Deksia mines a social media niche

John Rumery

When it comes to learning about social media, there is certainly no lack of options in the West Michigan area. If you are a self-directed learner, there is wide variety of instructional materials available. A quick search on Amazon reveals thousands of books on social media.  There are a multitude of free networking and informational events, such as social media slams and lunches hosted by a variety of organizations.  There are all-day and multi-day seminars, college classes, and webinars that are readily available and can deliver insight into how to engage your customers -- all using social media.  
 
Sensing an opportunity to fill a space between the "free slams and lunches which oftentimes serve as an introduction," the "day-long seminars, which can be expensive and time consuming," and the lone-wolf world of webinars and books, Michael Yoder, Social Media Strategist with local marketing company Deksia, has created a series of training seminars that focus on the most popular social media platforms such as You Tube, Foursquare, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Yoder's workshops are 1 to 2 hour training sessions, offering three different levels of instruction based on an individual's previous experience.  For example, the LinkedIn series begins with LinkedIn 1.0, a session designed for someone who has created a profile, but hasn't engaged in the process. LinkedIn 2.0 advances the user to a more rigorous use, while LinkedIn 3.0 ends with a session for "power users."  Yoder has the same progressive series in the works for the other popular social media platforms.

To deliver the training programs, Yoder and Deskia have partnered with New Horizons Computer Learning Centers, which allows participants to meet in a high-tech classroom setting.   Currently, the training is held in the Grand Rapids and Lansing locations, but if the demand warrants, the partnership also has the potential to scale into other regions where New Horizons has a presence.

Yoder feels this type of deliver system is "affordable, bite size and specialized" and will appeal to wide variety of professionals looking for a "hands on" way to learn more about how social media can be integrated into their organization's marketing mix.  Quoting Brian Solis, an author and social media thought leader, Yoder feels the reality for all businesses in the marketplace is "engage or die."   

The workshops cost $85 per session. For more information and to register, you can to visit http://www.regonline.com/CalendarNET/EventCalendar.aspx?EventID=885242&view=Month

Source: Mike Yoder, Deksia

John Rumery is the Innovation and Jobs Editor for Rapid Growth Media. He is an educator, board member of AimWest, WYCE music programmer, entrepreneur, raconteur and competitive barbecuer living in Grand Rapids, MI.  He can be reached at [email protected]
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