Erik Qualman's Blog, page 533

Is Your Digital Footprint is Hurting You?

Hey there Socialnomics’ers

In my work as a career consultant I’m often asked to take a look at clients digital footprints and try to explain what they’re doing wrong.

The first thing to understand is that EVERYONE Googles you.

Most people aren’t going to Google 5 pages deep but you can be sure that if something comes up on the first 2 pages your potential employer or clients will see it.

There are two major problems when it comes to your digital footprint.

1. Red Flags – Red flags are things that suggest you are not the type of person a client or employer wants to work with. These include but are not limited to twitter or Facebook rants(My personal red flag), inappropriate pictures, mentions of drug or alcohol use, threats or aggressive bullying behavior towards others (even as “jokes”) and much much more.

2. Incompletes – When you start filling out a profile but forget to finish it or start a blog and update it a few times then forget it, I call your digital footprint incomplete.

Let’s talk about how to deal with both of these different kinds of digital footprint problems.

Get Rid Of Red Flags

With red flags you want to delete, delete, delete. If you, like me, love ranting on Facebook or Twitter, make sure that you make your feeds private and turn off screenshot captures. Before you send out a resume or make a client presentation, Google yourself a few different ways.

Since I have a very common name, I make sure to Google my name along with Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and any other social media I use. I also Google my name with my career title, to see what that turns up.

Deleting red flags is easy but that’s only one half of the battle. The next part of red flags is making sure you don’t create new ones! Chances are if you have a few red flags now, you will create more later. If you’re like me ,this means you need to exercise personal judgement on your public accounts and then create a fake name for your private accounts this way even if someone does find my tweets they will be under Rashard Lannister instead of your real name.

Make Incompletes Complete

The last step of fixing your digital footprint is to fix all your incomplete information.

Add your place of employment or any other missing information to Facebook.

Update your blog 3 times a week if you’re going to keep it or delete it entirely. A blog that doesn’t get updated is way way worse than not having a blog to being with.

Add clear pictures of yourself to all of your public feeds.

Fix any broken links on your website ESPECIALLY if they lead to your blog or bio or anything a potential employer or client will want to check out.

Eliminate anything that says coming soon or under construction on your website(s)

Lastly and this is a HUGE pet peeve of mine, make your contact information easy to find! If you have one of those contact forms get rid of it, serious people know that you don’t respond to those and it makes you look unprofessional. Have your email address, phone number and all relevant social media information easily locatable on the main page of your site. This alone will get you more business and interviews.

Ok let’s re-cap in today’s article I talked to you about how your digital footprint could be hurting you.

We looked at red flags and incompletes, understanding that you need to delete and control red flags and complete the incomplete information.

Now you know everything you need to fix your digital footprint so that everyone can see how great you truly are!

Best,

Jon Lee

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How to Find and Hire the Right Programmer for Your Startup

The secret to hiring the right programmer is to look for smart people.

When you are writing code, every single line requires the programmer to make quick decisions. Whether it is about what line to write or what function to add, there are multiple decisions involved in each line of code. So when you are looking to hire a programmer, you need to look for someone that you can trust with these decisions.

Decisions are judgment calls, and if you are smart, it’s more likely that you will make the right call. That is why it’s extremely important to look for smart people when interviewing candidates for your programming job.

Smart people will not only get the job done well, but they will also attract other smart people. Contrary to popular belief, most programmers don’t want to be the single rockstar on a team of other programmers that cannot keep up. Smart people want to work with other smart people. They also want to spend their time with other smart people. So if you make sure to hire smart programmers in your interview process, they will get the job done right, and they will make other smart programmers want to join your team.

The hardest part, however, can be actually finding these smart programmers and weeding them out from the rest.

Resume Screening

Unfortunately, there is really nothing on a resume that shows whether or not a candidate knows how to code. Resumes are pretty useless for the process of hiring a great programmer, but they are a necessary evil in the job world. How else are you going to find programmers that you might not have known about?

You should not use this part of the hiring process to try to sniff out great programming skill. A piece of paper is not going to tell you that. However, there are a number of things that you can look for in the resume stage that will at least help you narrow down your pool.

First, you should look at the quality of writing. Great writing indicates strong thinking skills and an ability to organize and present ideas. It can also be useful to ask candidates to submit a cover letter along with their resume in order to gauge writing skills.

Typos are a bad sign in both resumes and cover letters; they indicate that the candidate is not detail-oriented and does not double check his or her work. Another red flag is a generic version of a resume or cover letter that could be sent to any company, which shows a lack of interest in your company on the candidate’s part.

Other things to look for in the resume stage include passion, smarts, creativity, and previous screening. If the candidate comes from a prestigious university or impressive company, then they have already made it through intensive screening processes for those institutions. Creativity is harder to standardize, but look for anything that makes a candidate’s resume stand out from the rest. GPA, activities, and past experiences can be indicative of passion and smarts.

If you are looking to hire an intern who will hopefully turn into a full time employee, it is best to look at only juniors in college. If you only hire juniors for internships, then you can extend them an offer at the end of the summer, and you will not have to worry about other jobs influencing their decision.

Phone Interviews

Like resumes, phone interviews should not be used to screen for direct coding ability. Instead, you should use phone screens to judge whether or not the candidate is smart. Do not worry about getting into too much detail, but have conversations about things like algorithms and data structure. You might also ask a candidate how they would build something specific using code. These conversations will allow you to see if the candidate is highly technical.

Many successful phone interviews are broken down into three parts. First, ask the candidate to talk about a recent project he or she has worked on that is especially cool. This will allow you to hear about the kind of work the candidate has done, and you will be able to listen for passion and drive. Second, present your candidate with a design problem so you can see their thought process. Finally, allow your candidate to ask you questions about the company.

In short, phone interviews are a great way to discuss technical topics that do not require writing code. This conversation should be strictly in English—no coding languages yet. Remember, you are trying to judge whether or not the person is smart, and this stage of the interview process is an excuse to have a technical conversation, which gives you the opportunity to make this judgment.

Remote Code Tests

Code tests will give you the opportunity to screen for coding ability. Finally! You can do these interviews in person or online. If you choose to give remote code tests, watch the candidate’s computer as he or she works. Whether it is remote or in-person, ask your candidate to explain the thought process behind the code they are writing.

This stage is extremely important, as it allows you to see whether or not a candidate is actually a good programmer. This is the stage to sniff out novice versus expert programmers, so it is easy to be quick to judge. However, remember that this is an interview setting and your candidate is probably nervous.

On one hand, see how they act under pressure. On the other, extend them a free pass on being nervous and realize that they might make small, stupid mistakes that they would not make if they were not being watched by someone with the ability to make or break their career. Candidates are not typing into a compiler that might catch these mistakes, so it’s ok to excuse things like typos and simple syntax errors.

In this coding test, you can ask candidates to use a standard language that every programmer should know, or you can let the programmer choose the language they are most comfortable working with. Either way, see how they talk through what they are thinking—do they have a plan? What is their thought process?

In Person Interview

To ensure little error in hiring, each candidate should go through at least 5 interviews before he or she is hired. The last interview should be saved for a senior manager or someone high up on your team.

When you are giving an interview, it can be helpful to avoid asking a question that you already know the answer to or asking a candidate to solve a problem that you have solved the day before. These kinds of questions will lead to biases towards candidates who gives the same answer you gave. Remember: you are looking for smart candidates, not identical candidates to you. The best team is made up of people that think in different ways.

It is also helpful to keep asking the same questions to different candidates. This ensures a fair process and helps you as an interviewer. By asking the same question, you begin to realize what to look for in an answer. You can also compare candidates more easily.

The goal with in-person interviews is still to decide if the candidate is smart and if they will get the job done. Similar to the phone interview, present a problem that acts as an excuse to have a conversation.

Decision Time

Only hire people that you feel 100% confident about. Sure, any process might present false negatives, but you would rather lose someone good than take a chance with someone that will not end up working out.

If you hire bad candidates, you will have to fire them later on, and you will have to clean up mistakes from poor performance. Bad hires become liabilities.

The options should always be “hire or no hire.” There should not be any “maybes” involved. If a candidate is a “maybe” then they are automatically a no hire.

Be absolutely certain someone is good before you hire them.

Over Complicated?

The hiring process is long, and it requires a lot of time and energy if you want to find the best programmers. But it’s even more of a headache to end up with a team of poor programmers. If you try to skirt around a thorough hiring process, you will only regret it down the line.

If all of this seems like too much, or if you do not know enough about programming to set up this kind of screening process, it might be best to turn to outside help. Reach out to a developer friend, or find online sites, like Toptal, that will take over the process for you. Toptal will not only connect you with freelance developers, but its team of engineers screens each developer for you as well. As a plus, you can work with these programmers first on a no-risk trial basis before deciding to bring them onto your team full-time. Other sites like Freelancer will provide job boards where you can post your project, and developers will apply.

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Snapchat’s big change: Just tap instead of holding down

Mashable - Snapchat just changed everything you thought you knew about its app.

Snapchat made major changes to its user interface in an update Wednesday: you no longer need to hold down to view a Snap or Story. Instead, the company is introducing a new “tap to view feature.”

With the update, which is available now on iOS and Android, you can view your Snaps and browse your friends’ stories with just a single tap. The change will be a big one for regular Snapchat users as keeping your thumb on the screen was one of the disappearing messaging app’s signature UI features — accidentally move you thumb and the message would be gone forever.

In a blog post Wednesday, the company acknowledged the change will take “a little getting used to for anyone who has been Snapchatting for a while. ”

But the change doesn’t mean you’re stuck looking at extra-long Stories. The app still allows you to skip to the next photo or video by tapping on the screen or you can swipe down to exit a Story completely.

 

Image from Snapchat

The update also brings a new “Add Nearby” feature that allows you to add new friends on the app based on the people around you. Snapchat says this will make it easier for groups of friends to find each other on the app. You can find “Add Nearby” in the “Add Friends” menu, but you’ll only see usernames for those who also have the “Add Nearby” screen open on their app.

Snapchat also added more personalization features to Snapcodes — that’s the QR code-like feature introduced in the Discover update — with animated selfies Tap on your Snapcode, you can find it by tapping on the ghost icon at the top of the app’s camera, and the app will take a burst of 5 rapid-fire selfies. All five are played within the ghost on your Snapcode, much like an animated GIF.

Finally, Wednesday’s blog post notes the addition of two-factor authentication, which was added in a previous update. You can enable the security feature, which uses your phone number, from the “Login Verification” menu in the app’s main settings.

Article by Karissa Bell for Mashable

 

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Go Green on Social Media

Social media is fun.

It’s the way media is going and pretty much everyone and every business has some sort of social media. It provides a sharing outlet, a way to connect and stay in touch.

It also provides a great learning medium that we often overlook.

No matter the topic, you can reach out on social media and garner great information.

For instance, if you are interested in becoming more active in the green movement, get out there on social media and you may be surprised what you can learn and how you can get involved.

Learning More

Among the ways your social networking can assist the green movement:

• Ask – If you have questions, research them on social media. Twitter is a great forum for this, as well as some of the lesser knows, like Prezi. You can learn about the green movement and what big things are taking place.

• Learn – As the following article looks at, you can find ways to enhance your education or career in the green realm, like through 3PDH online courses that support green building.

• Research – You can research particular businesses, government organizations or specific public figures to see exactly what role they are playing in this movement. Whether you look at their twitter feed or a specific website, you should be able to pick up some valid information.

• Discover – Find out what is going on in your area. You may find some events or seminars that you can attend to learn more, network and get more involved.

Getting Involved

Among the ways to get involved:

• Finding events is a great start – Perhaps there’s a park or nature center that plays a big role in the green movement close by, and you can volunteer. Social media is great for finding information like this. You can use specific sites for information and follow social media as well.

• Tweet and post about what you are doing – If you write a green blog, promote it on social media. If you are organizing or even aware of an event, post it. Report afterwards so your followers can see the effect you made.

• Connect – Social media is the place for forming like-minded connections. You can share philosophies and what you are doing to help the environment. Not only can you make strong connections, but you can also find support and positive enforcement of what you’re doing.

Social media has a lot to offer, much more than you may think.

Don’t be shy with it – get out there and use it.

You never know what difference you can make!

Photo credit: Image courtesy of nuttakit at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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​How to get Apple Music on your iPhone, iPad, Mac and PC

CNET – Apple has released iOS 8.4 for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch users. The update includes a series of bug fixes, along with a new app to access the company’s new music streaming service, known as Apple Music. The service offers unlimited on-demand access to over 30 million tracks for only $9.99 per month for a single user or $14.99 for a family of up to six.

Also included with the iOS 8.4 update is access to the Beats 1 Radio station, which is available to free to anyone with an Apple ID. Beats 1 will go live on the air at 9 a.m. PT, 12 p.m. ET.

On an iOS device

You won’t find Apple Music in the App Store, instead you must update your device to iOS 8.4. This can be done by going to Settings, followed by General, selecting Software Update, and clicking on the Download and Install button.

Once complete, click on the white Music icon on your home screen. You will be given the option to either go to your music or to begin your free three-month trial of Apple Music. If you click the trial button you will be asked to choose a membership type (either individual or family), sign in, agree to Apple’s terms of use and confirm your purchase (you won’t actually be billed until after 90 days). This will give you access to the on-demand portion of the streaming service and features such as unlimited skips and saving music for offline listening.

Even if you don’t sign up for the trial, as long as you are signed in with your Apple ID account, you can still access the free Beats 1 radio station, follow musicians on Connect, and listen to Apple Music radio stations (with ads).

On Mac and PC

Apple Music is also available on Macs and Windows computers. In order to use the service you will need to have the latest version of iTunes installed. To check for an update on a Mac, open the program, click the iTunes drop-down menu in the top left corner of the screen and select Check for Updates. You will want to be on version 12.2

On a PC, click on the drop-down menu in the top left corner of the screen, select Show Menu Bar, then click on Help in the menu bar and select Check for Updates.

Last updated on Wednesday, July 1, 2015: Information on how to get Apple Music on Windows and Macs has been added.

Article by Dan Graziano for CNET

Thumbnail from Shutterstock

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Why Video Marketing is Essential for Your Business

As technology continues to improve, your business’ marketing strategies need to grow and change as well. This is essential to the growth of your business or the method of marketing may be completely ineffective. Today, video marketing is growing in popularity. Everyone enjoys videos and with the use of smartphones, tablets and Wi-Fi friendly mechanisms, a video may be all it takes to grab a person’s attention.

Learning “How To”

Google recently shared that the term “how to” on YouTube is growing 70% year over year. These type of videos are popular because consumers are searching for help on how to do something. Many users prefer video when learning because they’re often more engaging. In fact, many research and studies have shown that visuals help people to learn better and remember information.

These “how to” queries are known as “micro-moments.” Micro-moments occur when people turn to their smart phone, mobile devices, or computer to learn something, watch something, find something, buy something, or do anything at all.

With searchers increasingly looking for solutions on YouTube, businesses need to utilize these micro-moments. There is a need for how-to material from searchers, which makes it a great opportunity for companies to take advantage of this.

Researching Before a Purchase

There are a few things that a consumer wants to know before making a decision.

 What does the product do?
  Where can it be purchased?
What does the product or service entail?
How can I get it?
How does it operate?
 What do others say about your product?
How does product A compare to product B?

These are all questions that can be answered in a video. When we’re searching for products, people are often looking for a comparison between similar products. This way they can find the one that’s worth buying and suitable for their needs. By answering all of these questions effectively in a video, it will likely make their decision to go through your company for the product or service easier. It has been said that over 80% of people will turn to their smartphone to help influence them into making a purchase. Over 60% of people with smartphones are able to solve problems right away. With such heavy use of mobile technology, video marketing is more valuable than ever.

Video and SEO

When you’re publishing a video online, it’s important that you consider all the elements that can help you rank on search engines. Therefore, remember to write a metadata to rank fro valuable long-tail keywords. In addition, populate hidden tags in the HTML code for your landing pages.

Another great way to utilize your video is by creating a transcription of your video. The transcription can be turned into a blog to showcase your video and  rank for specific keywords in there. In addition, transcriptions allow users that aren’t able to watch your video to read the content. It also gives users a snippet of what your video will be about.

Increase Conversions

Did you know that email open rates are increased by 5.6% with videos? Videos are easily searchable and they’re captivating. Unlike images, videos allow you to connect with your viewers through sound and visuals. They humanize your brand by showing the faces behind your business. Your videos can influence a series of emotions to your viewers, which can also prompt them to open emails or fill out a form on your landing page.

Videos can be used for different things, landing pages, emails, product explanation, how-tos, and more. Whether you’re writing blog or greeting your eCommerce customers, you can create a video for it. Why not add the personal touch that can connect with your visitors?

The Future of Video Marketing

It has been predicted that by 2017, video will account for nearly 70% of all consumer Internet traffic according to Cisco. Video is the future of marketing methods over the Internet. As time passes, video is expected to grow in popularity.

Reading articles and ads is slowly fizzling away. With smartphones being one of the main forms for people to connect with today’s news and a way for people to become more informed of the matters they care about, video marketing is one of the best way to promote your business. There are even programs that will allow you to add your customers to a database that sends them text and emails of new happenings with the company. This might include sales, promotions and other exciting news you would like to share about your business. The great thing about these programs is that they will allow you to send video and other media directly to your audience.

When you use a video to promote, you can make it more entertaining than an article or ad. More people are likely to pay attention to what the video is portraying and even find it more entertaining. This is a more sufficient method and more likely to get your customers to come back or to go through your business for whatever services or products they are in need for. The better the video, the more proficient it will be in marketing. Remember, a video is more likely to be spread and shared among friends than an article or ad.

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Small Tweak in Logo Marks a Deeper Shift at Facebook

Wall Street Journal – Blink and you’ll miss the tweak Facebook is making to its logo Tuesday.

The letters are thinner. There’s more white space. The “a” is rounded off.

Still, the update subtly hints at a much larger shift within the company.

“This is actually a huge change and it’s much more than the ‘a,’ ” said Howard Belk, co-chief executive and chief creative officer of Siegel+Gale, a branding firm that’s part of Omnicom Group. “It’s driven by mobile.”

Facebook’s old logo was created in 2005 when the then-nascent social network was anxious to find its footing. The result: a strong, squared-off typeface well-suited for desktops and designed to look grown up.

Since then, Facebook has evolved from scrappy startup to sprawling public company that also operates mobile apps such as Instagram and WhatsApp.

“Now that we are established, we set out to modernize the logo to make it feel more friendly and approachable,” Facebook creative director Josh Higgins said in a statement.

The tweaks also reflect the growing importance of smartphone users to Facebook’s bottom line. Facebook’s new logo loses some of its old character, but it’s more smartphone friendly, Belk said. The back-lit glow of a smartphone makes letters look fuzzy and less legible, so clear lettering with more white space looks better.

Belk said his firm advises clients to adapt their branding to where people will see it. “More and more, it’s in the palm of their hands,” he said.

About 1.44 billion people visit Facebook every month, increasingly from mobile phones. In the first quarter, 87% of the social network’s monthly active users checked Facebook from their phones, up from 79% the year earlier. In 2014, mobile advertising revenue accounted for about 65% of Facebook’s total ad revenue, up from 45% in 2013.

Facebook is updating its corporate logo throughout its offices. The “f” logo in the upper corner of Facebook’s website – known as the favicon – will be unchanged.

Image from Facebook via WSJ

Article be Deepa Seetharaman for WSJ 

Thumbnail from Shutterstock

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Is the Tech Industry Boosting the Freelance World?

The IT industry is an industry that is ideal for freelancers. With internet access, networking, and telecommunications, people can easily work remotely. IT freelancers can work from home, on the go, or in offices.

Image via pixabay.com

IT is not the only industry in which you will find freelancers. It is estimated that the number of freelancers in the US is around 16 million, and this figure could rise to 65 million by 2020. Freelancers work in a range of industries, such as marketing, project management, accounting, and insurance. There are a lot more opportunities for freelance careers than many people realize.

This can be good for the workforce, who can become specialists in a particular area and use their skills to seek assignments in a variety of companies. Working on a variety of projects with different people can improve their skills. Workers can be much more flexible about where they work and what type of work they do. It can also give workers the chance to own their career and determine in which direction it goes. It can also be good for businesses, who are able to find the skilled workforce that they need for a particular project, without having to employ such individuals long term or train them. An umbrella company can make finding the right qualified staff much easier for a business.

While freelancing can be good for workers, it can also have a downside. The company that employs them no longer has to pay for health insurance, workers’ compensation, or Social Security taxes. Some workers may struggle to make the kind of money that they would make in a regular salaried job, and they also have more expenses to cover. Health care cover is more expensive for an individual than it would be for a company employee, and they may end up having to work more hours. Planning is crucial if an individual is to succeed in freelancing.

Studies have shown that in the IT industry, more companies are switching to hiring freelancers rather than full-time staff. For the companies, it makes sense because they can adjust their workforce as required, hiring more when there is more work and shedding staff when the work slows. In some small companies, as many as half the workforce may be contractors rather than full-time employees.

Of course, while it might sound perfect for companies, there is still the problem of finding the right staff with the right skills. For small companies that might not have their own IT department, and who are looking for someone who is highly skilled in a particular area of IT, how can the company know that it is hiring the best person for the job?

One way that a company can find the skilled workers that it needs is via an umbrella company. The umbrella company finds the staff, and it is the responsibility of the umbrella company to ensure that the staff have the right skills. This takes a lot of the work out of finding good freelancers.

Freelancing looks set to stay as more companies move away from the traditional workforce, and both companies and individuals will have to adapt to the new regime.

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More Socializing Can Lead to More Affordable Housing

When it’s time to find a place to live, it’s time to open up some social media.

Whether you’re looking for a new house, a condo, a second home at the beach or looking to upsize or downsize, don’t overlook social media for finding affordable housing.

Location, Location

Depending where you want to live, you’ll have different expectations.

Perhaps you want a sprawling house in the suburbs. Check out some local realtors’ social media pages in the area. If you’re not sure how to find one, take a look at some of the big name realtors online and then narrow down to a specific realtor.

You can also ask your Facebook friends if they know anyone who specializes in the area.

You may be surprised who knows who on social media, and someone may be able to turn you on to a great realtor who can help you find the perfect (and perfectly priced) home.

Also when you are doing your own drive-arounds, you can often find listings on social media to view the home before ever setting foot inside. It’s a great way to preview a home before wasting anyone’s time if it’s not going to be what you want.

City dwelling is a little different as it’s not as easy to drive around on your own.

Check out social media for specific areas, even specific buildings, if you are eyeing a particular one.

You may be surprised at what you can (or can’t) afford, so it makes sense to do a little triage before getting a realtor or agent involved. Be open-minded and you may find the perfect thing.

As the following article, “micro apartment design makes Brooklyn housing more affordable” looks at, this concept is opening up in other cities as well.

Sure, New York is tight on space, but other cities are incorporating micro apartments as well, and these could be just what you want if money is tight, but city living is calling you.

Social media can help you out here, as well, to find out what’s available where you want to be.

What Social Media to use?

Check out Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest.

Narrow down neighborhoods, school districts or buildings to help you find what may be available in your price range. Often it’s surprising what your money can get you, and social media can help you find affordable areas.

You can also a real estate agent via social media, one whose social media appeals to you. A good agent will post listings on her social media feeds, along with stats and other information.

Social media is a great way to not only check out listings, but pre-shop your agent as well.

It’s best to work with an agent who you gel with, so go ahead and contact them via social media to get a vibe.

Social media makes the search for the perfect home so much easier.

Gone are the days when the first impression is when the realtor unlocks the front door; now you can save everyone’s time with that first view on social media.

Photo credit: Image courtesy of phanlop88 at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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SMS and Social Media Schooling the Masses

College students and recent high school grads are turning to social media to stay up to date with what’s going on around campus and around the world.

Thanks to SMS (short message service), the academic masses are connected to social and school events like never before.

With social outreach in mind, here are just a few reasons SMS and social media are beneficial to schools and universities of all kinds:

High School and College Smartphone Stats

Smartphones and academia are quickly becoming synonymous and for good reason.

High schools and colleges across the country are implementing SMS texts that are helping to keep students informed about campus news and events.

With the popularity of mobile devices, the academic world would be foolish to ignore smartphones or ban them from the classroom.

According to Education Week, 51% of all high school students regularly take a smartphone to school with them.

Likewise, 53% of college students in the U.S. own a smartphone and roughly 47% own a traditional cell phone.

With numbers like these, it’s no surprise more and more schools and colleges are adopting a mobile mindset.

SMS in Schools and Colleges

SMS texts have already found their place as an effective form of communication. Not only does SMS make it easy to send messages, it also makes it easy to receive and respond to messages.

As the following article looks at, this is just 1 of 3 reasons SMS is so important in schools and colleges.

They are:

1. Versatility – SMS can be used to send important reminders, class cancellation updates, and general campus updates. It’s also helpful in emergency situations when a large number of students need notification about potential threats on campus.

2. Mass Communication – Reaching a massive audience in real-time has never been easier than with SMS. Schools and colleges can send a message to the entire student body or a select group, like the freshman class. Likewise, teachers and other staff can use SMS texts to communicate with entire departments with ease.

3. Speed – Because SMS texts are sent directly to the user’s phone as opposed to email or another digital middleman, recipients get messages instantaneously. This is especially important in academic atmospheres where schedules and timing are of the utmost importance.

SMS texts have found a place on campuses all across the country and social media is quickly following suit.

Social Media on Campus

When social media first began making a name for itself; many academic environments saw it as a distraction for students. Now, schools and universities are actually embracing social media as a way to communicate with students.

Just about every major college and university in the U.S. now has a Facebook page and Twitter feed.

By doing so, colleges are able to connect with students by becoming a part of their social lives.

Likewise, high schools across the country are also creating Facebook pages and encouraging students to follow them. This is helping high schools become more current and accessible to today’s students.

When it comes to the future of academia, SMS and social media are quickly finding their place.

Photo credit: Image courtesy of Ambro at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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