipedia, etc.) and describe the primary functions and characteristics of each tool.

• Describe "social media marketing" and the role that social influence plays in the marketing process.

• Recognize best practices for launching a social media marketing campaign