10201130Applied Social Media Tools
Course Information
Description
Projects in this course will include hands-on use of social media tools, online research, case studies, and class exercises. This course will give students skills to work in different types of interactive media while researching and discussing issues related to cyberspace, virtual communities, online social presence, collaborative teams, search engine optimization, search engine marketing, and web analytics. Students will create and interrelate blogs, rss feeds, wikis, social bookmarking, media sharing, landing pages, and email campaigns.
Total Credits
3
Course Competencies
  1. Manage identity/branding across platforms
    Assessment Strategies
    understanding and applying consistent visual branding across multiple social media platforms.
    using solid design skills in executing this consistency.
    researching a specific company s branding across platforms.
    Criteria
    branding is consistent and visually appealing across all channels.
    you develop a report and present in class using PowerPoint or other presentation software.
    you exhibit expert knowledge in your report on your chosen company.

  2. Use wikis to disseminate information
    Assessment Strategies
    demonstrating an understanding of the history and development of wikis as a format for online collaboration.
    contributing to the class wiki with class topic-related posts.
    researching the basics of wiki software.
    analyzing your own ideas about the usefulness of wikis in a business/marketing environment, specific to an assigned real-life client.
    Criteria
    you regularly add to the discussion or common pages of the class wiki.
    you develop at least one informational wiki entry a week based on the current class discussion topic.
    you recommend particular wiki solutions to problems presented in class based on a needs assessment.
    you post a written report on your real life client case study on the class wiki.

  3. Create a business or personal blog
    Assessment Strategies
    evaluating the differences between the major blogging platforms.
    demonstrating an understanding of blogging terminology and the technical principles behind the way blogs work.
    the principles of good blog design and usability
    posting a minimum of two blog posts each week on topics relevant to the class discussion and topics at hand.
    applying the principles of writing good blog content.
    researching relevant resources on the web and linking to them in your blog.
    cultivating a community through regular posts, keyword rich text, and engagement with your blogging community.
    discussing your ideas about best practices in the use of blogs and blogging in libraries as applied to business/marketing.
    exploring a business blog success story
    Criteria
    you choose which blogging platform you will use to host your blog.
    you use your knowledge of terminology and technical principles to optimize your blog.
    you develop your blog using principles of good design and usability.
    your blog is executed with clarity of expression, engagement with the topics at hand, and the cultivation of community through regular posts and comments.
    your use of keywords drives demonstrated traffic to your blog.
    you evaluate your level of interaction with the blogging community using specific social media analytic tools.
    you research best practices in the use of blogs and blogging in libraries as applied to business/marketing and contribute to a blog-based discussion
    you present a report in class about your chosen business, including an explanation of your own ideas about what constitutes a successful blog.

  4. Participate in multiple social networks
    Assessment Strategies
    researching various online social networks.
    identifying and researching a successful social network campaign by an assigned business.
    analyzing the role social networks play in marketing people, products, and services..
    Criteria
    you have established an active presence on several social networks.
    you blog about a successful social network campaign by an assigned business.
    you develop a social network marketing campaign for an assigned business.

  5. Optimize RSS use
    Assessment Strategies
    recognizing and understanding the contents of an RSS feed, including the XML files structures
    being familiar the history of and terminology surrounding RSS.
    using feed readers to manage your incoming information.
    Criteria
    you syndicate your media and content to your online communities through RSS.
    you participate in class discussions, both online and in class.
    you set up feeds and alerts for the information that matters to you.

  6. Utilize folksonomies/social bookmarking/tags
    Assessment Strategies
    understanding the way social bookmarking tools work
    exploring the world of tagging and distributed research.
    developing your own ideas on the possible applications for tagging and social bookmarking in a business context.
    comparing the advantages and limitations of folksonomies and distributed classification.
    exploring the idea of communities of interest and practice.
    developing your own ideas on the possible applications of folksomonomies and communities of interest and practice in the context of business marketing.
    Criteria
    you establish a list of at least 50 social bookmarks relevant to this course on one of the free social bookmarking sites.
    you classify and find information through effective use of tagging.
    you participate in class discussions, both online and in class.

  7. Evaluate Online Apps and Media Sharing
    Assessment Strategies
    researching a variety of online applications, productivity tools, and media-sharing sites.
    understanding the applications of these tools for business
    Criteria
    you participate in class discussions, both online and in class.
    you analyze an assigned business s use of one or more of these applications/tools and share your results via the class wiki.

  8. Explore the building of trust and community in the digital economy
    Assessment Strategies
    gaining a familiarity with the concerns and issues related to online social networking, online marketing techniques, privacy and security.
    understanding the role of social capital in developing an online network.
    analyze an assigned business s process of building reputation, identity, and authority through a social media campaign.
    researching the use of social media monitoring and analytics tools.
    Criteria
    you participate in an in-class roundtable discussion with local bloggers
    you participate in class discussions, both online and in class.
    you write about an assigned business s process of building reputation, identity, and authority through a social media campaign and present it to the class via the class wiki.
    you write a report on an assigned social media monitoring or analytics tool and present it to the class via the class wiki.

  9. Design email campaigns and landing pages
    Assessment Strategies
    implementing an email campaign
    reading email campaign analytics
    examining different email client services
    Criteria
    you design an email for your client
    you sending email and evaluating analytics