Week 3: A Conversation with Guest Speaker Sara Dunaj by Katherine Holman
By UCLA X469.21 Student Katherine Holman
“You can measure just about anything, but doing so doesn’t mean your strategies or tactics are going to be successful.”
Katherine Holman
Sara Dunaj, social media manager at Princess Cruises, was our Week 3 guest speaker to present an overview on social media analytics. Whether you like it or not, social media has become a key marketing platform for most industries. It allows any brand, organization and individual to reach an audience directly like never before with just one click of a button. Sara explained how important that simple click of a button can be.
Measurement and analytics are an essential part of any social media campaign. Sara dove into multiple ways one can use analytics to measure success and make refinements informed by the data.
Sara Dunaj
She discussed multiple methods and tools. A few of her favorite platforms include Sprinklr, Sprout Social, and Tailwind, just to name a few. Data and analytics are a story in themselves, and reacting to the data in the right way can make or break a campaign.
Something I found especially interesting was how Sara’s content calendar changes so frequently. She stressed that it is important to break down each piece of content to make sure it tells a story. As social media manager, she makes sure her content falls in line with what her audience is craving, even if it isn’t what she may have had planned.
Sara also spent some time discussing how she works with influencers throughout her campaigns. Influencers are now used more than ever due to the high level of trust they have built with their audience, as well as their ability to help brands reach new, previously unattainable demographics.
Today is a very exciting time for marketers due to the opportunities afforded by social media. Among the key points I took away from Sara’s discussion is the importance of data. Data tells a story. There is no point to starting a campaign if you don’t have clear goals and a clear way to measure success. One needs to ask, “What am I hoping to get out of this campaign?” Based on Sara’s advice, analytics and data can help you get where you need to go.
