MANUAL OF THE YOUNG SOCIAL MEDIA

MANAGERv

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Written by Marco MarozziDesigned by Elena Bortot

“What words should we listen to amongst the

myriads rumbling on the network?”

During one of my tweets I met Paulo Coelho,

Master of Life and Hope and I found his

Manual of the Warrior of Light, a useful

source of inspiration to reach the right

balance on the Net... And to protect and

spread democratic creativity based on social

media, just like a Jedi Knight would do.

Since I had nothing to do, I collected and

re-worked his inspiration in this “Manual

of The Young Social Media Manager” because

“he shares his knowledge with others”.

Here are some guidelines, describing the chal-

lenges Social Media Managers are faced with,

solutions and paradoxes they encounter when

they pursue a dialogue, when they want

to protect and disseminate the creativity of

the word on the Net.

At TheGoodOnes, we are used to wearing long,

large and comfortable robes, tunics and capes,

in various shades of white and brown…

A SMM always does some-thing out of the ordinary

He does not go through the knots

of the Net trying to fulfil a role that

others have chosen for him.

A SMM never forgets gratitude

He never forgets friends since their

conversations get intertwined and

blended with his own within the social

network.

All of the network’s roads lead to the SMM’s blog

Without hesitation he immerses him-

self in the flowing buzz of the Net but

he does not lose sight of close ties.

A SMM never underesti-mates the viral force of

the wordWhen this is too strong, he withdraws

from the conversation, until its energy

has worn out.

A SMM believes in his dialogues

He need not show that the others’ are

wrong; what is important will last,

what is trivial will be forgotten.

A SMM listens and respects a strategy

He knows what to expect, how to

achieve an objective and which skills

are necessary for the intended purpose.

A SMM does not rely solely on his own strength

He also uses his friends’ energy. As he

progresses, he discovers that enthusi-

asm and training alone are not enough;

experience is needed to achieve results.

A SMM thinks of ways to improve his own style

So that the reputation of his words

goes round the Net and spreads from

person to person.

MANUAL OF THE YOUNG SOCIAL MEDIA

MANAGERv

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A SMM does not pretend. He is.

He does not ask for permission to

speak, he simply speaks. He does not

explain his ways, He is accountable for

what he does.

A SMM has no cer-tainties but a logical

thread to followHe never judges in terms of “right” or

“wrong”; he adopts the most suitable

attitude at a specific moment in time.

A SMM is neverin a hurry

Time is on his side; he learns to keep

impatience at bay and to avoid careless

sentences.

A SMM is quick and patient at the same time

The two biggest mistakes in a rela-

tional strategy are: acting too early and

missing out on opportunities.

A SMM is aware of the importance of intuition

In the middle of a conversation he can

obviously not recall every single word

written by the people he is talking to;

so he obeys his instinct and follows his

own inspiration.

A SMM always resumes conversations

He knows perseverance has nothing

to do with pressure. He might take

a break but will wait for the best

moment to re-engage.

A SMM seizes every opportunity to learn

He takes every opportunity to correct

his faults because friends always act

like a mirror and show him/her who

he really is at the very moment.

A SMM knows that no one is stupid

And that the Net is a teacher for all,

even if it is time-consuming; he does

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A SMM pays attention to his own messages

When you want something, the entire

Net works towards it. For this reason

a SMM always pays great attention to

what he thinks.

A SMM shares his knowledge with others

Those who help always get helped and

they have the desire to teach what they

have learnt.

A SMM is reliableHe makes mistakes and

sometimes he considers himself more

important than he really is,

but he never lies

A SMM is always busyHe is slave to his own

commitments and free in his paths.

A SMM does not repeat the same post

Especially when he notices that he is not

progressing. It is a balance of forces that

requires a change of strategy.

A responsible SMM is able to observe and

to learnSometimes he gets carried away by the

situation but he learns from it and he

knows how to face new challenges.

A SMM is simple and cautious

When talking with other people he does

not judge their behaviour in order not

to spread negativity on the Net.

A SMM is aware of the pauses that precede

a dialogueHe pays attention to silence and, while

the others are chatting, he rehearses

his script and carefully adheres to

timelines.

not get discouraged and keeps

on boosting others, as a way of

encouraging himself.

When a SMM starts something he takes

it till the endHe may think long before acting, never-

theless, when a SMM takes a decision,

he does act.

A SMM does not try to be consistent

He indeed learns how to live with his

contradictions, adopting the right

strategy when needed.

For a SMM nothing is abstract

Everything is concrete and concerns

him/her. He does not sit and rest at his

pc, but accepts the challenges of the

written word as an opportunity

for transformation.

A SMM knows about the power of speech

He seldom talks about his plans

in order not to waste the energy

required to act.

A SMM always knows the topic of the

conversationHe decides to talk on the basis

of inspiration, sense of belonging,

knowledge, curiosity and interaction.

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A SMM needs time for himself

He sits, relaxes, and observes the Net

as if he were a spectator. He does not

try to intervene, but gets carried away

by the stream of messages.

A SMMs knows how important his

posts areHe is aware that individual actions

produce long-lasting consequences on

the Net. And he ought to be aware of

what legacy he wants to leave for the

5th generation of his descendants.

A SMM knows that the end does not

justify the meansBecause the end does not exist - only

the means do - if he concentrates just

on a single question he would lose the

various answers surrounding him.

A SMM behaves like a child

He has fun, plays, is irreverent, asks

inappropriate questions, writes such

nonsense that even he finds it impossi-

ble to believe at times.

A SMM shares his world with the ones

he lovesHe tries to encourage them to do what

they would like to, but are not doing

for lack of courage.

A SMM discusses with his friends about

a topicHe never mistakes pride with vanity

and he never believes in his own

exaggerations.

A SMM is careful with small tweets

A SMM knows that the social network

is made of many different people,

as much as a debate is the product

of many words.

A SMM follows the five rules

of engagement:

1 Do believe in the conversation goal

before engaging.

2 Choose your friends and learn how

to speak with them.

3 Spot the right moment to start

the conversation.

4 Think about what is around you

and what you want to say.

5 Prepare your speech.

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Internet and social media have given great voice to the people. Companies know they are speaking about them, their products and services, whether they like it or not. To build a relationship with people on so-cial networks means engaging in a new type of com-munication, different from what companies were used to.

TheGoodOnes is the cross media agency special-ized in social media marketing. Since 2009 we cre-ate cross platform communication campaigns, we position brands in the social spaces, we engage con-sumers on different platforms, we take care of social data for customers relationship management.

TheGoodOnes

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