Happy New Year’s Eve, everyone! It’s amazing to see how fast this year has gone by. In so many ways, it seems like it was just yesterday we were all talking about what to expect in 2013 and what our New Year’s Resolutions were going to be.
One of the things I think is interesting is to see what posts generated the most interest and engagement for the year. So, I wanted to share with you the five posts from my blog that got the most visits and engagement from my readers and social media community:
- Hootsuite University Feature on Blog (August 15): This was the biggest post for my blog for the year. I was interviewed by Hootsuite for incorporating their Hootsuite University program into my social media class at the University of Louisville. It was great to hear what others thought about the project and many of my friends who teach social media at other universities were all about incorporating this program into their classes. I started using the program during the spring semester of 2013, and I plan on using it again in the Spring. Highly recommend this program!
- What is a Social Media Professor? (September 22): This was also a very popular blog post, thanks to Dennis Yu and the Blitzmetrics team. I was interviewed by Dennis (along with my colleague at UofL, Dr. Scott Sanders) to talk about what it means to be a social media professor. It was a fun opportunity and chance to explore the various characteristics and attributes necessary for being a social media professor.
- Becoming a Google Glass Explorer (July 3): It was hard to choose one post related to Google Glass since they were all pretty popular, but the first one started the regular updates on how I am using the device both in and out of the classroom at UofL. I was able to write several posts this year dedicated to teaching, what it’s like being part of the Explorer Program, proper etiquette for Glass, chances for UofL to use it for football and basketball games, and many more. Look for more posts on this for 2014!
- Reflections on #Freberg13 & Tips for Professors teaching social media (December 9): This was pretty much one of the more popular teaching posts I had for the year. I was able to share my thoughts and insights from teaching social media for two semesters at UofL in this blog post. This year marked many turning points for me as both a professor and researcher – which was something I thought was pretty cool.
- The Ethical Issues in Social Media (September 11th): I wrote several posts this year dedicated to case studies, crisis situations, and other examples to analyze from a PR, crisis, and social media perspective. This was one of the popular ones due to the ethical issues we continue to see among individuals, brands, and organizations. It appears we are still seeing some issues at play that can be address with proactive measures and strategies, and hopefully we will see more education and training in these areas for the upcoming year.
With this list, I realized very quickly that one thing to note here – for professors, students, and professionals – is to note how your blog can evolve and change over time. I saw each of these posts and I was surprised that from these five, only one was dedicated to crisis communications while the others were really focused on teaching and social media.
Crisis communications is still a huge part of who I am professionally both in consulting and in research, but I found it interesting how my interest in social media and teaching grew a lot this past year. I think this is exciting and something I will continue to pursue along with my other research avenues.
Another surprise for me this year is to hear how many professors, professionals, and students have read my blog. Several have mentioned that they tell their students to follow my blog for class and to get insights on what it is like to have Google Glass, etc. I am truly honored and humbled by this – thanks so much! 🙂
With 2014 coming around the corner, I felt that there are some resolutions I wanted to share both for my blog.
- Incorporate more visuals in posts. I try to do this, but sometimes not. Will try to address this for 2014.
- Come up more with a regular schedule of blog posts. Traditionally, I have been posting on content that really inspires me on a regular basis. Finding a particular time of day would help – and for me, it is early mornings.
- Continue to lead by example by blogging more. I will continue blogging and writing to set an example for my students in my classes. I found this to be very effective when I was having my social media class create and maintain their blogs. I told them that I am assigning work that I am either doing myself or have done.
- Launch new features and exclusives. Possible guest posts and maybe more video could be the answer to this. Will have to ponder and think about this some more for the upcoming year.
- Continue to mentor by sharing stories, resources, and tips with community. I found this to be very useful for this year in particular with my teaching materials. Will definitely continue doing this for the next year.
In summary, today is the last day of 2013, and it has been a great year for me and my family and friends. 365 days were spent well with lots of hard work, conferences, travel adventures, and wonderful times that translated into precious memories. I wish each and every one of you reading my blog a fabulous and joyful new year. Let’s make 2014 fabulous!
Have a great day!
Best Wishes,
Karen
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