#OAP101 Hashtag it!

What is your favourite hashtag to use?

Hashtags are an important part of living and dealing on social media. Whether as a way of joining or starting a conversation, they help your posts (and therefore, you) to be seen.

Improper use of hashtags however can do more harm than good. For example, if you break one of the hashtag rules, you may find people skipping over your posts, and a platform like Instagram could even 'shadowban' you, making it hard for your posts to be discovered.

What are some of these Hashtag sins?
- Putting the 'hash' key in the wrong place. Always #OAP101 and not OAP101#
- Using too many hashtags. While on Instagram, you can get away with up to 30 hashtags, on Twitter and Facebook, you want to do fewer tags; maybe 1 or 2, 3 maximum.
- Putting them all over the place. While it is okay to sometimes hashtag a word in the middle of a sentence, it can make your captions look clumsy. Instead of a sentence like, 'This is the #OAP101 #blogpost for #today', write the sentence first, THEN place the hashtags below or after the caption.
See an example here.

Now that we have covered some of the sins, what makes for a great use of a hashtag?

1. Unique hashtags
You need a unique hashtag for your brand, like how we have #OAP101. I also have #ShopTosyn and #TosynBucknorDaily.
This one is simply for your brand and you can ask your followers to use it for posts they want you to see or repost

2. Relevant hashtags
Apart from using one or two unique hashtags (if on Instagram), you also need a hashtag that is relevant to the post you have up. In this instance for example, I definitely need to include '#Hashtag' and perhaps '#SocialMedia' in my post.

3. Popular Hashtags
Be careful with how you use popular hashtags because if you use them just to get your post discovered, it can actually be worse for you. If people feel you're using hashtags indiscriminately, they can ask for your post to be removed from that particular hashtag, and like I mentioned above, some platforms will penalise you for it.
Popular hashtags vary from region to region so a quick Google search can show you top hashtags to use.

Another tip is to place your hashtag correctly.
For Facebook and Twitter, write your caption, then place 1 to 3 hashtags at the end of the caption.
On Instagram, to make it neater, write your caption then leave some space before including your hashtags as shown above. You can also simply put your hashtags as a comment on your post.

I hope these tips help.

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OAP 101: Do your SWOT!

Hi Media Guy, or Girl!
Thanks for checking out another OAP 101 post.
Now I am not sure if you know that I also have a podcast series? Check out past sets here, and listen to this week's episode on Anchor.

If you are interested in things like branding and positioning as a media person, a S.W.O.T analysis at its' most basic will be beneficial for you.
What does it stand for?

S- Strengths
W- Weaknesses
O- Opportunities
T- Threats.

Simply put, take a look at your SWOT and then use that to plan your next few steps brand and position wise.
Your strengths are the things you do best AND that make you unique. For example. one of your strengths can be that you can talk about any subject on earth! Trust me, not everyone can do this. Another strength can be that you like something others like you do not like. Take me for example, I think I am one of the few women On-Air Personalities in Lagos who not only love but follow and analyse football games. Trust me, it has been an advantage for me.

Your weaknesses are those things that you obviously don't do well, or don't do better. Opportunities speak for themselves. These are the jobs, brands, and other avenues open to you as a media host to grow and include things like reading the news, hosting a show, speaking at a conference, interviewing guests on the red carpet and more. List them.

Last but not the least, taking a look at the space you're in, list your threats; these are competitors and factors that may prevent you from getting certain jobs. For example, I mentioned that I like football more than most. There are some who DO like football as well though and may be a threat when it comes to football based opportunities.

Once you have done this, and please note that this is not something you do once and forget about but rather, something you may need to go back to from time to time to update, you can then see clearly how to BUILD on your strengths, WORK AROUND your weaknesses, LOOK for your opportunities and POSITION yourself ABOVE your threats.

Feel free to hit me up privately with your own S.W.O.T analysis via my Instagram DM.

#OAP101 3 Things to Note when Co-hosting a Radio and Television Show or Event

Hi all.
Today I am answering one of the questions sent to us via dm on Instagram.
While on radio, I host my show alone, I have worked with co-hosts for television, youtube shows and also as an M.C at events.
.
What benefits are there when it comes to having a co-host?
The 1st is you have someone to cover for you if you're having an off day or minute, or cannot make it on the show in the case of media.
Another benefit is the instant interaction it gives because you have someone to bounce things off with and everything is conversational.

Sometimes there is a disadvantage to having one though. One big disadvantage is in cases where one person dominates the others or thinks of themselves as 'main' host. Another disadvantage is sharing the spotlight if you absolutely love it!

So how do you handle it and ensure you and your co-host deliver quality content to audiences and guests?
1. Understand that your co-host also has valid points, thoughts and feelings. Both of you need to find a way to work together as opposed to making it seem like a turn by turn thing. Bring ideas to the table, concede to some of theirs and suggest what you think will work.

2. Plan and Practice before you start
Before the show or event starts, it helps to speak to your co-host and for both of you to speak about things like who handles what, how you start and end the show etc.
Recently I had the pleasure of co-hosting at an event and my co-host and I decided we would start the show together, alternate going on stage and then close together and it worked brilliantly.
I have also been blessed to co-host with Ali Baba who had so many ideas and gave me space to shine.

I thoroughly enjoyed cohosting with Peter Kajovo

3. Emphasise each other's strengths and uniqueness.
Remember that if you both decide to speak and act the same, there is no point having two different people hosting. What you should do is play to each other's strengths and let each other shine.
I hope these help.
If you have questions for me, please leave them below as a comment, or send us a DM via our Instagram page, or my Twitter page.

#OAP101 4 ways to have a kickass interview!

Hi everyone,

I hope you have been enjoying the OAP 101 podcasts?
This week's podcast touched on interviews and I s.h.a.r.e tips based on my personal experience on how to have kickass interviews!

The tips are

- Research
Do a quick research by searching for their name and visiting their official website or social media handles.

- Prep
Prep your guest to put them at ease.

- Be Creative and Fresh
People get tired of listening to or answering the same question over and over. Look for creative ways to ask yours!

- Interaction and Inclusion.
Let the audience be a part of the process by letting them engage with your guest.

Listen to the podcast for a break down of each one as well as examples i give.

#OAP101 Define Your Brand! Here is how, and why!

We hear that word, 'brand' and the other phrase, 'branding yourself' a lot. Is it important? Of course. It is like asking if one should bother working or advertising. If you want to be successful and taken seriously in the media space, brand and branding are things you must be concerned about.

How then do you brand yourself? One of the first things you must do, is define your brand.

One of the first things i like to advise people to do is, when people think of you, what are the top 3 words you want them to associate you with?

For me for example, i like to think that when people think of me, they think of fun, they think of unique and they think intellectual. That is the first exercise. Much as when you think of a Brandy or a Sean Tizzle or a Bonang Matheba, ask yourself what must come to people's minds when they think of you.

This step correlates with the next one which is the 'Why'.

What do you want and why?

Say for example, what you want is to be the most popular media personality in the world. That is a start. You may want, like say an Oprah or an Ellen, to change the world one show at a time. The important thing is to define the what you wants and for you, the 'whys'. Why do you want these things?
My friend told me once that she was encouraged to pursue her line of work because when she was growing up, she saw a lady on tv that looked like her so she felt if that lady could do it, then so could she! When i heard that, i decided i was able to better define my own goals. I realised i wanted to be successful so that some girl could look at me and be encouraged. And i was determined to do it my way- natural hair, melanin popping, tomboy chic and all.

Now that i have shared mine, think about, and share yours with me below.

The final tip i have for you is listing what i like to call 'usps', i.e, Unique Selling Points.
Out of ALL the people in the media, why YOU?

Finding what makes you different will help you not just for yourself, but also for brands to work with you.

All these tips and things i have mentioned require honesty. Can you now honestly take some time out to answer this and then define your brand?
You can s.h.a.r.e with me or send questions privately via my email or a dm.

OAP 101 Episode 5 What to do when you make a Mistake!

Hi everyone! Welcome to another five minute, OAP 101 podcast ride!
The latest episode of the podcast is titled ‘What To Do When You Make a Mistake’. 

In this informative episode, i coach on what to do when one makes a mistake, especially since mistakes are inevitable. Some of my tips include acknowledging, apologising and moving on. I also break these tips down, and emphasize on how important it is to not dwell on mistakes  so as not to affect the totality of your show.

Follow @Tosynbucknor and @TosynOntheAir on social media to keep a tab on my activities.

#OAP101 How to Schedule and Create your Content

Hello lovelies! I have this week's edition of 'OAP 101 Podcast' ready and this week, have i got tips for you! Get tips on 'Scheduling and Creating Content' for your radio, television and other shows. I give you practical tips, lace it with examples and a lot of giggling. Lol. Please check it out and then let me know if you have questions or comments.