Chapter 9 of "The Art of Social Media" held some good information. The chapter discussed the necessary steps to take in order to run a successful Twitter chat. It explained that you need to be able to use the appropriate tools for the hat to run smoothly. Being completely oblivious to the wonder/horror that is Twitter, this chapter opened me up to a lot of new information. While most of the terms used throughout the chapter meant very little to me, I believe someone well versed on Twitter would be able to easily understand what was being said. I also believe with the appropriate knowledge someone would have an easy time using the information that was given.
Another piece of advice was to choose a useful and simple hashtag. This idea has been a running theme throughout the book, but I believe it is a valuable resource to always keep in mind. Having only recently learned the purpose of hashtags, I am still amazed at the usefulness they hold. It makes perfect sense that a hashtag should be used to organize and make the chat findable.
I also felt that creating a draft of questions before actually hosting the chat is a valuable decision to make. When you do this, it allows for your followers to properly prepare for the discussion. Posting a draft of possible questions ensures that more articulated and well-thought-out answers will be given. This will help to carry the conversation along and can give great insight into what others believe on the topic.
As for Chapter 10, I have a drastically different opinion. Chapter 10 covers information regarding buying followers and likes, asking people to follow you and reshare your posts, announcing your unfollows and, swearing. I believe that in such a well organized and informational book, this chapter does not fit. Its information should already be common knowledge to those reading it. The topics discussed should be included in a book for younger people just learning to use social media. The authors expertly used a comparison to middle schoolers and I believe the middle school age range is the exact target audience of the chapter. Chapter 10 was more of a comedic break than anything.
My impression of the book has been that it should help you cultivate yourself more online and across many platforms. It is with that mindset that I believe this chapter is slightly insulting to have near the end of the book. It suggests that this is new information we were unaware of at the beginning, which is incorrect. Every person has some sense of what it means to be professional and understand the advice listed in Chapter 10 should be avoided with little exception. We, on some level, understand that in most cases it’s unprofessional to swear in a businesslike situation. I believe that we are also already aware of the fact that we will be viewed in a less pleasurable light if we call people out for unfollowing us than the person who unfollowed us.
