Bigger Than TV? Social Media’s Power Shift

This weekend, I was at a PR/Communications conference for educators who were concerned about branding their school district to give it a better face in the community. One of the biggest topics was social media in education, and these educators were asking the question, “Should my school district engage in social media?” They quickly found out that the answer was a big YES for many reasons, some of which are bulleted below:

• You are taking your content to your audience; they don’t have to come to you.
• People are talking about you anyway, so you should join the conversation.
• Millions more users in social media than come to your site.
• Sometimes the community will take care of themselves, so you don’t have to.

Once I got back, I stumbled upon Radian6’s website and this excellent video that described the social media power shift. I wish I would have been able to show this video to some of the folks who were still hesitant about social media. Enjoy!