Guest blog writer Melissa Gaffney (third year BSc Events Management) has written this post for us describing the first talk in the Digital Talk Series 2016.
Wednesday 24th February marked the first of the much anticipated Digital Talk Series! Alongside student lead digital workshops are four guest lectures from different backgrounds, but each lecture brings a unique area of expertise in the digital world.
Starting the Digital Talk Series was Social Media Personal Trainer, Paul Wilson of Grantham, Lincolnshire. Paul started PRwilson Media – a social media consultancy and training business in 2012 as he believes that social media can make a world of difference to businesses. Paul’s previous experience as an IT consultant allows him the understanding of customer’s digital needs and can offer them training to develop their own social media networks. Paul operates as a ‘Social Media Personal Trainer’ and guides his customers through the early stages of social media and best practice techniques to ensure they are on the right path for their business. Not only does Paul run his own business, he also devotes his time to the Rotary Club and its events. His involvement includes aiding with social media and the marketing of the Rotary Club’s Swimarathon in Grantham.
Paul started his talk by introducing his personal story and the decisions that lead up to him starting his own business; he likened his decisions to a motivation of wanting to spend more time with his family and ultimately to make a difference in the world. His story connects to his local Rotary Club and through advertising at a local swimming pool, Paul enquired and became the first member to join through online enquires. It was clear from his talk that Paul holds a significant affection for the Rotary Club and what he has achieved through the group. In regards to the events, Paul attributes great personal success to the Swimarathon event which runs in Grantham during February and his role as one of three leading an online marketing and communication campaign.
The power of social media became a big talking point during the later stage of Paul’s talk. Drawing on his experience of building a relationship with a fellow international Rotarian to establish an international event in which Rotary Clubs from all over the world took part in a meal at the same time to fund raise for the End Polio campaign that Rotary has been developing for more than 20 years. It is through this ability to communicate with people instantly across the world that helped Paul in his final push to start his own Social Media Personal Training business.
Paul then took questions at the end of his talk from attending staff and students; advising on inspiring and getting involved in projects to what advice would he give for students who engage on social media on a professional and personal aspect. His advice for this would be focus on the relationships an individual may develop online as “social media is about connecting a community over a common goal” and an individual’s focus should be on those relationships; rather than focusing on how far the message is reached and to not get overly concerned with ‘likes’ and ‘followers’. His advice also extended to establishing yourself online and taking the time to work on a social media page, rather than doing too much in the beginning.
For more information about Paul and PRwilson Media see http://www.prwilsonmedia.com/about-prwilson-media/
The next Digital Talk Series will be 9th March with Elena Sandor – The business of blogging: The rise of the 21st century influencers. Visit the Digital Student Ambassadors Group blog for more information: https://dsag.blogs.lincoln.ac.uk/.