#OAP101 Practical ways to use Social Media for your Shows

Have you come down from the high of the Royal Wedding yet?
I know I haven't! And I can imagine hosts around the world will have plenty of content to use from this wedding and other weekend shenanigans, for weeks to come.

Today, we continue our Social Media tips with some practical ways to use Social Media for your shows. I will be going to the Royal Wedding a lot for my examples because that is the first lesson for you- jump on trends but tweak to suit your personal platform!

When it comes to using Social Media for your shows, think of it in 3 ways.
For one, you use it to PROMOTE and COMPLEMENT what is running.
So for example, if you will be talking about the royal wedding, you can then tweet or put up a video of your comments on it.

Secondly, use Social Media to get CONTENT your show.
As with the example above, you can put a question out on your platform, asking for people's opinions about a subject, and then incorporate the replies in your show.

Thirdly, you can use it to CONTINUE the conversation.
Done with the show? Not said all that you wanted to say? Were not able to take ALL the comments and contributions?
Let Social Media do the rest.

I love using social media in all 3 ways and when you do, it makes your job easier and gives it more influence.

Now let's check out 4 practical things you can do, using 4 different platforms.

BLOG
If you own a personal blog, or you have opened one for your show, do a blogpost based on either guest interviews or some news or comment shared on the show.
I like to do things like '3 Things you Didn't Know about X Y Z' after a guest comes on my show.


FACEBOOK, GOOGLE PLUS and INSTAGRAM
Naturally you should either put up a picture of a guest beforehand and encourage your followers to ask questions, or you can put up a picture of yourself before and after your show talking about what you do.

TWITTER
Tweet some of the songs you play, also, tweet some of the most outrageous contributions on the show, and you can use twitter to continue the conversations started on the show.

YOUTUBE
Put up clips from the show on your Youtube channel.

I hope these practical tips help.
Implement one or all of them and tell me about it. You can send me an email or a dm on Instagram and Twitter.

#OAP101 4 Ways to Stay Fresh and Credible as a Media Host

Hello fresh, aspiring or established media personality,
It is a beautiful new week and I am writing this, sipping my tea, and thinking about how to keep being fresh and credible.


The truth is, there are 2 things you want to avoid on this journey- being thought of as stale, and being thought of as fake, as in, a source of fake news.

Some of the ways to stay fresh and credible are:

- Verifying your Sources
This is one of the most established tenets of journalism and I still get surprised when even interns or students on Industrial Attachment feel comfortable presenting me with stories, or worse, going on air with stories based on, 'People say...'

Investigative Journalism even has higher standards but whether you went to media school or not, as with life, so with news- check, recheck, double check.


- Consuming Different Kinds of Content
If you are into Music, you can still get some content from Sports. If you love News, Fashion may surprise you.
By watching and listening to other kinds of content, you stay updated and easily adaptable.



- Checking out Trends
Social Media platforms are making things a lot easier for us these days as they have things like 'Explore' (Instagram), 'Trending' (Twitter) and more.
A simple daily glance at online trends can help ensure you keep up with what everyone is talking about.


- Gisting with People
Sometimes, just a good kickback with people provides a world of fresh news, stories and talking points for you.
By listening to them and enjoying what they say, you get an insight into what people are excited, worried or lackadaisical about.
This can help you immensely.


What do you think of these tips? How do you stay fresh and credible as a media host from your end?
s.h.a.r.e with me.

P

#OAP101 Answering your questions on becoming a Sports Journalist and Monetising Content

This week's podcast is out and you can listen below.
I tackled two questions we got via our Instagram page on if media world has room for Sports OAPS, and How to Monetise Content.
To summarise
- Is there Room in the Industry for Sports OAPS?
The quickest response is YES.
Niche journalism is actually interesting and some niche content creators make more money or impact. If you want to be a Sports OAP, have a good grasp of Sports in general and one or two sports (like tennis and football or formula 1).
There's a world of content to explore including previews and predictions, team news, transfer undates and post game reviews!

- How to Monetise Content
What is the content? Where is it aired? These are some of the first questions to ask.
Having said that, there are 3 broad ways to monetise content
. Using the platform you are on
. Sponsorships
. Hypes and Promoted Posts.

Listen to the Podcast for the full gist on each one and don't forget to keep the questions and contributions going in our comments below!

#OAP101 Find out why 1 post a day brings followers your way!

Whether you like social media or not, chances are, as an on air personality, you will have to use it.

Whenever i train or consult for on air personalities and it comes to social media, the one tip i s.h.a.r.e is- POST AT LEAST ONE THING DAILY.

This is the simplest must-do if you want your social media popping because one of the reasons people follow or like posts is because of consistency. We want to know that when we come to your page, we see something new so give us something new daily.

When you first start with that one post a day, you can then increase your number of posts. I like to do 3 on facebook, instagram and google plus with a little more on twitter.

Don't forget to follow OAP 101 on instagram and twitter for more tips!