My time as an amateur social journalist

As the semester comes to a close, I look back on my experience as a social journalism student and have come to a few conclusions: 1) this occupation is no walk in the park, 2) I have some serious improvements to make, and 3) despite my faults, this field has peaked my interest in a way that keeps on growing.

Tasked with using analytics to evaluate my performance, I've realized that social journalism isn't just about being a good writer and researcher. It encompasses regularity, consistency, and engagement to promote not only your content, but yourself.

You know how they say "numbers don't lie"? Well, the data found in my website and social media reports show that I am lacking in some of those areas. This was not necessarily a shock to me. As a full-time student, keeping up with several social media accounts isn't exactly at the top of my to-do list (apologies to my instructor). Nonetheless, maintaining a strong, successful social media presence is dependent on steady engagement.

Perhaps the biggest outcome to be seen from my analytics reports is that there is a direct relationship between social media activity and website traffic. At the start of the semester, I was Tweeting and Facebooking almost daily. Similarly, my blog posts from that time received more attention. As my consistency on socials faded over the last few weeks, so did my website and post views.

If I was working as a social journalist full-time, these faults could ultimately lead to real downfall. However, that is not the case. Instead, the data has served as a learning experience to foster improvement.

For starters, my future social media strategies will emphasize consistency. In order to create and preserve an internet presence, engaging with followers on a regular basis is key. Tweeting once or twice a week will not suffice.

With consistency comes growth. I saw a real decrease in website traffic following my lack of social media activity. Growing a platform takes time and can only be done if I stick to it. This means that I need to prioritize social engagement in the future or bare the risk of oblivion.

Finally, just because I find something interesting doesn't mean everyone else does. While the work I put out may have some main focus, there needs to be some variation in content. Accounting for a wide range of followers should lead to increased relatability and an increase in community.

Regardless of what may have hindered my performance, I think I was successful in my endeavors as a social journalist. Analyzing data reports allowed me to pinpoint my weaknesses and see exactly where changes need to be made. I think it's safe to assume that no one expected this to go perfectly. After all, I'm still learning.