The NCAA Social Media Spotlight

The saying "Any publicity is good publicity" may have taken a turn against the National College Athletic Association over the past month. In a new media campaign the NCAA is putting "the life of a college athlete" on display. 

Responses ranged from current student athletes, celebrities, to professional athletes. But there was one constant, the response was not positive.

"Y'all payed the actors more than the real student athletes" 
"This is not how it goes" 
"this is the most inaccurate thing I’ve seen in a while..."
"You damn crooks made this look like being a Student athlete was easy."
"Where the early morning workout? I dont see any ice wrapped on that arm hes raising. Did he not have any homework or studying to do before bed? What kind of major he got? Underwater basket weaving? And this bum doesnt watch film but got time to dance. NCAA is lying to these kids"

Countless athletes came to the twitter world just denying the video's authenticity. 

With the original campaign goal to be to show how college athletics help college athletes go pro in something other than sports. The NCAA has been playing recovery since many of its main revenue providers have put the campaign in a bit of a precarious spot to continue. 

How to Find Brand Voice in Writing

Before a brand can take off and even begin its digital presence and marketing it needs voice. The ability to connect and be unique. This can be broken down platform by platform or audience by audience. Making each writing style unique and different depending on the intended audience or goals. 

1. Give your brand a personality and stick to it

2. Find attributes you want to stay away from

3. Determine the attitude you want your audience to have towards you based on how and what you share platform by platform

4. How do you want people to feel about your content

5. What is in it for your audience what are their benefits from connecting with you

6. Who are the audiences you want to focus on and key into

7. Know your competitors including how they communicate and what their voice is

8. What are your goals

9. Does everything you post have a goal or purpose reflect on your content right now and where it is and should be

10. How do you want your audiences to respond to your content

These 10 key steps can help drive your content and writing and where it should go into the future. The ability to review and look at the content already being managed can have a lasting impact on all of your existing audiences.

10 Ways to Prevent Illness

Writing this post from the comfort of my bed. That I have not left in 36 hours. I do not wish getting sick while in college on anyone. My weekend has consisted of fever after fever and headache after headache. As I hope to be able to be over it in the next 24 hours I thought a good idea would be putting together a list of how to prevent ending up in my disastrous situation.

1. Get the Flu Vaccine.

2. Wash your hands with warm water and soap before eating or doing anything that might require touching your face.

3. Avoid touching your eyes and mouth.

4. Get enough sleep, sleep deprivation can weaken your immune system.

5. Workout, working out consistency can not only improve your overall fitness but also your immune system.

6. Don't bite your nails they can be a key place for germs.

7. Avoid others who could be sick or are just getting over an illness.

8. Eat a healthy diet to help boost your immune system.

9. Stay Hydrated keeping your body hydrated it can help to flush out toxins in your body.

The ONU Social Media Workshop 2019

Ohio Northerns 4th annual social media workshop. With attendance up to around 100 including working professionals, students, and professors this is an opportunity to learn about multiple facets of social media. With the day beginning at 10 with a presentation from Amanda Todorovich and the Cleveland Clinic knowledge was being shared from the onset. The day was set into five blocks each with two presentation in the blocks giving attendees freedom to choose where they wanted to be each block. 

Topics included a wide array of diverse social media uses and plans. In block one I attended "From Typewriter to Twitter: How the Dublin Irish Festival Grew From a Tennis Court to Nearly 40 Acres" Centering their presentation around the growth of social media through the development of their festival. They talked about the partnerships they had formed as well as how important publicity is in everything they did as a small budgeted operation. 

As the day continued I attended Professor Dan Farkas's presentation on multimedia in social media. Farkas who is a professor at Ohio State on strategic communication and public relations and multimedia preached that multimedia on social media is not longer a luxury but instead a necessity.

Both of these presentations stuck with me as they covered the future of social media. Continuing with how to grow. Social media changes daily if not hourly and both of these topics pushed how important it is to grow a brand and use the tools at you disposal to take advantage of that. 

Social Media the Fastest Newspaper Ever

The first newspaper was printed in 1566 in Venice. The first english newspaper appeared in 1621 in London. News has been an integral part of society ever since. Today however newspapers are fighting to stay relevant.

News now comes from the world of social media. Every form of social media has seen growth in the use of their platform to acquire news. Upwards of 50 to 70 percent of people are using their social media sights to reach real time news that newspapers are often late to now. On facebook about two thirds of users, use the site to get news throughout the day.

Social media users have issued in a new wave. Users on any platform that provides news have dropped their newspaper usage down to single digit percentages. Newspapers have worked to combat this swing by creating their own apps or even social media pages.

News comes out much faster through social media channels. With live witnesses often displaying the events in real time. More and more content on live news events is displayed social media platforms have developed trending content. Allowing users to see the news in real time when ever and where ever they choose.

As society progresses and ages newspapers will have to continue to work to find ways to stay relevant. Whether through social media or in the standard paper edition newspapers must find new ways to catch the eyes of readers to stay afloat.

A Plan

Who would have thought you would need a plan for social media? In a world where most view social media as an easy communication tool that can be used on the fly. The business and marketing world sees the benefits of creating a plan to your social media use. A strategic plan to the use of social media entails "a systematic, thorough, and aligned document that outlines from start to finish what a brand, individual, or organization want to accomplish."

A strategy can take many forms. When it comes to social media there are key ways to take advantage and use strategies and plans to benefit your brand and organization.

The first key is to have background information. The term here becomes research you can not create a plan or campaign if at first you have not looked into what is needed. The research becomes a base it can come from the past. What has and has not worked in history. Along with the challenges brand and campaigns others have going.

Brand voice is used in connecting to an audience. A brand can have a personality and a voice through media. This becomes a goal of connecting to a population and an audience.

Finally you must put all of this together. A vision or a mission. The goals and dreams of a brand or organization. A vision to where the future of the brand is where and how it can connect with the audience needed. Then you create a mission to accomplish this vision with this mission.

Social media can be the start but in everything someone does. Having a vision a mission and a plan can change it all. The ability to take this reading and these ideas can be applied in all forms of business including the ones less thought of which could be social media.

Top 5 Ways to Celebrate St. Patrick's Day

As the hustle and bustle of 2nd semester gets into full swing. Holidays become a time of relaxation for the students working day and night in the classroom. As the spring months begin the first holiday back on college campuses is St. Patrick's Day. Originally created as feast day St. Patrick's Day has always been about relaxing with family and friends for some good fun.

1. Decorating
- St. Patty's Day has become know for its green's and gold's. Clovers and gold coins cover the landscape. The fun atmosphere that has encompassed the holiday allows for sparkles and shine. As the luck of the Irish covers your environment.

2. Irish music
-I would say that most are not looking to listen to Irish music on a Sunday drive but this Saturday you just might. While it may not be the most popular music the holiday spirit fills all the parties.

3.Food
- It seems that every holiday now revolves around its food. A day that however began as the day of the feast it only seems fitting that the food for this holiday is so unique. Green pancakes, Shamrock Shakes, green beers, and green ham have all become staples of the mid march holiday.

4. Parades
- What holiday isn't complete without a parade. The green flies as leprechauns walk the streets. Gold coins come hurling off floats. While it may not seem like the most in sync tradition of St. Patrick's Day it is still a time of celebration and how better to celebrate than with a parade.

5. Traditions and Movies
-The Luck of The Irish has become the equivalent of The Grinch to the younger generation. The Disney movie dives deep into the leprechaun spirit on the day of green. Aired continuously throughout the day it'd be hard not to find at least one person making it an annual tradition.

5 Things to Do on Spring Break that Don't Require a Vacation

Spring break is the final big break of the school year. The time for college students to let loose one time before summer. While some students go to Florida. Others go to their respective home states. Doing anything to pass the time relaxing or keeping busy while at home on break.

1.Sleep
-Taking an absurd amount of time to sleep. The winter temperatures are known for inducing sleeping fatigue and being home with nothing too due can result in some crazy amounts of sleep.

2.Working
-College can be a stressful time in many ways. One being financially. Students can look to replenish their bank accounts by going back to work for the week. Some return to summer jobs or even look for small places looking for weekly cheap help. Anything will do.

3.Interviewing
-Summer jobs and internships are right around the corner. When picking places to travel for break it can be a perfect time to schedule the interview needed for that summer job. The freedom to travel to places needed and be available during the week gives a whole range of possibilities for the chosen profession.

4.Spending time with family
-Who needs to go to Florida with your college squad. Spring break can be an awesome time to hang with your family back home. Most times it has been weeks or months since you have seen your family spending a week in their presence can be relaxing and rejuvenating.

5.Seeing friends
-If by chance you are lucky enough to have your spring break match with your friends from home spring break becomes a great time to reconnect and spend time with the people you miss. The memories from high school are with the people who often got to see you grow most. Being back with them can be relaxing and and care free and be the best reminder of home there is.

No matter how students spend their breaks being away from campus and the classroom is always good. For students to take a break from the stresses that college brings. Being able to take time to do as they please can help with the final push towards summer.

Social Media Strategy

Social media has become a major part of communication in society. As social media can be used to connect with friends stay in the know on news and share experiences. It can also be used to expand your brand and reach.

Most only see the benefits of social media in the personal setting. What is overlooked is the fact that professionally social media can be a resume, and a communicator. LinkedIn has even added to their profile pages a place where links can be posted to blogs and other social media sites.

With an ever-expanding market, businesses continue to buy into the social media realm. Content creation and posts along with a steady stream of connection and communication on social media has become a key to marketing and advertising.

Brands and cooperation's are working to take advantage of every opportunity given on a platforms. Planning and strategic design and content have become their own works of art.
As social media will continue to expand so will the strategies needed to capitalize on all the opportunities each platform brings. The strategies needed will be key to the future of communication and business.

Naps

When you return to Michigan for your spring break with no plans of leaving Michigan for the break what do you do? The weather outside is a beautiful cloudy and 29. All of your high school friends are still at school or in warm climates for break. So your options become quite limited.

Unless your past weeks of school have been an absolute whirlwind and you accept that being back was the best decision. School has been that of exams, projects, and presentations. Athletics have gotten you out of bed earlier than 7:00 every day. The need for social interaction has kept you from getting nearly the sleep you need. So what do you do?

NAP!

There are three types of naps. Planned, emergency, and habitual. Planned based on taking a nap before you actually feel sleepy effects. Normally requires you to know the stress of your day or that you have not gotten enough sleep. Emergency is just how it sounds. You get so tired in the middle of the day or activity that you have to take a break and nap. Finally habitual is taken everyday around the same time in your schedule.

Benefits of napping have been widely reported. Naps can restore alertness, enhance performance, and reduce mistakes. Naps also has psychological benefits as they can be relaxing and an escape from life.

Next time you are bored. Need an escape. Or are trapped in a climate in which the temperature doesn't get above freezing. Just nap!

Social Media and Spring Break

About 20 million students attend universities and colleges around the U.S. It is reported about 50% of them will head south in the upcoming weeks for spring break.

The top destinations this year:

-Cancun, Mexico

-Miami Beach

-South Padre Island

-Bahamas

-Cabo

-Puerto Vallarta

-Puerto Rico

-Punta Cana

-Jamaica

-Panama City

Spring break becomes a time of major social media use in advertising. Hotels, beaches, and cities realize that the intended audience of their main traffic for the upcoming months uses social media for everything. 

Spring break has also been revolutionized by social media. Every traveler must let their friends and followers know where they are and what they are doing. With technology and social media decisions made on spring break do not stay on spring break. 

As college students take to the beaches and the warm weather. They will enjoy fun in the sun but if you are staying home don't worry. Through all social media platforms you will be able to follow along like you are in the sun yourself.