Social Media for Business 2016 Classes

Don’t get left out. If you want to attract new customers, your small business or nonprofit on Kauai needs social media marketing tools.

The Kauai arm of the University of Hawaii has your back. They have worked hard to offer affordable stand-alone classes on topics you need to know. These are running Fridays 1-4pm. There is now ONE class left in the 2016 series. If you have never taken a class with me, you can still benefit greatly from this class.

Up Your Twitter Game with One Intensive 3 Hour Seminar at OCET August 26th!

There are 230+ Twitter accounts owned by small businesses on Kauai. Almost all of them could be greatly improved by understanding more about how to use Twitter.

Register for my KCC-OCET class on Friday, August 26th, 1pm – 4pm. It will be packed full of tips and tricks for Twitter that will allow you to reach potential and current visitors. Call OCET at 808-245-8318 NOW to register. (You can also register online, details are below)

Twitter is not yet popular on Kauai, but travelers to Kauai from elsewhere often use it both to search for information before they come and to share their experience of your business with their followers while they are here and after they go home. This is an opportunity to build relationships to stimulate word of mouth and expand your business.

No one is going to engage with a Twitter account that is a stream of auto posts from Facebook or Instagram. Upping your Twitter game will require some attention to your account. But it is worth it!

My classes are highly interactive and customized to the issues of the attendees.

Even if you have taken my Intermediate Twitter class before, you will learn something new! Social Marketing techniques and platforms are constantly changing.

August 26, Friday, 1-4pm; Social Media for Business, Intermediate Twitter
Have a Twitter account but you could be more effective? Linda Sherman will teach you tips and tricks of Twitter that you didn’t know existed. Learn how to schedule tweets, participate in a Twitter chat, how to find people to interact with, what Klout is and why it matters. There will be tips on finding content for YOUR industry and taking advantage of using images. Importantly, there will be an overview of hashtags: where they should be used, where they shouldn’t be used and how to select them.

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I can tell you with confidence that my Social Media for Business classes in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015 at KCC-OCET got very positive reviews and the students got value from the classes. Some of those reviews are below.

The University of Hawaii campus on Kauai – KCC OCET is a tremendous resource for residents of Kauai. If you haven’t taken a continuing education course there yet, you certainly should look at doing so. You will find the classrooms comfortable and well-equipped.

As many of you know, bringing the voice of Kauai to the internet is a passion of mine. Many business owners on Kauai are now realizing that as the power of print declines, they need to understand the tools of social media to reach new customers.

What:
Social Marketing for Business Series
Instructor Linda Sherman
Each class in the series is unique and stands on its own, so you can sign up for one or all of them
There is an introduction and an advanced class for Twitter, Facebook and GooglePlus.

All of the classes are highly interactive. We use live web examples, including your business profiles and others in your industry. To make it fair for all attendees, I try my best to parcel out my response to questions fairly among the students. If you have already attended an advanced class, don’t hesitate to come again. All of the social media platforms and their tools are constantly changing. You are guaranteed to learn something new.

Pick and choose which classes you want, or take all of them. You will get a deep dive into the important social media tools: Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus and YouTube. We will make reference to SEO (search engine optimization), WordPress (the leading platform for building websites), Instagram and FourSquare.

The classes have been set at three hours each because I have found in working one-on-one training clients in social media marketing that three hours is the optimal block of time for a student to effectively learn these new skills.

If you have one, you should bring your laptop to each class. You may be OK with a tablet, but it can be more challenging for things like setting up accounts. If you don’t have a laptop, we will be holding the classroom in the computer lab. We purposely chose Fridays this time just so that we could stay in this room. The room offers a choice between using a Google Chrome Book computer or an empty desk with your own computer. If you use the Chrome Book, I recommend that you set up your Chrome browser on the computer you use at your home or office and sign into it so that you can do the same thing in the classroom. That way it will remember your bookmarks. You can even load photos into Google Docs on another computer to upload into your account on the Chrome Book.

When:
March 23 1pm – 4pm – Wednesday for an Overview for Business Owners and Managers
Fridays 1pm to 4pm April 1 – April 15; July 15 – August 26 for our platform specific interactive, hands on classes.

Download the class schedule here:
Social Media for Business with Linda Sherman Spring 2016

March 23, Wednesday, 1-4pm; Social Media for Business, Getting Started, (Overview for Business Owners and Managers)
Discover how to integrate social media marketing into your overall business plan. Understand the basics of what each major social media platform is and what it offers. Learn how to engage fans and respond to customer complaints posted on social platforms. Unlike all of my other classes in this series, this is NOT an interactive, hands-on class. There will be several structured opportunities to ask questions but the rest of the class will be in a lecture format.

April 1, Friday, 1-4pm; Social Media for Business, Introduction to Facebook
Note there is a difference between a Facebook personal Timeline (or profile) and a Facebook Page. Personal Timelines (profiles) have “friends”, Pages have “likes”. Pages are for brands, companies and non-profits. Personal Timelines are for individuals.

This class is for those who want to have a Facebook Page but don’t know how to get started. You’ll learn the basics including how to set up the page and use the admin interface. It is expected that you already have a Facebook personal Timeline and know the basics of using Facebook.

It is expected that you already have a Facebook Personal Timeline or profile and know the basics of using Facebook.

April 15, Friday, 1-4pm; Social Media for Business, Intermediate Facebook
Already using Facebook but want to get tips to make your efforts more effective? There will be reviews of existing Facebook Pages including an opportunity for class participants who wish to get feedback on their own Pages during the session.

July 15, Friday, 1-4pm; Social Media for Business, Introduction to Twitter
Twitter is not yet popular on Kauai, but travelers to Kauai from elsewhere may use it both to search for info and share their experience with your business with their followers. Learn how to set up your Twitter account and the basics of how to tweet, post photos on Twitter, find mentions of you and your business, and interact with customers.

July 29, Friday, 1-4pm; Social Media for Business, Intermediate Twitter
Have a Twitter account but you could be more effective? Learn how to use Twitter tools, what to tweet about, how to participate in a Twitter chat, how to find people to interact with, what Klout is and why it matters.

August 5, Friday, 1-4pm: Social Media for Business, Google Plus and YouTube
Learn how to set up a YouTube channel and integrate YouTube into your website and other social media platforms. GooglePlus is important to your business because like YouTube, it is Google so it helps your business get found. Learn the basics of how to set up and use Google Plus. BONUS: You will be added to my KCC-OCET GooglePlus Circle.

As a small business owner, you do your own PR. PR News recently wrote: If you’re in PR, then you’re in the content business, and if you’re in the content business, then it might be said that you work for Google. Your PR messages are filtered through the prism of Google’s algorithm, and to get your messages seen you need to take an active role in working with Google’s capabilities and tools — or risk having your messages buried by your competition.

I was interviewed by Forbes regarding the importance of GooglePlus. The article went viral (by Forbes standards).

August 26, Friday, 1-4pm; Social Media for Business, Intermediate Twitter
Have a Twitter account but you could be more effective? Linda Sherman will teach you tips and tricks of Twitter that you didn’t know existed. Learn how to schedule tweets, participate in a Twitter chat, how to find people to interact with, what Klout is and why it matters. There will be tips on finding content for YOUR industry and taking advantage of using images. Importantly, there will be an overview of hashtags: where they should be used, where they shouldn’t be used and how to select them.

Twitter is not yet popular on Kauai, but travelers to Kauai from elsewhere often use it both to search for information before they come and to share their experience of your business with their followers while they are here and after they go home. This is an opportunity to build relationships to stimulate word of mouth and expand your business.

No one is going to engage with a Twitter account that is a stream of auto posts from Facebook or Instagram. Upping your Twitter game will require some attention to your account. But it is worth it!

Cost:
$60 for each three hour class. This is very affordable especially with ETF support. Your business or non-profit should qualify to receive 50% assistance through the ETF (Employment and Training Fund). You can contact David Longmore at Workwise 274-3056 for information about this great tuition break.

At this price, your business or non-profit cannot afford not to invest in know-how that will more than pay back in the viability of your enterprise. ETF application takes 10 business days.

How to Register:
Call KCC-OCET at 808-245-8318.
Or register on-line on the KCC-OCET website.
Registering at least 5 days before the class ensures that the class will run.

Tuition Refund Policy:
100% tuition refund will be provided to withdrawal requests received at least 3 working days prior to the class meeting day. Refund requests can be made by phone, fax, email, or postal mail (postmarked date will be used).

Where:
Kauai Community College, KCC-OCET, Lihue
3-1901 Kaumualii Hwy, Lihue 96766 Cross street: Puhi Road
KCC OCET is the Office of Continuing Education and Training of the University of Hawaii for Kauai
We meet in the computer lab.
There is usually a sign that says what room we are in when you enter the building. Note the front door of the KCC-OCET building has the bookstore on one side and the KCC-OCET office on the other side.
There is a blue circle on the map here showing you where the building is. When you enter from Kaumualii Highway, it is the low-rise second building that you see.

Why:
A shift has occurred in what it takes to market to new customers and communicate with existing ones. Whether your customers are visitors or residents of Kauai, more and more of them are turning to the internet to find your small business or non-profit. You will learn how social media marketing fits into your overall marketing plan. Even if you plan to have someone else run your social media programs for you, you should learn how to set up and manage that support and know enough to delegate with authority.

Not only should you be building your brand online for your company but you should have a personal brand online. This is important both for business owners, as I point out in these Six Tips published by the SalesForce Blog, and anyone who plans to continue working in marketing.

Reviews from Students:
“Very useful”
“Lots of good information and very thorough”
“Fun”
“Like the hand’s on”
“Love that you offer these classes”

Sharing
We would be grateful if you share the information about this class with your friends and colleagues. If you are sharing on Twitter, here is the shortened link for you http://bit.ly/LS16OCET. The KCC-OCET twitter address is: @KauaiCCOCET. There is a FourSquare check-in for your FourSquare and Instagram check-ins before, during or after class. For Facebook Check-ins and links, the KCC-OCET Facebook Page. My Twitter addresses are @LindaSherman and @KauaiTalk.

Hope to see you at one of the classes!