Scratching my head over Social Media

Almost every communications job listing these days includes a request for experience with social media. This vast and ever-changing landscape includes everything from video, podcasts, e-newsletters right up to the more wow-factor of Facebook groups, YouTube videos and Twitter. I imagine there are other social media channels that I am missing. I feel relatively up to date, but it sure is hard keeping track of everything!

The inclusion of social media in the communications tool kit is certainly one of the major changes in the PR/communications world in the last few years. The reality is, there are a few huge successes and untold numbers of other atttempts that are not getting traction (including this blog! But that's OK).

So why the rush to include social media in the skill set of a communicator? I think it makes sense that any organization wants their communications team to be up to date with the latest developments. But do those developments make sense for every organization? Clearly, organizations that are looking for the youth demo, like McD's, are into social media in a big way, and rightly so. It's a great way to engage with their audience.

But what about B2B companies, or those who cater to an audience that may not have Facebook accounts or be able to watch videos on their wireless device during business hours? The big question is what makes sense for your audience and how do you start and maintain a dialogue that interests them. That's a tough nut to crack and at the end of the day, we all want a dialogue that touches us in variety of ways, including face-to-face whenever appropriate or possible.

What will be interesting will be to see how I change my views on social media in the coming months and years - and how they will figure on job postings in the years to come.