3. 1. Course Summary
The wide penetration and adoption of the Internet and its applications, especially web 3.0
and social media, have many effects on how organizations, institutions, governments and
function. While the expectations of users and consumers are changing in regards to access
to information (with many implications from speed of response, to privacy and data
accessibility and protection), so are the requirements to communication and marketing
specialists.
By focusing mainly on the business (organisational, instiutional, governmental) imperatives
to adapt to the social web, this course aims to introduce participants to concepts and
theories of strategic communication and marketing and their application. In doing so, the
course will use online instruction, self-guided learning and problem-based learning and
combine academic research with the latest professional debates.
This is a 2 credit intensive course.
[Back to top]
2. Aims of Course
This course aims to:
1. Present the social media landscape and its evolution
2. Present and discuss the challenges that the emergence of new media (web 1.0
to web 4.0 and social media) pose to marketing and communications
3. Present and discuss the implications of uses of social and digital media for
organisations, governments and individuals including practitioners (skills, trust,
digital divide)
4. Outline the fundamental elements of a marketing and communications strategy
5. Explain how strategy can be applied to online communicative efforts (including
marketing)
6. Expose students to the market expectations and requirements such as research
and social media audits required to drive strategic insight
7. Increase students’ awareness of the risks and opportunities that the new media
offers
[Back to top]
4. 3. Intended Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course students will be able to:
L1 Describe various web-related concepts: web 1.0, web 2.0, web 3.0, web 4.0, social
media/social web; digital divide; long tail; technological determinism;
L2 Critique the implications of the theoretical concepts presented to practice;
L3 Implement a social media audit to a chosen case study to drive strategic insight (and in
doing so, use the tools and research methods and techniques covered during the course);
L5 Apply the elements of a strategy to a given case study by extracting the strategic insight
obtained from a social media audit;
L6 Generate content fit for new media using new media applications and tools.
[Back to top]
4. Employability Skills
Through participation in this course students will have the opportunity to develop
knowledge, understanding, skills and attributes which, as well as being specific to their
chosen area of study, will be transferable and enhance the students’ employability.
These include, in relation to:
a) Knowledge and understanding
• An understanding of the roles of technology and communication systems, an
awareness of the economic forces which frame the media, cultural and creative
industries, and the role of such industries in specific areas of contemporary political
and cultural life;
• An understanding of the role of technology in terms of media production, access and
use;
b) General cognitive skills
• Critically evaluate the contested nature of some objects of study within the fields of
communication and media, and the social and political implications of the
judgements which are made;
• Critically appraise some of the widespread common sense understandings and
misunderstandings of communications, media and culture, and the debates and
disagreements to which these give rise;
• Have an understanding of how media, cultural and creative organisations operate
and are managed;
• Retrieve and generate information, and evaluate sources, in carrying out
independent research
5. c) Autonomy, accountability and working with others
• Work productively in a group or team, showing abilities at different times to listen,
contribute and lead effectively;
• Deliver work to a given length, format, brief and deadline, properly referencing
sources and ideas and making use, as appropriate, of a problem-solving approach.
[Back to top]
5. Modes of delivery
Classes are delivered in ONLINE using a WEBINAR format. Students are expected and
required to complemet the online delivery with self-guided study and complete the tasks
assigned to them (marked as such) prior to the webinar time.
Requirements:
1. Participants must ensure they have access to a stable Internet connection, able to
sustain uninterrupted video and audio streaming for the 2 hours scheduled for each
webinar.
2. Participants MUST set up a Wordpress account (www.wordpress.com) - this will be
used to submit the course assessment (Submissions in any other form - email, file
sharing or other are NOT accepted).
3. Participants are encouraged to set up a Twitter account (this is the fastest way to
get in touch with the lecturer)
Classes
In preparation for each class, students are expected to read the recommended readings,
prepare the assignment for the day and keep up to date with news both in their field of
activity and digital/new/social media.
Course hashtag
The hashtag to the used for the course is #vivessmmarketing. This enables tracking of online
discussions about the course.
Class slides
Course materials will also be uploaded either on www.anaadi.net,
www.kathonewmedia.wordpress.com or shared via Copy.com, a cloud-based sharing
service. Additional materials can be found on http://prezi.com/user/ana_adi/ and
http://dcsbu.wordpress.com.
6. The virtual learning environment is integral to the work of the course. Students should make
sure that they have access to the Internet and visit the sites indicated above on a regular
basis. Key information about the running of the course will also be shared via the lecturer’s
Twitter account: www.twitter.com/ana_adi. If students have any difficulties with access,
please contact the Lecturer using Twitter.
Webinar plan
The following pages provide a guide to the topics for each online webinar and the associated
readings and activities the participants should complete. The readings and activities that
need to be completed prior to the webinar are clearly marked.
[Back to top]
Webinar 1 – Introduction (the course and assessment). Social Media
Landscape and Web culture.
Key issues: A quick overview of the development of the Internet and social media. Web
culture and the Internet society and their implications for individuals, society and
organizations.
Mandatory readings:
(n.d.) Web 1.0 vs Web 2.0 vs Web 3.0 vs Web 4.0 vs Web 5.0 – A bird’s eye on the evolution
and definition. Available at https://flatworldbusiness.wordpress.com/flat-
education/previously/web-1-0-vs-web-2-0-vs-web-3-0-a-bird-eye-on-the-definition/
Newsnight (2007) The Cult of the Amateur by Andrew Keen. Available from:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/newsnight/2007/06/the_cult_of_the_amateur_by_andrew_ke
en_1.html
RICHTELL, M. (2012) Wasting time is new divide in Digital Era. New York Times. Available at
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/30/us/new-digital-divide-seen-in-wasting-time-
online.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0.
SOLIS, B. & LI, C. (2013) The State of Social Business 2013: The Maturing of Social Media into
Social Business. Available from: http://de.slideshare.net/Altimeter/slides-the-state
Mandatory videos to watch prior to the webinar:
• Technological determinism: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKblR2h2t-M
• Cult of the Amateur: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=un5vTaUZvi4
• Digital Divide: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQD5soc2r7Y
• Long Tail:
7. • https://www.ted.com/talks/chris_anderson_of_wired_on_tech_s_long_tail?languag
e=en
Optional readings:
LECINSKI, J. (2012) Winning the Zero Moment of Truth. Google. Available at:
http://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/collections/zero-moment-truth.html
LESSIG, L. (2012) Free Culture. Penguin Press: http://www.free-culture.cc/freeculture.pdf
SHIRKY, C. (2008) Here Comes everybody: the power of organizing without organizations.
Penguin Books. Chapter 1: 1-25.
[Back to top]
Webinar 2 – Digital media and integrated (marketing) communications.
User-generated content. The fundamentals of a strategy.
Key issues: Social media strategy fundamentals: from research to implementation and
measurement. Campaigns online: recipes for success or disaster, investment and costs.
Mandatory readings:
AMEC (n.d.) Social Media Measurement Framework. Available from:
http://amecorg.com/social-media-measurement/framework/
NIEDERQUELL, M. O. (2001) Integrating the Strategic Benefits of Public Relations into the
Marketing Mix. Public Relations Quarterly, 23-24.
RINDOVA, V. P., & KOTHA, SURESH (1998) Building Reputation on the Internet: Lessons From
Amazon.com and its Competitors. Washington DC.
CHAPMAN, T. (2008) Social network marketing, engagement marketing and brands;
accessed on September 30, 2008: www.socialnetworkmarketinguk.com
INTERNATIONAL BUREAU OF ADVERTISING (2009) Social Advertising Best Practices, accessed
on May 19, 2009: http://www.iab.net/media/file/Social-Advertising-Best-Practices-
0509.pdf
www.dcsbu.wordpress.com
Optional readings:
Blanchard, O. (2010) Greenpeace vs Nestle: How to make sure your Facebook page doesn‘t
become a PR Trojan horse / part 1. Availabe from:
https://thebrandbuilder.wordpress.com/2010/03/22/greenpeace-vs-nestle-how-to-
make-sure-your-facebook-page-doesnt-become-a-pr-trojan-horse-part-1/
Owyang, J. (2010) Crisis Planning: Prepare Your Company For Social Media Attacks. Available
from: http://www.web-strategist.com/blog/2010/03/22/prepare-your-company-
now-for-social-attacks/
9. 6. Assessment
All assessments for this course are due on January 22, 6PM Belgium time.
Individual assessment – social media audit and competitor analysis:
Conduct an analysis of the social media activity and strategy of a company/public
persona/event/museum/NGO of your choice and at least one of their online competitors
focusing on the comparison of two channels (e.g Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook).
Your analysis should include:
1. a description of your chosen subject (company/public
persona/event/museum/NGO) and what they do online in general terms (how many
channels do they use, with what purpose, what is their target audience)
2. a justification of your chosen subject
3. a description of your competitor and what they do online in general terms (how
many channels do they use, with what purpose, what is their target audience)
4. a justification of your choice of competitor (include a perceptual map to support
your justification)
5. a comparison and analysis of the social media use between your chosen subject and
their online competitors (choose one channel only; what do they use it for; how
effectively; what can you say about their use and knowledge of social media and
strategy)
6. a list of a minimum 3 recommendations for your subject to improve their online
activity (make these actionable).
The social media audit and competitor analysis MUST be submitted online as a blog post on
kathonewmedia.wordpress.com no later than January 22, 2016, 6PM Belgium time.
1500 words (+/- 10% leeway on wordcount NOT including references).
Please include the number of words at the end of your blogs post and before your reference
list.
Webinar participation logs
Webinar notes and exercise responses should be submitted by January 22, 2016 (6PM
Belgium time) on www.kathonewmedia.wordpress.com. This can be in bullet points and
highlight questions, comments and reflections arising from your webinar participation.
[Back to top]
10. 7. Marking criteria
The final grade of this course will represent a cumulated grade for all the assignments:
Assignment Points
Webinar participation logs
- Webinar attendance (10)
- Webinar log capturing responses to major webinar
questions (10)
20
Social media audit
- Description of your subject and justification of your
choice (10)
- Description your competitor and justification of your
choice (10)
- Comparison and analysis of the activity of your
subject and their competitors (30)
- Recommendations (20)
- Presentation (web appropriate, spelling) (5)
- Correct referencing and attribution (all images and
sources are correctly attributed and where
necessary hyperlinked) (5)
80
100
Late submission
A penalty of 5% per day will be applied for every day of delay in submitting the assignment.
This penalty applies only to the assignment submitted late. Please note that the January 22,
6PM Belgium time deadline is the time you should submit your assignments BY and not at.
Class blog submission
Submission on your own blogs or via email directly to the lecturer is NOT accepted. This will
be considered as a non-submission. Please make sure that you post your assignments on the
kathonewmedia.wordpress.com blog and that you make them public.
+/- 10% leeway on word count
Your assignments are expected to be of 1500 (social media audit) words. Work submitted
under or over the word count and the given leeway will be penalized in accordance to the
percentage of words exceeded/under the work limit.
[Back to top]