SPI course shows new ways of doing communications work

By Ettioné Ferreira

Government communication officers from across South Africa have praised a course they attended at the Sol Plaatje Institute (SPI) for Media Leadership recently, saying it had capacitated them and exposed them to new ways of doing work.

The course, held at the SPI in July, focused on a range of strategies which government communication officers need to use in their work to communicate better and more effectively with their various constituents and on how to manage and lead their organizations in a rapidly changing media landscape.

“I studied for four years but within the few days I have been here (at the SPI), there’s a lot that I’ve seen and I now notice that it is so imperative that one keeps on studying, one keeps on refreshing and refreshing,” said one of the participants, Manelisi Ntsodo, who is the media co-ordinator for Parliament of South Africa in Cape Town.

Ntsodo graduated with a BA degree in Journalism and Media Studies from Rhodes University, the home of the SPI, in 2003. Ntsodo handles media accreditation during events at Parliament.

The communications manager of Buffalo City Metropolitan, Keith Ngesi, said: “This course is going to capacitate me; the content I’m getting here I’ll be sharing with my team.”

He spoke after attending only a few days on the five-day accredited and certificated course known as the Government Media: Essential Tools for Editors and Journalists.

Ngesi also has strong ties with Rhodes University, where he did a journalism course with the East Cape News Agency endorsed by Rhodes in 1994 and 1995 and worked closely with Radio Grahamstown. Ngesi has worked as a communications manager for six years and has also been a producer and presenter of current affairs programmes for the SABC for 12 years.

Ngesi says that it is very different working in government compared to the media industry. “Government media is different (because) there are a lot of legislative systems and processes that we operate under and we are obliged to follow.”

Ntsodo adds: “(In government) You don’t have as much freedom to write about what you think… you must make it a point at all times to abide by [the code of ethics]. You can’t just write something you want to.”

The Makana Municipality communications officer, Yoliswa Ramokolo, was also on the course. She has a BA (Hons) from the University of the Western Cape and joined Makana in June 2013. “I’ve learned so much that I didn’t know before… there will be some changes in my office now. Now I will be able to deal with the media in a better way than before,” she said.

She regards her position to be of strategic importance to the Grahamstown community. “It is very important to communicate the work of the municipality and to bring the people and the municipality together so they will be able to work together.”

What does it take to make it in digital marketing?

Before I got into digital marketing I was an accountant. Yup, I was one of those little boring men in grey suits stuck behind a desk armed with your calculator. Yes it was rather exciting and I enjoyed the first year. The challenge wore off eventually and it became the same old thing. I had fun. I dabbled in a bit of hair modelling which raised a couple of eyebrows at the office.

Anyway back to the point. I walked out of accounting and into the digital world, which was super exciting but extremely challenging, purely because I technically had no idea of what I was doing. Luckily I learn quickly, because if I didn’t, I would be in accounting writing about this as a failed venture.

So what does it take to be successful in digital marketing today?

Instead of babbling on endlessly, I have broken down this post into bullet points for ease. I have a few things that I believe one would need to survive, or at least make it in the industry.

Stay determined

I personally believe that anyone aspiring to get into digital needs to have determination. Without it you would fall short. It is the basis of who we are today. The reason I say this is because the industry changes so fast that you have to constantly learn and evolve. Clients can be chaotic and all over the place, demanding ridiculous results. Your boss will want the best out of you and in order to get through all of this you need to stay determined.

Learn, learn and learn some more

The next skill is the ability to learn. The ever-changing nature of the industry we have to stay on top of it all. The only way we can do this is by learning new things every day. As an SEO Strategist I am learning to code in PHP so that I can take my technical skill-set further and actually understand how the web works.

Obviously you do need to learn and keep up to date with the latest developer concepts, but it helps you to achieve even greater results.

Don’t be afraid

There have been plenty of times that I have been scared to try something new because it might fail. That’s something I had to overcome. So what if you screw up? That mistake is an opportunity to learn.

If you think something might work out well, just try it out It could be one of the greatest things you have done and lead to massive returns on that concept.

We simply cannot afford (yes I used a meme there) to let our fears take over when it comes to digital. The industry would die if the scared didn’t try. But in all honesty, mistakes are where we learn our biggest lessons and can lead us to achieving greatness down the line. Go BIG or go home, it’s that simple..

Think outside the box

In every job or career, there are best practices or guides but there is no set way of doing things (unless you’re an accountant). You cannot think big because it doesn’t work. In Digital we have to.

Our clients expect that of us. They want the idea that is going to push them ahead of their competitor. Look at Zillow and Trulia, the two biggest property portals in the states. They battled it out and those agencies had to think outside of the box to try one up the other.

Sadly they have “merged” and are now striving towards one goal. But back to the point: you cannot rely on best practices or rules if you want to really get somewhere. It will put you in the box of normal and the last thing you want to be is normal.

By now you are probably getting tired me, so I thought I would lean on other digital marketing specialists to add their thoughts.

I contacted Julian Mountain, Head of Digital at Saatchi & Saatchi Synergize, as well as Anton Koekemoer, a digital specialist, to get their thoughts and insights.

I put the following questions to them and these were the responses I got:

What got you started in Digital? Name some of the hardest lessons you have learned the hard way? Do you have any advice on what skills/characteristics an aspiring digital marketer should have? Where do you see digital/SEO going over the next five years?

Julian Mountain:

I started in 2005 at a paid search marketing affiliate agency generating leads and sales for eBay and Expedia.

Always set daily budget caps when setting up Adwords campaigns. Always check country targeting when setting up Adwords campaigns – the default used to be targeting planet earth.

Make sure you include developers in project briefings and scoping as early as possible.

An inspiring digital marketer needs to be CURIOUS (understanding new tools, products, downloading and playing around with new apps). ADAPTABLE (the role changes all the time based on new products, platforms, devices). A budding strategist needs to have an Appreciation for ART and SCIENCE.

I see the term digital falling away. It will no longer be just a silo-ed word / channel or activity.

Anton:

I started out as a developer and saw that it’s not only about developing awesome websites and applications, but about getting people to website. Build it and they will come is a thing of the past and so it’s the same as having a Ferrari with no petrol to drive around. Digital marketing was the next logical step to take.

Digital marketing isn’t easy and it’s not for sissies. Yes you will find many “social media gurus” and self proclaimed experts online, but do they actually understand how to work out the true ROI of social media and other digital marketing methods? It comes with years of experience and in digital marketing, there are many snake oil salesmen. There are plenty of them in it for a quick buck. Do some research on your side on who to trust with digital marketing.

It’s difficult to say because I’m working with many talented individuals from all walks of life. I come from a strong programming background and must admit that it has helped me tremendously with some tough choices, especially with technical SEO.

It’s an ever evolving medium and will continue to change. Many SEO methods that used to work five years ago, don’t anymore. To stay ahead of the game, you need to constantly check what is happening online and how you can better your SEO/digital marketing strategy. Specifically in regards to SEO, semantic search is starting to play a huge role especially with the knowledge graph integration on Google and how search is adapting to our needs.

And that is what it takes to get by in Digital. It’s all hard work but boy there are some amazingly fun times and the effort is worth it. I wouldn’t go back no matter what. Then again, I wouldn’t go back to hair modeling either.

This article was first published on memeburn.

In digital marketing? You need to understand your services and products

In today’s digital connected world where we communicate with our network and social circles through social media, mobile, and local technology, if you want to succeed online, you need to understand and engage with your clients’ needs at a deeper level. Social media has taught us to be open and transparent online by engaging with others, but the next trend will all be about having conversations at a more meaningful level than just engaging with people.

Today, many businesses, marketers, and sales people are using their websites, blogs, laptops, smartphones, tablets, and other digital tech to provide us with information and to educate us. We are quickly trying to integrate technology into our processes to make things easier and to streamline business.

With this, did you know that many of your clients and customers might already know your services and products better than you do? People are now doing their research and looking for information before making the final decision. Many of us are doing research and some homework before we buy.

The realtime nature of social media has also made it easy to find answers when you have a question or looking for a specific solution. The information they are gathering can be very important, especially where negotiations are involved because these people are already informed and educated to make a purchase. This might sound good to you, but it does present its own set of challenges.

Do you know your services and products?

It’s important that you really understand your services and products better than ever. People are searching online to see if you really understand and know your stuff. In a nutshell; this means that you have to be closer to all of your business processes to ensure you are meeting the needs of your target audience.

You might have heard this before, but it is also important that you start listening to what your target audience is talking about online so that you can provide them with valuable information to educate them further on your services and products. This is key to being authoritative in your industry.

The online world is also crowded with information and the trick is to find the content that is actually valuable. By looking at the needs of your clients, you will be able to modify and adjust your content to make sure they find it valuable and help them with the queries or problems they might have.

Take time and make sure you as a business owner, manager, line worker or even client service representative are always listening at the needs of your clients and informing your co workers of information that will help you stand out from the crowd and the noisy digital landscape. Everyone of us needs to move on from just the basics of using digital technology and social media and return to really knowing your business and understanding the needs of your target audience.

The digital world is changing at a rapid rate and if you don’t change with it, you will be left behind. Article first published on Memeburn.

Introducing the SPI scholars

By Ettione Ferreira

The Sol Plaatje Institute for media leadership introduces the new Primedia and the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA) scholars for 2014:

The 2014 Primedia Scholars

The Primedia scholarship encourages students to focus on digital media advancements during the course. This year Primedia chose these four PDMM students:

Lengwadishang ‘Lee’ Ramphele

Lee received her BA (media and communications) at the University of the Western Cape in 2004. In 2011 she started working for a community radio station, Phalaborwa FM as the program manager. “Being awarded a scholarship to study the PDMM is a dream come true. I have always had the urge to study further but never got the opportunity…My biggest aspiration is to get a job in one of Primedia’s radio stations,” Ramphele says.

Neo Khoza

Radio broadcaster at Rhodes Music Radio (RMR), Neo, has a BA in journalism and media studies from Rhodes University. She proclaims that she wants to become a developmental journalist and use radio as a tool to tell the stories of people who need it. She also wants to be a media leader who, in her words, “shape current media content and hold media accountable to those ideals that make it a vehicle of social change and upliftment.”

Qama Qukula

Cape Townian, Qama, completed her undergraduate degree last year at the University of Cape Town, graduating with a BA in film, television, media and writing. She is interested in television production and programming mainly and wants to use the PDMM course to prepare her for the media world. She wants to tackle pressing issues in the country through television and explains, “I aspire to generate unique local television content that unapologetically addresses the complexities of race and sexuality in our country, as well as the notion of body politics.”

Sithandwa Ngwetsheni

Sithandwa finds herself close to home as she comes from Port Elizabeth. This B.Journ graduate specialised in radio and according to her, “radio production is my first love because it allows me to create and to escape into other worlds.” She wants the PDMM course to help her understand the business side of media organisations. She wants to empower the youth of today and help them connect, breaking down barriers. Sithandwa emphasises the importance of education and helps children from Nathaniel Nyaluza High School with their school work and life skills.

The 2014 OSISA Scholars

The OSISA scholarship for SADC women leaders focuses on the empowerment of women. Meet the three scholarship winners: Baboki Kayawe

In 2009 Baboki graduated at the University of Botswana with a degree in media studies. She then worked for a daily newspaper, Mmegi to start off her career in journalism. She is also part of the World Association of Newspapers and Publishers’ empowerment drive which focuses on women in the media in Southern Africa. It is here that her interest in media management became promonent and she decided to do PDMM. She was a suitable candidate for OSISA with her focus on women in the media. “I hope to learn a lot from PDMM on media convergence and divergence…” she says.

Chisomo Ngulube

“Journalism is an exciting profession, more often not too predictable,” Chisomo summarises her interest in media. She lives in Malawi and graduated with a BA in journalism in 2003 at the Polytechnic. After which she worked at Nation Publications Limited, one of Malawi’s leading media organisations. She then became sub-editor at the sports desk. This position saw her making history as the first woman to work for the sports desk of the newspaper. She also obtained a Post-graduate diploma in Media for Communication in Development, from the University of Malawi. She found herself in broadcasting after moving to Television Malawi. She became a member of the editors group, Women’s Edition. She finds herself now in the chief editor position and wants to build on her managerial and leadership skills within the media industry, thus making PDMM the perfect choice. Her strong background as a woman making history landed her the OSISA scholarship for SADC women leaders.

Inutu Himanje

As Head of Production and Operations of TV2 at Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) Inutu supervises a team of television producers, graphic artists, editors and cameramen. With a journalism degree from Zambia and her M.A. in international journalism at City University in London, she is well equipped for the journalism world. However, this does not give her enough for her role as a manager. "So far my media training has focused exclusively on journalism, but I need to develop knowledge and skills in other areas of management," Inutu says. The PDMM course will help Inutu and the others understand the role of a manager in the media environment.

For more information about next year’s PDMM course email l.snam@ru.ac.za