I recently had the opportunity today to talk to Jodi Gersh - also known as @jodiontheweb. Jodi is a long-time employee with the Gannett company and is currently the Director of Social Media for Strategic Brand Marketing at USA Today. You'll hear her story from when she was working with her brother on one of the first social media networks and how she used those insights to really launch social media marketing at Gannett. It's a great story.
Key Topics
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The Story of Jodi's Career
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Social Media And The News
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Success on Social Media
Key Answers
To be successful in the social media space - do you have to have a real affinity for it?
"I think that you really do have to have a passion for it. That passion doesn't necessarily mean that you're great at writing posts or you understand the audience. It just means that you're really inquisitive about how it works and why it works. I think my sociology background was part of the reason why I had this passion and why I found it so fascinating."
What constitutes success on social media for USA Today?
"That answer has probably changed a lot depending on when you asked it - even in the last 2 years. It used to be how many fans we have and at that time, that was the most important number. Generally now, our focus is on reach. If we're not reaching people then they're definitely not going to click on something and come back to us. That's where the algorithms and engaging content come into play. We may have 4 million fans on Facebook but each post isn't necessarily reaching those fans because that isn't the way the platform works. All the things we can be doing to increase that reach for example, trying out new content with Facebook Live, then translates back into traffic and engagement for us."
Which networks are working best for USA Today, today?
"That has a lot to do with how many people are on those networks. We always have high numbers from Facebook but depending on what we're doing e.g. live posting of an event, then Twitter generally works better for us. We also have a focus on Instagram now - we've just started to measure what we're doing there and are looking at a cohesive strategy. But we also have to be in the places that will never drive traffic or at least not if you're not paying for it, e.g. Snapchat."
Key Soundbites
- "To be successful in the social media space, you have to be inquisitive about how it works and why it works."
- "On new networks, we always want to have a cohesive strategy."
- "How has social media changed? A lot. And that answer probably changes depending on when you ask it."
Resources
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Company Website: http://www.usatoday.com/
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Personal Twitter: @jodiontheweb
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Company Twitter: @USATODAY
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Personal LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jodiontheweb
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Company LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/usa-today
Enjoy, and check back here for more episodes of the All the Social Ladies podcast on Social Media Today.
This article was originally published on Apple News: