Skills of a Social media Ninja – Part 2 (Social Media School)
I was having a discussion recently with Jim Turner of Social Media Sphere TV about how there are so many skills that can be learned in the Social media space. We talked about how we are seeing college courses popping up and even some online certification courses for new media. I am not going to get into the merits of these courses and certifications, but it bares thinking about the many skills that you can acquire working or playing in the new media space. It is media production after all! I want to talk to you today about the many media production talents one might need in the social media space. In turn, I will give you some great links and places where you can dig in to further enhance these skills.
Can we Create a Course Outline for Social Media Ninjas?
Writing – Writing for me is number one on the list, and while I don’t boast the greatest writing skills myself I am certainly working on them. From my point of view the best way to learn how to write is to Just Do It. the more you write, the more proficient and fluent you become. Secondly, I would advise on doing a lot of reading. Read good literature, get outside your comfort zone and be inspired by different genre’s.
Jenn Van Grove, associate editor for Mashable says, “If writing news/reviews etc take yourself out of the equation as much as possible, and think about who will benefit from the topic and why, and take that perspective”
Audio Production – Whenever starting with Audio Production learn as much as you can from people who have done it before you. If you own an apple computer and have an Apple store close by you can purchase lessons from a professional. I highly recommend this. If you don’t have a local Apple store or you own a PC then there are many online resources. My good friend John Meadows recommends open source tool like Audacity for editing, Skype for IP calls, and Audio Hijack Pro to capture the audio. Certainly a full blog post can and will be done for audio production so look for that in the near future. In the mean time if your really interested in learning, listen to every episode for the last two years of The Canadian Podcast Buffet.
Digital Photography & Video – A social media ninja almost always has a still camera hanging over his neck, and a video camera strapped to one hand. If your Kevin Lim, you’ll have multiple cameras live streaming your entire existence as a social media cyborg! Ok, maybe you don’t need to go to these extremes, but having a basic understanding of good picture quality, lighting, and camera settings can prove invaluable to your new media toolkit. Photo & Video sharing sites like flickr or Vimeo can prove to be some of the best networks of people you will meet. Again, we will cover these twotopics more in-depth in coming articles.
Web Development – You know that none of these really cool social media tools would even be here without the talented work of developers of all sorts. In my day job with Best Buy Remix I have the ability to work with some of the most talented developers in the industry. I am not a developer, but I will be asking one of my contacts to do a full on blog post abut this subject as this series goes on. I do however know enough to be dangerous and will give some popular web development languages and platforms. There is a link underneath each for more information.
- Languages – CSS, HTML, PHP, Ruby on Rails, Java, Python, and Ajax. (Feel free to add more in the Comments)
- Platforms - LAMP (Linux), ASP.net (Microsoft), J2EE (Sun), App Engine (Google), Cocoa (Apple)
I know to most “Social Media Gurus” this stuff may sound very boring but get a remedial understanding how things work and you’ll find yourself with a few extra weapons in your ninja arsenal.
Nicholas W. Young gives this Advice to budding developers “Plan, plan plan. Know where you’re going, know what tools you’re going to use, and how you will use them.
Are you a Ninja?
I haven’t even scratched the surface here folks! Two full posts of ninja Skills and were just diving in! So have we at least proved that being a social media ninja goes deeper than 140 character message on twitter or updating your facebook page? I’m not saying you must learn all of these skills, but what happens when colleges and even high schools get with the program and begin to teach these skill sets? How quickly will you become an extinct dinosaur chatting with your friends about the olden days of twitter and facebook?
Stay Tuned! This post along with post #1 and future series posts will become a future e-book. I have lined up some of the industries most talented professionals to contribute and impart their wisdom. Please let me know if there is a topic you would like me to drill down deeper into! Become a Social Media Ninja!
Part 1
Photo Attribution – BL Murch
Keith Burtis is a social media and digital marketing professional. If you or your company are looking to REV THE ENGINE on your digital efforts contact Keith today! Specialties include: Blog design/Integration, Custom Facebook Pages, Social, Digital and Interactive Content strategies.
Comments
Scott We actually could take Digital Photography & Video one step further… http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2009/04/filmmaker-strug.html
With this procedure anybody could be a Social Media Ninja!
Keith,
Everyone who even remotely cares about social interaction on the web should read this. In fact, these basic concepts ring true for almost any profession in the 21st century world. In order to stay afloat, you must diversify.
Over the course of the past few years, I’ve went from one skill to another, whether it was writing for the web, delivering successful PR campaigns, or simply communicating my ideas clearly – and tried to master each and every one. I’m not there yet, but each day brings me closer, and each step I take, I reap new rewards, whether that’s a new client, or just learning how to solve a problem with maximum efficiency.
The point? Each skill that you pick up will somehow assist you on the journey, so learn it well. In these times, your life could take an unexpected turn at any moment, and flexibility is your only asset.
Todd, thanks for the props. I found a youtube clip of some kids that were amazing. I’ll have to dig it up.
Nicholas, I think thats exactly where this is all headed! It’s going to become more and more difficult to be trained in only one vertical. may might say that you have to specialize, but as things become more and more available those walls will break down. Employers will ask more of employees and if you run your own shop, you’ll need to be able to multi-function.
Great list of skills to hone Keith. I like to consider myself “proficient with a sword/throwing stars” but with a lot to learn. I think half of being a great SM Ninja is your ability to rapidly adapt to new situations and react accordingly. “Lightning fast” as they say in the ninja world.
Great series. Wonderful art you’ve chosen. Though I’m wondering if a Bruce Lee or Sho Kosugi clip might be fitting as well. Ha.
Can’t wait to share this around.