Like, Tweet, Post! Social Media & Blogging for Creatives” by Cultural Enterprise Scotland

It was a Thursday afternoon and I was being briefed on my first event. I am a new volunteer at Transform Creative and have only been here a few weeks, but this was the first chance to represent the organisation at an official event. The event was called “Like, Tweet, Post! Social Media & Blogging for Creatives”, hosted by Cultural Enterprise Scotland in the Drygate Brewery in Glasgow. I packed my iPad and headed to Waverly Train Station, eager to learn at least one valuable nugget of social media golden advice. 

The two main speakers were highly successful fashion bloggers, one from Edinburgh and the other from London. They tailored their presentations, having gauged that the audience comprised mainly of non-fashion businesses, towards utilising social media to deliver an online presence for a company’s brand image. I found it very interesting to hear their opinions and personal experiences: how they had toiled for years to find a style that worked and slowly had developed their own form of online expression.

Key aspects of the presentation I enjoyed:

1. Picking your platform - Don’t always try to exploit every social media platform available...unless you have an entire team dedicated to just social media! Pick your preferred platform(s) and run with it (them).
2. Don’t worry about the numbers - Obsession over numbers can lead to the creation of cheap, like-hungry posts that can devalue your brand. Or, even worse, lead to “like-farming” or buying likes. Keep your posts genuine and it will attract the right sort of followers.
3. Understand the difference between permanent and temporary posts - On Instagram for example, there is the option to post on your InstaStory as well as a normal post. Therefore, keep your silly, low-resolution images and videos for the InstaStory where it will disappear after 24 hours...phew!
4. Know your tags - Hashtags are a great way to target the various smaller audiences within a social media platform. However, knowing to use a mix of general (e.g. #Edinburgh or #design) and niche (e.g. #ourthing or other location/event specific) hashtags can be very beneficial. Also, nobody likes a spammer! Keep your hashtags limited and focussed.
5. Collaborate - The final gem bestowed upon me at the event was an understanding that individual bloggers, especially small-scale creatives, are people just like you and me. When contacting these individuals it can be more beneficial to take a slightly less formal approach, targeting what you feel may interest them personally. 

After a bit of networking and a lovely pint of cradft-beer, it was time to head home to Edinburgh. What an interesting first event!