Article Promotion Project Description

Background

Much of what drives traffic and revenue online is the proper promotion of engaging content. The best article that no one knows about doesn't do anyone any good. Conversely, a really solid promotion plan that drives a ton of traffic to garbage content is clickbait and isn't sustainable. The best situation is to create engaging content and a solid promotion plan that drives traffic to that content. In this unit, you will be writing an article and creating visuals to accompany that article.

Remember! A successful campaign uses multiple tweets or posts to promote an article. One tweet or post is not sufficient.

Project Components

Article

The article should be written with a specific message and with an audience in mind. The article should use best practices for online writing including the subject, formatting and length. While there is no specific length for this assignment, it should have enough value to satisfy the reader.

Visuals

The visuals that accompany the article will serve two purposes. First, they will be used in the promotion of the article on social media channels. Second, they will be used in the article to help guide the reader and reinforce or expand the concepts in the article. Due to the different sizes and displaying options of different channels, the visuals may need to be redesigned or reformatted for different channels. The visuals can take any form including, but not limited to, photography, photo manipulation, illustration, design, video, motion graphic, etc or any combination of those.

While there is not a specific number required, when you create more visuals you have more opportunities to promote your content. Remember that this is a Social Media Design course and the visuals will carry significant weight in the grading of this project.

Word lists:

A wordlist is a brainstorming activity to help you create scroll stopping images. Scroll stopping images are needed in today's current seascape to stand out amoungst the floods of content. To create a word list you will:

1. Identify 3-5 themes, ideas or concepts from the article.
2. Write them on top of the page.
3. Under each one, make a list of words or phrases (should be extensive)
4. Combine a word from 2 or more lists and see what ideas you come up with to visually represent the combination of those words

A good wordlist should help you combine/create visuals in a new way to encourage your audience to stop themselves from scrolling on social media and check out your content.

Brand Identity Project Description

Background

Throughout the semester you will run a brand identity where you will be posting to 2 social media channels regularly. In order to carve out your place on a channel with heavy competition, you need to set your brand apart and we do that by developing a brand's design and style. In this unit, you will create your brand identity and launch it online. You will design a logo, choose colors and fonts, write a voice statement and create a style guide. You will then use original photography to design and brand at least 2 social media channels (not including blogs like Wordpress).

Note:

Everything used for this project must be created during this unit and by you. You may choose to rebrand something, but it must be a COMPLETE rebrand, changing everything except the name of the brand. After the semester, you may choose to delete the pages/profiles if you'd like. While you may do this for a paying client, you MUST have complete creative control and meet all of the project criteria as stated here.

Project aspects

Voice Statement

A voice statement is a short description of the tone or mood of a brand. Every brand should feel like it has a personality; that personality is derived from the voice statement. Describe in 2-3 sentences how the brand should sound and feel like. All of your assets including copy and visuals need to fit this statement.

Logo

Create a logo and name that is unique and easily recognizable. Think iconic. Design something that people would be proud to wear and be associated with. If you'd like, you may create a series of related logos, like surf and skate brands, but this is not required. The logo(s) will be used as the foundational elements of everything else created in this project.

Style Guide

A style guide is a set of rules that help everyone stay "on brand." You will write a simple style guide describing and showing how, where and when design elements should or shouldn't be used. A style guide can be given to any other designer and they will be able to replicate that design's look and feel. The design of the style guide will help another designer know the look and feel of the brand. Therefore, the style guide should look good. The style guide should include description and information on:

• The voice statement
• Audience identification
• This is where you identify who is your primary and secondary audience. You can use statements like, stay at home moms, college students, or teens, and you should avoid general statements like 18 to 55-year-olds. Typically the audience section within a style guide works together with the voice statement.
• The logo
• This is where you identify what to do and not to do with your brand elements. You can also show primary and secondary logo options.
• The brand colors
• The colors identified should show the color scheme selected for the brand. Some brands have different color schemes based on topic, location, sub-brands, and even calls to action color indicators. In this section of the style guide, you will need to identify all colors being used and the CMYK, RGB, and Hex codes.
• The typography
• Brands have a strategy when it comes to typography. They identify at least title/header fonts, and body copy. Sometimes they will have a subheader font as well. When establishing your strategy, indicate what fonts will be used (font name) and where. What size will you typically use the font. The color of the typography, and usually you will have two colors per font, and anything else pertinent.
• Examples of photography
• This is where you will show at least two examples of the type of photography you will use. You need to provide a description of the types of images, subject matter, and if any post processing styles always/shouldn't be used. For example, will you always use the Claredon filter on Instagram.
• Examples of design elements
• Most brands will have other design elements which help support the look and feeling of the brand. Show these examples and talk about how to use them.

You may want to spend a few minutes researching style guides online.

Images

Shoot and edit several images which fit with the voice of your brand. Customers know the difference between stock photography and unique branded photography. The brand voice should be prominent in the unique photography you create. This also is your chance to shoot photography not only for your channels but for any posts/updates you're planning to do this semester. The final images may be mixed media (photo with designed elements) or simply a well composed and touched up photo. Research how different brands use different styles to match their voice in their images (BYU-Idaho, for example, uses attractive students smiling in front of blurred campus buildings)

Branded Social Media Channels

You will be styling at least two social media channels with your brand. Different channels offer different opportunities to promote the voice and visuals of your brand. Each channel should be styled and designed specifically for that channel, but there should be a unified feel from one channel to the next. In other words, don't just use the same image on each channel, but make sure that the brand voice is recognizable on each channel. Research how brands implement their style and voice on different social media channels.

Additional Help

Adobe Illustrator Basics with Workflow & Organizations - https://youtu.be/2R2ZOiCHtWU
Adobe Illustrator Basics - the pen tool & anchor points - https://youtu.be/ovGF2K0gCAc

Native Video Project Description

Background

In this unit, you will create a branded video utilizing the brand voice created during the brand identity project. One of the most important strategies in content marketing today is video. The platforms of distribution for video content online have continued to shift. Facebook is getting more daily minutes watched than YouTube, Snapchat's daily views are now in the billions, and video on Twitter has taken listening and one to one branding to a whole new level.

The video you create should sell your brand. The video may be entertaining, educational or emotional. It should not feel like a hard sell. Social advertising generally feels like normal content, with just a hint of a brand attachment. Like we have learned this semester, it comes down to the content of your video. Also remember, native videos are first viewed without sound and therefore should use subtitles.

A video is not a slide show of photos. The project needs to be moving images, and not just photos with a kens burn effect.

(Transcript of Native Video Project Overview Video)

Project Components

Script

Any video is better when it has a little bit of a story behind it, and what’s the best way of creating a little story? You got it – by writing it down. Writing a script will also make your video more organized. You get into that planning mood where you are 100% thinking about what is the purpose of the video. You get to sit down and think about what is the message that you want to communicate and what is the outcome you expect to get.

The first thing you want to do is to break the video script into different sections or chapters if you will. Any video script should contain at least these 3 sections:

1. The Hook
2. The Body
3. The Call To Action

Story Board

A storyboard is a piece of paper with boxes drawn on it that show how every shot in a marketing video will be visually represented. Shots can be quite elaborate creations or simply rough sketches. The purpose is to outline each shot to see how to help the director, the camera person, and the editor put the video together. Sometimes, the storyboarding process is used to flesh out the concept into more tangible action shots before scripting. Sometimes storyboarding comes first, and sometimes scripting comes first. The storyboarding process may be easier for you to complete if you think more visually than just words on a page.

Do not skip this step or shortchange it. Storyboarding will save you time when it comes time to filming.

Shot List

A good shot list maximizes shooting time and limits downtime across all departments. In this post, we lay out the essentials of a shot list, and provide the only film & photography shot list template you’ll ever need, free.

A shot list is a full list of all the shots that are part of your film, with minute information for each of them. Creative shot choices aside, it’s easy to forget that a shot list is a strategic document. Creating a shot list is essentially like creating a shooting gameplan for the day.

Music

Music needs to be added to the native video. Music can greatly enhance a video by evoking impactful emotions. Illegally obtained music is the quickest way to get your videos removed from social media. This means you need to use music where copyright license has been obtained. You can do this by using music from stock sites, using sites which provide music with the proper licensing or by contacting the artist.

Things to look for when shooting

• Types of shots
• Shot list examples
• Composition in film
• What is B-Roll
• Picking the best music
• How to Shoot Smooth CINEMATIC VIDEO on your iPhone!
• How to Shoot a Travel Video
• How to Shoot an Interview
• Cinematic Lighting

Post Production Help

• Adobe Premiere Basics
• Adobe Premiere Editing Color
• Social Media Video Specs Guide

Paid Ad Project

Background

In this project you will create and implement 3 Paid Advertising Campaigns. You will run at least 2 ads on one channel and the third promotion on your second channel. You may drive traffic anywhere you choose, but your visuals and copy for the ads must be made from scratch during this unit. You will spend approximately $5 per advertisement.

No Free Lunch

There was a short window, when social media was young, that you could get all of the benefits without spending any money. Early on, the quality of your content was the only thing that mattered, but social media companies need to turn a profit. Each one will have a different business model, some more effective than others, but they all have ways to promote your brand, message, etc. They need you to pay for services, so they'll limit the amount that you can get for free. Don't kid yourself, there is no free lunch. In this unit, you'll be introduced to some of the features available to promote things on social media channels.

What to promote

You may promote what you'd like. Different channels allow you different options including promoting websites, gaining followers, and getting likes. You might want to promote your website or run a campaign to increase your social media influence. Either way, be very clear during the planning process what your objectives are.

Project Components

Ads (copy & visual)

You will need to write copy and create visuals specific to each channel. Every ad platform is slightly different in the way it displays the ads. Your ads may be very similar from one channel to the next, but don't make the mistake of assuming that all ad platforms are the same.

Your copy and visuals will be created from start to finish during this unit.

Visual Comps are similar to what you produced for the Article Promotion project, basically refined thumbnails. Mockups are screenshots of the type of ad you're doing with your comps photoshopped into them.

Segmentation Ideas

There are many ways to do this; they all involve figuring out ways to reach your audience. You may want to find TV Shows, books or movies that your audience likes and target those. Or you may have a similar message to a well-known influencer. Your audience might be in a specific industry or have a certain type of job title. During this stage, you'll identify as many ways to segment your audience as you can think of. Be creative. You may want to consider doing a "mind map" to find as many ways to segment as possible.

Segmentation Plan

Each channel has different options on how to segment based on the amount of information that they have on their users. Get on the ad platform of each channel in your IPPIE plan and begin to build your ad campaigns by segmenting your audience. Find out the audience count for each segmentation qualification on at least one channel.

Additional Learning:

Here are some videos that might help in setting up your ads:

• Facebook - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eb6v2Ktdn8s, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7ers2RZxqA
• Instagram and Facebook - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ec2rPFrdAmY&spfreload=5
• Twitter - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fd8Ai1TOc58
• Pinterest - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hk9yOWpO2mY

Summary Presentation Project Description

Background

Throughout this semester you have been running 2 social media channels. For this final project, you will present what you have learned and what you've improved this semester on your social channels. This presentation, if done right, will be a great portfolio piece. This project will be a presentation deck and a  video presentation talking about your success. Below are some examples we see in the industry, which should help you come up with some ideas.

Professional Examples

Squatty Potty

Subaru, Make a Dog's Day

Hotels.com Silent Ads

Student Examples

If you would like to see some student examples go to this Pinterest board.

Project Components

Presentation Content

Although you are about to see some ideas of what to include in your presentation, don't treat these concepts checklist list. Your presentation should make sense and sometimes that means doing things in a different order or include more information. This is the bare minimum your presentation requires:

Background

Create slides and talk about where you started out. Talk about how you came up or got involved with the brand and how the brand was positioned. Talk about the followers you had at the begging and the original thoughts of who your audience was. The background should lead nicely into what you learned over the semester and how you either refined your original ideas or changed them.

Posts

Through the semester you should have been posting regularly. Without regularly posting, you won't have an opportunity to grow your channels. Talk about where, what , when and how you were posting. Discuss what you learned and how it improved over the course of the semester.

Growth

How you and the channels have grown will be the true indicator of how you've done this semester. Talk about the channel's growth, which isn't always a number of likes (engagement and others could also be an indicator of growth.)

Presentation Design

This project focuses on creating a well-designed presentation. You should start by looking back at your style guide and design the presentation based on your brand. Use design principles to create your own templates. This presentation design should be entirely your work, no templates should be copied or used. 

Presentation video

You will create a 2-3 minute presentation video to finish off this project. The video should cover the presentation you've created and the content you've put together. You can create the video in any program you would like and doesn't need to include your face. If your brand is about yourself, you probably should show yourself.