Ok people, big man and big woman thing now. At which point do we start seeing beyond the “Likes”? Hold on let me back it up like a dumper truck for a moment.
In the not so distant past, let’s say a mere 15 years ago, a few men and women controlled our access to the media. They decided what we saw, listened to and read, and it was a one-way conversation. If we wanted to get something out, we had to go through these gatekeepers.
Social Media is evolving quickly, and as entrepreneurs and marketers, we need to know how to leverage social media in our business. I have been analyzing social media use by Caribbean entrepreneurs vs. use by entrepreneurs in other parts of the world like North America. I realize that some trends presented themselves that Caribbean Entrepreneurs can take advantage of.
One of my fondest memories growing up was attending the Rainbow City Festival in Grenville. My boys and I would walk around Grenville and stop by all the DJ’s on the street to “shake a leg”. If we were lucky we would get a “jam” from a girl, and we’d keep it moving. My favorite spot was behind Sheila George place in Grenville. I got the most “jam “there and the vibes were always nice.
Before Wyclef Jean became known as the famous musician, actor, and entrepreneur he is today, he was just a boy from the small town of Croix-des-Bouquets, just outside of Port-au-Prince in Haiti. When he was only nine years old, his family migrated to Brooklyn New York. Upon arriving, he only spoke Haitian French but later started learning English from listening to Rap music.
One year ago, I completed my master’s degree in Digital Media. As part of my research, I created a model that organizations can use when crafting a social media campaign.
The model rest on five pillars, these are the Campaign Architecture, Narratives, Platforms and Delivery, Third Party Resources and Media Awareness. Below is a representation of the model.
I once had a client I started consulting with on his social media campaign. In particular, he was focused heavily on Facebook. Before I came on board, one of the things he was working on was setting up and growing his Facebook page.
As a social media strategist, I do not believe that to be successful on social media you need to have thousands of followers. Nevertheless, its one of the things that people seem obsessed with. Hence, if the need is to grow your social media, then so be it.
A few months after moving to Toronto, I went to a networking event for entrepreneurs. I met some fantastic people, some of whom I am still in contact with today. I remember speaking to a business coach at that event; we talked about my business aspirations. I told her I wanted to work with Caribbean entrepreneurs; I felt a need to help them, I felt the Caribbean was getting left behind where Social Media was concerned. The advice I got was, don’t do it, Caribbean entrepreneurs are not a good market if you want to make money. Fast forward a few years, I didn’t listen, I still decided to work with Caribbean entrepreneurs and business and even though the advice wasn’t bad advice. I am Grenadian, and home is where the heart is.
I have been consulting a lot with clients lately about their social media strategies and something over the past few weeks; something stood out to me. Lots of entrepreneurs do not understand some of the fundamentals of using Social Media for business. I never thought that I would find myself trying to convince a “Marketer” to put out content that has practical value for clients. I didn’t think I would have to say to a digital entrepreneur that you need to have a Facebook page to run ads. I didn’t know that I will have to convince someone who spent the last six years in marketing that developing thought leadership will not negatively affect you. I couldn’t understand how being known as an expert in your field will reflect poorly on you. Nevertheless, these are some of the things I had to deal with, so today I decided to write this post for all the awesome people out there doing social media right.
Today I chat with my friend and fellow trailblazing entrepreneur Mr. Kenroy George. Kenroy is someone who I met first digitally and then in person once I went back from to Grenada. The first time we met in person, I could feel the passion in his voice and the drive he had as an individual. So it is of no surprise to me when he reached out to me to say he was launching an all natural skin care line in Grenada. Once we began talking about this initiative, I knew I had to get this story out there to show that innovation and entrepreneurship are alive in the Caribbean.
My name is Kim Thomas. I am Grenadian; I immigrated to Canada 27 years ago to live with my mother. I grew up with my grandmother because my mom had left us with her to come to Canada to work so that we would have a better life. It was a bitter-sweet day when I left Grenada, though excited to see “the big world” as it was commonly referred to, I was very sad to leave my home.
